Today I learned +

[Ryujin]

I heard that many people suffered serious or fatal head injuries from crank starters.

There may still be motorcycles that are made today*, that have a kickstart. Kickstart is essentially the leg driven version of hand crank. I've heard of more than one person being injured, even to the point of breaking bones, when the kickstarter lever "kicked back."

*The last street bike I know of, that had a kickstarter, was the Yamaha SR400 that went out of production in 2021.

 

[Aeson]

Today I learned there are fake buildings all over the world. These buildings are meant to hide infrastructure like power substations.

 

[Dioltach]

Today I learned there are fake buildings all over the world. These buildings are meant to hide infrastructure like power substations.

I knew this, because of "Whispers Underground" by Ben Aaronovitch.

My TIL: power companies use the residual heat in wastewater (from showering and washing up) for district heating.

 

[CleverNickName]

Yep, Engineering is everywhere. I've installed treatment wetlands that look like city parks, sewer digesters hidden underneath tennis courts, pump stations that look like churches, and one time I put water storage tanks underneath a skateboard park.

If that sort of stuff is interesting to you, check out the book "Engineering in Plain Sight" by Grady Hillhouse (and his "Practical Engineering" YouTube channel.) He breaks down the complicated science of engineering into easy-to-understand concepts.

 

[Bohandas]

Yep, Engineering is everywhere. I've installed treatment wetlands that look like city parks, sewer digesters hidden underneath tennis courts, pump stations that look like churches, and one time I put water storage tanks underneath a skateboard park.

...experimental atomic reactor under a handball court

 

[CleverNickName]

...experimental atomic reactor under a handball court

Nobody wants to buy a house next to an atomic reactor, but nobody minds a handball court.

This kind of thing happens all the time in civil engineering. Sometimes this is for security or safety, but most of the time it's because the neighbors who want it and need it are also demanding that it be built somewhere else. And that's just not possible, so we use subterfuge and camouflage. Detention lagoons become "ponds." Aeration cascades become "waterfalls" and "fountains." Wetlands and greenspaces become "parks." All of this beautification adds significant cost to the project, which gets passed on to the customers, but sometimes it's the only way to get it approved in the first place.

City: we need to build a new wastewater treatment plant.

NIMBY crowd: Not in my backyard!!

Engineer: Um... how about a new park, with a couple of nice big ponds? and a waterfall, or maybe a fountain?

NIMBY crowd: Oooo, yes please! Could you build it right up against my fence?

(Engineer and City bump knuckles)

 

[Aeson]

Nobody wants to buy a house next to an atomic reactor, but nobody minds a handball court.

This kind of thing happens all the time in civil engineering. Sometimes this is for security or safety, but most of the time it's because the neighbors who want it and need it are also demanding that it be built somewhere else. And that's just not possible, so we use subterfuge and camouflage. Detention lagoons become "ponds." Aeration cascades become "waterfalls" and "fountains." Wetlands and greenspaces become "parks." All of this beautification adds significant cost to the project, but sometimes it's the only way to get it approved in the first place.

City: we need to build a new wastewater treatment plant.

NIMBY crowd: Not in my backyard!!

Engineer: Um... how about a new park, with a couple of nice big ponds? and a waterfall, or maybe a fountain?

NIMBY crowd: Oooo, yes please! Could you build it right up against my fence?

(Engineer and City bump knuckles)

The NIMBYs are one of the reasons mentioned in the video.

" We don't care if it makes life better. We don't want to see it.
Wait...what's that? A new pickleball court?
What's that smell? Oh, never mind. Pickleballlll!!!!!"

 

[Dioltach]

The NIMBYs are one of the reasons mentioned in the video.

Worse than NIMBYs are "not in someone else's backyard if it inconveniences me". I remember reading a hiking guide a while ago where the author complained about powerlines spoiling the view. As if his occasional enjoyment of the landscape was more important than the local residents' right to electricity.

 

[Aeson]

Worse than NIMBYs are "not in someone else's backyard if it inconveniences me". I remember reading a hiking guide a while ago where the author complained about powerlines spoiling the view. As if his occasional enjoyment of the landscape was more important than the local residents' right to electricity.

"That Greek city would be totally amazing if it weren't for all the crumbling falling down buildings. They really should stick to making salads. Their buildings suck."

 

[Dioltach]

"That Greek city would be totally amazing if it weren't for all the crumbling falling down buildings. They really should stick to making salads. Their buildings suck."

I was in Athens a couple of years ago, and was really disappointed with the Acropolis, compared with the first time I visited. The whole top of the hill has been paved in concrete now. It looks like a carpark.