Interesting Links for 03-07-2022

[andrewducker]

1. What would Scottish independence mean? Key issues ahead of the vote, from keeping the pound to rejoining EU

(tags:Scotland independence UK Europe )

2. 'No Aliens, No Spaceships, No Invasion of Earth' An oral history of Contact, the sci-fi movie that defied Hollywood norms and made it big anyway.

(tags:scifi movies history CarlSagan )

3. Slow-motion pole-vaulting makes it clear how amazing it is!

(tags:sports slowmotion video )

4. How many bananas would you have to eat to give yourself radiation sickness?

(tags:radiation banana food funny )

5. Daily skin-to-skin contact in weeks after birth linked to less crying and better sleep

(tags:babies psychology )

6. Inside the world of baby banks: 'Parents feel guilt at being unable to afford nappies'

(tags:poverty UK babies children OhForFucksSake )

7. The (Fall and) Rise of the Internet's Creative Middle Class

(tags:CrowdFunding internet media )

Comments

[nancylebov]

When I saw the headline, I thought what? Is this about preemies? Don't babies who aren't in an ICU generally get a hour of skin-to-skin contact per day?

But I've never had a baby and I don't really know.

The article is about Dutch culture, and apparently an hour is harder than it sounds.

Open questions: Does nursing count as skin-to-skin? Might shorter time periods scattered through the day work? Are parents thinking that there's adequate contact (and it is adequate in the sense of preventing severe damage), but it's through cloth and doesn't work as well?

[andrewducker]

Sophia and Gideon were both born in reasonable weather and spent their first several months wearing very little and lying on a mother who also wasn't wearing much. It does seem like some new mothers don't automatically lie around largely naked with largely naked babies!

[movingfinger]

Or dads! The first image that came to mind when I started reading the article was the classic of shirtless dad zonked out in the recliner or sofa with a nearly naked baby asleep on his chest. I bet every family must have at least one of those shots in the album for every child!

[andrewducker]

Oh yes. Not sure Jane got any photos, but I've definitely had many moments with no top on and a child lying on me.

[mtbc]

It is interesting that Scotland's population is ageing faster than in other parts of the UK. Maybe it's a relativistic effect from rotating in a smaller, slower circle, being further north?

[andrewducker]

I suspect it's young people moving away for work.

[mtbc]

You're probably right, which is interesting, and disappointing. Though, university is one of the things that pulls children away from home and Scots will, I guess, tend to go to Scottish universities. I wonder about my own children's future, especially with their having US citizenship too. I can understand places like Cornwall losing young people, property is unaffordable and there aren't any jobs, I'd hoped that Scotland would be more attractive, especially as we aren't now limited to few television channels where the presenter says, next is this good thing except, for viewers in Scotland … Mind you, I don't know how much of a London effect occurs in places like Fife with jobs in Edinburgh pushing prices up (or if similar happens around Glasgow, which I know even less, apart from that nice doughnut shop). Now you have me wondering about how those large Scottish cities compare with say, Newcastle, Manchester, etc. in terms of, er, commutable jobs per semi-affordable flat, or whatever. Admittedly, I'm here partly hoping to be back in the EU someday.

[andrewducker]

Like many places Scotland has definitely urbanised in recent decades, which has definitely pushed house prices up. I wonder if price (of comparable properties) would count as a proxy for availability.

[channelpenguin]

#7 Is there some clever way round paywalls that I'm not aware of? Because I do miss some interesting links you post due to not wanting to subscribe to half a dozen US magazines I'm not generally interested in. I wish they'd let me buy individual articles@

[andrewducker]

Huh. I get that one without a paywall.

In any case, i tend to find that this site works.
https://archive.ph/lJaIW

[channelpenguin]

Thankyou very much!