I tend to brace myself for shenanigans when reading articles about math with more than one buzzword in the headline, but was pleasantly surprised here. Author achieved approachability without veering off-course. Good read. Thanks!

I know. I was clowning on the dude mad about the arrows by offering one of numerous other meanings outside Boolean Algebra that sounded even more absurd in that context.

If I know the video, it is mildly disturbing mostly due to the sudden death. The stallion stiffens and collapses after the mare brains him and the person filming happened to capture a lot of detail of the dying CNS including the stallion’s face.

What, your lab doesn’t make jerky out of organs before weighing them?

Wahster Queef

If you mean grades, I’d encourage you to disentangle your own retrospective self-evaluation. The point is learning, which is ultimately a personal journey. Grades are just an institutional proxy for learning outcomes, and when some students can afford private tutors when others have to work third shift to remain enrolled, the currency isn’t fungible. That is, grades are buttons and bottle caps. Learning, curiosity, discovery, and knowledge, for its own sake, is the only true currency in education.

Never let school get in the way of your education.

Caveat: I’ve said this brashly to several deans, when it seemed appropriately inappropriate, and while a few are now good friends, the others acted troubled and now seem to avoid me. That is, YMMV. Some lifer academics may not understand when you disregard the only rubrics they know.

Boom. Clerical collar. Now bless me father, for I have sinned.

This joke only works in Spanish.

Implications or assignment? They didn’t specify notation.

Ah but which of you generously assumes the task of thread-keeping and context-restoration most of the time?

Who kindly reminds the other that they were making a larger point, so we can say “oh shit, right! As I was saying…”

Whether it’s because you’re actually curious or just saving us from remembering the unfinished idea as we fall asleep…

You are hands down our favorite person to get aimlessly lost in conversation with <3

FWIW this is a common post-regime debate. Visit Berlin to see a number of creative solutions.

Pew! Pew!

That’s great. And glad youre pressing landlord. They’re very likely obligated to cover expenses related to this, but I understand landlords are shitheads and a PITA.

Just to be clear, re: MW+kettle example, typical GFCI won’t prevent that overload. Circuit breaker should trip. There is a similar component that does both (AFCI) but it’s more expensive and shouldn’t be needed if your breaker is functioning correctly. Adding GFCI is usually inexpensive enough to justify but is only meant to protect against faults, not overloads.

Damn that’s convenient!

Yes, the simplest adapter style is a chunky wall wart, usually cheapest. Otherwise inline modules are common. For either, you just plug them in between the plug and its outlet and press the “reset” button. 15-amp 125v example from a common US supermarket ($14).

And if by extender you mean the multi-outlet strip extenders: yes, the adapter+extender would isolate the fault to just that strip. If ground fault occurs, everything on that strip turns off. You can also find power strips with built-in GFCI.

The only additional consideration re: which GFCI adapters you will need are

1. Voltage and amperage rating: you can just copy the rating of the outlet’s breaker

…or, if it’s just handling one appliance, take a picture of the power specification, usually a sticker on the back of the appliance, which should give you minimum amperage rating of GFCI

2. Socket type: if you’re in the US, likely all type B or maybe one or two type I (large 220V appliances) from this chart:

Edit: pictures

I’ve experienced this breaker bypass issue a few times and in each case it was a ground fault.

Why this can bypass breaker and trip the mains: In most countries, the common inexpensive breakers in residential panel boxes are not GFCIs. They will catch and interrupt marginal overdraw before it starts a fire but won’t trip fast enough in the case of a ground fault, which is one of the reasons fire codes usually require GFCI outlets anywhere near running water. Since the mains in MDL and housing complexes are GFCI, they can trip faster than the subpanel breakers in the case of a ground fault.

One case that might be relevant to you since you had reason to suspect your oven: a microwave oven door closure sensor became misaligned and would intermittently fail to report closure. It was one of two that controlled a kill-switch relay for the magnetron (the main power drawing component in a MW). The easter egg in their circuit design was that if sensor A failed to report door was closed, the oven would simply act as if door was open, but if sensor B failed to report door was closed, closing the door would instantly cause a ground fault.

Diagnostic recommendation: get some GFCI adapters to use on any big AC appliances you suspect might be causing the fault, like the oven you mentioned, so that next time it happens only the culprit appliance will lose power and you’ll know what to repair/replace.

ETA: the GFCI adapters are common and inexpensive, and your landlord would likely rather pay for a few of those than an electrician visit. Either way, this absolutely is the landlord’s responsibility, especially if your lease includes the appliances.

Honestly, while it might feel wrong to feed the insane the staples of their own insanity in an attempt to make them behave as if they were sane, it is the clinical gold standard for a reason.

It simply works. It works extremely well. And sometimes it is literally the only thing that actually works.

If it feels wrong to treat your aunt this way, as if she was a mental patient, consider the industry that has built up around precisely that assumption about people like your aunt and how they have been successfully using this strategy against her for decades explicitly in order to monetize her, weaponize her, and ensure she will never recover.

Have you tried lead poisoning?

Oh look, ti proseccos

Edit: leaving because funny, but what I intended to comment as I fell asleep was “oh look, tiny elephant feet!” in reference to the nickname given the big melty version

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