u/wiredentropy

I know some Cartier corporate folks will hate on me for posting this, but I put a lot of time into finding these numbers and thought I should share, since we all deserve to know the real hard value of the gold jewelry we buy and often it’s shrouded in mystique that the corporate cronies try to hide.

Assumptions: 18K gold = 75% pure gold.

Gold spot used: about $134.37/g for 24K, so 18K melt ≈ $100.78 per gram of total item weight.

Formula: gross item weight × 0.75 × gold spot/g.

These are rough estimates. Cartier generally lists 18K as 750/1000 gold, but usually does not publish exact item weights, and weight varies by size, model, diamonds, and production year. This therefore required a good amt of research.

LOVE bracelet, classic model, size 17
~32.0 g
~$3,225

LOVE bracelet, medium model, size 16–17
~24.0 g
~$2,419

LOVE bracelet, small model, size 16–17
~18.5 g
~$1,864

Juste un Clou bracelet, classic model
~33.6 g
~$3,386

Juste un Clou bracelet, small model
~10.0 g
~$1,008

Clash de Cartier mini earrings, pair
~9.0 g
~$907

LOVE pendant necklace
~7.3 g
~$740

LOVE large/older round pendant necklace
~14.1 g
~$1,421

LOVE bracelet on chain
~3.8 g
~$387

LOVE ring, classic model
~4.5 g
~$453

LOVE ring / wedding band, small model
~3.1 g
~$312

Juste un Clou ring, classic model
~8.0 g
~$806

Juste un Clou ring, small model
~3.5 g
~$353

Trinity ring, small model
~5.0 g
~$504

Trinity ring, classic / medium
~11.1 g
~$1,119

Trinity cord bracelet, gold motif
~2.0 g
~$202

Cartier d’Amour necklace, large model
~3.0 g
~$299

Main takeaway: Cartier melt value is real, but it is usually only a small fraction of retail/resale.

Also, actual scrap payout is usually below melt because refiners/jewelers take a spread.

Academic centers: “Indirect costs are essential. They pay for the infrastructure that makes research possible.”

Also academic centers: “Your grant needs to pay directly for admin support, regulatory help, IT, space, finance support, and the chair you sit in.”

At some point, this stops looking like infrastructure and starts looking like Ticketmaster fees for science.

The institution takes a huge cut off the top for “facilities and administration,” then tells the PI that facilities are unavailable and administration is billable.

Meanwhile, the finance office has luxury chairs and vast windows, the C-suite has “nonprofit” millionaire energy, and the investigator who brought in the grant is trying to hot-desk next to a broken printer and using personal cellphone hotspot for reliable internet

No one is saying indirects are fake. Buildings, compliance, utilities, grant offices, and research infrastructure cost real money. But if the institution collects indirects to support research, then researchers should not have to beg the mothership every time they need the support those indirects supposedly fund

Some of my fav:

- brainstem is like the central highway of the cns
- seizures are like electrical storms in the brain
- FND software vs hardware problem

Which analogy/metaphor do you rely on frequently that has consistently produced that “aha” moment?

Some of my fav:
- Autoimmune disease is like friendly fire where the body’s defense system mistakenly attacks its own forces
- generalised Anxiety is like a smoke alarm that’s too sensitive
- kidneys are like the body’s water treatment plant
- hormones are like the text messages of the body
- inflammation is like collateral damage from battle
- cornea is like the windshield of the eye

Over the years picked up communication pearls from mentors, colleagues, nurses, and even patients themselves that have become part of me own practice. For example an attg in residency in Florida would say “ hope for the best plan for the worst “ which I now use all the time. What’s a phrase, question, analogy, or framing you learned that changed how you talk with patients \ families?

Communication. Pearl. What’s a line you learned in training that you still use with patients?

Over the years I’ve picked up communication pearls from mentors, colleagues, nurses, and even patients themselves that have become part of my own practice. For example an attg in residency in Florida would say “ hope for the best plan for the worst “ which I now use all the time. What’s a phrase, question, analogy, or framing you learned that completely changed how you talk with patients and families?