#Household Pests control

[oldtimesnew]

Baygon insecticide, 1968

Flama, No. 1068, August 23 1968

Via T of Dias que Voam blog.

[maruthipest1]

Effective Household Pest Control Services in Hyderabad for a Pest-Free Home

Introduction

Pests are more than just a nuisance—they can pose serious health risks and damage your property. Whether it's cockroaches, termites, rodents, or ants, infestations in residential areas are a common problem. If you’re searching for effective solutions to these issues, finding reliable household pest control services in Hyderabad is crucial. With the increasing demand for pest management, many companies offer professional services to ensure your home stays pest-free.

Why Choose Pest Control Services in Hyderabad?

Hyderabad, like many other cities, faces a variety of pests, particularly during the monsoon season. Pest control services in Hyderabad cater to different types of infestations, offering tailored solutions to suit the specific needs of your home. These services use a combination of traditional methods and modern technologies to eradicate pests at their source.

Professional pest control ensures that infestations are eliminated quickly and effectively. Experts in the field assess the extent of the issue and provide targeted treatments, which are safer and more reliable than DIY methods. From non-toxic, eco-friendly options to chemical treatments, you’ll have access to a variety of methods to suit your preferences and the severity of the pest problem.

Benefits of Residential Pest Control Services Near Me

One of the key advantages of opting for residential pest control services near me is the convenience it offers. Local pest control companies are familiar with the types of pests that commonly affect homes in specific areas. This means they can quickly identify and treat the problem before it gets out of hand.

Choosing a local provider also ensures faster response times, which is especially important when you have an urgent infestation. Whether you’re dealing with termites that can damage the structure of your home or rodents that spread disease, a nearby pest control service can address the issue without delay.

Furthermore, professional services offer preventive measures, which are often more affordable than dealing with large-scale infestations. Regular pest control treatments help maintain a pest-free environment, reducing the chances of future problems. Many pest control companies also offer warranties, ensuring that your home remains protected for a specified period.

Conclusion

In conclusion, investing in household pest control services in Hyderabad is a proactive approach to keeping your home safe from pests. Whether you need immediate assistance or regular maintenance, finding the right pest control services in Hyderabad ensures peace of mind and protects both your health and property. By choosing residential pest control services near me, you’re making a wise choice to safeguard your home against pests all year round. 

[littleapocalypsekitten]

The Saga of Mice.

For a while now, I'd been seeing mice in our kitchen -just a quick furry-scurry thing that would bolt under a cabinet every once in a while when I was entering the kitchen. A couple of weeks ago, I saw a mouse trying to venture out into the hallway and thought "This bugger is getting BOLD!" Tolerance only goes so far, especially upon the discovery of a multitude of newly-existing mouse turds atop the roll-out shelf we keep under the kitchen-island where my Kitchen Aid lives. (It is covered with one of those fabric covers, but still...). We are currently catless (an issue with having a small apartment and a grumpy landlord). I bought a couple of snap-traps, but haven't used them. This is because my honey set up a type of trap that he's used before in another home to catch mice: A large bucket (we have a big foodsafe bucket that we use to brine turkey in for Thanksgiving), birdseed with lots of sunflower seed and a place to set it up where we know they can get it. We have the thing stuck up against a stack of takeout soup-containers that we use for storage and kind of up under the kitchen-island, so there are places they can climb in and drop in upon smelling the presence of the seeds. It works. Oh, my God, it works! Typically, we get one at night and find it in the morning - or sometimes, one of us will hear scrabbling around if we wake up in the middle of the night. Right now, there are two of the little buggers in there that somehow decided to go food-hunting in a well-lit kitchen just after dinnertime - meaning that they weren't running around hunting for food when the big ape-kaiju were actively in the kitchen, but in the space of about an hour... Okay, I've got Pinky and the Brain now. They're scrabbling in there, trying to jump back out and snuffling around in the seeds. The whole idea is that "you can drop in, but you can't jump back out." The first one we caught *did* escape, though, because It repaied a kindness of mine by being a jerk. I decided to put a shallow dish of water in the bottom of the bucket because I didn't like the idea of a critter being without water if we were going to wait around to catch more. It managed to use the dish as just enough leverage for an escape-jump. No more water. Now, we just release them every morning out into the thicket at the edge of the neighbors' backyard (hoping they don't find their way into the apartments again). We think we may be providing snacks for the local cats and foxes. Depends upon if the mice can find holes to duck into, I guess. But, geez... So many little beady eyes looking up at me. Haha! You're stuck in a bucket!

[kirannair]

Zyax Boric Acid Powder: Eco-Friendly Pest Control Solution

Zyax Boric Acid Powder is your go-to, non-toxic formula for effective pest control. Bid farewell to bed bugs, fleas, ants, and other household pests with confidence, knowing that this powder is safe for both users and the environment. Crafted with a commitment to superior quality and non-hazardous composition, Zyax Boric Acid Powder ensures your surroundings stay pest-free without any contaminants. Buy now at a discounted price of Rs. 299.00! Limited time offer. Shop today!

[idigitizellp21]

Exploring The Impact Of Primary Pests Found In Indian Houses

Household pests, by definition, are insects or animals that can cause destruction to your property. Not only that, but there’s a chance that they can affect your health as well. For example, they can spread disease by stinging or biting. Others can spread disease-causing bacteria through your house. A number of critters may be lurking in your house.

Here Are Some Of The Most Common Home Pest That You Might Come Across And Their Impact:

1. Ants: Ants are one of the most common household pests. Social critters, they often live in colonies that can consist of thousands of members. Some of the most common species include carpenter ants, argentine ants, black house ants, and garden ants. Attracted to sweet fragrances, they will eat almost anything from meats to fats. For this reason, it’s important to clean up food spills or messes promptly.

2. Termites: Did you know? Termites are the most destructive pests in the United States. To give you a better idea, they cause $5 billion dollars worth of damage every year! This is not surprising in India too considering the fact that they feed on wood. As you can imagine, this can quickly escalate into a serious problem. Generally speaking, the best way to get rid of termites is to hire a professional termite exterminators.

3. Flies: Flies can get into your home through windows, doors, or other openings. They can also breed in things like rotten food, garbage, and manure. Given the fact that they mature in just a few days, you can have a severe fly infestation in a short period of time. The worst part is that they can transmit diseases. For example, they can spread cholera, dysentery, rotavirus, and typhoid fever.

4. Rats/Rodents: Rodents such as rats can infiltrate your home without you knowing. For example, they can enter through holes and cracks found in floors, walls, and foundations. Not only are they vectors for many diseases (e.g. leptospirosis, murine typhus, trichinosis, salmonellosis), but they can damage your property. For one thing, they can chew on your walls, floors, and insulation. In some cases, they might even chew on your electrical cables, which can lead to fires!

5. Mosquitos: Mosquito season peaks in the summer followed through out the rains, but recently there is research stating that they can be found year-round. Blood-sucking insects, they feed on all mammals, including humans. They like warm, humid weather and for this reason, are often found near still water. While most don’t carry diseases, they are capable of transmitting diseases such as malaria, yellow fever, the Zika virus, and West Nile virus. Given their size, they can easily make it into your home through cracks, tears, and holes. The best way to prevent them from entering is by installing a mesh screen.

6. Cockroaches: Cockroaches have been around for millions of years. Experts estimate that they are between 350 to 400 million years old. Hardy critters, they prefer dark, moist places such as behind sinks, stoves, and refrigerators. They can also be found under floor drains and inside furniture. If you see one, chances are, there are more hiding nearby. Similar to rats, they can bring about many illnesses such as dysentery, leprosy, and cholera. Not only that, but they can also cause foodborne illnesses.

7. Bed Bugs: Again a fact you surely din’t know about: Bed bugs can be found everywhere in the world except Antarctica. They like to hide in crevices, cracks, bedding, and mattresses. Nocturnal creatures, they feast on your blood while you sleep. This often results in itchy, red spots. Generally speaking, the bites will be on exposed areas such as the neck, face, hands, and shoulders.

8. Mice: Mice are notorious for infesting homes. Due to their size, they can easily slip through the smallest of holes or cracks. As with rats, they can spread various diseases such as salmonellosis, hantavirus, and rat-bite fever. Known for their destructive eating habits, they can also pose fire hazards due to wire-chewing.

Hire a result driven and professional Pest control service provides in Mumbai:

Ultima Search has successfully ensconced itself in the pest control industry as a business of repute after having provided expert pest control services and products for over a decade. We take it upon us to ensure that your homes, offices and commercial installations are sanitised and healthy thereby providing a sense of wellbeing and happiness whenever you call upon us.

Why Ultima Search

We are the pest controllers of choice in cities like Maharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka for millions of happy and contented customers and our service portfolio is backed up with a pest control product range which is innovative, advanced and available pan India. Household pests such as rats of all kind, cockroaches, termites, mosquitoes, bedbugs, flies and others have no chance against this product range and a professionally conducted service by Ultima Search.

[myutilitywarehouse]

Don't miss out! Only 4 days left to snag half-price boiler cover for the toughest months ahead! Just £10 to protect your heating, plumbing, drainage, electrics, roofing, security, and pest control. Stay cozy and worry-free!

[thingsifindonthegroundsometimes]

it happened again this is so evil

[theplotmage]

Fantasy Royal Hierarchy & Government Explained for Dummies

👑 The Royal Hierarchy:

High King/High Queen: The ultimate ruler of all the lands. Addressed as “Your Majesty.” They oversee multiple kingdoms and have the final say in all matters.

King/Queen: The rulers of individual kingdoms. Addressed as “Your Majesty.” They manage their own territories, make laws, and lead their armies into epic battles.

Prince/Princess: The children of the king and queen. Addressed as “Your Highness.” They’re next in line for the throne and often have their own mini-kingdoms to practice ruling.

Duke/Duchess: High-ranking nobles who control large regions within the kingdom. Addressed as “Your Grace.” They’re like the regional managers, handling local governance and military affairs.

Marquess/Marchioness: Nobles who oversee border territories. Addressed as “Lord” or “Lady.” They’re responsible for defending the kingdom’s edges and often have a mix of military and administrative duties.

Earl/Countess: Nobles who manage smaller regions within the kingdom. Addressed as “Lord” or “Lady.” They’re like the middle managers, ensuring everything runs smoothly in their areas.

Viscount/Viscountess: Nobles who assist earls and countesses. Addressed as “Lord” or “Lady.” They’re like the assistant managers, helping with local governance and administration.

Baron/Baroness: The lowest rank of nobility. Addressed as “Lord” or “Lady.” They control small areas of land and are responsible for local justice and order.

Lord/Lady: A general title for nobility. Addressed as “Lord” or “Lady.” Lords and ladies can hold various ranks and responsibilities within the kingdom.

Government Structure:

🏛️ The Council: A group of high-ranking nobles and advisors who help the king or queen make important decisions. Think of them as the board of directors.

🧙 The Wizard: The royal advisor with magical powers. They provide wisdom, cast spells, and sometimes meddle in politics.

⚔️ The Knight Commander: The head of the royal army. They lead the knights and soldiers into battle and ensure the kingdom’s defense.

📜 The Chancellor: The head of the kingdom’s finances and administration. They manage the treasury, collect taxes, and oversee the kingdom’s bureaucracy.

🎭 The Bard: The kingdom’s storyteller and historian. They spread news, sing songs of heroism, and keep the royal family’s image sparkling.

Other Classes:

🌳 Elves: Graceful and wise, elves often serve as advisors, scholars, or elite warriors. They have a deep connection to nature and magic, making them invaluable in both court and battlefield.

🌾 Peasants: The backbone of the kingdom. They work the land, pay taxes, and sometimes get caught up in the schemes of the nobility. Despite their humble status, they can be heroes in their own right.

💀 Necromancers: Masters of death magic. They can raise the dead, drain life energy, and command undead minions. Often feared and misunderstood, they can be powerful allies or dangerous enemies.

📚 Scholars: Also known as sages, librarians, or loremasters. Scholars are the kingdom’s intellectuals, possessing encyclopedic knowledge. They study ancient texts, advise on matters of history and magic, and often uncover secrets that can turn the tide of events.

⚔️ Heroes: Brave individuals who embark on epic quests. They can come from any class—knights, peasants, elves, or even necromancers. Heroes are defined by their courage, skill, and willingness to face danger for the greater good.

🙏 Priests/Priestesses: Spiritual leaders who serve the gods and goddesses of the realm. They perform rituals, offer guidance, and sometimes wield divine magic. Addressed as “Father,” “Mother,” or “Your Holiness”.

🐉 Dragons: Sometimes pets, sometimes pests. Always epic. They can be guardians of treasure, wise advisors, or terrifying foes.

Servants and Other Castle Inhabitants:

Steward: Manages the household and estate. Addressed as “Master Steward.”

Chamberlain: Oversees the private chambers and personal needs of the lord or lady. Addressed as “Master Chamberlain.”

Marshal: In charge of the stables and the training of knights. Addressed as “Master Marshal.”

Cook: Prepares meals for the household. Addressed as “Master/Mistress Cook.”

Maid: Responsible for cleaning and maintaining the castle. Addressed as “Mistress Maid.”

Squire: A young noble training to become a knight. Addressed as “Squire.”

Falconer: Takes care of the hunting birds. Addressed as “Master Falconer.”

Gardener: Maintains the castle gardens. Addressed as “Master/Mistress Gardener.”

Where They Dwell:

🏰 Castle: A fortified structure built for defense and residence. It includes towers, walls, a keep, and often a moat. The castle is the main residence of the king or queen and their court.

🏛️ Court: The royal household and the place where the king or queen holds court. It includes the throne room, great hall, and various chambers for the nobles and advisors.

🏡 Manor: The residence of a noble, usually a lord or lady. It’s less fortified than a castle and focuses more on comfort and domestic life.

Pro Tips:

Royal Drama: Expect lots of intrigue, secret plots, and power struggles. It’s like a medieval reality show.

Magic: Always a wildcard. It can solve problems or create new ones.

Quests: Royals love sending heroes on epic quests. It’s their way of handling problems without getting their hands dirty.

---

[fleminglps]

[twinsimming]

Pest Control by Twinsimming 🐞

Sims with dirty homes now run the risk of roaches spawning around their lot, similar to The Sims 2.

This is a script mod that can be placed in your Packages folder. It was built and tested on 1.69 but should work fine on 1.67.

Roaches

Once a day the number of dirty objects on your sim's home lot will be counted, and if the Dirty Threshold is met or exceeded, roaches have a chance of spawning.

There are three thresholds: Dirty, Filthy, and Vile. The dirtier the lot is, the more likely roaches are to spawn and in greater numbers.

Dirty Threshold = 5 dirty objects, 10% spawn chance (2 to 4 roach spawners)

Filthy Threshold = 10 dirty objects, 20% spawn chance (4 to 6 roach spawners)

Vile Threshold = 15 dirty objects, 30% spawn chance (6 to 8 roach spawners)

All sims in the active household will get the new Vermin custom moodlet that lasts 12 hours and subtracts -15, -20, or -25 points from your sim's mood depending on the threshold the lot meets.

Roaches spawning also carries a 10% chance of a sim getting sick (like TS2).

New Moodlet

Vermin: Given when roaches spawn on a sim’s home lot, lasts 12 hours, -15. -20, or -25 mood (inspired by TS2 memory)

Tuning

All of the tunable values can be found on the mod download page under the header “Tuning”.

Conflicts & Known Issues

Depending on the terrain paint, roaches may be harder to see. To find any roach spawners you may have missed:

Enter build/buy mode.

Enable buydebug cheat.

Look for any white boxes on your lot. Those are the roach spawners.

Enter live mode.

Stomp on the roaches.

Success!

This is a new script mod so there shouldn’t be any conflicts.

Credits

EA/Maxis for The Sims 2 and The Sims 3, Visual Studio 2019, ILSpy, s3pe, Notepad++, Gimp, and Script Mod Template Creator.

Thank You

Thank you to @monocodoll for helping with a scripting issue!

If you like my work, please consider tipping me on Ko-fi 💙

Download @ ModTheSims

[hypewinter]

A continuation of this

It was amazing how interesting the hors d'oeuvre table became when one was avoiding social interaction. Danny pouted as he filled yet another plate with the tiny little snack foods. He should have listened to Mom. She had warned him he wouldn't like the party but he insisted on coming too. But how could he resist? When he heard all the fun stories his uncles told, he wanted to see for himself. And his grandpa had been so happy that he wanted to come too. Danny thought he would be in for a night of excitement especially since he'd be able to stay up past his bedtime yet instead he was currently bored out of his mind. He was also incredibly uncomfortable.

Danny didn't like how all these older people kept coming up to him and asking him weird questions or squeezing his cheeks. His mom and uncles tried to intercept as many people as possible but some people had gotten to him and. Danny didn't complain though as he's the one who wanted to come anywhere and he didn't want to seem like a brat. Plus he was still holding out hope that one of his uncles would do something interesting and if he complained, he might be taken home early.

That's why Danny had taken to avoiding his mom. She was very good at reading him and was even teaching him how to read others. If she saw him it would take 0.2 seconds for her to realize he didn't want to be here anymore. Mom was really nice so she would probably take him back home when she noticed. But Danny was a big boy and big boys suck it up for uncomfortable parties that they begged to attend. Though he still wished Sam were here. Sam? Who's Sam? He couldn't remember. There were a lot of things Danny couldn't remember. Even when he tried really hard to.

"Ah so this is the newest Wayne brat!"

Danny was pulled from his thoughts and looked up to see a man staring down at him. The man's blonde hair was very shiny. Must be full of a lot of that gel Uncle Damian liked to use. But he had put on too much and now his head looked all flat and shiny. But maybe the man liked being shiny since he had a lot of gold jewelry on too.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to stare?" the man said harshly, his lazy brown eyes boring into Danny. His body language was practically screaming How dare you? Better than you. This man seemed to sway quite a lot too. Was he drunk? Mom had warned him to stay away from drunk people but it would be rude to just walk away wouldn't it?

Instead Danny put down his plate and signed, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. You just have really pretty jewelry sir."

The man's glare only intensified. "Huh? Whazzat? Talk damnit!" He began to project annoyance.

Danny furrowed his brows slightly. The man had said a bad word. You're not supposed to say bad words around children. At least that's what Grandpa Alfred had taught him when Uncle Jason got in trouble for saying one near him. It was also frustrating that this man didn't know any sign language.

Nevertheless, Danny pulled out his phone and opened the notes app. He clicked on the first page which read, "I'm sorry, I have limited speech and use sign language to communicate. However I can use this notepad instead." He held it up for the man to read.

Yet again the man didn't seem to be satisfied as he retorted, "You can speak but you choose not to? You're an arrogant little brat aren't you?" Angry. How dare you think you're above me? Uh oh.

Danny quickly scrolled down to a blank space so that he could explain it wasn't like that but he never got the chance. The man snatched the phone from Danny's hands.

"Listen you little turd," the man hissed, leaning in close. It took all the self control in Danny's body not to gag at his breath. "You may think you're all high and mighty just because you got lucky but make no mistake. You're just gutter trash. Just like all the other pests Wayne brought into his household and just like your mother."

Tears pricked at Danny's eyes. That wasn't true. Neither his uncles nor his mother were trash. They were good people. The nicest people ever. They saved Danny from that terrible terrible place and gave him lots of hugs and sweets and warmth. This man didn't know what he was talking about.

The man continued, "You'll do well to respect me as unlike you and your little pretend family, I actually come from a distinguished background. I'm not some orphan from an unknown background whose parents probably sold him for drug money. Do you hear me?" Hostile. Don't mess with me!

"If I tell you to speak to me, you speak to me. Is that clear?" You're beneath me. Know your place.

Danny didn't know how much longer he could keep the tears at bay. Luckily he didn't have to.

"Is there a problem?" There she was. Mom! In all of her glory. Her hair done up in a little bun and dressed in a suit matching his. He had actually picked it out for her.

Danny rushed over to her and clung to her leg. Not trash he projected. My family. Meanwhile, the man's attitude did a complete 180. "Ah Ms. Cassandra it's so nice to see you again! I was just complimenting your little one on how cute his suit looked on him!"

Mom ignored him and looked to Danny instead.

What happened?

Insulted you. Insulted my family. Mean man. Bad man.

Cass gently patted Danny's head. He loved when she did that. Okay now. Don't worry.

Mom turned back to the man. "For someone so much better than everyone, you really like hanging out in the Bowery," she said. I know your secret.

The man stiffened. Does she know? How does she know? "I'm really not sure what you're referring to Ms. Wayne." Nervous. Agitated.

Mom didn't say anything. Just leveled a stare at the man. His smile began slipping in the awkward silence. Panicked. Must leave.

"Well I should probably be going now. I feel like I've had too much to drink. Perhaps I'll go sit down," the man said quickly, excusing himself and disappearing into the crowd.

Once he was out of sight, Cass turned back to Danny. Okay? Danny buried his face into her leg. Wanna go home. In the next moment, Danny felt himself being picked up and cradled in his mother's arms. Let's go home, she portrayed with a smile. Danny desperately clung to her suit as his bottom lip wobbled.

"Sorry," he whispered. He wanted her to know he really meant it. That he was truly sorry.

He felt a kiss be planted on his forehead. "Don't be," Mom replied. Danny wrapped his arms around her neck and closed his eyes, finally letting the tears he'd been holding at bay fall. He took in the warmth and love his mother showered over him. His family wasn't trash. They were his saviors.

[oldtimesnew]

Baygon insecticide, 1980

Crónica Feminina Nº 1239, August 21 1980

[aoioozora]

The Ghosts as Civilians

Headcanons I have of the Ghosts if they weren't in the military; what jobs they'd have, hobbies, and whatnot. Enjoy :)

Logan Walker

It's generally agreed upon that Logan would spend his teenage years skateboarding and surfing since he's a Cali boy, and I can see it being true

As for jobs, I think he'd not prefer a desk job but work that can get his hands dirty like construction or carpentry or something of that sort. Blue collar boy.

He'd enjoy sitting in his room playing video games on a Gameboy or a 3DS as a young boy, and when he's older I think he'd enjoy a Playstation.

He'd totally be a night owl.

I think he'd be the best cook out of the Walkers and would be in charge of the Walker household meals, which he complains a lot about but secretly enjoys doing

David 'Hesh' Walker

Also a skateboarder but I think he'd lean more on surfing

I can totally see Hesh being an athlete! Like a basketball player because of his build and height.

Imagine him playing streetball though. And then getting drafted into the NBA. Oooh drool.

Early bird. Would love the early morning hours for surfing or playing ball.

His indoor hobbies would be playing video games with Logan and reading detective novels.

Elias 'Scarecrow' Walker

He'd work your average 9-5 white collar job but dream of retiring and working on a garden and carpentry projects, perhaps making bird feeders and building furniture

He'd collect all his pieces of wood for "later use".

Besides carpentry, his other hobby would be nagging his sons to do something else other than playing videogames.

He'd love board games and card games and would always try to get his sons to play with him (but they don't like to because he always wins)

Buys a bouquet of flowers every year on his late wife's birthday and on their wedding day; keeping up the tradition

Keegan P. Russ

I'm a bit torn on what he would work as because I can see him working both in construction and a 9-5. I think he'd be quite flexible in that way. Jack of all trades, master of none. His CV is filled with his experience in a variety of jobs

He never really struck me as someone with a lot of hobbies since he probably had a rough early life and have no time for those things

If he had any hobby at all, I think he'd enjoy taking photos of sunsets, the sky at the grocery store, or any sight he finds unique and interesting.

I feel like he would keep a journal, jotting down bullet points of his day and little notes of what he feels.

Thomas Merrick

For some reason I like to think of him as working in a restaurant as a chef. He just gives me that vibe

He'd enjoy the fast paced environment.

I don't know how well he cooks, but he sure looks like he'd make a mean burger

He would enjoy night walks down quiet streets and if he had a dog, he'd walk the dog too.

He'd also enjoy watching videos of blacksmiths forging knives, swords, hammers and the like

Alex 'Ajax' Johnson

I think he'd totally be a barista in an old timey café.

On the side, he'd be building an online presence for himself on YouTube

He would be very into fashion, I feel, making content like Parker York Smith. He'd be the most fashionable of the Ghosts.

Avid reader. Has a whole wall in his apartment that's a shelf filled with books.

Kick

Computer boy works a computer job. I think he'd get into a security related job, maybe even get a job in the FBI if he's lucky

And when he's not working, he's streaming his video games

He would love attending comedy night shows and sit right up front, hoping to be asked something by the comedian. He'd enjoy a witty back-and-forth.

[Bonus] Gabriel Rorke

He'd be in a biker gang, I know it. He has the vibe

Otherwise he'd be in the pest control or extermination business, or maybe even something to do with landscaping

LOVES barbecues and invites the Walkers often to eat with him

Very outdoors man. He'd love camping and hiking

Religiously goes to the gym six times a week. He thrives off of physical activity!

[majingojira]

Complete List of Public Domain McGuffin Materials

I wanted a clean collection of these based on @titleknown original post, just for ease of reference and adding a few along the way.

Also, HAPPY PUBLIC DOMAIN DAY!

Cavorite - An Anti-Gravity Metal from First Men On The Moon by H.G. Wells.

Hihi'irokane - From "The Takenouchi Documents" (1935). A super durable metal that never rusts and is also a conductor of heat. In other words, it's Minecraft Red Stone.

Taduki - From the Alan Quartermain stories, a drug that allows users to relive past lives via smoking. It's a great framing device, and was used as one in the original stories.

The Absolute - from "The Absolute At Large". Byproduct of a matter-to-energy conversion. Implied to be the element of 'Divinity'.

Eitr - Source of all life in Norse Mythology. The mixing of the FIres of Muspelheim and the ice of Nifilheim -- but also a deadly poison to the earth.

Fleury's Gas - Rudyard Kipling's super gas from his story "With the Night Mail." Used to run Zepplins. It expands explosively fast as a gas and is both powerful and rigid. It can be liquified with Fleury's Ray. Produces a lot of power and acts as Hydrogen. Could be used very easily in Neumatics (ROBOTS!)

Tulu Metal - Lovecraft invention. rare space-metal. Extremely magnetic. Speculatively, it could do space-warping weirdness (given Lovecraft stories, that tracks).

Abyssal Gold - The Gold of the Deep Ones. It's whitish-gold alloy with a weird lustrousness. No special properties, it's just weird. And rather pretty. Rare type of gold are sure to go for a higher market value.

Alkahest/The Universal Solvent - Alchemy dissolver. It dissolved/breaks apart whatever it comes across.

Jeckyll's Compound - Most people use the Hyde formula as shorthand to make Hulk-knockoffs, but the reality of it more than that. Hyde is not just a coalescence of a man's "Dark Impulses" but a chemical 'disguise' to allow a person to indulge in whatever a person wants.

The Red Weed - A plant native to Mars from War of the Worlds. It tastes metallic, absorbs water, grows extremely quickly, and is bioluminescent.

Starlite - A purportedly heatproof material. Up to 90% organic.

Rossum's Protoplasm - Rossum's Universal Robots, the McGuffin that makes the robots move and behave.

Liquid Electricity - Glowing energy liquid. It was a common belief about Electricity in the early days, so it ended up in a lot of stories.

Herbet West's Re-Animation Fluid - From Lovecraft's Herbet West: Reanimator. It chemically kickstarts the mechanical process of life in organic tissue.

Solarnite/Solarbenite/Solarite - Plan 9 From Outer Space. It causes light particles to... explode.

Vril - The life energies harnessed by an underground utopian civilization. The energies are controlled by staves and there's different type of staff to control Vril in different ways. It can be used to heal, to destroy, or to enhance organic material.

Herakleophorbia IV - The Food of the Gods of H.G. Well. Organisms that ingest this chemical quickly grow to 5 to 7 times their normal size. This is used primarily on livestock to increase their food yield, but it naturally gets eaten by pest animals. Many common household pest insects are now the size of a person's thumb or their hand! A rat is now 6 to 9ft long. And if some jerk feeds it to an Alligator... it now as large as a blue whale.

The New Accelerator - From the HG Wells story from the same name. Within the story, Prof. Gibberne creates a drug that enables the user’s mind and body to gain temporary super-speed, so that everything in the world appears frozen solid as time appears to slow.

There are downsides to being a 1901 version of the Flash however. Users are still subject to friction, so moving while on the drug causes your clothes to get singed (this same friction making it impossible to breathe is ignored, however).

Devil's Foot Root - From the Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Devil’s Foot. A poison made from an African root, which vaporizes when heated, leading to those exposed going mad or dying after inhaling the fumes.

 Basically, works like the Scarecrow’s fear toxin from Batman, and is considered rare enough that someone has to specifically use some from a stolen from the collection of someone who had to gather it personally as an explorer. At least, at the time.

The White Powder - The novel of The White Powder by Arthur Machen, wherein a student is prescribed a drug made from a mysterious white flakey substance. His sister begins to worry about his sudden changes in mood and personality, which is only compounded when his prolonged abuse of the titular White Powder causes the student to literally melt.

One of Machen’s more famous stories, would go on to be listed as among Lovecraft’s favorite's and inspiring future writers, from the finale of Lovecraft’s Cool Air to one Stephen King story where a tainted six pack turns a dude into a blob monster.

[elljayvee]

today's topic: that fucker RoundUp

It's time for more Don't Believe Everything You Read with me, elljayvee!

A friend encountered this the other day: 

This contains a lot of false information and should not be spread around as true. It's scaremongering in the first half and almost entirely wrong in the second half.

I will state my credentials and biases up front: I am an inactive Penn State Master Gardener (which means I have all the education and credentials, but am not currently an active volunteer), I have a permaculture design certificate and an active permaculture garden on my property, and I'm an agriculture & food systems researcher. I also fucking hate RoundUp (aka glyphosate), which I think is very bad, especially at industrial scales. I pretty much think all agricultural inputs have serious problems at industrial scales; RoundUp isn't special. In general, and particularly for home-scale or small-scale ag use, I prefer non-chemical controls; in my own garden I use manual control for all weeds except for poison ivy and tree of heaven, for which I use 2,4-D foliar herbicide. 2,4-D is also pretty nasty stuff, but I use it because unlike RoundUp it's very widespread in my environment already -- some of my neighbors have their lawns sprayed and that's what the lawn companies use. Me spraying a stray tree of heaven once a year isn't even a drop in the 2,4-D bucket of the block. 

Let us take these pieces of Wrong Information from back to front!

Dish soap: people love dish soap in the garden. Just love it. There's mixed evidence on what it can do in the garden but it's completely ineffective against weeds -- the reason it's so popular in garden applications is that it doesn't harm plants. How is something that doesn't harm plants going to be good weed control? Answer: it isn't. It does nothing against weeds. The one thing dish soap is proven to be good at is assisting with aphid control -- the best aphid control is manual/physical control, like blasting aphids off plants with water, and dish soap assists with that and also seems to do some damage to the aphid. Any other pest control involving "soap" almost certainly means "insecticidal soap", not dish soap. 

Takeaway: Unless you're trying to control aphids, don't use dish soap in the garden. (And make sure it's dish SOAP, not a detergeant. In the US, original Dawn is the go-to.) For anything but aphid control, you're just wasting soap.

Salt: No. This is bad. It will definitely help kill some weeds, but it's a bad idea. Don't put extra salt into soil. It's bad for the soil and for the inhabitants of soil; it's bad for water. One cup of salt isn't going to kill a river or a stream or whatever but if you're worried about killing animals, let's just say that poor innocent things like amphibians and worms do not do well in hypersaline environments. Do not use table salt like this. 

Takeaway: Leave table salt out of your garden altogether. You're just wasting salt, messing up soil, and hurting animals.

Vinegar: This is completely fine. Depending on the species of weed you have, it may work very well indeed. However, household white vinegar is only about 5% acetic acid, while horticultural vinegar -- which is sold as a weed killer commercially -- is 20% acetic acid, and works MUCH better on a MUCH wider variety of weeds. It also seems to work best when it is mixed with canola oil. Horticultural vinegar is not as safe for your skin/eyes/etc. and you should follow the safety instructions on the bottle when you use it. If you would like some more information on how well vinegar works to control weeds, you may enjoy reading "Impact of Acetic Acid Concentration, Application Volume, and Adjuvants on Weed Control Efficacy" (Webber et al. 2018). 

Takeaway: Household vinegar in the garden is fine and may work for some species of weeds. Horticultural vinegar works better. Follow safety information when using it. 

Now for RoundUp (aka glyphosate). 

RoundUp will kill pollinators, bees, hives: I will include all invertebrates that seem affected by RoundUp spray in this category. There is good evidence that AT INDUSTRIAL SCALE, RoundUp negatively affects pollinators and other beneficial invertebrates, such as pest-controlling spiders. When applied to a broad area in heavy concentrations, it seems to have lethal effects (particularly in bees who ingest it or come into physical contact with it), and it also seems interfere with reproduction in some bees, wasps, and spiders.

"Is glyphosate toxic to bees? A meta-analytical review" (Battisti et al 2021) is a good meta-analysis about toxicity to various bee species. (It is paywalled, sorry -- but some of its sources are not.) This analysis found that it's easy for bees to get a fatal dose from pollen from sprayed flowers, physical contact with sprayed flowers, or ingestion of nectar from sprayed flowers. At individual garden scale, you are extremely unlikely to harm more than a few individual insects unless you're doing something very weird, like, I don't know, pouring a whole bottle of RoundUp over your patio, or specifically filling flowers with drops of RoundUp. 

Takeaway: In general, I recommend not using RoundUp in your garden. If you do use RoundUp, snip off flowers from the weeds or do not spray the flowers, to avoid pollen contamination and lower the likelihood of bees touching the RoundUp. I strongly suggest instead using manual controls, which is what I do -- I weedwhack and hand-pull weeds (again, with the exception of poison ivy and tree of heaven). 

RoundUp will kill your pets and kids and you: In general, not unless your pets, your kids, or you drink it. This is how it kills mammals: a mammal drinks it. There is some evidence of toxicity to amphibians, but again, this is at industrial scale and high concentrations, not a household preparation used on like 5 weeds in your patio. There is conflicting evidence on whether or not glyphosate is carcinogenic in humans, but the risk -- if it exists -- seems at this point to be low and probably mainly affects agricultural workers who are regularly exposed to a LOT of the stuff.

Takeaway: Secure RoundUp from pets and children. I personally keep garden chemicals in a padlocked plastic box in the garage. If you are suicidal and may drink RoundUp, call your area's suicide prevention hotline or ask someone for help. If you are an agricultural worker regularly in contact with glyphosate in the environment your best resource is probably United Farm Workers (in the US), your local farm workers' org, or La Via Campesina (which is an international farm workers' organization that has taken a stand against the widespread industrial use of glyphosate). 

If you would like to read more about RoundUp toxicity, try: "Glyphosate Poisoning" (Bradberry, Proudfoot, and Vale 2004) and "Glyphosate: A review of its global use, environmental impact, and potential health effects on humans and other species" (Richmond 2018) -- this one is particularly useful because it collates a LOT of research together in one place, so you can get to many, many other articles from it. 

General takeaways: You should take precautions if you use RoundUp not to hurt bees in your garden, but you are unlikely to hurt anything larger than invertebrates if you do use it. Do not use random weedkilling formulas involving random household items in your garden. In particular, dish soap and salt have almost no good garden uses at all and if someone tells you to use them, they are probably misinformed at best. There is a lot of complete bullcrap out there on the internet.

If you want to use organic controls for stuff in your garden, which lots of people do, a good place to start is the OMRI lists. Items on these lists are approved for organic use in the US or Canada and free to download. You can also look for information from Extension in the US about organic controls and home gardening advice; county extension is government-funded and provides a wide variety of free educational material about gardening, forestry, agriculture, etc.