Math (I'm a graduate student). And "exponentially more experienced than the average" means nothing as exponential is a progression, not a comparison between two values.
What this person is trying to say is they are exponentially better at being technically correct.
Exponentially the best kind of correct by an order of magnitude.
Hey now you can't determine orders of magnitude before you know the values
Your statement is cromulent.
Exponentially correct is the worst kind of magnitude
This is one of my biggest pet peeves lol
serious questions then:
What’s a better mathy adjective to describe what OP meant by “exponential”?
Orders of magnitude maybe?
I'd go with "significantly".
A simple "a lot" would do fine. "Orders of magnitude" as someone else suggested would work too.
5sigma from the average person.
My pet peeve with mathy stuff, "something is X times closer/smaller etc than something else"
If A is 1 away, saying B is ten times closer means what exactly? Is B 10 away? 9, 0.1?
I think what most examples are trying to say is that A is ten times the distance to B, but the way it is said if just annoying.
"Ten times closer" is pretty unambiguously 0.1. What starts getting more confusing is "300% further" which is technically 4 but many understand as 3 (try replacing by 50%, 50% further is 1.5 not 0.5). Also "50% closer" being the same as twice closer while 50% further is only 1.5x further can get confusing too, and it gets even worse with "50% slower" - is speed now 1/1.5 (= it takes 50% more time) or 0.5/1 (= speed is reduced by 50%) ?
Most of the time it is pretty easy to know what the winter is trying to imply.
It gets really silly when using big numbers. e.g. a nanometre is 100,000 times smaller than a human hair.
So you're asking people what they do for a living?
Doing something for 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week makes you a lot better at that thing than other people.
Actually doing something for 40 hours a week is truly remarkable. People waste so much time, me included.
Man I’m so good at sleeping though. I get at least 5 hours a night, so that’s 40 a week! Woohoo!
/s
Where do you get an 8-day week? I want one (assuming it's an extra break day not work day...).
But I don't spend 40 hours doing the same thing. I do a bunch of different regular bullshit that you can't really be "good" at, like sending emails and chatting with people on Teams.
Since the Reddit blackout I decided to learn how to solve a Rubik's Cube. My best time for solving one so far is 82 seconds. I know it's no world record but the average person can't solve a Rubik's cube so I'm way more experienced.
Way to go! I used to hustle the lunch room with my Rubik's cube and get people's desserts by solving it in less than a minute. I only knew the inefficient layer-by-layer method, so it really was a race.
It was my eldest that got me going actually. He came home from school with the old shit cube he had, did 3 turns on it and said "There, I solved it Dad."
I said "Did you fuck. Who sorted that for you?" and he told me a kid at school was just asking everyone if they had a cube and to bring it in to school, so he did and the kid solved it for him.
I thought "If a 12 year old can do it, so can I" and used it to help with my Reddit withdrawals.
I've finally got a magnetic cube now and just have it in my pocket. I'm trying to improve my F2L speed where you put the corners in and the 2nd layer at the same time. I really like doing the last layer with algorithms, it's like magic.
I didn't even know Rubik's cubes had layers. What are they ?
When you look up how to solve them, it's a white cross (so the white would be the first layer), making sure your middle tile of the cross pieces match the middle of the sides (red green blue orange), then you put the corners of the bottom (white) layer in, matching the colours. The middles don't move so you then put in the corners of the middle layer, completing 2 layers.
The top layer is the yellow one, opposite the white layer.
oh, my god. The middles don't move ! you just blew my mind
magnetic cube?
See the icebergs?
Yeah magnetic cubes!
They have little magnets in the corner pieces so when you push, it stops in the right place.
There's also maglev cubes that have magnetic cores. I just have corner magnets ATM because EVRI ARE A DOGSHIT DELIVERY COMPANY but that's another story for another time
Definitely. I use Rubik's cubes as paperweights
I feel like this about chess. I'm fairly confident I can beat everyone I know except for like 3 people. But I'm better than 12% of people on Lichess.
Yeah it just goes to show that hobbies are like icebergs.
I picked up a guitar in Covid and managed to learn basic chords and songs in the first year of playing it every single day. I'm 4 years in now, and I feel less advanced than I felt back then.
I think it's because when you're learning a new technique, you fucking suck at it, but when it's in counterpoint to other techniques that you can do to a high level, it sounds worse than just one technique being played badly, plus you've trained your ears over the time you've been playing, so you can hear the bad bits better.
Guitarists that have been playing for decades have more of these techniques down so they sound better, but that's just to people who have struggled with those techniques themselves. To the uninitiated guitarists are just guitarists, some play country and some do that wiggly wiggly guitar solo thing.
Guitar playing is an Iceberg with a big bit sticking up, chess and rubix cubes are smaller icebergs, but you've got to mine it all the way down before you can climb to the top.
I picked up cubing half a year ago as a middle aged dad. I set myself a goal of being able to solve it in under 30 seconds. I’m averaging around 40s now so I’m slowly getting there. It’s a fun little hobby and I always carry my cube around with me and practice as often as I can. I just finished learning all 21 PLL algorithms and I’m quite proud of myself 😄
I'm 39 and right there with you, although I can't seem to get under 80 seconds for a solve yet. I've been cubing for a couple of months and have got the 2 look pll and oll down nearly now, just a couple of algorithms I'm struggling to remember. Love doing the last layer though, it's like magic.
I'm at a point now where I'm solving faster than I was (it was around the 3 minute mark a couple of weeks ago but I've just got a RS3M) and it is starting to feel "easy" now.
I also have one in my pocket most of the time, it's another hobby my wife hates lol "Do you HAVE to bring that thing with you?" YES I DO
I’ve just got the Tornado V3 Pioneer, and I’m loving it. Just using that cube cut off some time in itself. Have you started doing F2L and cross directly in bottom yet? I averaged 55ish with 2-look OLL and PLL with F2L and cross in bottom. It takes a long time to get really fast with F2L so that’s a ongoing thing I’m trying to optimize.
I've been eyeballing the Tornado V3 Flagship myself. I do the cross on the bottom, but advanced f2l means adding the f2l while doing the cross and I'm not that good yet. I feel like this week I've just started getting a real feel for pairing up the blocks, and that's lead to quicker solves. It'll be a few more weeks of practicing to get it intuitive but I'm definitely on the right path.
By feel I can identify 20 lb, 24 lb, 28 lb, 65 lb cover, 110 lb cover, and 12 pt matte paper. I'm increasingly impressed by people's business cards as a result, as it is often much, much heavier than 12 pt matte.
Using comparison I can distinguish 80 lb semi-gloss cover, 100 lb semi-gloss cover, 8 pt gloss, 10 pt gloss, and 12 pt gloss. (But then again, most people could, given multiple choices rather than a free-response question.)
"Look at that subtle off-white colouring. The tasteful thickness of it. Oh my god, it even has a watermark."
Does it have a watermark?
In case you're legitimately asking: No, it's just cheaper and fancier versions of normal printer paper and cardstock (cover and cardstock are essentially the same thing). You just feel its texture, maybe shake it a little, figure out its weight.
@radix@Oka This is the most boring possible skill. How do you achieve it?
Thanks! Means a lot :D
I worked for a few months in a print shop. Turns out I hate doing customer service, but I did take home lots of excess cardboard and paper (slightly dog-eared, bent, stained --- not professional level, but good enough for me) and bind a few of my own notebooks out of them.
To be clear, it's not my career. I'm going to school to study something else, and I only worked around 20 hours a week for about two months.
Having gone through conscription military, I have leveled up some very important abilities.
Looking busy: I can find convincing ways to spend time without actually doing anything important.
Wasting time: When nobody is looking, I can find creative and fun ways to pass the time. (this ability is maxed out)
Also gained a few special perks.
Forest fun: Who needs movies, games or the internet when you have an axe and some wood. Even pine cones, rocks and sticks will be enough to keep you preoccupied in creative ways.
Day dreaming: Who needs the forest, when you can build countless universes in your mind.
Oh, and I did learn to shoot and keep my rifle in working order. I guess that’s nice too. Didn’t get to level that anywhere near as much, but that’s ok.
To add on to your 'looking busy' skills....In Moving Pictures, sir Terry Pratchett points out that if you have a determined fast walk and a piece of paper in your hand, you can go anywhere. I used to use this technique to get breaks in the office. I'd just grab a piece of paper and quickly walk the length of the building with a determined expression.
And if you walk fast enough, the paper can also be completely empty.
Kind of the same as "wearing a yellow jacket and acting like you belong"... Add in the piece of paper and the determined look, that's how you get handed the city keys
Some time in the 90s several computers of an office were stolen that way. Some guys just parked a van right in front of the front door and started loading the van with computers. Those machines weren’t cheap back in those days, so these guys just got away with some pretty nice loot. All you have to do is walk in with a determined look and everyone will assume you’re simply doing your job.
Smooth criminal !
I want to join in here too with the exceptionally good driving. I, like everyone else here, am totally a very much better driver than the average person on the road. Exponentially much better, even!
One friend of mine says the same all the time... In fact, he's the worst driver I've ever driven with! In reality, I am much better and even exponentially better than the average driver.
I like to think people learn from me just by hearing my cry of "come onnnnn!"
All you have to do in order to be a better than average driver is to be alert to what's going in around you. I do that, and I drive fast. I'm an exponentially better driver than most.
Statistics.
That word does not mean what you think it means.
It doesn't mean inferring something about a population from a sample?
The word in question is "exponentially".
And in any case, no.
I have a lot of experience reconstructing whale skeletons for museums and such. I do it as a hobby with a friend of mine who is the marine mammals recovery coordinator for the state of North Carolina.
Based Lego.
Haha I think I would describe it more like erector sets than lego but yes it is very similar. We put the whales in the ground for ~18 months and then pull them out and out them together piece by piece
I am, without trying to sound arrogant, much better at cornering, roundabouts, and general driving than a large part of the population in Australia.
I can enter a roundabout, in a preselected gear, at appropriate revs and speed. Load up the suspension just right, so I'm released into my chosen exit, kissing the apex with a release of energy that feels so sweet, smooth and safe, that it's a beautiful part of my life.
All within safe thresholds, and always when I know it's safe. And the way others use roundabouts, it's always safer than the general population.
You're like an aussie Alan partridge
As a fellow Australian I think this is partly down to the equipment as well.
I can take a roundabout much faster and more confidently in my sports car with a low centre of gravity and performance tyres compared to an SUV with cheapo tyres like a large proportion of the population drives.
I'm guessing you also drive a car which is more performant than most on the road.
No matter what you drive, it's still not hard to be better than all the people who stall traffic because they don't realize they can squeeze through a gap about 4 feet wider than their car so we can actually pre fill the turn lane while the light's red.
Nor is it hard to actually know to accelerate smoothly through a turn instead of braking through it.
Or to know how to just stay in your clearly marked turn lane during your turn (literally marked through the entire intersection) instead of cutting off the other two turn lanes (this happened to me yesterday).
None of these things are actually much harder to do in a large car than a sports car, just obviously your actual speed and acceleration should change based on your car, tires, and everything else. I use the same principles I use when driving a fun car to help drive safely when it's a minivan.
found Daniel Ricciardo
I'm an American who knows how to properly signal when going through a roundabout. This automatically makes me more knowledgeable than 99.99999% of American drivers.
Pole dancing! I’ve taught professionally for like 15 years.
Btw this instance is about to be exposed to amazing pole fitness content, prepare yourselves.
Where to subscribe?
Maybe not better than an average person, but the last 10 years of my life taught me lots of handy life skills, like owning up to my mistakes, having more self esteem, showing confidence in tough situations, standing up for myself, having better people skills and to know when not to get involved and when to speak up.
Most of these are basic human skills, but the combination of these can make a huge difference. I landed jobs thanks to them, I made friends and removed toxic people from my life. I have less issues with adult responsibilities and in general I am less stressed.
Again maybe not exceptionally more experienced than an average person, but compared to my old self its a huge difference.
Isn't it kind of amazing how much better your life can be with the addition of those "soft" skills?
Not littering.
Anyone in this thread could probably just cite their career.
I am "exponentially" better at nothing in comparison to others.
There's always this one kid, who will do whatever I do, far better than I can ever do.
But that one kid isn't the average person. Don't put yourself down.
Thanks for the uplifting words ❤️
Sounds you're like the main character in Everything, Everywhere, All at Once . If you haven't watched it I recommend
Yeah, I've seen the movie. The best cluster fuck experience I could ask for. I still do not know what the donut was all about. 😅
Cocktails. I'm purely an amateur home bartender (I work in software development) but I'm better at making cocktails than most paid bartenders in the city, including a number of the ones working at craft cocktail bars I've been to across the country. I make my own syrups, creams, infusions, carved ice, and dehydrated fruit. I've recently started using an iSi whipper to make foam toppers; beer foam for old fashioneds, tropical foam for Mai Tais. My avocado orgeat is awesome. Fat washing with coconut oil is easy and makes Campari and cachaça amazing. I've hosted many parties in the 15-28 person range, as well numerous smaller cocktail nights, so I have experience creating thematic menus and then prepping and serving the drinks all night.
I have a ton of knowledge about spirits in general, both breadth and depth. Most bartenders and even mixologists don't even know what baijiu is (let alone tried each aroma), know the difference between soju and shōchū, or why soju is rarely made with rice. My rum knowledge is where I've specialized and I can recommend multiple bottles of each type (Smuggler's Cove categories or Minimalist Tiki's) in varying price ranges, what cocktails they are best for, and the subtle differences between each bottle within its own category.
I'm a perfectly average programmer though.
Hell yea. Hobbies like that are awesome.
Exponentially denotes a progression, a rate of change. You probably mean greatly or vastly
For me it would be authoring images-illustration, rendering, etc. I guess most people can answer with their job
Don't forget to add "being pedantic" to your list!
Being accurate with words isn't being pedantic. There was an opportunity to teach, I took it. That's it. Perhaps you got that impression because text doesn't convey intent very well. That's alright
. I guess most people can answer with their job
Yeah I was going to make a pithy joke about my job, but note that having any skill in a field that's at all niche puts you well above the average.
I am exponentially more experienced at swimming than the average person.
I'm actually a pretty average swimmer, so in this case the exponent is zero.
This is my biggest pet peeve. One data point can't be exponentially more than one other data point without context.
If people still want to sound "smart" because they used a fancy math word, you can say "orders of magnitude more experienced."
I have decades of experience with improv storytelling. It's a niche thing, and normally I use it for tabletop games, but in a pinch I can make up campfire stories, ghost stories, or whatever else and use the slightest cues from the audience to suit what they enjoy.
Might need some evidence of this one!
Shit. It works better in person because of facial expressions, body language, and other ways that help me come up with material as I go but try me, I suppose.
That's cool, I love telling stories too. Some people here do it professionally, and they use their audience to give the tales a nice theatrical vibe.
I am exponentially more experienced at guessing my Lemmy account password than anyone else here. Try it. See you can't. Me very smart. 🤓
/s Inb4 a hacker gets mad and actually hacks my account lmao
All I see is hunter2
hehe +1
The best skill?
Im a good driver. Very good, in fact. Not at racing, i mean. But actually driving on public roads.being predictable, parking legally, following speed limits, using the turn signal before i actually turn, etc etc
It pains me to ride as a passenger now :(
Booooring! 🙃
But exciting is not the driving style I want from fellow drivers, so thank you .
Signal before you actually brake for the turn, that's the key. Not just before the turn.
I can mould the old shower soap in to the new shower soap like an absolute boss.
Gamemastering rpgs. 20 years of experience and a good cross section of games played. Spent the last five years really trying to improve too.
I could say job-related things or my hobbies, but Ima go with Google-fu. Maybe just search engine fu.
I know way too many 'first page people' when it comes to results. No fuckin' way. Learn how to dig. Do not take no for an answer from a search engine without trying a range of strategies to find what you're looking for.
OK, I'm lying. This is part of my job. I teach academic research, and I hear these people with two sources tell me there aren't enough sources for them to do a research paper on a given topic or that all these peer-reviewed journal articles say the same thing.
But it does extend into non-academic life. I was out of town, my older brother needed a U-Haul, drove 40 minutes to a place he knew, but there was a U-Haul less than 10 minutes away that he couldn't find.
I'm surrounded by this.
Though Google doesn’t let you dig much past the first page anymore.
“10 billion results!” It says.. then 4 pages in it just goes “never mind, that’s it”
This feels like a cheat answer, but as someone who has played for 25 years and organized events for 15, I’m likely much more knowledgeable about the rules of Magic: the Gathering than the “average person”. Not sure that I am necessarily exponentially better than the average player, but maybe I am now that so many people play digitally and don’t need to know the rules as much.
I'm good at putting a needle inside people's veins.
Picked up soldering and small appliance repairing as a hobby couple months ago so I guess that
Ability: Coordinate system rotation. I can move 3d objects around in my mind with ease and it is clear in group settings that most people are not good at this.
Knowledge: heat transfer. I've done years of theoretical study and more years of practical application of heat transfer.
I can't picture things in my head almost at all. I used to think I was mind blind, but I'm not entirely it seems, it's just that my ability to visualize things is paper thin. It takes enormous effort to visualize almost anything and even then it kinda just proofs, no actual rotation with information, just the idea of rotation. Can picture a tree, but I can get information from it.
Kids should have access to CAD early in life. I grew up with it and mentally picturing, moving, and manipulating 3D objects in my mind is just second nature. I can even keep track of orientation (Front, Back, Left, Right, Top, Bottom views) with minimal effort.
I have two useless talents:
Highly developed sense of smell (sometimes a liability)
Ability to identify voice actors with high accuracy
I once identified the source of a minute gas leak in my basement, which had evaded the calibrated detection equipment of the utility company, so I guess I can't say it's completely useless.
With you in the ability to smell. The only issue is I smell ALL THE THINGS. And it is overwhelming at times.
Did you ever puke in a wastebin just because you're overwhelmed by the smell?
and then go crazy because of the smell of puke in the wastebin?
Life is hell.
Yep, no fun. I also can't stand strong perfumes and colognes.
Diagnosis, repair, and operation of CNC lasers, both flat plate cutting lasers and tube lasers.
Pretty good generalist.
I feel similar. I'm good at my profession (very white collar) and have managed to start my own business based on a good reputation in the industry, solid outcomes etc. I'm pretty good with my hands and troubleshooting so I'm handy in a crisis, good at solving problems. I read a lot about lots of different things, I listen to a lot of different music so I'm a good person to have on your trivia team. I've kept pretty fit into my late 30s so I'm up for any exercise or going for long rambling adventures.
But am I great, beyond my peers at any one particular thing? God no. And it bothers me. I wish I was really, really, really good at any one thing to the point someone would call me an expert, but I'm just not. I don't have the energy, interest or focus to dedicate to one thing, so I'm just 'okay' to 'pretty good' at a tonne of things, but not necessarily better than any one person in the room.
So good! I'm pretty much all of what you said, but without my own business.
My humility.
Joking aside though, I'd like to think I'm pretty empathetic and understanding.
Surviving mental illness.
I used to be in around the top 1% of CSGO players though it took me 2000 hours so it's not much of an achievement lol.
Probably political science just by merit of being educated in it though I wouldn't say I am especially gifted in it as such.
I am not very good at anything lol, I just read a lot to make up for my natural stupidity. I like reading though.
...stand above the average person?
Kinda opposite of the prompt:
Scuba!
Lots of divers will tell you that buouancy control is difficult for most divers. Mine is absolutely good. I teach underwater photography and can hover within a fraction of an inch over a super silty bottom while swimming backwards and taking video without stirring up anything.
I have other instructors and professionals come to me for buoyancy training.
Isn't that just controlling your breathing? Get your bcd to a neutral boyant point and then do the rest with your lungs.
At least, that's what I do and I wasn't aware this was something experienced divers had a lot of trouble with. I suppose I don't ask people though.
Swimming backwards while filming with your hands is a neat trick though. I always reverse with my arms, so I'd be keen to see how you do that!
Lots of diver don't know their buouancy sucks because they overweight themselves and stay neutral by having poor trim. They angle their feet downward and kick to stay neutral, which uses more air and causes them to silt out the dive site because they're disturbing the water below and behind them, but never see it because they're not facing that direction.
Most of my photography classes are actually teaching buouancy and advanced kicking because you really can't do good macro shots from 8 feet away. You have to get to the subject of the shot, and have to be able to do it without stirring up the silt.
The frog kick, back kick, and helicopter turns are essential skills, but a lot of people have shitty or gimmicky fins, which makes it much harder. My thought on fins is that there's 2 kinds - Jet Fins and Bad Fins. They were designed in the 60s and have never been matched.
Those big, heavy, stiff monsters are great, because you can do a reverse frog kick without them bending and pushing you forward while you're getting them in position for the back kick.
Playing piano, and knowing too much about headphone gear and audio measurements
Being myself, I'm pretty good at it.
Understanding how substations work. Also, knowing what substations even are...
As in, electric grid things with big wires and fences?
No, they're places that make sandwiches.
To lots of people they might as well be. Most of the time, a conversation goes like this:
Them: "what do you do?"
Me: "I'm a Substation Designer"
Them: "What's a substation?"
Tbf, I was a "them" only a year ago, so it's no surprise. We've all seen them, and most of us never ask what they're called.
Haha, yes. Specifically, they're a grouping of electrical equipment that transfers high-voltage to low-voltage and low-voltage to high-voltage. :)
I'm curious if you've seen increased interest in hardening substations to attacks. I heard a lot about that after the attacks last year but none of the substations in my area are any different.
Unfortunately it boils down to which company owns them and the amount of $$ they're willing to spend. Most new substations being built all have solid walls, for example, rather than the much-cheaper chain-link fence, which helps a little, but not by much for someone who really wants to get in there. Rarely will a company do any cosmetic updates to an already-built substation, so I'm not surprised the ones in your area haven't changed.
The issue for making them more secure as far as I can tell (I'm fairly new to this field, and a designer, not an engineer, so my technical knowledge is still limited) is how volatile high-voltage electricity is. I'm not really sure what could be done to encase a substation against an attack that secures it against an outside projectile, while still being safe for on-site workers. We're talking hundreds of thousands of voltages here, and most substations are ginormous.
Besides my professional skills, which are so boring they’re not worth mentioning, I’m good at snapping my fingers? I can do both hands really fast.
Also, standing on one leg, having internal monologues that can last for hours and other useless skills :)
If I was to base it off people I know IRL, it'd be video games. But against the collective of gamers on the internet, I don't even rank. :/
Well... I guess that's just skill. Experience, though... Many streamers and gamers are a fraction of my age, and I've been gaming since as far back as I remember.
i got 4 nukes in MWII
Loading a vehicle or container for moving. I've had friends ask me to basically take over their move. And yeah, I may be a sucker for doing it, but I will save people hours and multiple trips while moving. I 3d tetris the hell out of a uhaul.
Height. I'm 6'6" on a good day. Top 99.897% in the world.
Reviving and programming REMBASS units. REmotely Monitored Battlefield Sensor System was a old ass piece of equipment when I was using it 20 years ago in the Army. You'd have to program different channels using another old ass piece of equipment. And very often they'd drop their fills, or not appreciate having a new, fully charged battery in it. It would frustrate people to no end because they'd spend hours trying to get it going, and then I'd stroll up talking all nice and pretty to the gear and shit would just work for me.
Freeze-drying, it's a d(r)ying art.
It’s not difficult if you have a multi-thousand dollar freeze drying machine. It is difficult if you have less money than that and try to build your own…
drawing porno
Show us your PayPal balance
Hacking Nintendo consoles
Well, it's definitely not my height, hahahaha 🥲
But I'm pretty good at not giving up getting obsessed with a problem and basically bashing my head against the wall until the wall gives in.
Or until a new problem steals my focus.
Like, I have no mechanical experience, but I did a valve adjustment on my motorbike.
99% of people either ignore their valves or have the dealer make the adjustment. You and I are top 1% of motorcycle owners.
It's a mission right. Definitely not something I want to be doing very often. But I did save a bunch of cash and extended the life of my bike.
Not getting stung by bees?
Living outside my home country.
I'm pretty good at controlling my temper... does that count?
Teach us your ways
No magic bullet, it just takes years of practice and a jail sentence or two later before you realize some things are not worth getting cranky over.
Linguistics, programming, rationalizing, and trackmania =)
What is trackmania?
A racing game that has a very nice track builder and is very open to modding. Its focus is on the individual driver and the time they achieve on a track.
Flying for hundreds of meters, drifting under water, going at high speeds through multiple loopings, sliding on ice and so much more is totally possible with Trackmania.
Try it, the base game is free and their pricing for online services and cups is totally fine.
Ah man, I've been playing various Trackmania titles since 2013 but I still struggle with some of the campaign author medals and my placements are only around top 5-10% of players. Better than average sure, but not "exponentially" [sic] despite years of experience :(
Driving a forklift
Being in a freezer
Hello, fellow forklift operator.
exponentially more experienced
no quadratic trinomial experience ... guess i'll show myself out then
Skateboarding. I've been skating since 1985, and aside from a couple years in the military, never really took a break from it.
At 48 years old, with a slew of injuries, I can't do the kind of things I did in my 20s, but can sure hold my own on a mini ramp.
Asking intriguing questions that nobody thinks to ask.
Welding probably. Especially oxy- acetylene and TiG
I'm very comfortable doing CPR
Am not
Kayaking, ive been doing it a year and a half and I've been on every white water course in the country
Fast driving - although I've never raced competitively I've done around 50 track days and I was normally one of the fastest on circuit wet and dry (whilst not having the fastest car).
Computer stuff - worked in IT my whole life although this one isn't for fun.
Purely based on population I'm an exceptional climbing instructor.
Anything computer related
Wasting my time Yo.
I'm quite good at getting Macs to do the stuff I need them to. The vast majority of people alive right now will have never touched one for a number of reasons, so I guess I'm above average at it. I can easily patch old ones with Opencore these days.
I know more about radio and podcast production than the average person, given that I have a degree in it. Not that I was ever successful in that field, but I know how to do it to a high standard.
I'm also really good at guessing the year when radio shows do a guess the year competition. I listened to a lot of pop radio from about 1985 to 2010, so can usually place myself to when a song was popular.
Time management.
Ive become a fucking pro at squeezing as many tasks into a day as I possibly can. I frequently get told they have no idea how I keep on top of things. I basically work 2 and a half full time jobs for people at the same company, and I accomplish it by overlapping my time and billing per item not per hour
Any hot tips for the rest of us?
I book service calls (repairs). Between calls and especially using my hands free while driving between service calls, I return phone calls and texts. When I get where I'm going, if I'm ever early, I respond to emails or place calls. If I finish a thing early or ever have to wait for people, I return texts calls and emails while waiting.
Ive also aced driving distance between places in the city where I work so I'm able to build a solid schedule without running behind.
At night, to clear my head, I schedule a bunch of texts and emails to send off first thing in the morning. Gives the impression I'm working even though I'm probably still asleep.
I know a lot about the Lincoln assassination.
Give me a fact that most people may not know?
President Lincoln didn't die instantly. He died nine hours later. I'm not American, so that may be commonly taught to kids in the USA - but I remember being surprised by this when I learned about it as an adult.
He was shot around 10:15 pm on April 14 and died across the street at 7:22 am on April 15.
The first woman to be executed by the US federal government was executed as a result of Lincoln's assassination. Her name was Mary Surratt and her youngest son, Johnny, was considered Booth's "right hand man".
So what now, experience or skill?
Building custom computers. Been doing it for close to 20 years. Servers, gaming rigs, rendering workstations, console builds, ultra budget scrap builds, custom water loops, done it all.
This is actually a useful skill if you like traveling. I live in a van and previously did a lot of motorcycle camping and backpacking. I can always find somewhere to sleep for the night wherever I am.
I guess having strong opinions based on science, logic and empathy, if I have gathered enough evidence and knowledge about it and also being honest about not knowing enough about a topic to form an opinion on that topic. This should be the norm.
Writing. I've written a lot of fiction under a lot of pen names, have had a few stories printed (which I won't link to for opsec reasons), and I have multiple unfinished books in-progress (and/or abandoned) on my google drive.
Other people are sometimes amazed by my language skills. I'm German, know English pretty well, and am learning japanese since about half a year. I'm not too sure, if how many languages/how good most people speak/understand.
I'm good at being optimistic and happy I would say. I'm also very calm and rational in situations many would find themselves angry or sad. One things that definitely helps is walking. It gives you time to think and appreciate your surroundings.
And of course, I'm good with computers. I have some servers I regularly do some new stuff with, and work in Cybersecurity (as student but hey you got to start somewhere)
Knowing the name and premise of a Futurama episode within the first minute.
eBay Product/Shopping verification.
It seems people get fakes and knockoffs all the time, but I haven't.
All I do is look at the product pictures; if they're stock, I'll ignore, but if they aren't, and they are a tech product, DVD, etc., I'll cross-reference UPC/Barcode, SN, etc. with search engines.
Been using eBay since 2019.
Pretty much everything. The average person can't read and write, can't swim, can't run or hold a steering wheel with two hands, because the average person doesn't have two legs and two arms, etc
Statistical modeling.
And yes, I am miffed about the use of the word “exponential” in this post’s title.
Same here; what're the odds?
About 50/50. Either you are or you aren't.
But what are the exponential odds?
50^2 / 50^2
I'd approach it logically.
If 50/50 = you are / you aren't
Then
(50/50)^2 = you are are / you are aren't / you aren't are / you aren't aren't
Applying the locig gates AND : 25%. OR : 75%. XOR : 50% NAND : 75% NOR: 25% XNOR : 50%
The results average at 50/50.
Likewise, so higher than we thought lol.
the base of my exponential function is 1
I got a PhD in philosophy. I have exponentially more experience applying for jobs and getting rejected than most people.
I was clearing out my Hotmail. I've a Msc in health psych. Well over 1k in reject emails. I may have a rival
Math (I'm a graduate student). And "exponentially more experienced than the average" means nothing as exponential is a progression, not a comparison between two values.
What this person is trying to say is they are exponentially better at being technically correct.
Exponentially the best kind of correct by an order of magnitude.
Hey now you can't determine orders of magnitude before you know the values
Your statement is cromulent.
Exponentially correct is the worst kind of magnitude
This is one of my biggest pet peeves lol
serious questions then:
What’s a better mathy adjective to describe what OP meant by “exponential”?
Orders of magnitude maybe?
I'd go with "significantly".
A simple "a lot" would do fine. "Orders of magnitude" as someone else suggested would work too.
5sigma from the average person.
My pet peeve with mathy stuff, "something is X times closer/smaller etc than something else"
If A is 1 away, saying B is ten times closer means what exactly? Is B 10 away? 9, 0.1?
I think what most examples are trying to say is that A is ten times the distance to B, but the way it is said if just annoying.
"Ten times closer" is pretty unambiguously 0.1. What starts getting more confusing is "300% further" which is technically 4 but many understand as 3 (try replacing by 50%, 50% further is 1.5 not 0.5). Also "50% closer" being the same as twice closer while 50% further is only 1.5x further can get confusing too, and it gets even worse with "50% slower" - is speed now 1/1.5 (= it takes 50% more time) or 0.5/1 (= speed is reduced by 50%) ?
Most of the time it is pretty easy to know what the winter is trying to imply.
It gets really silly when using big numbers. e.g. a nanometre is 100,000 times smaller than a human hair.
So you're asking people what they do for a living?
Doing something for 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week makes you a lot better at that thing than other people.
Actually doing something for 40 hours a week is truly remarkable. People waste so much time, me included.
Man I’m so good at sleeping though. I get at least 5 hours a night, so that’s 40 a week! Woohoo!
/s
Where do you get an 8-day week? I want one (assuming it's an extra break day not work day...).
But I don't spend 40 hours doing the same thing. I do a bunch of different regular bullshit that you can't really be "good" at, like sending emails and chatting with people on Teams.
Since the Reddit blackout I decided to learn how to solve a Rubik's Cube. My best time for solving one so far is 82 seconds. I know it's no world record but the average person can't solve a Rubik's cube so I'm way more experienced.
Way to go! I used to hustle the lunch room with my Rubik's cube and get people's desserts by solving it in less than a minute. I only knew the inefficient layer-by-layer method, so it really was a race.
It was my eldest that got me going actually. He came home from school with the old shit cube he had, did 3 turns on it and said "There, I solved it Dad."
I said "Did you fuck. Who sorted that for you?" and he told me a kid at school was just asking everyone if they had a cube and to bring it in to school, so he did and the kid solved it for him.
I thought "If a 12 year old can do it, so can I" and used it to help with my Reddit withdrawals.
I've finally got a magnetic cube now and just have it in my pocket. I'm trying to improve my F2L speed where you put the corners in and the 2nd layer at the same time. I really like doing the last layer with algorithms, it's like magic.
I didn't even know Rubik's cubes had layers. What are they ?
When you look up how to solve them, it's a white cross (so the white would be the first layer), making sure your middle tile of the cross pieces match the middle of the sides (red green blue orange), then you put the corners of the bottom (white) layer in, matching the colours. The middles don't move so you then put in the corners of the middle layer, completing 2 layers.
The top layer is the yellow one, opposite the white layer.
oh, my god. The middles don't move ! you just blew my mind
magnetic cube?
See the icebergs?
Yeah magnetic cubes!
They have little magnets in the corner pieces so when you push, it stops in the right place.
There's also maglev cubes that have magnetic cores. I just have corner magnets ATM because EVRI ARE A DOGSHIT DELIVERY COMPANY but that's another story for another time
Definitely. I use Rubik's cubes as paperweights
I feel like this about chess. I'm fairly confident I can beat everyone I know except for like 3 people. But I'm better than 12% of people on Lichess.
Yeah it just goes to show that hobbies are like icebergs.
I picked up a guitar in Covid and managed to learn basic chords and songs in the first year of playing it every single day. I'm 4 years in now, and I feel less advanced than I felt back then.
I think it's because when you're learning a new technique, you fucking suck at it, but when it's in counterpoint to other techniques that you can do to a high level, it sounds worse than just one technique being played badly, plus you've trained your ears over the time you've been playing, so you can hear the bad bits better.
Guitarists that have been playing for decades have more of these techniques down so they sound better, but that's just to people who have struggled with those techniques themselves. To the uninitiated guitarists are just guitarists, some play country and some do that wiggly wiggly guitar solo thing.
Guitar playing is an Iceberg with a big bit sticking up, chess and rubix cubes are smaller icebergs, but you've got to mine it all the way down before you can climb to the top.
I picked up cubing half a year ago as a middle aged dad. I set myself a goal of being able to solve it in under 30 seconds. I’m averaging around 40s now so I’m slowly getting there. It’s a fun little hobby and I always carry my cube around with me and practice as often as I can. I just finished learning all 21 PLL algorithms and I’m quite proud of myself 😄
I'm 39 and right there with you, although I can't seem to get under 80 seconds for a solve yet. I've been cubing for a couple of months and have got the 2 look pll and oll down nearly now, just a couple of algorithms I'm struggling to remember. Love doing the last layer though, it's like magic.
I'm at a point now where I'm solving faster than I was (it was around the 3 minute mark a couple of weeks ago but I've just got a RS3M) and it is starting to feel "easy" now.
I also have one in my pocket most of the time, it's another hobby my wife hates lol "Do you HAVE to bring that thing with you?" YES I DO
I’ve just got the Tornado V3 Pioneer, and I’m loving it. Just using that cube cut off some time in itself. Have you started doing F2L and cross directly in bottom yet? I averaged 55ish with 2-look OLL and PLL with F2L and cross in bottom. It takes a long time to get really fast with F2L so that’s a ongoing thing I’m trying to optimize.
I've been eyeballing the Tornado V3 Flagship myself. I do the cross on the bottom, but advanced f2l means adding the f2l while doing the cross and I'm not that good yet. I feel like this week I've just started getting a real feel for pairing up the blocks, and that's lead to quicker solves. It'll be a few more weeks of practicing to get it intuitive but I'm definitely on the right path.
By feel I can identify 20 lb, 24 lb, 28 lb, 65 lb cover, 110 lb cover, and 12 pt matte paper. I'm increasingly impressed by people's business cards as a result, as it is often much, much heavier than 12 pt matte.
Using comparison I can distinguish 80 lb semi-gloss cover, 100 lb semi-gloss cover, 8 pt gloss, 10 pt gloss, and 12 pt gloss. (But then again, most people could, given multiple choices rather than a free-response question.)
"Look at that subtle off-white colouring. The tasteful thickness of it. Oh my god, it even has a watermark."
Does it have a watermark?
In case you're legitimately asking: No, it's just cheaper and fancier versions of normal printer paper and cardstock (cover and cardstock are essentially the same thing). You just feel its texture, maybe shake it a little, figure out its weight.
@radix @Oka This is the most boring possible skill. How do you achieve it?
Thanks! Means a lot :D
I worked for a few months in a print shop. Turns out I hate doing customer service, but I did take home lots of excess cardboard and paper (slightly dog-eared, bent, stained --- not professional level, but good enough for me) and bind a few of my own notebooks out of them.
To be clear, it's not my career. I'm going to school to study something else, and I only worked around 20 hours a week for about two months.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZVkW9p-cCU
Here is an alternative Piped link(s): https://piped.video/watch?v=aZVkW9p-cCU
Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
I'm open-source, check me out at GitHub.
lmao you became the guys from American Psycho
Being comfortable enough with myself to answer this question honestly: nothing
Socializing with cats, befriending them.
I too consider myself better at this than the average person. I often find myself slow blinking at random cats in the street.
I wish I had this skill! I love cats and dogs and wish I could talk to them and pet them every time I see them.
Having gone through conscription military, I have leveled up some very important abilities.
Looking busy: I can find convincing ways to spend time without actually doing anything important.
Wasting time: When nobody is looking, I can find creative and fun ways to pass the time. (this ability is maxed out)
Also gained a few special perks.
Forest fun: Who needs movies, games or the internet when you have an axe and some wood. Even pine cones, rocks and sticks will be enough to keep you preoccupied in creative ways.
Day dreaming: Who needs the forest, when you can build countless universes in your mind.
Oh, and I did learn to shoot and keep my rifle in working order. I guess that’s nice too. Didn’t get to level that anywhere near as much, but that’s ok.
To add on to your 'looking busy' skills....In Moving Pictures, sir Terry Pratchett points out that if you have a determined fast walk and a piece of paper in your hand, you can go anywhere. I used to use this technique to get breaks in the office. I'd just grab a piece of paper and quickly walk the length of the building with a determined expression.
And if you walk fast enough, the paper can also be completely empty.
Kind of the same as "wearing a yellow jacket and acting like you belong"... Add in the piece of paper and the determined look, that's how you get handed the city keys
Some time in the 90s several computers of an office were stolen that way. Some guys just parked a van right in front of the front door and started loading the van with computers. Those machines weren’t cheap back in those days, so these guys just got away with some pretty nice loot. All you have to do is walk in with a determined look and everyone will assume you’re simply doing your job.
Smooth criminal !
I want to join in here too with the exceptionally good driving. I, like everyone else here, am totally a very much better driver than the average person on the road. Exponentially much better, even!
One friend of mine says the same all the time... In fact, he's the worst driver I've ever driven with! In reality, I am much better and even exponentially better than the average driver.
I like to think people learn from me just by hearing my cry of "come onnnnn!"
All you have to do in order to be a better than average driver is to be alert to what's going in around you. I do that, and I drive fast. I'm an exponentially better driver than most.
Statistics.
That word does not mean what you think it means.
It doesn't mean inferring something about a population from a sample?
The word in question is "exponentially".
And in any case, no.
I have a lot of experience reconstructing whale skeletons for museums and such. I do it as a hobby with a friend of mine who is the marine mammals recovery coordinator for the state of North Carolina.
Based Lego.
Haha I think I would describe it more like erector sets than lego but yes it is very similar. We put the whales in the ground for ~18 months and then pull them out and out them together piece by piece
I am, without trying to sound arrogant, much better at cornering, roundabouts, and general driving than a large part of the population in Australia.
I can enter a roundabout, in a preselected gear, at appropriate revs and speed. Load up the suspension just right, so I'm released into my chosen exit, kissing the apex with a release of energy that feels so sweet, smooth and safe, that it's a beautiful part of my life.
All within safe thresholds, and always when I know it's safe. And the way others use roundabouts, it's always safer than the general population.
You're like an aussie Alan partridge
As a fellow Australian I think this is partly down to the equipment as well.
I can take a roundabout much faster and more confidently in my sports car with a low centre of gravity and performance tyres compared to an SUV with cheapo tyres like a large proportion of the population drives.
I'm guessing you also drive a car which is more performant than most on the road.
No matter what you drive, it's still not hard to be better than all the people who stall traffic because they don't realize they can squeeze through a gap about 4 feet wider than their car so we can actually pre fill the turn lane while the light's red.
Nor is it hard to actually know to accelerate smoothly through a turn instead of braking through it.
Or to know how to just stay in your clearly marked turn lane during your turn (literally marked through the entire intersection) instead of cutting off the other two turn lanes (this happened to me yesterday).
None of these things are actually much harder to do in a large car than a sports car, just obviously your actual speed and acceleration should change based on your car, tires, and everything else. I use the same principles I use when driving a fun car to help drive safely when it's a minivan.
found Daniel Ricciardo
I'm an American who knows how to properly signal when going through a roundabout. This automatically makes me more knowledgeable than 99.99999% of American drivers.
Pole dancing! I’ve taught professionally for like 15 years.
Btw this instance is about to be exposed to amazing pole fitness content, prepare yourselves.
Where to subscribe?
Maybe not better than an average person, but the last 10 years of my life taught me lots of handy life skills, like owning up to my mistakes, having more self esteem, showing confidence in tough situations, standing up for myself, having better people skills and to know when not to get involved and when to speak up.
Most of these are basic human skills, but the combination of these can make a huge difference. I landed jobs thanks to them, I made friends and removed toxic people from my life. I have less issues with adult responsibilities and in general I am less stressed.
Again maybe not exceptionally more experienced than an average person, but compared to my old self its a huge difference.
Isn't it kind of amazing how much better your life can be with the addition of those "soft" skills?
Not littering.
Anyone in this thread could probably just cite their career.
Bold of you to assume.
I suppose 😂
@cyberpunk007 @Oka I am good at dating women with one eye.
Joke's on you, my career is nonexistent!
I'm sorry ☹️
Locks, lockpicking, and teaching English grammar.
Who are you and how did you get in here?
and where is the lawyer?
I’m a locksmith … and I’m a locksmith.
I am "exponentially" better at nothing in comparison to others. There's always this one kid, who will do whatever I do, far better than I can ever do.
But that one kid isn't the average person. Don't put yourself down.
Thanks for the uplifting words ❤️
Sounds you're like the main character in Everything, Everywhere, All at Once . If you haven't watched it I recommend
Yeah, I've seen the movie. The best cluster fuck experience I could ask for. I still do not know what the donut was all about. 😅
Cocktails. I'm purely an amateur home bartender (I work in software development) but I'm better at making cocktails than most paid bartenders in the city, including a number of the ones working at craft cocktail bars I've been to across the country. I make my own syrups, creams, infusions, carved ice, and dehydrated fruit. I've recently started using an iSi whipper to make foam toppers; beer foam for old fashioneds, tropical foam for Mai Tais. My avocado orgeat is awesome. Fat washing with coconut oil is easy and makes Campari and cachaça amazing. I've hosted many parties in the 15-28 person range, as well numerous smaller cocktail nights, so I have experience creating thematic menus and then prepping and serving the drinks all night.
I have a ton of knowledge about spirits in general, both breadth and depth. Most bartenders and even mixologists don't even know what baijiu is (let alone tried each aroma), know the difference between soju and shōchū, or why soju is rarely made with rice. My rum knowledge is where I've specialized and I can recommend multiple bottles of each type (Smuggler's Cove categories or Minimalist Tiki's) in varying price ranges, what cocktails they are best for, and the subtle differences between each bottle within its own category.
I'm a perfectly average programmer though.
Hell yea. Hobbies like that are awesome.
Exponentially denotes a progression, a rate of change. You probably mean greatly or vastly
For me it would be authoring images-illustration, rendering, etc. I guess most people can answer with their job
Don't forget to add "being pedantic" to your list!
Being accurate with words isn't being pedantic. There was an opportunity to teach, I took it. That's it. Perhaps you got that impression because text doesn't convey intent very well. That's alright
Yeah I was going to make a pithy joke about my job, but note that having any skill in a field that's at all niche puts you well above the average.
I am exponentially more experienced at swimming than the average person.
I'm actually a pretty average swimmer, so in this case the exponent is zero.
This is my biggest pet peeve. One data point can't be exponentially more than one other data point without context.
If people still want to sound "smart" because they used a fancy math word, you can say "orders of magnitude more experienced."
I have decades of experience with improv storytelling. It's a niche thing, and normally I use it for tabletop games, but in a pinch I can make up campfire stories, ghost stories, or whatever else and use the slightest cues from the audience to suit what they enjoy.
Might need some evidence of this one!
Shit. It works better in person because of facial expressions, body language, and other ways that help me come up with material as I go
but try me, I suppose.
That's cool, I love telling stories too. Some people here do it professionally, and they use their audience to give the tales a nice theatrical vibe.
I am exponentially more experienced at guessing my Lemmy account password than anyone else here. Try it. See you can't. Me very smart. 🤓
/s Inb4 a hacker gets mad and actually hacks my account lmao
All I see is hunter2
hehe +1
The best skill?
Im a good driver. Very good, in fact. Not at racing, i mean. But actually driving on public roads.being predictable, parking legally, following speed limits, using the turn signal before i actually turn, etc etc
It pains me to ride as a passenger now :(
Booooring! 🙃
But exciting is not the driving style I want from fellow drivers, so thank you .
Signal before you actually brake for the turn, that's the key. Not just before the turn.
I can mould the old shower soap in to the new shower soap like an absolute boss.
Gamemastering rpgs. 20 years of experience and a good cross section of games played. Spent the last five years really trying to improve too.
I could say job-related things or my hobbies, but Ima go with Google-fu. Maybe just search engine fu.
I know way too many 'first page people' when it comes to results. No fuckin' way. Learn how to dig. Do not take no for an answer from a search engine without trying a range of strategies to find what you're looking for.
OK, I'm lying. This is part of my job. I teach academic research, and I hear these people with two sources tell me there aren't enough sources for them to do a research paper on a given topic or that all these peer-reviewed journal articles say the same thing.
But it does extend into non-academic life. I was out of town, my older brother needed a U-Haul, drove 40 minutes to a place he knew, but there was a U-Haul less than 10 minutes away that he couldn't find.
I'm surrounded by this.
Though Google doesn’t let you dig much past the first page anymore.
“10 billion results!” It says.. then 4 pages in it just goes “never mind, that’s it”
This feels like a cheat answer, but as someone who has played for 25 years and organized events for 15, I’m likely much more knowledgeable about the rules of Magic: the Gathering than the “average person”. Not sure that I am necessarily exponentially better than the average player, but maybe I am now that so many people play digitally and don’t need to know the rules as much.
I'm good at putting a needle inside people's veins.
Picked up soldering and small appliance repairing as a hobby couple months ago so I guess that
Ability: Coordinate system rotation. I can move 3d objects around in my mind with ease and it is clear in group settings that most people are not good at this.
Knowledge: heat transfer. I've done years of theoretical study and more years of practical application of heat transfer.
I can't picture things in my head almost at all. I used to think I was mind blind, but I'm not entirely it seems, it's just that my ability to visualize things is paper thin. It takes enormous effort to visualize almost anything and even then it kinda just proofs, no actual rotation with information, just the idea of rotation. Can picture a tree, but I can get information from it.
Kids should have access to CAD early in life. I grew up with it and mentally picturing, moving, and manipulating 3D objects in my mind is just second nature. I can even keep track of orientation (Front, Back, Left, Right, Top, Bottom views) with minimal effort.
I have two useless talents:
I once identified the source of a minute gas leak in my basement, which had evaded the calibrated detection equipment of the utility company, so I guess I can't say it's completely useless.
With you in the ability to smell. The only issue is I smell ALL THE THINGS. And it is overwhelming at times.
Did you ever puke in a wastebin just because you're overwhelmed by the smell?
and then go crazy because of the smell of puke in the wastebin?
Life is hell.
Yep, no fun. I also can't stand strong perfumes and colognes.
Diagnosis, repair, and operation of CNC lasers, both flat plate cutting lasers and tube lasers.
Pretty good generalist.
I feel similar. I'm good at my profession (very white collar) and have managed to start my own business based on a good reputation in the industry, solid outcomes etc. I'm pretty good with my hands and troubleshooting so I'm handy in a crisis, good at solving problems. I read a lot about lots of different things, I listen to a lot of different music so I'm a good person to have on your trivia team. I've kept pretty fit into my late 30s so I'm up for any exercise or going for long rambling adventures.
But am I great, beyond my peers at any one particular thing? God no. And it bothers me. I wish I was really, really, really good at any one thing to the point someone would call me an expert, but I'm just not. I don't have the energy, interest or focus to dedicate to one thing, so I'm just 'okay' to 'pretty good' at a tonne of things, but not necessarily better than any one person in the room.
So good! I'm pretty much all of what you said, but without my own business.
My humility.
Joking aside though, I'd like to think I'm pretty empathetic and understanding.
Surviving mental illness.
I used to be in around the top 1% of CSGO players though it took me 2000 hours so it's not much of an achievement lol.
Probably political science just by merit of being educated in it though I wouldn't say I am especially gifted in it as such.
I am not very good at anything lol, I just read a lot to make up for my natural stupidity. I like reading though.
Kinda opposite of the prompt:
Scuba!
Lots of divers will tell you that buouancy control is difficult for most divers. Mine is absolutely good. I teach underwater photography and can hover within a fraction of an inch over a super silty bottom while swimming backwards and taking video without stirring up anything.
I have other instructors and professionals come to me for buoyancy training.
Isn't that just controlling your breathing? Get your bcd to a neutral boyant point and then do the rest with your lungs.
At least, that's what I do and I wasn't aware this was something experienced divers had a lot of trouble with. I suppose I don't ask people though.
Swimming backwards while filming with your hands is a neat trick though. I always reverse with my arms, so I'd be keen to see how you do that!
Lots of diver don't know their buouancy sucks because they overweight themselves and stay neutral by having poor trim. They angle their feet downward and kick to stay neutral, which uses more air and causes them to silt out the dive site because they're disturbing the water below and behind them, but never see it because they're not facing that direction.
Most of my photography classes are actually teaching buouancy and advanced kicking because you really can't do good macro shots from 8 feet away. You have to get to the subject of the shot, and have to be able to do it without stirring up the silt.
The frog kick, back kick, and helicopter turns are essential skills, but a lot of people have shitty or gimmicky fins, which makes it much harder. My thought on fins is that there's 2 kinds - Jet Fins and Bad Fins. They were designed in the 60s and have never been matched.
Those big, heavy, stiff monsters are great, because you can do a reverse frog kick without them bending and pushing you forward while you're getting them in position for the back kick.
Playing piano, and knowing too much about headphone gear and audio measurements
Being myself, I'm pretty good at it.
Understanding how substations work. Also, knowing what substations even are...
As in, electric grid things with big wires and fences?
No, they're places that make sandwiches.
To lots of people they might as well be. Most of the time, a conversation goes like this:
Them: "what do you do?"
Me: "I'm a Substation Designer"
Them: "What's a substation?"
Tbf, I was a "them" only a year ago, so it's no surprise. We've all seen them, and most of us never ask what they're called.
Haha, yes. Specifically, they're a grouping of electrical equipment that transfers high-voltage to low-voltage and low-voltage to high-voltage. :)
I'm curious if you've seen increased interest in hardening substations to attacks. I heard a lot about that after the attacks last year but none of the substations in my area are any different.
Unfortunately it boils down to which company owns them and the amount of $$ they're willing to spend. Most new substations being built all have solid walls, for example, rather than the much-cheaper chain-link fence, which helps a little, but not by much for someone who really wants to get in there. Rarely will a company do any cosmetic updates to an already-built substation, so I'm not surprised the ones in your area haven't changed.
The issue for making them more secure as far as I can tell (I'm fairly new to this field, and a designer, not an engineer, so my technical knowledge is still limited) is how volatile high-voltage electricity is. I'm not really sure what could be done to encase a substation against an attack that secures it against an outside projectile, while still being safe for on-site workers. We're talking hundreds of thousands of voltages here, and most substations are ginormous.
Besides my professional skills, which are so boring they’re not worth mentioning, I’m good at snapping my fingers? I can do both hands really fast.
Also, standing on one leg, having internal monologues that can last for hours and other useless skills :)
If I was to base it off people I know IRL, it'd be video games. But against the collective of gamers on the internet, I don't even rank. :/
Well... I guess that's just skill. Experience, though... Many streamers and gamers are a fraction of my age, and I've been gaming since as far back as I remember.
i got 4 nukes in MWII
Loading a vehicle or container for moving. I've had friends ask me to basically take over their move. And yeah, I may be a sucker for doing it, but I will save people hours and multiple trips while moving. I 3d tetris the hell out of a uhaul.
Height. I'm 6'6" on a good day. Top 99.897% in the world.
Reviving and programming REMBASS units. REmotely Monitored Battlefield Sensor System was a old ass piece of equipment when I was using it 20 years ago in the Army. You'd have to program different channels using another old ass piece of equipment. And very often they'd drop their fills, or not appreciate having a new, fully charged battery in it. It would frustrate people to no end because they'd spend hours trying to get it going, and then I'd stroll up talking all nice and pretty to the gear and shit would just work for me.
Freeze-drying, it's a d(r)ying art.
It’s not difficult if you have a multi-thousand dollar freeze drying machine. It is difficult if you have less money than that and try to build your own…
drawing porno
Show us your PayPal balance
Hacking Nintendo consoles
Well, it's definitely not my height, hahahaha 🥲
But I'm pretty good at
not giving upgetting obsessed with a problem and basically bashing my head against the wall until the wall gives in.Or until a new problem steals my focus.
Like, I have no mechanical experience, but I did a valve adjustment on my motorbike.
99% of people either ignore their valves or have the dealer make the adjustment. You and I are top 1% of motorcycle owners.
It's a mission right. Definitely not something I want to be doing very often. But I did save a bunch of cash and extended the life of my bike.
Not getting stung by bees?
Living outside my home country.
I'm pretty good at controlling my temper... does that count?
Teach us your ways
No magic bullet, it just takes years of practice and a jail sentence or two later before you realize some things are not worth getting cranky over.
Linguistics, programming, rationalizing, and trackmania =)
What is trackmania?
A racing game that has a very nice track builder and is very open to modding. Its focus is on the individual driver and the time they achieve on a track.
Flying for hundreds of meters, drifting under water, going at high speeds through multiple loopings, sliding on ice and so much more is totally possible with Trackmania.
Try it, the base game is free and their pricing for online services and cups is totally fine.
Ah man, I've been playing various Trackmania titles since 2013 but I still struggle with some of the campaign author medals and my placements are only around top 5-10% of players. Better than average sure, but not "exponentially" [sic] despite years of experience :(
Driving a forklift
Being in a freezer
Hello, fellow forklift operator.
no quadratic trinomial experience ... guess i'll show myself out then
Skateboarding. I've been skating since 1985, and aside from a couple years in the military, never really took a break from it.
At 48 years old, with a slew of injuries, I can't do the kind of things I did in my 20s, but can sure hold my own on a mini ramp.
Asking intriguing questions that nobody thinks to ask.
Welding probably. Especially oxy- acetylene and TiG
I'm very comfortable doing CPR
Am not
Kayaking, ive been doing it a year and a half and I've been on every white water course in the country
Fast driving - although I've never raced competitively I've done around 50 track days and I was normally one of the fastest on circuit wet and dry (whilst not having the fastest car).
Computer stuff - worked in IT my whole life although this one isn't for fun.
Purely based on population I'm an exceptional climbing instructor.
Anything computer related
Wasting my time Yo.
I'm quite good at getting Macs to do the stuff I need them to. The vast majority of people alive right now will have never touched one for a number of reasons, so I guess I'm above average at it. I can easily patch old ones with Opencore these days.
I know more about radio and podcast production than the average person, given that I have a degree in it. Not that I was ever successful in that field, but I know how to do it to a high standard.
I'm also really good at guessing the year when radio shows do a guess the year competition. I listened to a lot of pop radio from about 1985 to 2010, so can usually place myself to when a song was popular.
Time management.
Ive become a fucking pro at squeezing as many tasks into a day as I possibly can. I frequently get told they have no idea how I keep on top of things. I basically work 2 and a half full time jobs for people at the same company, and I accomplish it by overlapping my time and billing per item not per hour
Any hot tips for the rest of us?
I book service calls (repairs). Between calls and especially using my hands free while driving between service calls, I return phone calls and texts. When I get where I'm going, if I'm ever early, I respond to emails or place calls. If I finish a thing early or ever have to wait for people, I return texts calls and emails while waiting.
Ive also aced driving distance between places in the city where I work so I'm able to build a solid schedule without running behind.
At night, to clear my head, I schedule a bunch of texts and emails to send off first thing in the morning. Gives the impression I'm working even though I'm probably still asleep.
I know a lot about the Lincoln assassination.
Give me a fact that most people may not know?
President Lincoln didn't die instantly. He died nine hours later. I'm not American, so that may be commonly taught to kids in the USA - but I remember being surprised by this when I learned about it as an adult.
He was shot around 10:15 pm on April 14 and died across the street at 7:22 am on April 15.
The first woman to be executed by the US federal government was executed as a result of Lincoln's assassination. Her name was Mary Surratt and her youngest son, Johnny, was considered Booth's "right hand man".
So what now, experience or skill?
Building custom computers. Been doing it for close to 20 years. Servers, gaming rigs, rendering workstations, console builds, ultra budget scrap builds, custom water loops, done it all.
building in video games
@Oka @asklemmy I'm pretty good at
Campin'
This is actually a useful skill if you like traveling. I live in a van and previously did a lot of motorcycle camping and backpacking. I can always find somewhere to sleep for the night wherever I am.
I guess having strong opinions based on science, logic and empathy, if I have gathered enough evidence and knowledge about it and also being honest about not knowing enough about a topic to form an opinion on that topic. This should be the norm.
Writing. I've written a lot of fiction under a lot of pen names, have had a few stories printed (which I won't link to for opsec reasons), and I have multiple unfinished books in-progress (and/or abandoned) on my google drive.
Other people are sometimes amazed by my language skills. I'm German, know English pretty well, and am learning japanese since about half a year. I'm not too sure, if how many languages/how good most people speak/understand.
I'm good at being optimistic and happy I would say. I'm also very calm and rational in situations many would find themselves angry or sad. One things that definitely helps is walking. It gives you time to think and appreciate your surroundings.
And of course, I'm good with computers. I have some servers I regularly do some new stuff with, and work in Cybersecurity (as student but hey you got to start somewhere)
Knowing the name and premise of a Futurama episode within the first minute.
eBay Product/Shopping verification.
It seems people get fakes and knockoffs all the time, but I haven't.
All I do is look at the product pictures; if they're stock, I'll ignore, but if they aren't, and they are a tech product, DVD, etc., I'll cross-reference UPC/Barcode, SN, etc. with search engines.
Been using eBay since 2019.
Pretty much everything. The average person can't read and write, can't swim, can't run or hold a steering wheel with two hands, because the average person doesn't have two legs and two arms, etc
How many do they have?
1.9