Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory • Hacker News Board

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#161

Post by TomMarius » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:21 AM UTC

hoseja wrote: post #129

flexie wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And many underdeveloped too: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/... 2 countries have less than 1 kid per woman 114 countries have less than 2 62 countries have less than 3 (20 of which are at less than 2.2) 21 countries have less than 4 18 countries have less than 5 11 countries have less than 6 Of the largest 6 (half the world's population): China has 1.6, India 2.3, US 1.8, Indonesia 2.0, P…

Then how is human population still skyrocketing?

Is it, or are you confusing population growth with immigration?

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#162

Post by rndgermandude » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:23 AM UTC

ComputerGuru wrote: post #117

rndgermandude wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Vitamin-D deficiency may cause severe covid-19, or severe covid-19 may cause vitamin-D deficiency (covid-19 affects the kidneys second worst after lungs it seems, and you need kidneys for vitamin-D processing), or a little bit of both. Which one it is, is not yet known.

Vitamin D is fat soluble and “buffered” in the body; all of which is to say that no one goes from good vitamin D levels to being vitamin D deficient in the time it takes to get infected and develop serious Covid-19 symptoms.

What is usually measured is the calcifediol - aka 25(OH)D - in the blood. It is the liver that produces calcifediol from cholecalciferol - aka vitamin-D3. The kidneys (mostly) then turn that in calcitriol, the actual hormon.

Vitamin-D2 aka ergocalciferol works similar in that is is eventually converted by liver and kidneys into calcitriol.

Ergocalciferol, calcifediol and it's various precursors can indeed be stored in fat tissue.

It is unclear however how severe covid-19 can affect the kidney and liver functions relating to this and release of substances from fat tissue.

Right now a lot of research seems to point in the direction that vitamin-D deficiency can indeed lead to more severe covid-19. At the same time there is different research suggesting that covid-19 itself messes with vitamin-D levels as well.

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#163

Post by throwaway888abc » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:28 AM UTC

teruakohatu wrote: post #156

TeMPOraL wrote: post #143

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It could have been non-polluting, but instead of redesigning, it's easier now to get nations to compete against each other for the location of that plant - and as part of that competition, relax the environmental protections. The "freedom of movement" for corporations (freedom of movement of capital?) has plenty of benefits, but this is one of the negative side effects.

My solution is for all governments to take responsibility, tax pollution and for consumers to understand the environmental costs of products, possibly by forcing disclosure. I don't understand what your solution is. Ban importing goods? Tax imported goods based on factory pollution and standards?

Yes, What is difference between ie. CO2 and other thrash we already producing (as society). So far we didn't accepted that we need 'pay' or handle CO2 as rubbish (while PPM constantly growing). But take your dog poo in park or pay fine (Plastic anyone?). Again, What is difference ?

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#164

Post by ohyeshedid » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:29 AM UTC

OscarCunningham wrote: post #155

ohyeshedid wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every time I see discussions like this I never see thoughts on what to do with all those animals. What do you do with the 70B animals we're no longer consuming?

Continue eating them as usual but stop breeding new ones. Most of them only live a few months, they'll all be gone within two years. The species won't go extinct either, we can still keep some around in their natural habitats and zoos, which are both much nicer conditions than most farms. Preferably we won't keep around the breeds that were created for farming, they just aren't healthy animals.

That appears to be a practical approach.

The next quandaries are what do farm owners, farm workers, slaughterhouses, tanners, textiles, feed companies, agriculture focused veterinarian services and products, etc, do now that they're no longer needed?

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#165

Post by busymom0 » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:36 AM UTC

Fairly certain the "visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory" is false. Nagarkot village has been a well known tourist attraction for viewing the Everest clearly forever.

> It is known for a sunrise view of the Himalayas including Mount Everest as well as other peaks of the Himalayan range of eastern Nepal. Nagarkot also offers a panoramic view of the Kathmandu Valley.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nagarkot

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#166

Post by ohyeshedid » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:37 AM UTC

mmaunder wrote: post #16

gonzo41 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you're taking steps and not having children then?

Correct. I’m 46 years old, healthy, fertile, heterosexual and I don’t have any kids. How about you?

You not having children to help slow population growth is like buying two powerball tickets to increase your chance of winning the jackpot.

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#167

Post by BLKNSLVR » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:38 AM UTC

throwaway888abc wrote: post #68

0xddd wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unfortunately, it looks like this will be short-lived. China's emissions for some pollutants are already above what they were pre-shutdown. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-china-...

Oh, F*ck :( Greedy human race Signed: bleeding coral reef with sad penguin

How inevitable is the rise of casual environmental terrorism?

(using the word 'terrorism' because that's how it will be labelled by media and government, no matter the scope)

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#168

Post by orion_mc2 » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:39 AM UTC

acslater00 wrote: post #46

It's amazing and wonderful how much environmental damage seems to be recovering. Air pollution is down, carbon emissions are down as much as 17%, fish and sharks are repopulating shorelines and beaches - and to think, all it took was the most severe public health crisis in 100 years, a catastrophic global recession, and an overpowering wave of human misery and death

Imagine - what will happen when next big virus/bacteria pandemic hits the earth...Other species will stand a chance when human population makes some room ...it probably sounds bad but unfortunately the humans are the problem - not the CO2 or something else (they are just consequence) - proof is how nature thrives around Chernobyl

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#169

Post by rorykoehler » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:42 AM UTC

TeMPOraL wrote: post #136

ElKrist wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another point to balance the "how much environmental damage seems to be recovering": CO2 in the atmosphere has a long inertia. The (reduction of) emissions in the past few months will not have any effect on the global warming for a few decades. Basically in the short/mid-term, CO2 emissions are accumulated to previous emissions, not replacing them

This only shows that, while CO₂ concentrations are the dominant control variable in the question of our long-term survival, the overall health of the environment is influenced by many, many more things, especially short-term. Now it is especially clear that protecting the environment and mitigating the climate crisis are two different, and only partially aligned efforts. Frequently, they're in opposition - which is w…

> protecting the environment and mitigating the climate crisis are two different, and only partially aligned efforts

I wish more people understood this. Too many times conversation are hijacked by the CO2 discussion when really in the short term we should be focusing 99% of our efforts on bio-diversity preservation.

Re: Mount Everest is visible from Kathmandu for first time in living memory

#170

Post by trhway » Thu, May 21, 2020, 7:44 AM UTC

ohyeshedid wrote: post #154

trhway wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Every time I see discussions like this I never see thoughts on what to do with all those animals. [until the aliens bring tomorrow the mass production lines of cheap lab meat] Because of naturally gradual process of lab meat quality increase and price decrease there will be no point in time when suddenly "we have 70B animals we're no longer consuming "

>Once we finally have artificial meat and thus stop killing sentient beings... But that's literally in your scenario. If you don't have an answer, that's fine, because all of this is idealism. I just never see any conversation pertaining to what we do with all the animals. It seems like it comes down to a substantial culling, as letting them loose would be disastrous for a few obvious reasons.

probably something with my English - i described target state, not the procedure to reach it.