Traditional "Christmastide" and the Twelve Days of Christmas
a repost of sorts
https://infogalactic.com/info/Christmastide
> In medieval era Christendom, Christmastide "lasted from the Nativity to the Purification."[note: February 2][33][34] To this day, the "Christian cultures in Western Europe and Latin America extend the season to forty days, ending on the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple and the Purification of Mary on 2 February, a feast also known as Candlemas because of the blessing of candles on this day, inspired by the Song of Simeon, which proclaims Jesus as 'a light for revelation to the nations'."[35] Many Churches refer to the period after the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas and up to Candlemas, as Epiphanytide, also called the Epiphany season.[8][36]
The contemporary or ancient shorter season:
> Christmastide begins very early on 25 December. Historically, the ending of Christmastide was 5 January.
Similarly there is a post-Easter celebration called "Eastertide":
> Eastertide is the period of fifty days from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday.[2]
https://infogalactic.com/info/Eastertide
thanks for catching the broken link, I was kind of aware of the autoshortening problem but didn't double check to see if that link was good or not
Spiritual Reading For Every Day: An Introduction To The Interior And Perfect Life by Le Masson (1677)
Book link: https://archive.org/details/spiritualreading01massuoft/page/n7/mode/2up
A recommendation from Fr. Lasance in "My Prayer Book" (p.544, 1908), which is also a nice collection: https://archive.org/details/MyPrayerBookHappinessInGo
edit: correct link I think - https://archive.org/details/MyPrayerBookHappinessInGoodnes
Possible Health Benefits of Acupressure (Spiky) Mats
I've seen this thing posted off and on for some years now, these "acupressure" (spiky) mats, they're like little cushions with dozens of kind of sharp (but not too sharp and usually plastic) "spikes" clusters on them, and people lay on them or push them in to their skin.
It seems to create a painful sensation, like stepping on a LEGO toy, but surprisingly then creates a feeling of release when you adapt to it or remove yourself from the tension. It reminds me of the idea of cold showers that can feel kind of uncomfortable but then have supposed benefits, or how weightlifting destroys people's muscles but then the muscles grow back stronger.
Here's a 3d print design for these acupressure "rosettes": https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3619377
Anyone tried these or have any thought on them?
(edit: wanted to add that I find these to be an interesting possible religious kind of "mortification", like flagellation was up to medieval times... I think that practice was abused so was discouraged and mostly abandoned)
keeping defederation from threads is probably good, the general consensus seems to be they are only creating threads for the mentioned "embrace extend extinguish" goal... coin flip for the alien.top federation.
in my view a separate instance that federates with threads and alien that people repost to manually might be the best idea, if people want to interact with them - this would still enable communication, without it "infecting" the "real fediverse"
frontends seem unnecessary imo (or I am indifferent on the choice I guess)
A lot of fascinating things to read, even if just to understand the history
Regifting Yourself (and Others) Things Already Owned
I've seen this frugal concept before and I think it's worth repeating, about "regifting" yourself stuff you already have that maybe you aren't utilizing fully, or of giving that "gift" of a reminder about this to others.
Maybe you have a musical instrument that hasn't been played in a while, or someone else does and a reminder to them might get them playing it again.
In seeking for "new" things we maybe forget about things we already have access to that we own or other people own.
Have you tried this idea, like of making out a list, and regifted stuff to yourself or others, and how did it turn out or how do you think it would turn out?
it's a good reminder to check him out
I think he argued one big technological development of sorts was the development of "technique", which can in the extreme really regiment a person's activity into defined actions
Thematic Book Series: Heating People, not Spaces | Low Tech Magazine
We have launched the third volume in a new series of books opening up Low-tech Magazine’s archive by theme.
Main link - https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2023/12/thematic-book-series-heating-people-not-spaces/
Restoring the Old Way of Warming: Heating People, not Spaces https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/02/restoring-the-old-way-of-warming-heating-people-not-places/
Insulation: First the Body, then the Home https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/02/insulation-first-the-body-then-the-home/
The Revenge of the Hot Water Bottle (Personal Note: Contains an immodest ad) https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2022/01/the-revenge-of-the-hot-water-bottle/
Energy Labels Oblige Frugal Homeowners to Make Unsustainable Investments https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2018/01/energielabels-verplichten-zuinige-woning-bezitters-tot-nutteloze-investeringen/
How to Keep Warm in a Cool House https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/03/how-to-keep-warm-in-a-cool-house/
Sunbathing in the Living Room: Tile Stoves and Other Radiant Heating Systems https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2008/12/sunbathing-in-the-living-room-oven-stoves-and-heat-walls/
Heat Storage Hypocausts: Air Heating in the Middle Ages https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2017/03/heat-storage-hypocausts-air-heating-in-the-middle-ages/
The Revenge of the Circulating Fan https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2014/09/circulating-fans-air-conditioning.html
Documentation: Documenting All The Things
https://infogalactic.com/info/Documentation
Any tips for documenting software or other things in life?
Examples of good or bad docs?
It seems like an overlooked but important topic in software and other things in life (like creating user manuals, etc.)
Thoughts on documentation in general?
yeah I've heard of some things like permaculture and no till agricultural methods that make me wonder how productive low tech approaches could be; on the other extreme are hydroponics / aeroponics systems in controlled environments. It seems like we could probably experiment and find more ways to do things than our current system does things
Making Farming Safer with Less Technology?
Farming is apparently one of the most dangerous professions.
What are the sources of danger?
https://www.ufkeslaw.com/blog/2019/august/the-7-most-common-farming-accidents/
> 1. Overturning tractors and heavy machinery.
> 2. Falls.
> 3. Toxic chemical exposure to pesticides.
> 4. Suffocation.
> 5. Heat Stress.
> 6. Limbs crushed in agricultural machinery.
> 7. Animal-related injuries
https://nasdonline.org/1241/d001045/a-review-of-farm-accident-data-sources-and.html
> Most traumatic injuries occur during interactions with machinery, especially tractors (Bean, 1991). Injuries also result from poor building design, electric power, livestock handling, and weather conditions. The activities that victims were most often performing when injured are machinery maintenance, fieldwork, and caring for animals
Tractor Rollover Protection
So I've seen one issue is tractors rolling over, and they have rollover protection designs that can be retrofitted on old tractors. Maybe some farmers, having thin profit margins, have skimped on buying the new safety designs, so they continue to operate tractors that can rollover and be a danger. But that seems like one solution to fixing the problem of most deaths.
Animals Versus Tractors
So interacting with animals is high on the list of what causes harm, as well as tractors. Presumably in order to prevent some animal harms (like with horses), tractors were thought to be able to be used. I guess what I'm getting at here is, would it be safer to use horses instead of tractors, or tractors (with rollover protection) instead of horses?
Cutting Technology Out
Roughly half of the issues in the first list are technology related: tractors and heavy machinery, toxic pesticide exposure. Again, would it be possible to trade off some productivity and to make farming more labor intensive, to gain some safety?
High Technology Solutions Instead
On the other side of the spectrum, I guess "autonomous tractors" or remote controlled ones come to mind, that couldn't flip over, and maybe robots could be used to interact with animals to prevent dangerous animal interactions. I suppose in starting to write this I assumed the low tech direction would be more viable, but does farming need a "high tech revolution" instead to become safer? More programming of farming-related robotics, and less dangerous manual interactions?
Conclusion
I'm curious if anyone has thoughts on how to improve the safety of farming today, with possibly making trade-offs of less or more technology for less yields, or if a lot of the dangers might be mitigated in other ways.
"Amish but Catholic"
Could be kind of, that sounds like a fair approximate characterization, I don't know what the main differences are in technological acceptance versus religious differences
In principle Catholics don't seem too anti-technology; this group was more against industrialization and its effects, like I'm not sure they'd be against small industrial home factories whereas I imagine Amish would be
Like Amish I think go to pains to avoid things like electricity and use gas contraptions instead, I don't think those who identify with the "Catholic Land Movement" would necessarily be against using electricity, or maybe not for the same reasons
The "Catholic Land Movement"
I can't find too much info on this online, but I stumbled upon it as related to "distributism"; seems to have been a movement sparked by opposition to industrialism in the 1800s, by Catholics, who wanted to preserve a more agrarian way of life. It has been revived in recent years, or there is an attempt to create a "Neo-Catholic Land Movement", as mentioned on sites like catholiclandmovement.info.
The Industrial Revolution initially created a lot of instability in society and the papal encyclical "Rerum Novarum" was issued partially in response to it. Even into much of the 20th century, agriculture was a big part of the economy in the U.S., but now in the 21st century life has changed more dramatically, which has created further moral problems.
There was a book published called something like "The Catholic Land Movement's Founding Papers" with a collection by some recognized authors like Hilaire Belloc, and a reprint of said book in more recent years called "Flee to the Fields". I can't find much of these contents online but maybe I could cobble them together if requested (I can obtain access to "Flee" book).
I do see this online which may offer a sketch of the idea:
"The Catholic Land Movement: Its Motives" by Fr. Vincent Mcnabb, O.P., S.T.M, Foreword by G. K. Chesterton (early 20th century?)
https://www.ecatholic2000.com/cts/untitled-495.shtml
In my view a "CL movement" would simply be sharing practical homesteading skills, as many secular sites probably already do, but would also argue for how the agrarian way of life might be conducive to living a sound moral life, from a Catholic standpoint.
"On Rural Life" by Pope Pius XII (1946)
https://www.papalencyclicals.net/pius12/poprural.htm
It's good this time of year to give thanks for farms and food and the "fruits of harvest", and to reflect on their importance and impact on our way of life today.
Glad to see it back up, I was wondering if something was wrong with my computer
Happy Thanksgiving (U.S.) belatedly to posters
only with text-only communities
if it wasn't clear this is basically what I meant, no images at all, even from other instances; it would require a kind of change of software perhaps (I am suggesting a totally different "low tech" social medium setup). Text is much more sustainable than images or sound, which is more sustainable than video
a different comment but it seems like text-only federation scales easier (not very helpful to think of for this instance which is often based on meme sharing I'd guess)
Thematic Book Series: How to Downsize a Transport Network? (Low Tech Magazine)
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.basedcount.com/post/718734
> Note: I don't necessarily agree with the author's writings, but I find the "low technology" approach fascinating and indeed practical in certain circumstances, and certainly worth discussion. > > Link About Book (and then individual links are to a good chunk of the contents): > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2023/10/thematic-book-series-how-to-downsize-a-transport-network/ > > How to Downsize a Transport Network: the Chinese Wheelbarrow > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/12/how-to-downsize-a-transport-network-the-chinese-wheelbarrow/ > > The Citroën 2CV: Cleantech from the 1940s > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2008/06/the-citroen-2cv-cleantech-from-the-1940s/ > > The Status Quo of Electric Cars: Better Batteries, Same Range > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2010/05/the-status-quo-of-electric-cars-better-batteries-same-range > > Electric Velomobiles: as Fast and Comfortable as Automobiles, but 80 times more Efficient > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2012/10/electric-velomobiles-as-fast-and-comfortable-as-automobiles-but-80-times-more-efficient/ > > Get Wired again: Trolleybuses and Trolleytrucks > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2009/07/get-wired-again-trolleybuses-and-trolleytrucks/ > > High Speed Trains are Killing the European Railway Network > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2013/12/high-speed-trains-are-killing-the-european-railway-network > > Life Without Airplanes: from London to New York in 3 Days and 12 Hours > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2008/06/life-without-airplanes-from-london-to-new-york-in-3-days-and-12-hours/ > > How to Design a Sailing Ship for the 21st Century? > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2021/05/how-to-design-a-sailing-ship-for-the-21st-century
Thematic Book Series: How to Downsize a Transport Network? (Low Tech Magazine)
Note: I don't necessarily agree with the author's writings, but I find the "low technology" approach fascinating and indeed practical in certain circumstances, and certainly worth discussion.
Link About Book (and then individual links are to a good chunk of the contents): https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2023/10/thematic-book-series-how-to-downsize-a-transport-network/
How to Downsize a Transport Network: the Chinese Wheelbarrow https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/12/how-to-downsize-a-transport-network-the-chinese-wheelbarrow/
The Citroën 2CV: Cleantech from the 1940s https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2008/06/the-citroen-2cv-cleantech-from-the-1940s/
The Status Quo of Electric Cars: Better Batteries, Same Range https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2010/05/the-status-quo-of-electric-cars-better-batteries-same-range
Electric Velomobiles: as Fast and Comfortable as Automobiles, but 80 times more Efficient https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2012/10/electric-velomobiles-as-fast-and-comfortable-as-automobiles-but-80-times-more-efficient/
Get Wired again: Trolleybuses and Trolleytrucks https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2009/07/get-wired-again-trolleybuses-and-trolleytrucks/
High Speed Trains are Killing the European Railway Network https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2013/12/high-speed-trains-are-killing-the-european-railway-network
Life Without Airplanes: from London to New York in 3 Days and 12 Hours https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2008/06/life-without-airplanes-from-london-to-new-york-in-3-days-and-12-hours/
How to Design a Sailing Ship for the 21st Century? https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2021/05/how-to-design-a-sailing-ship-for-the-21st-century
Stringbike: Chainless Bicycle Design
> The Stringbike is a bicycle that uses a rope and pulley drive system instead of a traditional bicycle chain and sprockets.[1][2][3][4] It uses two Dyneema ropes attached to pulleys attached to swinging lever and cam mechanisms, one on each side of the bike. These mechanisms replace the round sprockets found on chain-driven bikes. Unlike some traditional 10-speed gears using a derailleur, there is no slippage when changing gear ratios.[5] The Stringbike uses a 19 gear ratio system with no duplicates and a total gear range of 3.5 to 1. The transmission ratio can be changed with a shifting knob located on the right-side handle grip. Gear ratios can be changed even when the bicycle is almost stationary.[6]
> Hungarian designers from the manufacturing company Schwinn Csepel Zrt, unveiled the bicycle in 2010 in Padova, Italy.[7]
It never caught on so possibly isn't better than a chain design, but maybe it simply lacks popularity or the idea might be made use of for some other application
sorry I'm lagging on responding, I'm adapting to life and shakeups in the fediverse
initially negligable
yeah this problem is with tech in general, I think it's called jevon's paradox: every time tech is invented, the idea is it will save labor or resources, but people end up just using more resources a lot of times. Like a light bulb that is 10x more efficient, means people just buy 11 more light bulbs instead.
ebooks as being more environmentally friendly
well it's better than audiobooks or video I think; I think they can possibly be ecofriendly, it may depend on the device you consume on (a desktop computer + monitor would probably consume a lot more energy than a phone or ereader)
speed limit
we don't have to have a regulation, it could just be a culturally adapted norm (if this is thought to be a good thing); or we could find ways to make better use of data resources
If I can read it instead of watch it, I will
I've thought of some experiments like this before, like for instance listening to audio I think is way more energy efficient with headphones versus a speaker (1000x?)
I don't know if you're a /datahoarder/ at all but that's another thought, hard drives only last so long and people buy new ones to keep their data going... I don't know how sustainable this is but it seems a bit concerning that new hard drives are needed so frequently. /digitalminimalism/ might be a topic worth discussing
Thematic Book Series: How to Build a Low-tech Internet? | Low Tech Magazine
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.basedcount.com/post/148716
> (posted for discussion, not necessarily in agreement with author) > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2023/08/thematic-books-series/ > > Links to articles used in book (not linked on the site, presumably this is the book's contents): > > ... > > Why we need a speed limit for the internet > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/10/why-we-need-a-speed-limit-for-the-internet/ > > Email in the 18th century: the optical telegraph > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2007/12/email-in-the-18.html > > How to build a low-tech internet? > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/10/how-to-build-a-low-tech-internet > > How to build a low-tech website? > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2018/09/how-to-build-a-low-tech-website/ > > How sustainable is a solar powered website? > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2020/01/how-sustainable-is-a-solar-powered-website.html > > How and why I stopped buying laptops > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2020/12/how-and-why-i-stopped-buying-new-laptops > > Why the office needs a typewriter revolution > > https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2016/11/why-the-office-needs-a-typewriter-revolution.html
Thematic Book Series: How to Build a Low-tech Internet? | Low Tech Magazine
(posted for discussion, not necessarily in agreement with author)
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2023/08/thematic-books-series/
Links to articles used in book (not linked on the site, presumably this is the book's contents):
...
Why we need a speed limit for the internet
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/10/why-we-need-a-speed-limit-for-the-internet/
Email in the 18th century: the optical telegraph
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2007/12/email-in-the-18.html
How to build a low-tech internet?
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/10/how-to-build-a-low-tech-internet
How to build a low-tech website?
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2018/09/how-to-build-a-low-tech-website/
How sustainable is a solar powered website?
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2020/01/how-sustainable-is-a-solar-powered-website.html
How and why I stopped buying laptops
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2020/12/how-and-why-i-stopped-buying-new-laptops
Why the office needs a typewriter revolution
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2016/11/why-the-office-needs-a-typewriter-revolution.html
they do all interest me as I like a variety of things and I could mod some (there aren't too many reports that really come in) although they may remain a bit empty, I'd have no guarantee of that
I'm guessing more like main but it's for mostly any post so possbily like the lemmy "pure chaos" one
(as another comment, I need a !general at minimum to post something that doesn't fit in existing communities?)
The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe
sometimes freedom is preferred when there are incentives towards it