How much perfume should one use?

Well, it should be a reward for intimacy, not a punishment for proximity.

We only accept, believe, and surrender to the thoughts that are equal to our emotional state.

I’m Curious about…

Batteries. What’s happening in there? What makes the ions move through the electrolyte?

In simple terms, ions move through the electrolyte in a battery due to a difference in electrical potential (voltage) between the anode and cathode.

  1. Chemical Reactions: At the anode, a chemical reaction releases ions and electrons. These ions want to move to the cathode where they can react and achieve a more stable state.
  2. Electric Potential Difference: This movement is driven by the difference in electric potential (voltage) between the anode and cathode. The anode is at a higher energy state compared to the cathode.
  3. Electrolyte: The electrolyte provides a pathway for ions to move from the anode to the cathode while keeping the electrons separate. The electrons travel through an external circuit, generating electric current.

…So the electrons are powering my clock, and the ions are moving from the anode to the cathode in the background – presumably for no benefit to me and my clock?

Yes, the electrons directly power the clock, but the movement of ions from the anode to the cathode is essential for the overall function of the battery.

  1. Maintaining Charge Balance: As electrons leave the anode and flow through your clock, positive ions are left behind. These positive ions need to move to the cathode to balance the charge and maintain the flow of electrons.
  2. Completing the Circuit: The movement of ions in the electrolyte completes the electrical circuit within the battery. Without this movement, the chemical reactions at the anode and cathode would stop, halting the flow of electrons and, consequently, the power to the clock.
  3. Sustaining Chemical Reactions: The continuous movement of ions enables ongoing chemical reactions at the electrodes. This process sustains the generation of electrons, which keeps the clock running.

Planting Trees to Combat Climate Change

Today, as the world searches for solutions to global climate change, tree planting has become more popular than ever. It’s a simple and appealing response to an overwhelming, existential crisis, and it makes for easy messaging: anyone can go out and plant a tree to help restore balance to Earth’s climate. But for many large-scale tree-planting initiatives, the focus is on the number of new trees that end up in the ground, not on planting the right trees in the right places or caring for them after planting to ensure they survive.

Kessler, Rebecca. “Is Planting Trees as Good for the Earth as Everyone Says?” Mongabay Environmental News, 4 June 2021, news.mongabay.com/2021/05/is-planting-trees-as-good-for-the-earth-as-everyone-says.

Planting the right trees in the right place makes sense in the grand scheme of things because conversely, planting monocultures of non-native species can impact the regulation of water cycles, soil composition, and wildlife habitat. One problem would be solved, but another would be introduced. Undoubtably, after-care is imperative, I can only hope it wasn’t a short term PR stunt.

Fred Again..

Community > Consumerism

The rise of the hollow brands – selling everything, owning next to nothing – happened over decades when the key institutions that used to provide individuals with a sense of community and shared identity were in sharp decline: tightly knit neighborhoods where people looked out for one another; large workplaces that held out the promise of a job for life; space and time for ordinary people to make their own art, not just consume it; organized religion; political movements and trade unions that were grounded in face-to-face relationships; public-interest media that strove to knit nations together in a common conversation.

All these institutions and traditions were and are imperfect, often deeply so. They left many people out, and very often enforced an unhealthy conformity. But they did offer something we humans need for our well-being, and for which we never cease to long: community, connection, a sense of mission larger than our immediate atomized desires. These two trends- the decline of communal institutions and the expansion of corporate brands in our culture-have had an inverse, seesaw-like relationship to one another over the decades: as the influence of those institutions that provided us with that essential sense of belonging went down, the power of commercial brands went up.

I’ve always taken solace from this dynamic. It means that, while our branded world can exploit the unmet need to be part of something larger than ourselves, it can’t fill it in any sustained way: you make a purchase to be part of a tribe, a big idea, a revolution, and it feels good for a moment, but the satisfaction wears off almost before you’ve thrown out the packaging for that new pair of sneakers, that latest model iPhone, or whatever the surrogate is. Then you have to find a way to fill the void again. It’s the perfect formula for endless consumption and perpetual self-commodification through social media, and it’s a disaster for the planet, which cannot sustain these levels of consumption.

But it’s always worth remembering: at the heart of this cycle is that very powerful force- the human longing for community and connection, which simply refuses to die.

And that means there is still hope: if we rebuild our communities and begin to derive more meaning and a sense of the good life from them, many of us are going to be less susceptible to the siren song of mindless consumerism (and while we’re at it, we might even spend less time producing and editing our personal brands on social media).

Naomi Klein (2017) No Is Not Enough. Penguin Books