Random Articles - share links to articles of interest

Hmmm, what does the pill do the keep the airway from closing during sleep apnea? I can’t imagine!

1 Like

My WP subscription doesn’t expire until November, and it’s articles like this one that make me glad I still have it. Gift article:
https://wapo.st/4m6ui1A

“My 77-year-old neighbor beautifies our entire block in the suburbs outside Minneapolis, with a steady combination of gardening and kindness. Her name is Karen, and she’s a 4-foot-9-inch powerhouse. She gives Karens everywhere a better name.”

8 Likes

I love Wash Po. I couldn’t get through this article without crying.

[https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2025/07/27/tim-lilley-dca-plane-crash/]

3 Likes
1 Like

Interesting. That sleep apnea pill is a combo of an ADHD med and an overactive bladder med.

1 Like

True. Although I think that most can be coached if they actually are motivated (as opposed to just their wives wanting it for them etc.) The biggest trick seems to be deliberately using the CPAP while awake. NOT trying to sleep with it off the bat. I tell guys to build up to wearing the CPAP for an hour while awake in the evenings in their bedrooms. Hang out in your bedroom and do all the things you might do in the hour before trying to fall asleep but do it with the CPAP on. So like watch TV, read, scroll your phone, and ..ahem..anything else you might do in your bedroom before sleeping, and then take it off for actually falling asleep and do that for a few days, and then fall asleep with it on.

I have watched several family members who had CPAP machines. It’s important that they find the mouthpiece/headgear that is comfortable for them. My mom really struggled with that. The cleaning process is a pain for some … my MIL stopped using hers when my FIL was no longer able to clean it for her (not that MIL was incapable of cleaning it or too busy to do it, but whatever). It’s not an ideal machine, but my H prefers to deal with it rather than get an implant or take a pill (and whoa, that’s quite a pill). But everyone is different, so there are different strokes for different folks.

1 Like

Bizarre.
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/27/california-sunlight-dimming-experiment-collapse-00476983

2 Likes

Such a turn on… :wink:

4 Likes

I was just going to say that! LMAO. :rofl:

Oh honey you sound and look like Darth Vader!

3 Likes

Yes, the mask brings to mind Dennis Hopper in Blue Velvet or something.

But apparently this trick works

3 Likes

Billy Bob Thornton in Goliath!

1 Like

from Facebook, via Leena Smith

Desalination has always been expensive and energy-intensive—until now. MIT engineers have designed a solar-powered desalinator that converts seawater into clean drinking water using no electricity, only sunlight and passive thermal cycles.

This device uses a multi-stage evaporator and condenser system to mimic nature’s water cycle. It operates without moving parts and achieves high efficiency with zero carbon footprint, making it ideal for remote coastal communities or disaster relief.

With rising global water scarcity, this innovation offers a sustainable and scalable solution to provide potable water where it’s needed most.

9 Likes

A great blog for anyone with siblings, and perhaps especially to readers of the current CC Book Club.

3 Likes

I’m sorry they had such an often thorny and uncomfortable relationship but can definitely understand that family dynamics are unpredictable and blood doesn’t necessarily equate to love and an easy friendship. Interesting article—thanks for posting it!

I’m posting this article because it upset me so much. My friend who co-facilitates the mental health support group sent it to me after it upset her. Besides being ignorant, it’s dangerous if it convinces someone who needs meds to stop taking them. I know for certain that my son AND my friend would no longer be alive without meds. I need to reply to it but I’m too busy right now. I’m hoping they get an outpouring of angry mail. Stay in the crucible | WORLD

5 Likes

I don’t even know where to begin, there is so much wrong with the author’s opinions and her choice of words. I’m seething!

2 Likes

How in the world are:

…a history of family sexual abuse, exposure to community violence…a fifth grade suicide attempt

going to be magically fixed by:

a good night’s sleep, and time away from her environment to sit quietly and think?

Criminal. Whoever published this article ought to be ashamed.

ETA: Never mind. Consider the source:

8 Likes

Here is the description of this patient’s background:

16-year-old high school girl with a history of family sexual abuse, exposure to community violence, mood dysregulation, a fifth grade suicide attempt, violent ideation, chronic lateness to school, impulsivity, high-risk behaviors, alcohol and marijuana use, rapid and intense mood shifts, and a provisional diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

And here is the author’s response:

Q is in the trouble she is in today because: (1) life is hard; (2) she made some bad choices; (3) these choices made her troubles worse; (4) so she made more bad choices, compounding her troubles; (5) she was born in the 21st century.

What???

4 Likes

Yes, the source is not reputable in the general population, but conservative Christians take it seriously. And people other than conservative Christians also espouse similar nonsense. It’s discouraging. I was grumpy all day yesterday. I asked AI to come up with a rebuttal, and it did a decent job. I need to sit down and refine it to come up with a response.

And the concept that someone should “stay in the crucible,” rather than get help? So harmful.

5 Likes