Mastodawn

Alain

@Alain@det.social

79 Followers

442 Following

4.1K Posts

Optimist, Humanist, Gamer, viel Gedöns, irgendwas ohne Medien

Location

Mostly Hamburg, Germany

Mario Wird Erzieher 1d ago

Wenn ihr Jens Spahn seht, dann tretet ihn für mich.
Keine Sorge, der tritt nicht zurück.

Wyvernsridge 🌻

It needs to be said
#auspol #tourism #uspol

Michael Eickenboom 5d ago

Die Petition an den Bundestag zur Wiedereinführung der Vermögenssteuer haben bereits am ersten Tag über 4.000 Menschen gezeichnet. Ab 30.000 muss sich der Bundestag damit beschäftigen.

Jetzt mal alle ran, die keine Millionen besitzen, aber intakte Infrastruktur, funktionierende Kinderbetreuung und moderne Krankenhäuser für ganz coole Sachen halten.

https://epetitionen.bundestag.de/petitionen/_2025/_04/_09/Petition_180180.nc.html

Petitionen: Petition 180180

Prof. Sam Lawler 3d ago

@Tom_ofB @SteveDuncan So I think technically Kessler Syndrome has already started, because if we stop launching stuff now, the rate of collisions would continue to increase (which is the technical definition, I think). But the timescale between collisions right now is long-ish. It'll get real bad when that timescale gets to days or hours.

Dejan Mihajlović 3d ago

Wie vorbereitet kannst du als Zivilgesellschaft auf das Ankommen der Polizei-Spezialeinheit sein? Schon.
4/x

JA Westenberg 4d ago

People are shocked to discover they need to fact-check ChatGPT and I'm having the uncomfortable realization that they never fact-checked their uncle's Facebook posts, their friend's medical advice, or literally anything Google's top result told them, and suddenly the last decade makes sense...

Twra Sun 4d ago

Sorry to say…

Carlo Zottmann 5d ago

If you hate the automatic, auto-generated dubbing and translations on #Youtube, then this might be a browser addon for you: https://github.com/YouG-o/YouTube_No_Translation

For #Chrome, #Firefox, and #Safari (DIY).

The auto-dubs and auto-translations of titles and descriptions are some of the worst things Google has ever done on that site, JFC

GitHub - YouG-o/YouTube_No_Translation: A web browser add-on that prevents YouTube's automatic translations! It keeps titles, descriptions, and audio in their original language.

A web browser add-on that prevents YouTube's automatic translations! It keeps titles, descriptions, and audio in their original language. - YouG-o/YouTube_No_Translation

GitHub

Take care!

Twra Sun 5d ago

❤️ ☑️

×

Quixoticgeek Jun 29

To illustrate just how much of a challenge this is, we need to cross the pond to LA. And perhaps the pinacle of poor bus shade design.

La Sombrita. The design of this is so notoriously bad that I, a geek who's never set foot in the US has heard how bad it is.

This is a cautionary tale of the competing obstacles to proper people centred infrastructure. Announced with some fanfair as a shade solution for bus users in LA. It's been universally mocked. But how did it happen?

11/n

Quixoticgeek Jun 29

La Sombrita came about due to the competing jurisdiction wrangling of the LA street.

The transit authority don't own the pavement, so can't build a shelter there. They can't take space from the road, cos car space is sacred. They often also have to wrangle private interests in the areas around the bus stop too. The result is the only place the transit authority can put anything is on the bus stop pole itself. The need to handle winds dictate the perforated design. La Sombrita is...
12/n

Quixoticgeek Jun 29

Basically all they could do within the constraints of the various stakeholders of an LA street. The podcast 99% invisible have am excellent episode that details how this all came about, I highly recommend a listen (https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/shade-redux/).

But the rest of us need to heed La Sombrita as a cautionary tale. And in the meantime time pressure local councils to build better public transport infrastructure, and of course plant more trees. Lots more trees.

13/13

Shade Redux - 99% Invisible

This past May, the city of Los Angeles rolled out a brand new, state-of-the art feature for bus shelters. It’s called La Sombrita. La Sombrita is a metal screen that’s intended to provide shade for the thousands of people who ride the bus every day. The shade screen is about two feet wide, ten feet

99% Invisible

Quixoticgeek Jun 29

PostScript. Some of you are raising eyebrows at the feeling 30°C cooler claim. That's based on research by TU Delft. Note "feels cooler" Vs standing on direct sunlight.

https://www.tudelft.nl/io/onderzoek/sustainability/i-tree-20-nl

A summary of the research in English from nl times:
https://www.dutchnews.nl/2025/06/trees-are-natures-air-conditioning-lowering-city-temperatures/

i-Tree 2.0-NL

TU Delft

BashStKid Jun 29

@quixoticgeek Combination of less direct sun, much less reradiated ground heat, and moderation of humidity?
I don’t know if there’s a small psychological aspect from simply seeing green ?

Quixoticgeek Jun 29

@BashStKid there is a psychological impact from nature. And trees can be enough for that.

@quixoticgeek @BashStKid I still say vines are part of the solution - but I’m in #missouri where vines abound . Smaller roots then trees, not gonna break in a storm if they get cut back every winter, shade, berries for birds, sometimes flowers for pollinators- this will require collaboration with botanists and gardeners. God forbid a non grower choose the species- that NEVERgoes well.

BashStKid 6d ago

@KatLS @quixoticgeek Interesting idea. Would that need some kind of sparse support structure (wires?) above the pavements?

@BashStKid @quixoticgeek existing shelters would do where those are in place. Otherwise, a wide metal mesh may be ideal . You’d need something people won’t damage being people.

Plsik (born in 320 ppm) 🇨🇿🇺🇦🇵🇸6d ago

@quixoticgeek Any tree, especially a deciduous tree, is practically an air conditioner that runs on solar energy. The tree literally draws water from the ground and evaporates it through microscopic holes in the leaf surface. It can regulate these vents so that it maintains a constant temperature of around 20˚C above the leaf surface. The leaf area of a large tree is enormous. Therefore, it greatly influences the temperature around the tree. Of course, this only works if the tree has water.

Astronot 6d ago

@plsik @quixoticgeek Albuquerque, even though we are in high desert with lots of heat and low humidity, provides treebates to encourage planting trees and maintaining them. Covers new irrigation systems, buying trees, pruning, and other things to make trees more affordable for everyone.

https://www.abcwua.org/conservation-rebates-tree-rebates/

Space Hobo 6d ago

@quixoticgeek
30°C is a sweltering summer day. I'm suffering in 28°. 0°C freezes water solid. The reason we're raising eyebrows is that this sounds more plausible in degrees Fahrenheit.

Astronot 6d ago

@quixoticgeek The Albuquerque "ART" bus line is another example. They cut down all the mature trees in the median and side walks to add a bus lane without impacting the car lanes. They built raised platforms that slope so wheel chairs roll off. All seating is just spots to lean. The shade structure never shades the platform but does shade the street where no one can use it. No protection from the wind, rain or snow. But it does take a pretty picture.

Silviavont 6d ago

@astronot @quixoticgeek what a description! Looking at the picture, I'd agree with you.

samiamsam 6d ago

@astronot @quixoticgeek

it is horrible and many were against it

my thought is the mayor at the time must have gotten kickbacks

Astronot 6d ago

@quixoticgeek TLC Plumbing got the contract for the bus lane. Why a plumbing company for road work? Because the Mayor's wife is on their board. Strange that the stops were placed next to vacant lots that mayor and his cronies owned.

Painting pavement to "protect" the bus lane.
Lanes that end with no signage.
Buses sometimes on the left of platforms. Sometimes on the right.
Conflicting signage all in English (we are majority Hispanic).
So many accidents every week.

Astronot 6d ago

@quixoticgeek electric buses sourced from a company in china that never made electric buses before. Charging incompatible with local electric. Batteries with less than 40% of spec. So buses can't finish one run on a charge.
So much corruption but no one was ever charged and we are still dealing with consequences years later.
None of the signs meet federal road safety standards.
Local shopping district collapsed between construction and the new buses that make it impossible to cross the street.

Kim Scheinberg 6d ago

@quixoticgeek
Don't overlook what money interests did to reduce shade in LA

"Universal Studios is receiving a fine of $250 from the City of Los Angeles after it trimmed down trees allegedly being used for shade by writers and actors picketing outside."

https://www.newsweek.com/universal-studios-slammed-triming-trees-giving-shade-actors-writers-strike-1814860

Universal Studios Slammed After Trimming Trees Giving Shade to Strikers

While actors and writers strike in Los Angeles, Universal Studios has been accused of illegally trimming trees that were providing shade to picketers.

Newsweek

Lord HeeHaw II 6d ago

@quixoticgeek
Thanks for this. You're right on the button!

"proper people centred infrastructure" love the term & the concept! So much scope for improvement!! So encouraging to see the thinking & details of what could work... and what definitely doesn't work! Thanks again. 🙂

#PeopleCentredInfrastructure
#Infrastructure #BusStop #ScopeForImprovement
#ReconnectingConsequencesToCauses