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Cake day: July 7th, 2023

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  • The modern definitions of units feel even more arbitrary because they are inextricably tied to more organic origins. Consider the often made fun of fahrenheit scale which was the first to define a reasonably repeatable degree size by using two widely available reference points as the 100 and 0 ends of the scale, human body temperature for the high end and an ammonium chloride ice water mix for the low end.

    The definition of a second was a bit jankier. Etymologically the name comes from a second hand added to a watch face to give some kind of indicator that the minutes are passing by. NIST has an excellent writeup on this subject. Over time different repeatable ways to measure a second have been determined all with the goal of having some action a human could use to calibrate their device’s second measurement to so their seconds are as long as everyone else’s.

    The point is, we didn’t choose a second to be defined as some number of atomic oscillations. We had an already agreed upon definition of a second that used less precise methods than modern technology demanded and used a natural phenomenon that could be very accurately measured to make a less arbitrary definition.








  • I’m not the person you responded to and I’ve moved no goalposts. I’m pointing out that you’re misrepresenting reality to make your point. I’m in a state (Georgia) that gives you the option to register to vote when getting or renewing your license. On the form it is simply a checkbox. This seems like a clearly abusable system if you do as you have, which is to look at the surface level of the situation and cry foul, but the underlying reality is different.

    In order to get my license I was required to provide documentation of my citizenship (in my case an original birth certificate) as well as evidence of my current address (in my case a utility bill). This underlying evidence is what is used to control my voter registration and prove I’m eligible to vote. Car registration is supposed to be tied to your home address and is handled by parts of the local government that share information, so being given an option to update an address for voting purposes when updating registration makes sense to me. I am not aware of if that is possible on my state. While I do not personally have experience with obtaining a license while not being a citizen and resident of my state, I know that whatever process exists for that doesn’t also allow you to register to vote.

    If you’d like one I’ll give you a goalpost. Prove me wrong and show me a single state where a non-citizen can register to vote, go to a polling place and vote, and then have that vote counted.