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Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

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Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#131

Post by DoreenMichele »

fredsir wrote: post #4
subcosmos wrote: post #2

With 15 minutes of effort typing commands into a large bioinformatics database, you too can convince yourself that these contaminants may be behind the Diabetes epidemic. https://medium.com/@InfinoMe/diabetes-time-to-resort-to-plas...

I'm intrigued, still the sceptic in me thinks that most victims of type 2 diabetes are probably just victims of the simpler answer, which is occupying a body that has been exposed to too great amounts of fat (from especially oils and other processed foods) over too great a time period. However, I can only imagine the amount of harm continued consumption of plastic over a long period of time will do to a body, and I f…

Insulin resistance is related to inadequate muscle mass/protein.

Research has linked diabetes to inflammation, which may be related to body chemistry or infection or both.

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#132

Post by rhacker »

mehrdadn wrote: post #56
exabrial wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Couple of points: Taxes don't work to work to change behavior, or people would have stopped speeding a long time ago, sugary drinks wouldn't sell in Seattle, and people would stop buying coffee in California. They are an unfortunate excuse used by politicians to fool the public into "hey I'm doing something!". Instead, innovation is needed around providing biodegradable solutions that can outcompete their plastic cou…

> Taxes don't work to work to change behavior, or people would have stopped speeding a long time ago, sugary drinks wouldn't sell in Seattle, and people would stop buying coffee in California. You do realize "work" isn't a binary thing?

Cigarettes can be an indicator:

http://www.nber.org/papers/w18326

> Our evidence suggests that increases in cigarette taxes are associated with small decreases in cigarette consumption and that it will take sizable tax increases, on the order of 100%, to decrease adult smoking by as much as 5%.

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#133

Post by jcims »

kingkawn wrote: post #107

Personal anecdote; just got back from a trip to Hawaii. Many of the beaches there had significant deposits of pebble sized and smaller visible plastic particles. Presumably there’s exponentially more smaller ones that I couldn’t as easily see. Some of the beaches had plastic floating in the water. Locals said it wasn’t island dumped garbage, it was brought in from currents from the ocean. Horrific to see.

Where did you visit? Just made our first trip there and visited beaches up and down the west side of Maui and didnt notice anything but the odd bit of beach glass. I'm guessing currents play a large role with this issue.

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#134

Post by yawz »

balls187 wrote: post #115
nostromo wrote: post #109

A small number of countries are responsible for the majority of plastic in the ocean. China is far and away the worst offender: https://infographic.statista.com/normal/chartoftheday_12211_... https://www.iswa.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Calendar_2011_03_...

Where does the chain of responsibility end? Do the domestic waste management companies that profited from collecting plastics, only to send waste to China bear any responsibility?

Using "sold" instead of "sent" would be more accurate. But I agree that turning a blind eye on what happens next is not ethical.

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#135

Post by gerdesj »

kingkawn wrote: post #107

Personal anecdote; just got back from a trip to Hawaii. Many of the beaches there had significant deposits of pebble sized and smaller visible plastic particles. Presumably there’s exponentially more smaller ones that I couldn’t as easily see. Some of the beaches had plastic floating in the water. Locals said it wasn’t island dumped garbage, it was brought in from currents from the ocean. Horrific to see.

Hawaii. Many of the beaches there had significant deposits of pebble sized

Bollocks (citation needed)

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#136

Post by lwanga »

"Scientists call the tiny pieces "microplastics" and define them as objects smaller than 5 millimeters — about the size of one of the letters on a computer keyboard."

I am not quite understanding this sentence. Size of the letters on a computer keyboard!? What?

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#137

Post by killerdhmo »

lwanga wrote: post #136

"Scientists call the tiny pieces "microplastics" and define them as objects smaller than 5 millimeters — about the size of one of the letters on a computer keyboard." I am not quite understanding this sentence. Size of the letters on a computer keyboard!? What?

the little characters that represent the letters on the keyboard. Look down.

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#138

Post by DoreenMichele »

lwanga wrote: post #136

"Scientists call the tiny pieces "microplastics" and define them as objects smaller than 5 millimeters — about the size of one of the letters on a computer keyboard." I am not quite understanding this sentence. Size of the letters on a computer keyboard!? What?

An attempt at explaining metric measures to Americans by referencing something readers of an online article should have ready access to.

Re: Tiny Plastic Is Everywhere

#139

Post by tzs »

WhompingWindows wrote: post #84
tzs wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The bigger tragedy is that there isn't even a good reason to argue over whether or not Oxford commas should be used. People think there is a good reason, namely that there are some lists that are ambiguous with the comma that are made non-ambiguous by removing it. However, as far as I've been able to tell, in all such lists the ambiguity is there because there are commas in the sentence serving to mark appositive phr…

Isn't there a good reason in this case: Beer, Drinking Water and Fish Beer, Drinking Water, and Fish

I meant that there isn't a good reason to argue about them, not that there isn't a good reason to use them.

I'm arguing that if we deal with the true source of ambiguity when lists are used, the use of commas to offset appositive phrases, that eliminates that cases where including the Oxford comma introduces ambiguity, without removing the cases where omitting the Oxford comma causes ambiguity, and so there would then no longer be a good reason to argue against the Oxford comma.

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