habnds

Now do the clean up costs of fossil fuel power generation

People in and around the acela corridor drive significantly less than the national average.

the actual cost of a trip between times square and the national mall is about $200 all things considered based on the ~0.80 federal mileage reimbursement rate for 250 miles. that train corridor is overwhelmingly successful as well so the idea that amtrak isn't a good deal is at odds with reality.

$1 in Jan 2005 is only 1.69 today, not $4 because the velocity of money has decreased dramatically as it has pooled towards the top of the income/wealth spectrum where it doesn't get spent or productively invested.

Inflation is completely possible with no change in money supply. This is handled in economics with the idea of the "velocity of money" which conceptually captures the large range of factors by which prices can increase due to factors beyond money supply, for example an energy price shock or changing consumer and business expectations that result in changes in spending and investment patterns.

seems comparable to chess where it's well established that a human + a computer is much more skilled than either one individually

It would be really interesting if they had used a control for gender by also comparing results to something like 1, people of all genders who had experienced some sort of violent encounter while walking at night or 2, people who grew up in relatively violent places.

I historically have lived in relatively more dangerous places, attended a pretty violent high school and, while male and physically fit, am not an intimidating presence. I wonder what my results would look like compared to someone from the suburbs or an nfl linebacker.

The other thing they don't mention at all is that especially with walking and biking, the reality of safety is important, but so is the _perception_ of safety. There's nothing wrong with that, but it's very important in this type of work to handle that distinction explicitly. The quote "Why can’t we live in a world where women don’t have to think about these things?" doesn't really acknowledge that. Random sexual violence on the street is pretty rare compared to in someone's home, dorm room, etc. How much of this fear is driven by Law and Order SVU's cultural impact? A genuine question, not a criticism.

if you haven't destroyed your mtb after 10 years of riding you might not need a mountain bike at all.

I would be very suspicious that some combination of different tires and different geometry between the bikes your comparing is much more responsible for that perceived difference than the different metals. Wearing cushioned running shoes instead of indoor soccer shoes would have a bigger effect i would guess.

they can also be stiffer in some directions and more flexible in others, which is a huge underestimated advantage compared to metal bikes.

yeah this isn't a real concern

my 25 year old aluminum hard tail begs me to share that while this is factually correct, the lifetime for an alloy bike frame isn't a real practical limitation, just a talking point.

I'm curious what you think the vibration dampening properties of steel are. It's very notable to me that high quality steel bikes almost always come with a carbon fork if not suspension and that tuning forks are made of steel according to wikipedia. To me steel is in the "resonator" category, not something that dampens vibration particularly well.

I also wonder if people like the ride quality of steel because, like very thin high pressure tires, it carries high frequency vibrations that _feel_ fast but science tells us clearly are not good for going fast.

they dampen vibrations better than steel and titanium too tbh. I've never understood the "ride feel" thing about metal frames. Metal tubes are very resonant. that ride feel is just the same vibrations that make on 23m tires _feel_ faster compared to 30m but the science is clear that high frequency vibrations are bad.