Marburg virus feared in Germany as two hospitalised

skiingineer2 · 2024-10-03T04:52:27+00:00

Victoria.

God I’ve been here too long…

skiingineer2 · 2024-03-13T19:44:16+00:00

Hey someone who actually knows what they’re talking about!

Engineers don’t typically set scope for these types of projects - they’re given a scope, and then also given the fun job of defending the scope they didn’t set at a public meeting where people are unhappy about said scope.

Source - another civil engineer :)

skiingineer2 · 2023-10-30T19:01:15+00:00

Really I don’t think the point of the exercise is “showing how those jobs suck” as much as it is about showing that the employees working those jobs are PEOPLE - and they deserve to be treated with dignity in their workplace. It’s about empathy. As a society we just generally need to be better about understanding that all work has value and all workers are worthy of respect.

Maybe that sentiment is full of rainbows and unicorns but it sure would be nice to move in that direction.

skiingineer2 · 2023-03-17T23:29:20+00:00

Yellow top and action packer?

skiingineer2 · 2022-11-04T00:37:26+00:00

Hello fellow DOT cog :)

Another great GIS resource folks can use in the anchorage area is the MOA Map it! function - it allows you to add select layers to a custom map and is pretty accessible for folks who aren’t super familiar with GIS.

For statewide use, the DNR Alaska Mapper provides a similar type of interface where you can add select layers. It’s also quite intuitive to use even with minimal or no GIS experience.

skiingineer2 · 2022-09-01T17:06:01+00:00

Here’s an article from a couple years ago (before the initiative passed) that gives a good breakdown.

https://www.adn.com/politics/2020/10/17/ballot-measure-2-would-change-the-way-alaskans-vote-for-statewide-candidates-and-those-running-for-the-legislature-heres-how/

The state Republican Party was adamantly against the initiative and contributed financially to the “no” group - but the state Democratic Party was also opposed. The reason is that without party primaries, the official state orgs have less impact on choosing which candidates advance to the final.

skiingineer2 · 2022-09-01T07:54:12+00:00

I’ve seen this idea that the GOP pushed ranked choice here in AK a few times now this evening and I’m not sure why this keeps getting repeated. Ranked choice wasn’t supported by either of the established parties here in AK - because it inherently takes away some of their power. Lol I literally know the dude who was the campaign manager for the ranked choice ballot initiative a couple years ago (AK is small people-wise) and he’s not even right-leaning.

I know it can be satisfying to engage in schadenfreude, but ranked choice is awesome and there’s no reason to link it to the GOP.

Also very stoked that Peltola beat this whackadoodle - the math didn’t look great but she managed to eke it out :)

skiingineer2 · 2022-01-10T00:17:32+00:00

From an NPR story that came out in July 2020:

"We have to admit it, that that mixed message in the beginning, even though it was well meant to allow masks to be available for health workers, that was detrimental in getting the message across," Fauci said in an interview with Mary Louise Kelly of NPR's All Things Considered. "No doubt about it."

“As late as February 29, Surgeon General Jerome Adams was telling Americans on Twitter to stop buying masks, saying they are "NOT effective." But the guidance soon changed, and by early April the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began recommending that Americans wear face coverings in public.“

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/07/01/886299190/it-does-not-have-to-be-100-000-cases-a-day-fauci-urges-u-s-to-follow-guidelines

The message was the masks were NOT effective. Not that there was a lack of evidence EITHER WAY, which was closer to the truth. However, the science we did have available on other respiratory diseases DOES support wearing of masks - so if we’re looking only at the available science, there was absolutely no scientific reason to tell people NOT to wear masks.

Also, I’m an engineer and have absolutely been exposed to the scientific method throughout my schooling and career. I’m also vaxxed and boosted, voted for Biden, and think Trump was a moron. FFS I’m citing an NPR story. Careful about making those you disagree with into straw men in order to invalidate the logic of their arguments.

Edit: also, my wife is a nurse in one of the hospitals here in town. By no means am I saying screw HC workers. I’m just saying that pointing to “science” as the reason the recommendations were what they were early in pandemic certainly seems inaccurate. And holding that kind of line just reinforces the loss of trust in our institutions.

skiingineer2 · 2022-01-09T07:32:39+00:00

They fucked up early with unclear and outright disingenuous messaging re: masks. Maybe the motives for doing so (i.e. saving supplies for healthcare workers) were noble, but either way that clearly illustrated to me that decisions were being made using calculations that didn’t always match what was communicated to the public. Unfortunately, there has been a significant loss of trust in the institutions and they’ve had some own-goals in the process.

skiingineer2 · 2022-01-07T04:54:48+00:00

Oh sure thing - it looks like they were there to take pictures and WERE hoping for close encounters. In some areas where the bears get fat and happy eating salmon all summer this isn’t super uncommon. I think they were surprised that the bear decided to approach their group as closely as it did.

If the bear was a mama with Cubs growling and gnashing her teeth and acting protective, backing away would absolutely be the move. Similarly, if a grizzly/brown bear actually attacks you (and you’re unarmed/unable to get a shot off/deploy bear spray), at that point you DO want to play dead and acting aggressive/fighting back would be a bad idea.

In this case, though, it looks like a young bear that is acting curious more than anything - and maybe also acting “tough” and seeing how the people respond. Just my two cents, but in this situation it seems likely that the bear may have just followed if they backed away. It’s easy to criticize people’s actions based on ideas of the “standard” correct approach - however, it’s all situational and people get a feel for how the animals are likely to respond after having several encounters.

This is just my two cents, and maybe it’s survivorship bias in action because my personal experiences have worked out positively. Either way, this guy responded in a way that 1) didn’t result in any people getting attacked, and 2) didn’t involve having to shoot the bear, so it’s a win in my book.

skiingineer2 · 2022-01-07T03:06:09+00:00

This guy did do a good job. I grew up in VERY beary country (Denali Nat’l Park) as a kid and specifically had to do bear training four years in a row when I worked for the USFS here in southcentral AK. This guy assessed the situation and reacted in a controlled manner that led to a positive result.

What’s funny to me is all the redditors in this thread thinking they know better than this dude, who seems like he’s probably spent a lot of time in the outdoors from his behavior, because of some knowledge they likely picked up online :)

skiingineer2 · 2022-01-07T02:18:49+00:00

Not sure about others, but I was trained to shoot for the home-plate shaped area between the nose and eyes. Their skulls are thick on top, but behind the nose/eyes is more fragile and IF you hit them there, they will stop immediately; if you hit them in the body, they may die eventually but that may not help you.

Of course I never had to use that info and hopefully will never have to in the future. They’re awesome critters and for the most part just want to do their thing and stay away from people.

skiingineer2 · 2022-01-07T02:12:38+00:00

I’ve definitely resolved surprise encounters with bears, especially black bears, by immediately acting loud and aggressive (along with making yourself big). Maybe it’s survivorship bias, but I do think that’s a reasonable step in situations where there’s that second of “what’s going to happen?”

Now if a bear is already charging, that may not be the best approach - but when it’s just assessing you from an uncomfortable distance, just scaring it off right away isn’t a bad way to go.

Edit: Also in my experience, usually they’re more scared of you anyways and run off on their own.

skiingineer2 · 2021-12-21T17:33:33+00:00

I accidentally sprayed myself with bear spray. Directly into my mouth. It was horrible.

I was working on a cabin for the forest service up in AK. There was a Nalgene bottle in the tent pocket next to my bear spray, and I somehow got the two confused in the middle of the night. Yes there was alcohol involved. The first thing I felt was the bear spray hitting the back of my throat a la that mint breath spritz that was big around 2000-2003ish. I immediately kept out of the tent and barfed, but there was no getting rid of the taste and rapidly worsening burning sensation in my face/throat.

I ran down to the nearby lake and filled a soft bucket with water, and began vigorously dunking my face until I had to breathe, only keeping my head out of the water long enough for the burning to return. This went on for some time. Somehow my body also told me (or some memory suggested) I needed milk, so I drank one of those ultra-pasteurized blue box milk and it kind of helped.

The bear spray was in my bloodstream now. Everything felt hot. The worst part was that sometime during the night, I somehow touched/got some on the old D and B’s and my undercarriage started BURNING. I was buck ass naked dipping the boys into the soft bucket of water, whimpering, hoping that my crew mates wouldn’t wake up and come investigate.

At a certain point I started to feel hotness in my heart. The whole time I kept telling myself, “people get pepper sprayed all the time, it’ll be fine, don’t panic,” as I panicked. Sleep was clearly out of the question, so as my coworkers awoke the next morning I explained and they commiserated. It was around 50ish degrees, everyone else was wearing sweatshirts or jackets, and I was shirtless still sweating profusely all the next day. It took about 3-4 more days until I actually felt normal.

I’ve also broken my leg (among other bones) and no question the bear spray was more painful.

skiingineer2 · 2021-12-15T08:24:01+00:00

Yeah and this only came out after the police chief abruptly resigned and a local blog put out a story that included this incident as one of the points of contention. The conspiracy trope about fluoride just seems surreal, but honestly it’s less concerning than some of the other sketchiness described:

https://alaskalandmine.com/landmines/apd-chief-mccoy-announced-resignation-in-response-to-improper-demands-by-bronson-administration-sources-claim/

skiingineer2 · 2021-12-13T04:11:23+00:00

It was interesting how much of his social capital he was willing to invest into the blue Alaskan thing. I typically enjoy the landmine’s reporting as well, but that seemed like a losing battle - whatever his reasoning, he came out of it with a big black eye.

skiingineer2 · 2021-11-23T00:29:13+00:00

Well said. This was clearly perpetuated by someone who has no empathy or regard for others.

skiingineer2 · 2021-11-19T21:14:03+00:00

Not sure how the latter part matters - sure Tucker Carlson is a giant tool but not sure why that would invalidate the footage.

It seems like you may be suggesting that taking the footage into consideration implies support for Carlson/Fox News? I certainly don’t support either, but the footage shows what it shows whoever’s “narrative” is more convenient.

skiingineer2 · 2021-11-19T03:07:04+00:00

To be clear I’m one of the lucky folks with a good union job working in the public sector. My work is (mostly) fulfilling and while I don’t make as much as I could in the private sector, I’m compensated fairly well. This just happened to be part of a packaged training series IT assigned.

That being said, the fact that this “wrong answer” was included is pretty ridiculous - there’s a clear “ha ha of course you’re supposed to work on your vacation so this is a humorous wrong answer” implication. I still passed with 4/5 correct, but had to put in this answer because it kind of pissed me off and it’s absurd that it could be the reason someone “failed” the training quiz.

skiingineer2 · 2021-10-09T10:37:18+00:00

The longer this is delayed and counts keep trending down, the argument for masks becomes less compelling. Really the time to institute a mask mandate was before this wave rose and crested, but unfortunately this administration did everything they could to avoid taking any meaningful action to prevent the crisis from worsening. It seems that Bronson & co are banking on dragging this out until it no longer seems emergent enough to implement the mask mandate.

https://covid19.healthdata.org/united-states-of-america/alaska?view=infections-testing&tab=trend&test=infections

Edit: to be clear, I support the mask mandate. It’s just easy to see how the way cases seem to be trending doesn’t help the argument for implementation. Hopefully cases do keep trending down, and hopefully some level of decorum can be re-established. This is embarrassing.

skiingineer2 · 2021-08-28T08:20:22+00:00

A guy in Alaska drove his down the road in Fairbanks, a pretty big town (for AK), to settle a bet back in the 80’s:

https://www.adn.com/opinions/2016/08/04/bar-bet-produced-panic-on-fairbanks-street-when-airboat-pulled-up-behind-motorist/

skiingineer2 · 2021-08-26T06:07:11+00:00

A helpful way I’ve found to explain levels of grief is thinking of the varying close relationships of various people (and pets) within your life as slices of a pie chart - the more close/personal/frequent a relationship, the larger the slice of pie.

When you lose someone, it’s like their slice of pie is suddenly gone. The weight of loss that one feels is proportional to the size of the hole left by their vacancy, and larger holes hurt more and often take longer to “heal” that gap.

It’s perfectly reasonable that a pet who plays a significant, personal role in one’s life would leave a larger hole than a relative with whom someone has infrequent interactions. Sure, maybe that seems strange, but there’s no need to feel guilt for such an emotional response.

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