1. Lemmy (Lemmy.ml or other instances):
◦ Federated: Lemmy operates on a decentralized model, similar to Mastodon (in the Twitter alternative space). This means that there is no single governing body—each instance is moderated independently.
◦ Focus on Communities: It focuses on subcommunities where niche interests can thrive without corporate interference. Lemmy also has a strong commitment to free speech and critical thinking.
◦ Federation Across Servers: Even if you're waiting for Lemmy.ml approval, you could try other federated Lemmy instances, which all talk to each other. For example, Lemmygrad is another Lemmy instance with a large user base.
2. Mastodon:
◦ While Mastodon is primarily a microblogging platform, many instances of Mastodon cater to users interested in thoughtful, critical discussions. Communities are tightly moderated to avoid trolls and toxic behavior. Mastodon is another federated platform like Lemmy, so you can choose an instance that aligns with your interests and values.
◦ Instance Focus: You can look for an instance dedicated to intellectual discussions or more niche interests that you care about, like critical thinking or philosophy.
3. Discourse:
◦ Discourse is an open-source forum software that powers many community-based platforms. While it doesn’t have the same level of reach as Reddit, it offers features like:
▪ Better community management tools to handle bots and trolls.
▪ Topic categorization, which helps in organizing meaningful discussions.
◦ Many independent forums use Discourse, which allows you to find active and vibrant communities where civil discourse is encouraged.
4. Hacker News:
◦ If you enjoy more tech-oriented or intellectual discussions, Hacker News (owned by Y Combinator) might be a good fit. It’s known for its focus on tech, business, and science discussions with a strong community of knowledgeable people.
◦ While it has its own challenges, like any online community, it has fewer issues with trolling compared to Reddit.
5. Voat (now archived):
◦ Voat, which was a similar alternative to Reddit, was taken offline, but it had served as a niche community that didn’t adhere to Reddit's moderation policies. While it no longer exists, there may be alternatives that have sprouted in response to its closure, though they could have similar moderation issues.
6. 4chan/8kun (Caution Required):
◦ 4chan or 8kun could be alternatives if you're looking for platforms with fewer restrictions. However, be aware that these platforms are infamous for being more chaotic, with unfiltered content that can range from meaningful conversations to highly offensive posts. If you're looking for critical thinking, proceed with caution—you might encounter a lot of noise as well.
7. Tildes:
◦ Tildes is another Reddit-like platform designed for high-quality discussions. It's a non-profit that focuses on having meaningful conversations. It has a smaller user base than Reddit, but it is ad-free and focuses on user-curated content.
◦ Critical Thinking: Tildes encourages more thoughtful posts and discussions than the typical Reddit posts, which are sometimes filled with memes or low-effort content.
It's odd how everyone just accepts what we see looking outward into the 'universe' as established reality without ever being able to actually verify if what we are looking at isn't just a highly sophisticated hologram. A hologram would serve the purpose of keeping all us hairless apes thinking we are just floating around on a single grain of sand in a system larger than the Pacific Ocean. Quite handy for keeping us in perpetual existential crisis, and thereby in the architect's total control.
Indeed. When I think about the scale of the electron cloud around the nucleus, the prospect of observing the structure of a single grain of salt from inside the nucleus seems absurd.
I feel like astrophysicists are doing the equivalent. Not saying they shouldn’t try though …
"Resulting in a Level 2 event on the International Nuclear Event Scale."
A level 2 on the INES is an Incident. A major Accident would be a level 7.
A level 2 is not that bad :
Impact on people and environment:
Exposure of a member of the public in excess of 10 mSv.
Exposure of a worker in excess of the statutory annual limits.
Impact on radiological barriers and control:
Radiation levels in an operating area of more than 50 mSv/h.
Significant contamination within the facility into an area not expected by design.
Impact on defence-in-depth:
Significant failures in safety provisions but with no actual consequences.
Found highly radioactive sealed orphan source, device or transport package with safety provisions intact.
Inadequate packaging of a highly radioactive sealed source.
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