Rich Mathews
@ecd-skeptic.bsky.social
English Country & Contra dancer, skeptic, atheist, & science enthusiast.
That was an excellent game back in the day.
November 28, 2025 at 4:23 AM
That was an excellent game back in the day.
Not an education expert, but that thread is very useful. Crappy RCTs get pulled in to show "effectiveness" for all sorts of alt-med stuff quite often, when there are so many sources of bias that they're essentially useless.
November 19, 2025 at 6:37 PM
Not an education expert, but that thread is very useful. Crappy RCTs get pulled in to show "effectiveness" for all sorts of alt-med stuff quite often, when there are so many sources of bias that they're essentially useless.
I've been super wary of him for years because of his weird stances on science & medicine. Like, he's parroted various anti-vax talking points for years.
September 27, 2025 at 1:07 PM
I've been super wary of him for years because of his weird stances on science & medicine. Like, he's parroted various anti-vax talking points for years.
*sigh* - shit is getting more and more depressing.
September 9, 2025 at 11:19 AM
*sigh* - shit is getting more and more depressing.
Is the hall conditioned?
September 8, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Is the hall conditioned?
Visited Kitty Hawk today & learned about how the Wright brothers made it happen. Kind of amazing how neither of them finished high school - and yet they taught themselves engineering, built wind tunnels to figure out what lift & drag, etc. Also our 1st time visiting the Outer Banks, it's pretty fun.
September 7, 2025 at 4:39 AM
Visited Kitty Hawk today & learned about how the Wright brothers made it happen. Kind of amazing how neither of them finished high school - and yet they taught themselves engineering, built wind tunnels to figure out what lift & drag, etc. Also our 1st time visiting the Outer Banks, it's pretty fun.
That's totally reasonable for forms of autism that allow a person to function in society (in their own way). But, some forms are really debilitating, to the extent that the person will never be able to live independently. @emilykmay on Twitter wrote a NYT op-ed from a parent's perspective on this.
September 6, 2025 at 6:01 AM
That's totally reasonable for forms of autism that allow a person to function in society (in their own way). But, some forms are really debilitating, to the extent that the person will never be able to live independently. @emilykmay on Twitter wrote a NYT op-ed from a parent's perspective on this.
I wouldn't mind some improvement happening on the colonoscopy front, so maybe I didn't have to do all that prep. Like, with all the talk of AI & nano this and that, seems like they should just be able to develop a nano-worm that crawls up my butt and just inspects the area for 2-3 days.
September 4, 2025 at 12:46 AM
I wouldn't mind some improvement happening on the colonoscopy front, so maybe I didn't have to do all that prep. Like, with all the talk of AI & nano this and that, seems like they should just be able to develop a nano-worm that crawls up my butt and just inspects the area for 2-3 days.
I bet this idea is tied to the notion of "maggots in the brain" relating to odd or whimsical ideas. In English Country dancing there are dances (from the 1600s & 1700s) named "Jack's Maggot", "Corelli's Maggot", etc. Turns out they're all using this "whimsical idea" definition of maggot.
September 2, 2025 at 1:55 PM
I bet this idea is tied to the notion of "maggots in the brain" relating to odd or whimsical ideas. In English Country dancing there are dances (from the 1600s & 1700s) named "Jack's Maggot", "Corelli's Maggot", etc. Turns out they're all using this "whimsical idea" definition of maggot.
I'm not sure this is about profit motive though. Seems like it's about the regulatory mechanisms in certain states, which would likely cause even non-profit pharmacies to adopt similar policies.
August 30, 2025 at 2:45 AM
I'm not sure this is about profit motive though. Seems like it's about the regulatory mechanisms in certain states, which would likely cause even non-profit pharmacies to adopt similar policies.
Interesting project. What's the source of the 8000 cfm? Like, is it just a big fan pulling outside air in thru a door, then escaping thru other doors (perhaps on the other side of the hall)? Or is that 8000 cfm of conditioned supply air, that would mostly be recirculating air? I'm assuming #1.
August 27, 2025 at 3:17 AM
Interesting project. What's the source of the 8000 cfm? Like, is it just a big fan pulling outside air in thru a door, then escaping thru other doors (perhaps on the other side of the hall)? Or is that 8000 cfm of conditioned supply air, that would mostly be recirculating air? I'm assuming #1.
What the hell, that doesn't seem safe. I wonder if the Fire Marshal knows.
August 13, 2025 at 4:30 AM
What the hell, that doesn't seem safe. I wonder if the Fire Marshal knows.
Also, the usage of the word "ventilation" differs very much from how HVAC design folks use "ventilation". For us, ventilation specifically refers to fresh air movement, typically introduced to the return of the air handler. But in most of these papers, it just means "air movement", I think.
August 10, 2025 at 1:54 AM
Also, the usage of the word "ventilation" differs very much from how HVAC design folks use "ventilation". For us, ventilation specifically refers to fresh air movement, typically introduced to the return of the air handler. But in most of these papers, it just means "air movement", I think.
It's a somewhat interesting article, but it's really vague in ways that could help me. I'm an HVAC design engineer, and I'm really confused. They talk about "top ventilation device" - so are they talking about a sidewall supply air grille? Or maybe a wall-mounted mini-split AC unit?
August 10, 2025 at 1:53 AM
It's a somewhat interesting article, but it's really vague in ways that could help me. I'm an HVAC design engineer, and I'm really confused. They talk about "top ventilation device" - so are they talking about a sidewall supply air grille? Or maybe a wall-mounted mini-split AC unit?
Thinking back, I think even inside the Buffy series, the rules weren't quite consistent.
June 18, 2025 at 3:48 AM
Thinking back, I think even inside the Buffy series, the rules weren't quite consistent.
I got no clue, but I'm guessing this is why folks started going with white rice.
May 28, 2025 at 4:33 AM
I got no clue, but I'm guessing this is why folks started going with white rice.
That looks awesome - didn't realize you were playing with your kids. This'll be some core memories, especially with the work that's gone into figs and such.
May 27, 2025 at 2:57 AM
That looks awesome - didn't realize you were playing with your kids. This'll be some core memories, especially with the work that's gone into figs and such.
True, but even if they *did* claim to be witches (like wiccans nowadays), they aren't doing any harm. No "witch" has ever turned anybody into a newt, or caused a cow's milk to curdle, or sickened a child thru magic. They're just people who are fantasy prone, though not so much as the witch-hunters.
May 24, 2025 at 5:14 AM
True, but even if they *did* claim to be witches (like wiccans nowadays), they aren't doing any harm. No "witch" has ever turned anybody into a newt, or caused a cow's milk to curdle, or sickened a child thru magic. They're just people who are fantasy prone, though not so much as the witch-hunters.
Yeah, I agree with that. Often in discussions with people I find it helpful to spend time discussing what each mean by certain terms, like "atheist" and "agnostic" (given that I often identify myself as both atheist & agnostic). Heck, it even becomes an issue in talking about how a given dance works
May 21, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Yeah, I agree with that. Often in discussions with people I find it helpful to spend time discussing what each mean by certain terms, like "atheist" and "agnostic" (given that I often identify myself as both atheist & agnostic). Heck, it even becomes an issue in talking about how a given dance works
I think as a starting point, it'd be reasonable to say that folks who generally agree with at least one of the major Christian creeds are "Christian", even if they're demonstrably horrible people. Like, there's a *lot* of room for reading the Bible in such a way that you can still justify assholery.
May 21, 2025 at 8:59 PM
I think as a starting point, it'd be reasonable to say that folks who generally agree with at least one of the major Christian creeds are "Christian", even if they're demonstrably horrible people. Like, there's a *lot* of room for reading the Bible in such a way that you can still justify assholery.
Yup, I see "No True Scotsman" arguments pretty often. Like, let's not pretend that there's a "true Christianity" anywhere that has only ever stood for pro-social ethical behavior.
May 21, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Yup, I see "No True Scotsman" arguments pretty often. Like, let's not pretend that there's a "true Christianity" anywhere that has only ever stood for pro-social ethical behavior.
I've actually thought about doing that. It especially comes to mind when I've made a huge pot of chili & I'm trying to figure out when it should go into the fridge. I've thought about freezing some water bottles to be able to cool down quickly.
May 16, 2025 at 3:57 AM
I've actually thought about doing that. It especially comes to mind when I've made a huge pot of chili & I'm trying to figure out when it should go into the fridge. I've thought about freezing some water bottles to be able to cool down quickly.