I mean all of that is true, but, speaking as someone from Croatia - we don’t follow safety standards and regulations here anyway even with native workers, the quality of the bridge would definitely not be any better had Croats built it, and I doubt there even is the adequate workforce and know-how within Croatia that would be needed for such a massive and complex job. I would unironically expect the deadlines to be breached by several years had the job been given to a local company. We also aren’t a rich country by European standards, so the price was probably a crucial factor.

In case you’re worrying about general Chinese influence on Croatian politics, that’s not really a problem, our govt is strongly pro-EU (for better and for worse), as well as much of the population.

What the hell is “sus” about that?

Indeed, according to anthropologist Robert L. Hoover, “the killer whale [orca] was regarded by the Chumash as a benevolent creature which drove schools of porpoises and whales ashore where they could be utilized by man.”

Hmm, “1200-600 CE”?

https://samblog.seattleartmuseum.org/2018/08/whale-effigy-charm/

Looks like it should be 1200-1600 CE (or AD).

That might depend on where you live, but generally no, I think.

Imagine yourself being confused and baffled by something, and asking “Really?”. The intonation is rising, as is usual in questions. Imagine yourself hearing someone say something you are completely confident is absurdly false or a lie, and you want to suggest to the person that they’re wrong and you know the truth, by sarcastically asking “Really?”. The intonation is falling, closer to ordinary statements of fact.

OOP is using the full stop at the end of his “questons” to suggest the second, sarcastic intonation.

https://github.com/elementdavv/internet_archive_downloader

This one? I’ll definitely give it a try.

FYI, there are multiple methods to download “digitally loaned” books off IA, the guides exist on reddit. The public domain stuff is safe, but the stuff that is still under copyright yet unavailable by other means (Libgen/Anna’s Archive, or even normal physical copies) should definitely be ripped and uploaded to LG.

The method I use, which results in best images, is to “loan” the book, zoom in to load the highest resolution, and then leaf through the book. Periodically extract the full images from your browser cache (with e.g. MZCacheView). This should probably be automatised, but I’m yet to find a method, other than making e.g. an Autohotkey script. When you have everything downloaded, the images can be easily modified (if the book doesn’t have coloured illustrations IMO it is ideal to convert all images to black-and-white 2-bit PNG), and bundled up into a PDF with a PDF editor (I use X-Change Editor; I also like doing OCR, adding the bookmarks/outline, and adding special page numbering if needed - but that stuff can take a while and just makes the file easier to handle, it’s not necessary). Then the book can be uploaded to proper pirate sites and hopefully live on freely forever. Also there are some other methods you can find online, on reddit, etc.

Produce infinite copies of bread loaves, and then get arrested because the baker lobby doesn’t like that.

I don’t know why the dinosaur memes have been on the rise recently, but I like it.

Yes, it’s https://t.me/library_genesis_libgen_bot

Why they were down, you mean? In their TG channel they mentioned a cyberattack, that’s all I know.

True, the .li domain was still fine.

There’s also Anna’s Archive, which I use primarily, since it provides downloads not just from their own db, but links to Libgen and other places where the given book is available.

Most domains (other than .li) were down for several days, making people worried it’s gone for good.

Perhaps a paid app to track and manage your subscriptions…

Man I miss the times when Google used to trick us into helping make knowledge more easily accessible to everyone. Now we just train fucking AI for luxury cars.

It’s alright for free. The slow downloads are still perfectly usable unless there are server-side issues, and they also provide links to other mirrors (libgen.li, which is still up, Z-lib, and IPFS).

I don’t get the impression there are even precise definitions of these generational labels.

And I don’t think they make any sense at all outside of USA and maybe west Europe.

So, uh, what is the difference?

Here’s half an hour of reconstructed dinosaur sounds.

An ongoing study utilizing the most recent scientific data on dinosaur vocalizations. Sounds are produced by myself and digitally workshopped from modern non-syrinx based avian reptiles. Using skull and olfactory cavity proportions, one can attempt to recreate the flow of sound, frequency, and volume of each animal. Much study is required for each particular species, and often several phases are trashed due to general unlikelihood. The final results are based on acute representations of what sounds would be most comfortable and base-line for each animal. Video also includes other reptiles, even though they are much more difficult to produce accurately.