u/greyHumanoidRobot

Why does the Sunshine Protection Act attempt to make Daylight Saving Time permanent rather than Standard Time?

At some time in the past, I believe (though my recollection could be wrong) I saw a map that showed that under Standard Time, at 12 noon, the apogee of the sun occurs near the east-west center of most time zones. Under DST, 12 noon happens sooner so the apogee would occur over the eastern part of the time zone where the time is 12 noon (or the western part of the time zone that is adjacent on the east). Of course time zones are a messy concept so this isn't a strong motivator for Standard Time but it's better than nothing.

If my recollection is correct I would appreciate seeing that map again if it can be linked.

If your answer is because politicians are stupid, please do not post an answer because most people already know that. Even the stupid people know it.

If your answer is because voters want stupid things and politicians cater to voters, please do not post an answer because most people already know that.

Why does the Sunshine Protection Act attempt to make Daylight Saving Time permanent rather than Standard Time?

At some time in the past, I believe (though my recollection could be wrong) I saw a map that showed that under Standard Time, at 12 noon, the apogee of the sun occurs near the east-west center of most time zones. Under DST, 12 noon happens sooner so the apogee would occur over the eastern part of the time zone where the time is 12 noon (or the western part of the time zone that is adjacent on the east). Of course time zones are a messy concept so this isn't a strong motivator for Standard Time but it's better than nothing.

If my recollection is correct I would appreciate seeing that map again if it can be linked.

2014 Accord. I had the ball joints replaced. I forgot to mention putting in new bushings. Their labor charge was reasonable so I'm considering going back for bushings. I called to mention the bushings but it was too late, they already finished the work. They also said that if the bushings were bad they would have told me that bushings also needed to be replaced.

If I get bushings replaced, will it make my car feel newer or noticeably better?

We're 2 people with a 2 door Honda in Woodstock. We'd like to go to the London Air Show but obviously it would work out better cost-wise if we were able to join a group that is already going in a bigger vehicle. They allow 6 persons. So we're posting here to see if a group can be set up. We haven't been to the airshow in London but I'm presuming that the plan I'm suggesting is okay with the organizers. I'm presuming that people just roam around on foot once inside and then maybe meet up at the vehicle when it's time to leave. Please advise if my impression of how this works is wrong.

We'd be glad to drive to London and meet outside the gates.

We're not familiar with the zones but my wife seems okay with one of the less expensive zones and also Grey, which is one of the more expensive zones. Please, DM or post here if you're interested.

We're 2 people with a 2 door Honda in Woodstock. We'd like to go to the London Air Show but obviously it would work out better cost-wise if we were able to join a group that is already going in a bigger vehicle. They allow 6 persons. So we're posting here to see if a group can be set up. We haven't been to the airshow in London but I'm presuming that the plan I'm suggesting is okay with the organizers. I'm presuming that people just roam around on foot once inside and then maybe meet up at the vehicle when it's time to leave. Please advise if my impression of how this works is wrong.

We'd be glad to drive to London and meet outside the gates.

We're not familiar with the zones but my wife seems okay with one of the less expensive zones and also Grey, which is one of the more expensive zones. Please, DM or post here if you're interested.

Occasionally, I need to convert CAD to USD or back to CAD. I have held accounts with TD and Scotia and primarily used IBKR (Interactive Brokers Canada) for the past 15 years. I still maintain a Scotia account. The difference in how they handle currency conversion is stark.

What I appreciate about IBKR is that currency trades function exactly like stock trades. When trading USD.CAD, I see live bid and ask quotes. The bid represents the price other market participants offer to buy one USD, while the ask is the price they demand to sell it. I have taken screenshots showing that the bid is sometimes equal to the ask, resulting in no spread at all. When I can see both the bid and ask, I can see the spread. That's transparency.

Obfuscation by Design. I have long assumed that major banks like Scotia are "stubborn" regarding this transparency, but I am surprised by the extent of it. While browsing the Scotia iTrade website today, I was not able to find a currency trading function. Please let me know if somehow I missed it.

I remembered that at Scotia, to convert currency, I had to speak to a representative. It would be weird if in 2026 I would still have to do that. Typically, I told them I wanted to buy USD with CAD to buy a U.S. stock. I was rarely or never quoted a bid and ask; I was simply given a single rate. It is incredibly convenient for the bank that most customers probably do not think to ask for the bid and ask or the spread. Customers focus on the "commission" fee—which may be advertised as zero—while remaining oblivious to the fact that the real cost is the spread.

To determine the real cost, compare what you pay at a major bank versus what you would pay on a platform where the bid might equal the ask. If you buy 10,000 USD at a bank, you are likely paying half the spread on the way in. If you eventually convert back to CAD, you pay the other half. In effect, your total cost is the full spread. If it is 1 percent in each direction, your cost was 200 dollars. ( If you invested in the U.S. when you were age 40 and your investment appreciated and at age 65 you start spending out of the account, your dividends and appreciated investment can be a much bigger amount, so your total currency conversion cost is much more than 200 dollars. )

I would like to make this thread a resource, useful for people looking to open an account, to identify which of Canada’s "Big Five" banks offer online transparency and which of them require you to call in for a quote. My contribution is what I know about Scotia.

Before you rage post that it is common knowledge that the big 5 banks have a wide spread on the USD and big profits trading it, please note that this is actually an inquiry about what is visible on their websites or equivalently, which of the big 5 banks force you phone them to get a quote. A quote that would typically be one side of the market, so as to not voluntarily disclose the spread. A spoken quote that is intended to disappear into the aether to make your true cost invisible.

sunglass categories

Previously, I posted an inquiry for an alternative to my Serengeti Category 2 to 3 photochromic pair. They are Serengeti RICK with the PhD 2.0 lens in brown. I find that they are too dark for me. Perhaps some people thought I wanted to be loyal to Serengeti but I don't.

The 2 suggestions I received were to try Julbo for Category 1 and Maui Jim for Category 2 (non photochromic).

Looking at their websites, I see no indication that Julbo offers Category 1 and no indication that Maui Jim offers a pair that is strictly Category 2.

My use case is driving. (My car is not tinted.) I recently had an eye exam for reading glasses and the doctor didn't recommend any correction for driving. I find that wearing the Serengeti Category 2 to 3 photochromic brown pair to make everything less vivid on a sunny day where some passing vehicles are in the shade. Traffic lights are less vivid. I feel unsafe. Obviously when driving, there will be changes in direction that put my eyes in completely different circumstances that require sunglasses for comfort.

Please, I would appreciate any information about sunglasses that are documented to be Category 1 or 2 (non photochromic) because I would likely be ordering over the internet so I wouldn't have the opportunity to try them before buying.

Can somebody please explain why watchdives.com has some Addiesdive, Militado, Thorn, and San Martin products? I thought some or all of the others are competitors.

I just learned what the Citizen "jumping hour hand" is. It's just a discrete time zone adjustment. I guess Newfoundland is out of luck. I'm disappointed; and not because I visit Newfoundland often.

I want a different kind of jumping hour hand.

Ideally the second hand moves once per second, the minute hand should move once per minute, the hour hand should move once per hour. Who makes such a quartz watch ?

I don't want a sweeping seconds hand so I never thought that discrete seconds is a knock on quartz.

It's been decades since I had an automatic. Needless to say they've improved. The gaskets and screw back case have been improved. If I were to wear a modern Chinese watch at the 300 USD price point with a screw-down crown and a Seiko NH35, how long can I expect it to last without service ? I am assuming daily wear but not in the shower. How long have you actually had such an automatic run without service and what kind of differences in performance appeared over time ?

The Serengeti brand has classified the darkness of their lenses. I don't know if other brands have the same scale. I'm currently wearing these "category 2 to 3" sunglasses.

RICK Sunglasses | Serengeti

They are darker than I want and this model is not available in category 1. Yes, I know they adjust to ambient light but the adjustment isn't enough for me. I find they are too dark in all circumstances : walking and driving. My car is not even tinted.

Can the sunglass fans in this community recommend a brand and model that is less dark, please?

Data center water use is a hot topic. People are worried about water use. Suppose there is a 100 megawatt data center and a river that averages 1000 cubic meters per second.

How much clean water is evaporated from a cooling system that uses evaporating cooling towers?

How much incremental water is evaporated from an adjacent river if a closed loop system is used? Edit: There is a heat exchanger that is connected to river water. If there weren't then I wouldn't pose a question that has the phrase "evaporated from an adjacent river" obviously.

It seems in my naive analysis that these 2 amounts would be the same.

It's a genius song with cool brass and a welcome young voice but Sienna Spiro's Material Lover recording only needed to be 2 and a half minutes. If they had more material then longer, but it sounds like they didn't, so I'm okay with 2 and half.

Is there a test of whether automobile AC is within the manufacturer's specifications?

My AC works. Usually when I get in, I don't have to open the windows and moon roof to let out heat for the first 20 seconds but I have been doing that this week because it's sunny and hotter than usual. So even though it works, if it can be improved that would still be welcome. If I go and get it checked, would I just be inviting a repair shop to take my money for no noticeable improvement ?

Edit : 2014 Honda Accord Coupe, owned since 2024. No information from previous owner.

I haven't been following SpaceX closely. For years it seemed that the story was the company got huge market share by bidding low and at the same time there were stories that their costs were low because of innovation and entrepreneurial grit and perhaps eventually they proved that some parts were re-usable.

Recently, I heard on a podcast that the company had 3 segments: launch, connectivity, AI. I also heard that as a whole SpaceX was unprofitable. I think I also heard that launch part alone was unprofitable.

I didn't think much about that news initially but as the days passed I realized that if launch is unprofitable, the old story that SpaceX has low bids because of low costs, becomes questionable. How much has that old story changed now that they have been forced to make financial disclosures in order to become a publicly traded stock? In particular, I am interested in whether SpaceX has done an "Uber". That is, the costs really weren't as low as they claimed and they deliberately lost money, investors money, just to get customers accustomed to their launch services. The parallel being Uber's underpricing in the earlier years.

This query might elicit the remark "that's obvious in retrospect, man". I'm not looking for affirmation. Maybe I'm just looking for a mea culpa by the business media that the earlier story about low costs was too readily accepted. Maybe the launch profit margin is only slightly negative and so the old story was right. I guess whether the old story was misleading isn't a binary matter. Whether the old story was wrong or misleading depends upon just how negative their margin was in the years leading up to the present day.

Please correct me where I'm wrong.