Imunitas @GODan@qoto.org

POLL: If you've been on #Mastodon for over a week and used it each day, how likely are you to go back to using Twitter on a regular basis?

Boost for a larger sample size please.

#introduction

Hi! I'm an #atheist #humanist and #skeptic looking to respectfully engage online here with people I disagree with. And maybe people who agree with me too!

I don't believe in #god , and in fact I'm pretty sure no such thing exists, but I'm willing to consider the alternatives and change my mind.

Are you a #christian who believes in #jesus , or any other #religion , and want to explore whether or not you have good reasons to think that it's true? I'm happy to have that conversation!

I'm willing to admit when I'm wrong. Are you?

@jerry hey jerry // newbie to this space // #selfhosting under my own domain with singular user

Do you have any recommendations?

How do I get other servers content relayed into me so that the trends // feed firehose is more useful?

Any reading recommendations?

#thanks

Hey! Your friends appreciate you.

#science #fiction #ScienceFiction #SciFi #FTW #film #movie #mars #space #spaceship #mission #zeroG #gravity #earth #alien #meteorite #FX #GarySinise #TimRobbins #DonCheadle #ConnieNielsen #JerryOConnell #DePalma

Retro SciFi Film of the Week…

Mission to Mars (2000)

This film got great reviews in Europe but lousy reviews in the US. I suspect the lousy reviews were due to something other than the quality of the film because this is a well-made film. The sets and props are about the best I’ve seen, and the CG (computer graphics) are also well done.

The writing is a little weak, especially the dialogue, but these seasoned actors were able to bring those words to life. The plot is nothing special and the narrative is just a straight, linear story throughout – no flashbacks or flash-forwards. It’s a very easy film to watch and doesn’t demand much from the audience, but it’s still entertaining and realistic for the most part. There are a lot of lines of exposition in this film, but I think the filmmakers wanted to make sure anyone could watch this one and easily follow the plot.

Gary Sinise (Lt. Dan from Forrest Gump) gets the most screen time of the main characters, while Don Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda) got the least, and Cheadle was also given the majority of the clumsy exposition lines. (I wonder why?) The women were also slighted in this film, but sadly that’s typical for 20th century Hollywood.

Visually the film was fantastic with realistic scenes on Mars and in space which was somewhat reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey. They didn’t get the science right all the time, and some of the situations and problems they faced were kind of unrealistic, but that’s par for Hollywood.

This is a great film for a family, or a group of people that may include those who might struggle with a more complex plot line or who prefer a temporally linear presentation but it’s entertaining for science geeks, too.

(image from film, fair use)

🌇 Artist: #JoeAndMax ( #JoeHill ) - in City: #Dublin Ireland 🇮🇪 - #streetart #art #mastoart #mural #graffiti #3dart #artwork

In the 1980s the Nepal government gave forests to local communities to manage.

Since then tree cover has doubled, reducing floods and landslides and allowing endangered plant and animal species, including the tiger, to thrive.

Story by the NYT: https://indianexpress.com/article/world/nepal-trees-come-back-deforestation-victory-8261931/

All the magic of academia is gone by then 😅

#academia #PhD #science #xp @OpenAcademics @AcademicChatter

@GODan

https://www.austincc.edu/adechene/Nietzsche%20on%20truth%20and%20lies.pdf

Some #history for this week's #PharmPhriday!

In 1241, Holy Roman Emperor King Frederick II's Edict of Salerno legally separated the work of physicians from pharmacists and fixed prices for drugs and services, to prevent overcharging the sick.

#Medicine #MedicalHistory

Lovely light this afternoon as the #sun went down

Belated #introduction now that I’m giving the bird the bird. I’m resolved to be more of a free spirit on here - broaden my horizons a little. Even I don’t know everything I’m interested in! I suppose the more I toot, and the more I interact, the more obvious it will become. I do sincerely hope we aren’t like the tourists who flock to a place for its beauty and then proceed to ruin it with big hotels and shopping malls. It’s all felt very welcoming so far. Thank you for your patience.

Happy Friday!

Turns out Twitter was the cage, not the bird

A lot of people are asking about the difference between Twitter and Mastodon, so I did my own research. Please note that this is not yet peer reviewed.

Teaching your child to read is one of the great joys in life. I've had the privilege in doing this twice now (the second time is at its beginning stages).

So someone messaged me privately and asked how absolute this is.. like would we block an instance calling for genocide. I feel my response is import to reiterate here, so here it is:

Its not just about the authorities, it is about the people whose lives are at risk by that call to genocide having the right to see those posts and use that information to look out for their own safety... If someone is doxed, they should know, if someone is threatened, they should know, and they should be able to take action.

Someone saying violent things online doesnt guarantee some police officer will meander by and take them down. The law only tends to get involved once someone is reported, and sometimes not even then. No one will be reporting a site if no one can see or know it is there.

The question is, if someone is being physically threatened and having their life in jeopardy how are you helping them by blocking the privileges of the **victim** and disallowing the victim the right to see the threat placed against them?

In short, I refuse to take away rights from the victim simply because there is a violent bad actor out there. If the victim doesn't want to see it they simply need to import the block list and the problem is solved for them, so why not keep the power in the victims hands?