I came here with a similar thought. Given that we don't have a really precise definition of that transition from living to dead, I wonder if this could be it.
Some parts of the dead mice still emit in that spectrum. There won't be a clear and distinct "the lights went out" moment but a gradual fading, so you'll have to define some threshold to translate from radiation distribution and intensity do dead/alive. I don't think an image of photon emission will help pronounce someone dead.
Wedge issues, deployed by both political parties, do exactly this.
Wealthy donors express their political desires by funding politicians who become dependent on their continued financial support.
The voter gets just enough small wins on these wedge issues to keep them somewhat happy. The wealthy preserves the status quo since that’s how they became wealthy in the first place. Our democracy ossifies in the face of new challenges.
If voters across the spectrum viewed campaign finance reform as a key issue, we might have some hope in changing things.
I live in a somewhat small community (~25k) and I commuted into the city on public transportation for about 15 years. 10 years ago, I started working from home full-time.
I often see the people I used to commute with around town. I recognize them and remember them, but I’ve never had any interactions with them.
When I see them, I’m surprised by how much older they look. Then I realize I must look older to them.
Currently, due to the Affordable Care Act aka Obamacare, health insurance companies are prohibited from setting rates based on individual risk (except they can charge higher premiums to tobacco users). Before the law, ensures would typically put applicants through a health screening that would determine their rate. People with pre-existing medical conditions could be denied coverage or charged higher rates. Women routinely paid higher premiums than men.
Personally, becoming a dad was the single best thing that ever happened to me. I haven’t loved every minute of it, but it added abundant love and purpose to my life and gave me what I didn’t know I needed. My only regret is that I didn’t do it sooner.
But I’ve been lucky in this regard. I was deeply conflicted going into it. But all of that doubt left me the moment I first held him in my arms. I don’t know if circumstances were different whether I would’ve had the same experience.
And the scariest part about becoming a parent is that there’s no way for you to try it out. I had been an uncle for decades before becoming a parent. Those experiences are not the same.
The choice to become a parent, or to not become a parent, is one of those choices in life that requires a leap of faith. There’s no way to explore the counter factual.
But, for those of you on the fence, let me say this. We all come from a long line of parents. I believe that there are certain rewards placed in our brain by evolution that are only unlocked by becoming a parent. Nothing can help you understand your parents and the love you did or didn’t receive from them quite like loving your own child.
> The choice to become a parent, or to not become a parent, is one of those choices in life that requires a leap of faith.
No, it requires sticking one's gonads inside another's gonads and agitating briefly, during a not-rare selection window.
We don't come from a long line of voluntary parents. I had zero of them, directly.
I still agree that being a parent is an amazing, life-transforming event that has gigantic potential upsides. But it also has gigantic potential downsides, including financial ruin, lifelong misery, and/or sudden death (for at least one of the parents).
All I'm saying is: most of our ancestors didn't choose anything when they rubbed cloacae.
Fair point. We _currently_ exist in a time of choice, but that is only due to the recent availability of effective birth control methods. Some choose to do it the old fashioned way and let the fates decide when and if they become parents.
