Michael Porter @MichaelPorter@qoto.org
- Pronouns
- he/him
- Size
- XLT
- Philosophy
- Humanist
- Politics
- Lefty-Antifa
Retired Chem/Physics/Earth Sciences teacher. I'm interested in everything.
I like a good debate that introduces me to other perspectives. I don't waste much time with people who devolve to name-calling or insults, aside to call them out on it.
I think society performs at its best when we take care of others, especially the weakest among us. That means a strong social safety net, with "free" healthcare, education, and public transit. It's a dream, I know.
30+ years of explaining stuff to teenagers has left me with some habits... I'm not a mansplainer, but I *do* like to find ways to 'splain stuff to receptive ears 😊
I like dogs, cats, and astronomy pictures with a bias towards the shorter wavelengths (kinda leaves out all those lovely Hα pics 😄).
The first thing I look at when shopping for cars is headroom/legroom. Saves a lot of time.
Joined Nov 2022
Michael Porter
boosted
Michael Porter
boosted
ESO's Very Large Telescope got sharper infrared eyes! The new ERIS instrument just finished its test observations.
ERIS combines the capabilities of two previous instruments, NACO & SINFONI. All 3 use(d) adaptive optics to correct for the blurring of Earth's atmosphere. But ERIS's new adaptive optics module, working together with the VLT's adaptive optics facility, deliver sharper observations and with better sensitivity
More info: https://www.eso.org/public/announcements/ann22015/
📷 ESO/ERIS team
The TP-Link router help page has a bunch of videos (that I won't be able to view when I go to set up my home network) instead of a downloadable manual or set of instructions. Doesn't matter, though, they're all for Windows computers.
E-Z instructions for setting up your router:
Step 1: Remove the router and all cables from the box.
Step 2: Plug in your router and turn it on.
Step 3: Make sure the automatically synchronizing cardinal grammeters are connected to the ambifacient lunar waneshaft, and ensure that the drawn reciprocation dingle arm (to reduce sinusoidal depleneration) is in place
Michael Porter
boosted
Was at CHEO Monday morning. Kid was there for dental surgery. The unit was only being used at 40% of it's capacity because half the day surgery unit is now used as the paediatric ICU overflow, PICU2 as it was labelled.
That a mask requirement has to be debated down at the individual school board level is an indictment of Provincial leadership.
That Premiers across the country willingly abdicate the responsibility to protect children's health is discouraging and demoralizing.
@undefined @BrownKnowser Very nice 😊
Michael Porter
boosted
Pinhey Forest http://bit.ly/3i5UqOp. Wandering the snowy trails behind the Nepean Sportsplex.
A Brown Knowser #blog post for Wordless Wednesday.
OntEd + School Mask Motion
@erin I heard the report on the local CBC News this morning. I thought calling this group "members of the public" was *excessively* charitable. 🤢
@JennyLeeShee@mas.to ...Just need to replace the soundtrack with this and it will be perfectly serene 😄
https://youtu.be/1ihFE99Wo8w
Interesting and challenging* article on the quantum nature of things:
https://bigthink.com/starts-with-a-bang/quantum-fields-quantum-particles/
Challenging for me, because of some unfamiliar physics and my tendency towards distraction; but also because I *still* have big problems with the mismatch between General Relativity's "Gravity is not a force" and everywhere else where it seems to be considered a field with gravitons as the force-carrying particles.
In the end, all of these are models, and I guess you pick the one that works best for you today. But it will be cool if we come up with a model that incorporates quantum theory and gravity.
@atwright I like this! I'm really curious as to how my IB Chem students would have responded to this. I have the impression that they would be freaked out at the loss of time and wouldn't want to do it... But maybe I'm wrong - interested in what others think.
Michael Porter
boosted
During an IB economics exam today I gave students 2 minutes in the middle of the 80 min exam to get up and talk to their peers.
The mood lightened, positive energy was restored, and students later said that it helped.
Because students were writing long responses to questions, I doubt there is much need to worry about cheating.
On balance I would say “the juice was worth the squeeze”; the benefits outweighed the cost.
Has anyone else tried this? #edutwitter
Michael Porter
boosted
Brand new cartoon: Two abreast
Some of the thinking behind this cartoon, plus info on reuse, etc: https://davewalker.com/two-abreast/
Michael Porter
boosted
Canada is at the #WorldCup today.
A fun promo the organizers are offering at the event – the first 1000 Canadian spectators will receive a goodie bag containing the last worldly possessions of a migrant worker killed in the construction of their very stadium.
Michael Porter
boosted
🇳🇱
Sp I wrote a pretty lengthy blog post entitled:
# Eugen Rochko, CEO of Mastodon, Found to Support Nazi's Agenda
Sadly I wish it was clickbait.
You can all read it here:
https://jeffreyfreeman.me/eugen-rochko-ceo-of-mastodon-found-to-support-nazis-agenda/
It is the pinnacle of the recent drama. I will also be sharing it on twitter, linking the joinmastodon account there. I tried to include most of the evidence in the article. Hopefully this will have some positive result
Messy body functions 💩
@trinsec It sure shines a different light on the whole "Right Stuff" narrative - I know they mentioned the Alan Shepard peeing incident, but you just don't quite get the magnitude of the adversities faced by astronauts even today until you read Mary Robinette's account 😄
Messy body functions 💩
OMG, this is so funny... and alarming. If you have a 12-year-old's sense of humour (like me), you owe it to yourself to read. Many belly laughs!
https://wandering.shop/@maryrobinette/109367184676487901
@maryrobinette They never had these problems on Star Trek... "Scotty, beam it out!"
Michael Porter
boosted
Mary Robinette Kowal dropping truth bombs about going to the bathroom in #space as it relates to sexism is the content I didn't know I needed this morning.
A short thread: https://mastodon.social/@maryrobinette@wandering.shop/109367215438992930
- Pronouns
- he/him
- Size
- XLT
- Philosophy
- Humanist
- Politics
- Lefty-Antifa
Retired Chem/Physics/Earth Sciences teacher. I'm interested in everything.
I like a good debate that introduces me to other perspectives. I don't waste much time with people who devolve to name-calling or insults, aside to call them out on it.
I think society performs at its best when we take care of others, especially the weakest among us. That means a strong social safety net, with "free" healthcare, education, and public transit. It's a dream, I know.
30+ years of explaining stuff to teenagers has left me with some habits... I'm not a mansplainer, but I *do* like to find ways to 'splain stuff to receptive ears 😊
I like dogs, cats, and astronomy pictures with a bias towards the shorter wavelengths (kinda leaves out all those lovely Hα pics 😄).
The first thing I look at when shopping for cars is headroom/legroom. Saves a lot of time.
Joined Nov 2022
