Spyke

Replies

Comment on

Why do we not eat pig or cow?

Reply in thread

To add to this, the rich (i.e., French-speaking) consumed the most butchered meat, by far. So, it came to be that butchered meat for sale would be labeled in French, while the live animals, which were tended by (English-speaking) peasents retained their English names.

196

Comment on

WITCHCRAFT!

Reply in thread

Well, as a first point, OP's information is wrong. While it's true that the half-life of U235 is ~700 million years, it isn't true that half of the initial mass is lost. When U235 fissions, about 200 MeV of the initial mass is converted to energy. The total initial mass is about a thousand times that, though (E=mc^2). So, after 700 million years, assuming you kept it from falling apart, the initial 15 lb lump would only lose ~1/4 of an ounce as energy.

memes

Comment on

Indigenous Indignation

I know it's just memes, but, if anyone is interested in more perspective on this, I heartily recommend the book Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. It tells the history of the latter parts of the Indian Wars using primary sources (and Native American sources, wherever possible). The result is the story of American expansion from the Native perspective and, while depressing, is also really important to understand.