Category: World Culture

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Venice, Italy Is Underwater After the Highest Tide in 50 Years

If you’ve paid attention to the news the last week or so, you’ve seen the heartbreaking and devastating floods in one of Europe’s most-visited cities. Venice, Italy is a breathtaking destination, famous for its canals and historic buildings.

Recently, the highest tide in 50 years has inundated the city, and the mayor of Venice has blamed the catastrophe on one thing: climate change.

Paquebots(Navires spécialisé dans le transport de personnes.)L' année dernière, des conditions similaires ont frappé…

Posted by Olivier Godfurnon on Thursday, November 14, 2019

More than 85% of Venice flooded during this event, and the famous St. Mark’s Basilica was flooded for only the sixth time in 1,200 years. Four of those six floods have been in the past 20 years. Official records about such events in Venice have only been kept since 1923, and these high tides (called acqua alta in Italian) reached the highest levels in the city since 1966.

Posted by Sonny Tuttle on Monday, November 18, 2019

Luca Zaia, the governor of the Veneto region of which Venice is a part of, said, “We are faced with total, apocalyptic devastation. The art, the basilica, the shops and the homes, a disaster…Venice is bracing itself for the next high tide.” Zaia also described Venice as being “on its knees.”

Posted by Władimir Gromakowski on Sunday, November 17, 2019

The images coming out of Venice are shocking and sad, to say the least. People and animals trudging through the high waters, attempting to find higher ground and to save their personal belongings.

Posted by Sonny Tuttle on Monday, November 18, 2019

Posted by Sonny Tuttle on Monday, November 18, 2019

Venice is built on top of a marshy, shallow lagoon, which doesn’t help the situation. Sea levels have been rising around Venice (and everywhere) for years because of climate change, but the city is also sinking, increasing the impact.

Unless drastic action is taken, the problem looks like it will only get worse as time marches on until the city disappears into the ocean. Or something.

The post Venice, Italy Is Underwater After the Highest Tide in 50 Years appeared first on UberFacts.

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Only Two Groups Pay for Fully Half the Anti-Vaccine Ads on Facebook

Anti-vax ads are a big source of controversy, since the entire movement is based on “research” that has been debunked and maligned by educated medical professionals across the globe. Some think that platforms like Facebook should ban any “ads” by labeling them as misinformation, while others think they fall under the umbrella of “free speech,” and are therefore untouchable.

With diseases like measles making a comeback, though – 1,261 cases (and counting) in the U.S. in 2019 up from just 86 in 2016 – the people driving vaccine hesitancy are causing trouble for us all.

And it turns out that only a few organizations are paying for these advertisements – ads that have the potential to sicken and even kill people.

According to Vaccine, more than half of anti-vax ads on Facebook come from the World Mercury Project (WMP), which is chaired by Robert F Kennedy Jr., and Stop Mandatory Vaccination (SMV).

The World Health Organization lists vaccine hesitancy as a threat to global health, and the spread of misinformation, exacerbated by social media, is how its being largely driven.

The new study examined over 500 advertisements placed between December 2018 and February 2019. Researchers noted how many of them were fairly uniform and stuck to the same non-facts about the supposed harms of vaccines.

Facebook has rules governing political advertisements, but often anti-vax ads get around the restrictions by using words like “freedom” and “choice” instead of talking about vaccines themselves, says David Broniatowski, a principal investigator for the study.

“By accepting the framing of vaccine opponents – that vaccination is a political topic, rather than one on which there is widespread public agreement and scientific consensus – Facebook perpetuates the false idea that there is even a debate to be had. This leads to increased vaccine hesitancy, and ultimately, more epidemics.”

There are other avenues for misinformation, of course, but the social media pioneer is taking a lot of heat – rightfully so, says Broniatowski.

“Worse, these policies actually penalize pro-vaccine content since Facebook requires disclosure of funding sources for ‘political ads,” but vaccine proponents rarely think of themselves as political. Additionally, vaccine opponents are more organized and more able to make sure that their ads meet these requirements.”

Actually scientific studies have conclusively shown that vaccines are not only safe, but save millions of lives all over the world.

Facebook has promised to work on updating their policies in an attempt to curb anti-vax ads on the platform, but, as with all promises from big business (and this one in particular), only time will tell whether or not they actually follow through.

In fact, it’s been 6 months already.

In the meantime, go ahead and block and report them – it can’t hurt.

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These Interesting Facts Might Make You Say ‘Wait, What?’

WOW.

These facts are good. Damn good, if I do say so myself.

I think you’ll agree.

Go ahead and see for yourself…

1. There’s something out there…

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2. That sounds nice right about now.

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3. I’m in big trouble.

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4. They are definitely real.

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5. Gotta pay your dues.

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6. Yes! More of this!

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7. A legend.

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8. Gettin’ it on!

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9. That makes perfect sense.

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10. Does this pertain to you?

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Are you wowed? Like, majorly wowed?

I think you are…thanks for stopping by!

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Centuries of French Wine Harvests Show the Hard Truth of Climate Change

This is very interesting…

Climate scientists often warn that citing events from a single location as evidence of changes (or not) across the entire globe isn’t helpful (or accurate). That said, when data from single locations begin to add small tales to a much larger story, it might be (past) time to take note.

In this case, it’s six and a half centuries worth of grape harvest records that are telling a chilling (but not-so-chilly) tale about how temperatures, weather events, and harvests have rarely varied from a path that all but confirms climate change is happening.

And since those records tell a story about late spring through summer that coincide with what the cherry blossoms in Japan are telling us about spring – and what a Scandinavian river is screaming about winter – the “oh it’s just one place” argument gets pretty darn thin.

Back to France, though, where the good people take their Burgundy seriously.

Dr. Thomas Labbe is the academic who spent years digging through centuries of harvest records that date back to 1354. To understand the significance of the findings, you’ll need to be aware that grape harvests take place earlier after hot, dry summers and later after cool, wet ones (a fact he confirmed after comparing harvest dates with temperature records).

“The record is clearly divided into two parts,” he said in a statement. “For more than 600 years average harvest date was September 28 – early ones were the exception. Since 1988 the average date has shifted to September 15, indicating much hotter conditions.”

So, the summers prior to the harvest have been steadily hotter and drier since 1988.

“We did not anticipate that the accelerated warming trend since the mid-1980s would stand out so clearly in the series,” added Professor Christian Pfister, who co-authored the analysis of Labbe’s data. “The transition to a rapid global warming period after 1988 stands out very clearly. The exceptional character of the last 30 years becomes apparent to everybody.”

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Fidwald European Vacation Day 36. Bordeaux, France. Headed into town to visit a wine museum and enjoy a tasting. Afterwards briefly visited Point De Pierre, the well known bridge of Bordeaux as well as the “Water Mirror” (reflecting pool) however it was a little windy as the weather was turning so wasn’t reflecting so well. quick salad lunch (to balance all the baguettes & croissants) then headed back. We stopped briefly at a supermarket for dinner supplies and miscommunication resulted in security thinking we were going to leave without paying 😆 (Still easier than communication in many U.S. establishments!) Back in time for a tour of the De Lassalle winery where we are staying, our guide is so gorgeous and we thoroughly enjoyed the tasting, all so delicious! The rain introduced such an impressive rainbow with a view! Finished up having such a fun evening, Jemma busied herself putting together a dinner of mixed goodies to plate, the girls then enjoyed the jacuzzi whilst Matt & I enjoyed the wine but all 4 of us playing a game. (Was a version of guess that song, brought us all a few giggles!) We are thoroughly loving it here! #fidwalds #europeanvacation #holidayroad #familyroadtrip #roadtripwithteens #griswaldsgotnothingonus #frenchwinery #bordeauxfrance #delassallewine

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At least, it should become apparent to everybody.

There are, of course, longer-term climatic records that range across the globe, offered by tree rings, ice cores, and stalagmites (among other sources), but none of those are as precise as Labbe’s data.

The evidence is stacked up so high it’s practically a mountain, and I think that, for the younger generations at least, more and more people are listening.

If wine can’t get people’s attention, maybe it really is too late.

The post Centuries of French Wine Harvests Show the Hard Truth of Climate Change appeared first on UberFacts.

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This Hero Cat Saved a Human Baby from Falling down the Stairs

Hero cat!

When you think of pets saving children from harm, your mind undoubtedly goes toward a dog. Maybe it’s because of Lassie and her ilk (though you would think those types of pop culture references would be disappearing), but listen up – this video proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that a cat can also be a loyal, protective pet.

The baby was crawling on the living room floor while the cat observed from the sofa, but when the little one took off for an open staircase, the cat raced over and pounced.

Whether the cat was actually trying to save the kiddo or not, his intervention did just that.

And it seems like the kiddo has a good and loyal playmate, if nothing else.

Some people (of course) took the opportunity to judge – the parents, the cat, whatever – but I think we should all just take a minute to be thankful that nothing terrible was caught on video for once.

You may not want to hire you cat as a nanny, but it is nice to know they bond with their humans enough to keep a close eye on those who can’t always take care of themselves.

The post This Hero Cat Saved a Human Baby from Falling down the Stairs appeared first on UberFacts.

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A Study Show That for Entrepreneurs, 45 Is the New 25

For some people, seeing a young entrepreneur like Mark Zuckerberg completely change the world at such a young age can be disheartening as the years creep by. But wait! This is good news for people who feel like they might’ve missed the boat in one way or another, professionally speaking.

A new study led by Pierre Azoulay of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology analyzed the relationship between age and high-growth entrepreneurship. According to the researchers,

“Our primary finding is that successful entrepreneurs are middle-aged, not young. We find no evidence to suggest that founders in their 20’s are especially likely to succeed. Rather, all evidence points to founders being especially successful when starting businesses in middle age or beyond, while young founders appear disadvantaged.”

Azoulay and his researchers studied data from many sources, including tax forms and the U.S. Census Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs. They pored over records from over 2.5 million entrepreneurs who have founded businesses (not including sole proprietorships) in the U.S. since the 1970s. The conclusion: they found the average age of these entrepreneurs was 42 years old.

They also studied entrepreneurs who were active in growth-oriented entrepreneurship and found that businesses that operated in the high-tech sector had founders that averaged 43 years of age, and that founders of venture-backed startups and businesses based in Silicon Valley were 42 years old, on average.

The researchers also discovered that more successful startup companies had slightly older founders.

The authors of the study continued,

“The 1,700 founders of the fastest growing new ventures (the top 0.1%) in our universe of U.S. firms had an average age at founding of 45.0 (compared to 43.7 for the top 1% and 42.1 for the top 5%). Regardless of the measure of technology-intensiveness chosen, we see older founders as we move toward upper-tail performance, especially for the top 1 in 100 or top 1 in 1,000 firms, as well as for founders with successful exits. This evidence is at odds with the conventional wisdom that successful founders skew younger.”

Okay all of you middle-aged folks, get out there and start a business! You can do it!

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A Man with Vitiligo Is Knitting Dolls That Look like Him

This is a great story!

In Brazil, vitiligo – a skin disease that results in the loss of pigmentation in patches over the body – affects almost 3 million people. There are treatments available, but even though the medical aspects of the disease can be managed, the way people who suffer from it are treated by the public often can not be.

As with almost everything in life, though, knowing you’re not alone in your fight can make it all just a little bit better.

Enter Mr. Joao, a man who has lived with vitiligo for half of his life. He is now crocheting dolls that also “have” the disease, so that children with the affliction will be able to see faces that reflect their own.

He began crocheting with his wife when he found himself facing an early retirement (due to a heart condition), and at first he just wanted to knit a doll that would remind his granddaughter of him.

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Com @os50tonsdepele

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Then, he began thinking about what the dolls could do on a grander scale. And so he made Vitilinda (a portmanteau of vitiligo and linda, Portuguese for beautiful).

View this post on Instagram

Cadeira de rodas#Sempre Círculo

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Now, in addition to vitiligo, he knits dolls with other life challenges, like needing a wheelchair, being blind, and more.

Thank you for your work, Mr. Jaoa! You make the world a brighter place for kids who could use a little light.

 

The post A Man with Vitiligo Is Knitting Dolls That Look like Him appeared first on UberFacts.

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10 Facts for You to Sit Back and Think About

Here’s another set of quality facts. We’re talking about the good stuff here, people.

Facts that will make you think long and hard.

Let’s get to the facts, shall we?

1. Read with your kids!

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2. A great idea!

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3. That worked out pretty well.

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4. Wall of Axe.

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5. That’s kind of depressing.

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6. The bigger the better.

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7. Sad, but true.

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8. That is insane!

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9. Weed does a body good!

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10. What’s your purpose?

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Now go back through those facts again and let it all soak in…

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Europeans Share the One “American Thing” They’ll Never Understand

Hmmmm….

It’s funny to realize the differences between European and American cultures, but not everyone has the chance to travel and experience them firsthand. That’s when sites like Reddit can come in handy, because there are plenty of people there ready and waiting to weigh in on the best and worst realizations during travel.

These 15 people say they’re just “too European” to ever wrap their minds around these 15 totally American things.

15. Okay I didn’t realize this was a thing.

ISP’s actually having data caps on wired connections in 2019

14. Yes, I would like answers for this, too.

The lack of paid maternity leave. The thought of having to hand my children to strangers and go back to work weeks after giving birth. Nobody seems enraged about what that must do to babies and mothers

13. Preach, my friend across the pond.

School debts.

12. Don’t believe everything you see in the movies.

Anything that happens in high school really

Edit: geez I’m getting a lot of replies, I’d like to respond to them all and discuss some more, but I don’t really have that much time, sorry

11. Buying water shouldn’t be necessary, but have you heard of Flint, MI…

Drinking tap water… I’m used to drinking tap water all day, I never buy water since it’s the same as tap water

Edit: I was once on vacation in Africa, and that was my first encounter with how tap water is in some other countries. I could never imagine undrinkable tap water in Europe.

10. So you can take it home with you, obvs.

Why pay for the bigger soda cup if there are free refills for the small?

9. Asking the real questions, here.

Why does Ross, the largest friend, not simply eat the other friends?

8. It’s our Puritan roots, plain and simple.

drinking at age 21. i mean for real? I live in Austria and the legal drinking age here is 16

7. Again…Puritans.

The double moral when it comes to sex and sexuality

6. Because we are disgusting, and also no one wants to hear about science.

Asian here but, why wear shoes inside your homes?

5. …it’s not like this in Europe?

Your bathrooms.

What idiot thought it was ok to have very small doors with gaps on all sides in every stall? How are you supposed to quietly poop and stink and fart without everyone seeing you?

I can understand why you are so afraid of unisex bathrooms.

4. So that TurboTax can keep making money…

Why do you pay the taxes yourself? It’s way easier to have it done for you by your state/country since you have to pay anyway.

3. Having one price is definitely simpler and helps those of us who don’t math well.

Showing prices BEFORE TAX LIKE MY DUDES “It looks cheaper” BUT IT AIN’T Idgi mang idgi!!!!

2. It’s a travesty.

Lunch debt? Why is that a thing? Why are the children being held accountable and unable graduate? It’a goddamn lunch.

1. It’s time to take to the streets.

Not rioting or demonstrating. I mean I’m French so the bias is big here.

Edit: Damn, thanks for the gold.

As an American, I have to say…we don’t understand some of these either!

Do you have a travel experience like this? Please share it with us in the comments!

The post Europeans Share the One “American Thing” They’ll Never Understand appeared first on UberFacts.

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This Guy Makes Some of the Most Amazing Minibikes You’ll Ever See

I need one of these!

Brent Walter builds all kinds of amazing motorcycles that you have to see to believe.

Walter uses the fenders from classic Volkswagen Beetles to build his custom Volkspod minibikes, and they look sick. He said, “I wanted a scooter to take to VW shows. These fenders were left over from building my car. I also wanted to practice welding the thin sheet metal panels.”

Looks like he hit this project out of the park! Take a look.

1. Look at that beauty!

2. Still a work in progress.

3. That is a nice looking bike.

4. The Volkspod in action.

5. Another one of Walter’s restoration projects.

6. I’d love to have one of these.

7. Beep! Beep!

8. Stripped down to the bones.

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Big guy on a little scooter. #minibike #volkspod

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9. Here comes trouble.

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Cold day for a ride. #volkspod

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10. These are so cool.

Walter’s work is amazing, isn’t it?

I’m a huge fan!

The post This Guy Makes Some of the Most Amazing Minibikes You’ll Ever See appeared first on UberFacts.