What is the food eaten in Close Encounters during the infamous mashed potato scene?
  • "Initials" by "Florian Körner", licensed under "CC0 1.0". / Remix of the original. - Created with dicebear.comInitialsFlorian Körnerhttps://github.com/dicebear/dicebearIT
    itsworkthatwedo
    3d ago 100%

    The "little meat things" look like mini corndogs, without sticks. Definitely not mini meatloafs, not like any fishstick I've encountered. Could be a hushpuppy I guess, but would be surprised if a dinner table in america in the 70s lacked some sort of animal based protein.

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  • Is being underwater nature's low-pass filter, sort of like the natural audio equivalent of visual blurring?
  • "Initials" by "Florian Körner", licensed under "CC0 1.0". / Remix of the original. - Created with dicebear.comInitialsFlorian Körnerhttps://github.com/dicebear/dicebearIT
    itsworkthatwedo
    4w ago 100%

    I'm going to take a guess at the observations that have lead to your questions.

    Above water sounds are muffled when one is underwater. This is due to an impedance mismatch between two mediums, air and water. When airborne sound encounters the surface of the water, only a small fraction of that sound continues to travel through the water, the rest is reflected off the water's surface.

    Similarly, our ears and vocal cords have evolved to be efficient transducers above water, but not when submerged. On the other hand, whales have evolved very efficient underwater transducers and can communicate with other whales over 100s, maybe 1000s of miles/kilometers. They typically communicate at low frequencies since attenuation increases with increasing frequency. This is similar to what happens in air, like when comparing thunder from a distant lightning strike to a strike that happens nearby: the distant strike sounds like a deep rumble since the mids and highs have been absorbed by barriers and the air while the nearby strike results in much more high frequency "crack" and "sizzle" sounds.

    Just riffing over here. Sound is rad.

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  • So I tried to make hot process soap today
  • "Initials" by "Florian Körner", licensed under "CC0 1.0". / Remix of the original. - Created with dicebear.comInitialsFlorian Körnerhttps://github.com/dicebear/dicebearIT
    itsworkthatwedo
    2mo ago 100%

    I've never tried hot process bar soap, but I'd expect that rather than "overcooking" you may have evaporated too much water. This could result in a clumpy mass without much cohesion.

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  • Monthly Recommendations Thread: What are you playing?
  • "Initials" by "Florian Körner", licensed under "CC0 1.0". / Remix of the original. - Created with dicebear.comInitialsFlorian Körnerhttps://github.com/dicebear/dicebearIT
    itsworkthatwedo
    3mo ago 100%

    I beat Metroid: Zero Mission a few weeks ago (that's probably the 7th game I've completed in 30+ years of gaming hahah) and I'm thinking of going through the rest of the series.

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  • Independence from the tyranny of commercial soaps.

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    5

    Let's see how this goes. Water and raw honey, 4:1, hoping for a wild yeast mead. First time, so fingers crossed

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    Lavender bar soap unmolded and a week deep into its cure. Had some issues unmolding where the soap stuck in the corners, which is visible in the bottom right bar. Color is better now than it was out the gate, but still not quite what I had hoped for. All issues with this batch probably stem from the high proportion of Shea butter: crack after pouring into mold, sticking in the mold, bars feel a bit too soft. Proportion of butter was twice as high as it should been, but lesson learned. Will report back when it's ready for use!

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    First attempt at a ginger bug. Today is day 3 of fermentation, unsure what I'm going to soda-fy yet...maybe some apple cider? Still pretty cool.

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    "Initials" by "Florian Körner", licensed under "CC0 1.0". / Remix of the original. - Created with dicebear.comInitialsFlorian Körnerhttps://github.com/dicebear/dicebearSH
    Sharpening itsworkthatwedo 1y ago 83%
    New Stone

    I know its nothing fancy, but it's a huge step up from the no-name, no-info stone I picked up from a restaurant supply shop years ago. I'll keep y'all posted on my adventures. Also, where is everyone?

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    ...and whipped up a few pounds of this lavender scented olive oil, coconut oil, and shea butter behemoth. Color is a not exactly what I was after and I think the proportion of the shea butter was too high (hence the crack), but I'm hoping it'll still be a nice batch. Will update when I unmold and again after the cure.

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    I've made a few batches of soap in my nascent career, including three batches of bar soap based on [this recipe from Soap Queen](https://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/cold-process-soap/back-to-basics-simple-gentle-cold-process-soap/) as well as three batches of [this "Castile" soap](http://nwedible.com/how-to-make-diy-liquid-castile-soap/). I'd love to branch out, try different recipes or experiment with different blends or ratios, just feeling reluctant to fix what isn't broken. I'll be making a new batch of bar soap soon and will be sure to post updates of my progress. Let me know if you've got any sweet recipe selections or blends to try!

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