Friday Finds, XVIII
Why scientists believe dogs are smarter than we give them credit for (Vox)
On the whole, psychologist and dog researcher Stanley Coren estimates, the average dog's intelligence is roughly as sophisticated as a 2.5-year-old baby's.
“Well 2.5 year old babies can talk” one could say or think. Yes, but complex speech is but just one indicator of intelligence.
How Bon Appétit Accidentally Made YouTube’s Most Beloved Stars (Buzzfeed News)
“Bon Appétit has done such a great job of shrugging off the stuffy legacy media brand persona and now leans heavily on authenticity, and it's something that people really seem to appreciate,” said Martin and Kersh.
Yes, yes, and yes. I've written a bunch of times about how much I adore the BA folks, and that quote above really nails it. Of course it's produced. But it doesn't feel at all scripted. And if there's any scripting, it's loose. But most of all, they're just very delightful to watch.
One day at work, I was in our kitchen with a bunch of co-workers. One person mentioned Bon Appetit, and we just serendipitously connected over loving BA, asking each other who our favorite member was. None of us knew we were separately fans. It was a very nice moment.
The Promise and Problem of Fake Meat (Buzzfeed News)
Beyond Meat and the Impossible Burger do have better nutritional profiles than beef burgers: Less calories, more protein, less fat.
...
But that case only works if you ignore the large body of evidence that processed food consumption contributes just as much, if not more, to obesity, cancer, and other disease risk.
I've had the Impossible Burger (IB) a handful of times now. It's plenty good enough, and I don't feel left wanting a cow burger. I also cooked with Beyond Meat, and it's not quite as good as the IB, but I didn't think it was bad either. Texturally, however, it wasn't as “authentic” as the IB was, compared to cow. Amy wasn't a big fan of Beyond Meat but enjoyed the IB.
But it's that second part that's most important. These meat substitutes are extremely processed. My food guidelines these days are as follows:
- Cook food far more than buying it.
- Cook whole foods far more than processed foods.
- Cook vegetarian food far more than food with animal protein
- Enjoy delicious fresh bread.
- Don't take things too seriously.
List of people claimed to be Jesus (Wikipedia)
Sergey Torop (1961–), a Russian who claims to be “reborn” as Vissarion, Jesus Christ returned, which makes him not “God” but the “Word of God”.
I actually saw a Vice mini documentary on this guy. Interesting, to say the least.
Full list of small companies named Atlanta Top Workplaces for 2020 (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
12. Big Nerd Ranch
Neat.