Links - 21st January 2020 (2)

The economics of driving seven Teslas for 2.5 million miles - "“When we first started our company, we predicted the drive train would practically last forever,” Tesloop founder Haydn Sonnad told Quartz. “That’s proven to be relatively true.” He notes that every car except one, a vehicle taken out of service after a collision with a drunk driver, is still running. “The cars have never died of old age,” he added.It’s difficult to know how representative this data is of Teslas overall, given that Tesloop’s fleet is small, but it likely includes a large share of the highest-mileage Teslas on the road—several are nearing 500,000 miles. Finding conventional vehicles to compare is virtually impossible since most fleet cars are typically sold off after 100,000 miles. But the implications could be huge. Every year, corporations and rental car companies add more than 12 million vehicles in Europe and North America to their fleets (pdf). Adding EVs to the mix could see those cars lasting five times longer—costing a fraction of conventional cars over the same period—while feeding a massive new stream of used electric cars into the marketplace. Whether the future of fleets is really electric, however, depends on the data. And that’s still in short supply... Fleet owners’ biggest expenses after depreciation (44%) are fuel (22%) and maintenance and repairs (11%), according to Deloitte.  EVs could slash those by more than half... Range and charging infrastructure remain major concerns for fleet owners who must ensure recharging isn’t more difficult than refilling at a gas station for salespeople and corporate clients on far-flung trips (most drivers charge at home or work)."

Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers slapped with ‘offensive content’ warning by streaming service Britbox - "NEW streaming service Britbox is putting classic British comedies under the microscope.The subscription-based model launched in the UK last week, taking on the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime with an array of heritage shows. However, a number of series were cut after being deemed politically incorrect, while others were forced to air warnings of offensive content.  Axed shows include the likes of Till Death Do Us Part, which centred on bigoted protagonist Alf Garnett.  Love Thy Neighbour, which sees a West Indian couple move next door to a white English cover and the ensuing culture clash, also got the chop.  It Ain’t Half Hot, Mum, which tracked a group of soldiers in Deolali, India, during World War II was turned down too. However, the likes of Only Fools And Horses and Fawlty Towers survived the cull, but were slapped with offensive content warnings."

NoFap Founder Is Suing a Neuroscientist Who Thinks Masturbating Is Fine - "The owner of the NoFap trademark and website, Alexander Rhodes, is suing a neuroscientist for defamation, claiming that she has made “numerous false and defamatory statements” about him and his work... Nicole Prause, a neuroscientist who studies sexual science through a neuroscience and physiology lens, has researched so-called "porn addiction" and found no scientific basis for it. “These online communities have whipped themselves into a frenzy when in the past men wouldn’t have been concerned," Prause told the Guardian in 2016. "Then the next time they go to have sex they are causing themselves more distress."  Prause has said publicly that she is regularly harassed by NoFap followers, and in posts in the last few days, she's claimed that harassment and death threats from Rhodes' fans have escalated to the point that the FBI and local law enforcement are involved... Sex educators, adult industry groups and therapists told Motherboard that they are scared of legal action from NoFap, and some of them weren’t willing to speak openly about masturbation and the stigma of watching porn... "These folks are some of the most obsessive, hateful folks I’ve ever encountered online," Ley told Motherboard. "They rabidly attack anyone who disagrees with them, with extraordinary black and white thinking... My impression is that they tend to be highly obsessive individuals who transmute their obsessive use of porn into an obsession with attacking people who might expose that the problem is in them, rather than the porn. Ultimately, they’re the problem, not the porn.""
When science scares you...

I Accidentally Uncovered a Nationwide Scam on Airbnb - "I had unknowingly stumbled into a nationwide web of deception that appeared to span eight cities and nearly 100 property listings—an undetected scam created by some person or organization that had figured out just how easy it is to exploit Airbnb’s poorly written rules in order to collect thousands of dollars through phony listings, fake reviews, and, when necessary, intimidation. Considering Airbnb’s lax enforcement of its own policies, who could blame the scammers for taking advantage of the new world of short-term rental platforms? They had every reason to believe they could do so with impunity."

Implantable device aids weight loss - "Measuring less than 1 centimeter across, or about a third of the area of a U.S. penny, the tiny devices — which are safe for use in the body and implantable via a minimally invasive procedure — generate gentle electric pulses from the stomach’s natural churning motions and deliver them to the vagus nerve, which links the brain and the stomach.That gentle stimulation dupes the brain into thinking that the stomach is full after only a few nibbles of food... Unlike gastric bypass, which permanently alters the capacity of the stomach, the effects of the new devices also are reversible... Wang’s device contains no batteries, no electronics, and no complicated wiring. It relies instead on the undulations of the stomach walls to power its internal generators.  That means the device only stimulates the vagus nerve when the stomach moves."

Foreign women lick dairy product off your body in latest offer of kinky service - "Sexually-arousing, the erotic massage at one centre in Serdang visited by the paper’s probe team, is provided by scantily-dressed women from China, Vietnam and Indonesia. Ahead of the urut keju, the customer picks his preferred masseuse, who will bathe him till he is squeaky clean before she applies the cheese. The paper found most of the customers are those aged 35 to 50, who pay the joint RM185 for the massage, inclusive of a “welcome” drink of orange juice and a glass of Chinese tea after it’s all over."
Since this is not prostitution, this is a great business idea

Parasite crawls into UK man's penis as he swims in African river; lays eggs - "James Michael, from Kensington, London, said he was left “debilitated” and unable to sleep from the pain of the bugs attacking his body.The 32-year-old was on a canoeing “trip of a lifetime” with friends to Southeast Africa, travelling from Zambia to Zimbabwe.They made a five-day stopover in Malawi, where they swam in Lake Malawi, before flying back to the UK.But unbeknownst to James, a parasitic flatworms called schistosomes had crawled inside his penis and laid eggs in his vital organs."

Speech pathologist teaches her dog to use a soundboard and now it communicates in sentences - "One afternoon, shortly after daylight savings, she began saying "eat" at 3:00 pm. When Hunger didn't respond with food, she said,"love you no" and walked out of the room. Today, Stella has learned over 29 words and can combine up to five at a time to make a phrase or sentence. "The way she uses words to communicate and the words she's combining is really similar to a 2-year-old child""

The Trump administration’s immigration jails are packed, but deportations are lower than in Obama era - The Washington Post

You’ve Been Spreading Butter On Bread The Wrong Way, Says Master Butter Maker Bordier - "What is the correct way to spread butter on toast, we ask Mr Bordier. He perks up visibly. “Thank you for asking this question. Do not use the teeth [ridged edge] of a butter knife. Instead, use only its smooth flat side, or tip,” says the butter artisan. And do not do this,” he adds, violently manhandling a piece of bread with a knife and a stingy, even smear of butter (above pic). “Instead, do this,” he instructs, dolloping a chunk of butter so thick its like a mini snow drift on his tiny slice of baguette. “You eat it like foie gras. You pat it on delicately. This way, you have all the taste, all the texture and full expression of flavour,” he emphasises. Interestingly, chef René Redzepi of the multiple award-winning Noma restaurant in Copenhagen shares a similar butter philosophy: it should be cut thick enough to show teeth marks after a bite"
Presumably this is only for expensive butter

U of Toronto Graduate Student Union opposes campus kosher food as 'pro-Israel' - "The Graduate Student Union told a Jewish student representing Hillel in requesting support for its “Kosher Forward” campaign in an email that supporting the kosher food campaign would go against the “will of the membership,” Hillel said in a statement alleging discrimination on the part of the student union... “Hillel strongly condemns this type of rhetoric, which associates support of the State of Israel with a campaign to make campus more accessible for Jewish students”... “This inability to separate Jewish individuals from the Israeli government’s actions is, indeed, a form of anti-Semitism”... The Graduate Student Union at University of Toronto is the only student union in Canada with a committee dedicated to promoting the BDS movement"
So much for "anti-Zionism" being separate from anti-Semitism

Some people 'genetically wired' to avoid some vegetables - "Inheriting two copies of the unpleasant taste gene provides a "ruin-your-day level of bitterness" to foods like broccoli and sprouts, they say.It could explain why some people find it difficult to include enough vegetables in their diet, they suggest.The gene may also make beer, coffee and dark chocolate taste unpleasant.In evolutionary terms, being sensitive to bitter taste may be beneficial - protecting humans from eating things that could be poisonous... People who inherit two copies of a variant of the gene TAS2R38, called AVI, are not sensitive to bitter tastes from certain chemicals. Those with one copy of AVI and another called PAV perceive bitter tastes of these chemicals, but not to such an extreme degree as individuals with two copies of PAV, often called "super-tasters", who find the same foods exceptionally bitter"

Monsters, men and magic: why feminists turned to witchcraft to oppose Trump - "‘This is the time for getting scary,” the writer Andi Zeisler told Elle magazine on the eve of the 2017 Women’s March. “We need to go full witch.”At the dawn of the Trump administration, witches were suddenly everywhere in the US. Neo-pagans used blogs and social media to circulate popular rituals for hexing Brock Turner (who served less than three months in jail after he was convicted of sexual assualt), the supreme court justice Brett Kavanaugh (accused of sexual assault, which he denies), and Donald Trump himself. The Trump curse was enacted by thousands of people, including the singer Lana Del Rey. “I’m a witch and I’m hunting you,” declared Lindy West in the New York Times... In 1968, the group WITCH descended upon Wall Street in black pointy hats and cloaks, semi-seriously intending to hex it. They also released hundreds of live mice into Madison Square Garden during a bridal fair. Marriage was a recurring target of ire; the leaflet announcing the action chummily invited women everywhere to “confront the whoremakers”."

Witchcraft and black magic contribute to increase in child abuse - "Witchcraft and black magic are increasingly factors in the abuse of children, councils have warned, with official data showing child protection cases based on faith or belief are up by a third in the last year in England to almost 2,000."
Presumably it's feminist to abuse children

Kim Schwan on Twitter - "Me: I have trans friends, Muslim friends, gay friends, friends of all races and nationalities.
Friend: What about conservative friends?
Me: *shifts uncomfortably* I mean, I don't agree with their lifestyle... It's a choice, you know. But they should keep it behind closed doors."
I love how some people unironically quoted and endorsed this - liberals truly view "conservatism" (as with Christianity) as the new sex: something you should only do in private

Meme: "Her: Go on Feel It *proffers biceps*
Mе: *touches breast*"

Father Dan Beeman on Twitter - "English Singer Threatens Canceling Halftime Thanksgiving NFL Show Unless Salvation Army Makes ‘Pledge Or Donation’ To LGBT Community"
"They feed poor people for Christmas. This is insane."
So much for tolerance, the "myth" of the slippery slope, and more rights for others not meaning fewer for you since it's not pie

English Singer Threatens Canceling Halftime Thanksgiving NFL Show Unless Salvation Army Makes ‘Pledge Or Donation’ To LGBT Community - "A spokesperson for the Salvation Army told NBC5, “With an organization of our size and history, myths can perpetuate. An individual’s sexual or gender identity, religion, or lifestyle has no bearing on our willingness to provide service. We stand firmly behind our mission to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.”
The Salvation Army USA website states:
    Almost one-third of transgender people have been rejected from an emergency shelter. The Salvation Army created a dorm in Las Vegas to offer safety and shelter to this group, which is statistically more vulnerable to assault … LGBTQ youth contemplate suicide at almost three times the rate of heterosexual youth. With a presence in every zip code in the nation, we’re committed to providing spiritual and emotional care to those in need regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or gender identity."
When "equality" is really about power

Salvation Army Issues Update On British Singer Who Demanded Donation To LGBT Cause To Perform At NFL Game - "the organization issued an update on the situation with Goulding, thanking her and the activists who made the false claim for inadvertently “shedding light on misconceptions” about them. Goulding, The Salvation Army announced, will be performing as planned now that’s she’s learned about how much they actually do for the LGBTQ community"