• 0 Posts
  • 245 Comments
Joined 1 year ago
cake
Cake day: July 5th, 2023

help-circle

  • There are two reasons he believes the neocortex could be replaced, albeit only slowly. The first is evidence from rare cases of benign brain tumors, like a man described in the medical literature who developed a growth the size of an orange. Yet because it grew very slowly, the man’s brain was able to adjust, shifting memories elsewhere, and his behavior and speech never seemed to change—even when the tumor was removed.

    That’s proof, Hébert thinks, that replacing the neocortex little by little could be achieved “without losing the information encoded in it” such as a person’s self-identity.

    The second source of hope, he says, is experiments showing that fetal-stage cells can survive, and even function, when transplanted into the brains of adults. For instance, medical tests underway are showing that young neurons can integrate into the brains of people who have epilepsy and stop their seizures.

    “It was these two things together—the plastic nature of brains and the ability to add new tissue—that, to me, were like, ‘Ah, now there has got to be a way,’” says Hébert.

    Very interesting. I’ve also seen research suggesting that the application of stem cells to damaged neural tissue within the spinal cord could repair it, so the idea that you could use a similar approach to actual brain health isn’t such a big leap. But still, wow. I wonder how long it would take for the immature cells to develop into “adult mode” that’s fully integrated into the patients cortex. In order to replace the entire brain, you’d have to do it in like, 8 parts, with years of recovery time in between each surgery. Also there would exist the potential for the new cells to develop into like, a second, smaller brain, if the connections sour or if the new material isn’t stimulated the “right” way.


  • “The men came over to the car again and stood in front of it for a few minutes. Finally when they left, the car was still stalled but I clicked the ‘in car support’ on the screen and they seemed to be aware of the issue,” Amina said. “They asked if I was OK and the car began to drive towards my location. They asked if I needed police support and I said no.”

    When she was almost to her destination, Waymo support called her again to ask if she was ok, she said. “I assured him that I was fine and he told me I would be given a free ride after,” she said. “After many hours I was called one last time by their support team. They asked if I was OK and told me that they have 24/7 support available. They also said I would get the next ride or next two rides (uncertain) free.”

    While scary, I’m left kinda impressed by Waymo’s support.









  • I’ve been catfished no less than three separate times.

    Each one would post pictures of themselves that were either from when they were much younger, or in heavily contorted positions that hid their true proportions. I’m a very in-shape guy, and want my partner to be able to do things like hike/bike long distances with me, go climbing, outdoorsy stuff that I really enjoy.

    Each one I felt like I had a connection with, but the fact that they concealed this was ultimately what lead me to break things off (in an amicable but forthright manner - “I like you but you misled me with your pictures, and that’s not how a good relationship starts.”).

    But one had an extra flavor to it that makes it one of the worst.

    Met this girl on tinder, we hit it off, she tells me she’s a cam model and I’m like “whatever you gotta do to make that money,” because I don’t judge, and the pictures she was sending me were tastefully erotic and nothing too graphic. Think softcore porn with some bondage and cosplay. Anyway, we meet at a restaurant and she’s wearing this big baggy raincoat, and I can tell immediately that the pictures she was sending me were pretty old. Her hair was a different color, different length (I love short dark hair on a woman), and she’s at least 50lbs heavier. However I’m of a mind that even if a date doesn’t end in a relationship, you can still have fun and perhaps make a new friend, so I just go with it.

    We were there initially just to chat over drinks, but she orders an appetizer, a heavy entree (a pasta dish), AND a burger with fries. I helped eat the appetizer so she wouldn’t feel like she was eating alone, but I wasn’t hungry so that was it. It went OK, but halfway through the meal I realize I left my wallet at home, so I couldn’t pay. I end up buying a giftcard for the restaurant through a phone app in an attempt to at least pay for my portion of the meal, but the employees just could not care less, and she ends up covering it. I feel bad.

    Now she invites me back to her place, and I feel obligated to go. We get to her apartment, and who opens the door? her mom. In a nightgown, smoking a cigarette. Keep in mind this woman is at least 33.

    Her mom goes outside to smoke on the porch while she leads me to her bedroom (while grabbing a bottle of whisky). it’s the most disgusting bedroom I’d ever seen. Like, you could not see the floor for all the dirt and various debris. She pushes a pile of mostly clothes off the bed, and she invites me to lay down and watch TV with her. This is when she tells me that she’s gained weight because she recently broke her spine doing god-knows-what, and that she’s been recovering for almost a year now. She takes a slug of whiskey and takes down my pants, proceeding to contort her spine into a terrible position trying to give me a BJ. I couldn’t maintain an erection because of how worried I was about her spine, so I just kind of stopped her, got up, and left. Her mom waved to me from the porch as I walked out.

    Another horrible date where I wasn’t catfished-

    Met girl on Tinder, she’s super into me, to the point where I think she might have nefarious intentions. Like, we started talking and THAT night she wants to meet up. Red flags. She tells me she not only wants to hang out that night, but she wants to hang out AT MY PLACE. Another red flag. Then she tells me that she can’t drive to me because she doesn’t have a car. So her sister will drop her off at a parking lot where I can pick her up. I was letting my horny-ness dictate my decisions that evening for sure. I pick her up, and let her sister take a picture of my drivers license so she can rest easier.

    She hops into my truck and we’re headed back to my place. She whips out a bowl, packs it full of weed and starts hitting that thing like a champ, two hits and it’s gone. She doesn’t offer me any, but she does inform me that she’s on mushrooms and can have some of those if I want. I decline.

    We get to my house, and we’re hanging out in the kitchen talking. I put on background music (lofi hip hop beats to study and relax to lol) but for whatever reason she decides that it isn’t enough, and is streaming spotify on her phone, she informs me that she has 5 kids from 2 or 3 different dudes. She smokes like 3 more bowls from her chillum before inviting me to my own bedroom. We have sex, and at the moment of her climax, she yells to stick my thumb up her butt, it was dark and I couldn’t find it quick enough/hesitated to just shove it in there, and she seems very displeased. I tell her that I need to work early in the morning, and ask if I’ll be able to meet her sister in the same parking lot (it was on the way to work). She doesn’t really answer, but we turn in for the night. I offer her a new toothbrush so she can clean up before bed, she declines.

    In the morning she asks for something warm to wear, and I lend her my favorite hoodie. She says we can have sex again, but only if she’s my girlfriend, I decline. Then she tells me that her sister can’t pick her up, and I’ll have to drive her to her sisters house (where she’s staying with her 5 children). This house is an hour away. When we arrive I thank her for the evening, and make sure to get my hoodie back. I’m very late for work, but luckily nobody cares. I told her the next day I wasn’t ready to be a father figure, and left it at that.






  • Give me a salary, and I’ll show up everyday outside the fence of the prison yard, and the entire time he’s out there, I’ll hurl nonstop insults and heckling his way.

    “hey, here’s mr. dipshit himself! is that your prison boyfriend? how’s that cell treatin you, dumbass? God what a pathetic loser! walkin around alone again, huh? where’s melania? barron still hasn’t shown up? dang, nobody out here even talks about you anymore, how neat is that? Diddy gets more mail from his victims than you do period! they composted all your merchandise, mixed it with pig shit, and it’s a great fertilizer, who’da thunk your bullshit would ever amount to something useful? druuuuuuuuuuuumpf. druuuuuuuuuuuuuumpf. loser couldn’t make money off a casino his daddy bought’im! druuuuuuuuuuuuumpf. missing your gold toilet loser? yum this mcdonalds burger is soooooo good, maybe if you’re good all year they might let work at one!”

    I can go all day




    • The Simpsons
    • Seinfeld
    • Friends
    • South Park (honorary mention)

    The Simpsons was sacred in my house, we watched every new episode as a family, and taped them all on VHS to re-watch. I can quote from the first 12 seasons endlessly.

    Seinfeld was my introduction to stand-up comedy, which has become a life-long passion and a personally fulfilling hobby. I liked the show, but I loved watching his stand-up bits.

    Friends was a show I would watch with my mom whenever I helped her in the kitchen. I was always hanging out in the kitchen, and Friends was a staple on TV at the time. I connected very much with Chandler.

    South Park was the show my older brother watched, and I only ever got to catch once in a while, but the show was groundbreaking in its concept and execution. While being vulgar, it also succinctly expressed complicated ideas that resonate with me still to this day (When Randy talks to Stan about marijuana is one of them).