Oddcast May 2024

This is 'edutainment' and it's by the far the best value 'paid' content I gladly pay for. I don't know what comes up if you search for Rick Simpson oil but back in 1999 when the internet was more of a wild west you had more chance of finding more accurate information-so it has to be mentioned and also 'The secret' DVD. I know of a few people that are still with us with it. Laughter is so important- as mentioned in the secret. Good luck Mat- I hope you make many more videos.

My next ‘iPad” will be the epaper tablet. Not Apple, but has a lot going for it. https://daylightcomputer.com/

I hope your fjord adventure departs from Liverpool this time. That's immensely more convenient than Southampton.

Also, I have a very good condition iPad mini 6 for sale at the moment if you’re interested. I’m sure you won’t be but I thought I’d offer.

Hang on - did you go on the same cruise as my parents?! Hope all your tests worked out OK Mat.

Let me know if you want to get rid of those Olympus binos in the future. They look cool as hell

Whatever the test results, please inform the NHS that over a million of us are begging them: “Please protect Mat at all costs.” You mean a lot to us, sir, genuinely. I, for one, will be praying for you.

I'm going to say it... "I can't believe you hadn't heard The Killers' Mr. Brightside". It's also odd that a band from Las Vegas would be #1 in the UK.

About the cancer comment. There has been some absolutely earth-shattering research done with ivermectin. It turns out that it has incredible anti-cancer properties. At about 2 cents per dose, with virtually no side effects, it may live up to its Nobel prize reputation once again. I just watched an incredible video about it at Epoch Times TV: https://www.theepochtimes.com/epochtv/the-surprising-potential-of-ivermectin-against-cancer-dr-kathleen-ruddy-5649306

On the topic of binoculars/monoculars. You might want to check Canon Powershot Zoom. A digital monocular with optical image stabilization. Binoculars with similar tech also exist. Apparently they are very good. Could be an interesting topic for a video as well.

Always a joy to watch an Oddcast, Mat. As a relatively new EV convert myself (I did consider a Honda E but the short range was a bit of a killer for me so I went for a Polestar 2 instead) it has been a bit of a journey of discovery when it comes to charging etc. I've also been watching Andrew Till's videos (Mr EV) which helped me get my head around WTF I needed to understand. I'm pretty lucky I can charge at home, and I had to get my EV repaired as the AC charging module was broken (Volvo did the honours). Most EV's have a charge curve like you noticed - once you get beyond 70% the charge rate tends to slow down considerably (usually the car telling the charger to ramp down rather than the charger not being able to supply the current) to the point where in my Polestar 2 - it's pointless rapid charging it to 100% as it'll take 30 minutes to get from 10% to 75%, 15 minutes from 75% to 90% and then drops down so much, it takes around an hour to get from 90% to 100% (and in reality, the manufacturers recommend you only ever charge them to 90%). Also, in the UK/EU we have 3 car-side charging sockets in the main: - Mennekes Type-2 which is the 7 pin flat-topped connector that is the one we all use at home if we can charge at home - or at destination chargers in car parks. Is AC only. Up to 3 phase 22kW. - CCS2 which is a combination of the 7 pin flat topped connector (it usually only uses 3 pins at the top) with the 2 circular DC charging pins below. Up to 350kW dependent on the car & the charger - most are either 50kW or 150kW (or 75kW like the one you used). - ChaDeMo - This is the circular Japanese Connector for the Nissan Leaf and some other Japanese vehicles. Many EV charging providers are phasing these out as we seem to have standardised on Type2/CCS2 in the UK for charging, and now many ChaDeMo users can get an adaptor enabling them to adapt CCS2/Type2 to ChaDeMo (including a small communications module inside that converts the signalling standards as the two are incompatible) We don't have NACS or Type1 connectors here thankfully. You can get different types of Type2 cables to enable you to charge from a normal 3 phase commando socket or a single phase commando socket like you'd get at a camp site. But those are rare use cases - most of the time at home for AC it's either 3 pin plug to Type2 which is 10A/2.3kW or a 7kW/32A Type2 charger like you have.

The thing about prostate cancer, even if it returns positive, is that it is so slow growing that more often than not you would die of other conditions before it really poses a threat.

Hope you and the missus enjoy the fjord cruise. I'm sure the native Norwegians here can give you travel tips.

There are so many things I could comment on but, here's something I learned about binoculars. The first number is the magnification, the second is the diameter of the front lens. A "Nightglass" (i.e., one that gives you the brightest image at night without adding electronics) is defined as when the second number divided by the first equals 7. So an 8 x 56 is a Nightglass. Why? Because the column of light entering the lens is 56mm wide. Magnifying that by 8 times reduces the column of light going into your eye to 7mm wide. 7mm is the widest your pupils can expand to, so making the best use of the light without any spilling outside the pupil onto the iris and being wasted. Interesting, eh? The closer the number is to 7, the brighter the image.

Really enjoy the countryside walk and talk oddcasts. And the video of that squirrel was extremely entertaining - priceless look when the trap closed - hope they stay out of the attic going forward.

The Toyota GT86/Subaru BRZ are notorious for the batteries going flat, sometimes as soon as a week after being parked. Toyota's official warranty solution? Fit a larger battery...

Better advices than breaking bay👍🏻

Those Olympus binoculars look like something Roger Moore as James Bond would have used! Fantastic piece of design.

BTW, now would be a good time to quit your habit of running out in front of busses. That would greatly reduce your chance of being hit by one tomorrow.

Weren't mother-in-laws always telling their daughter not to marry men with eyes "too close together"? You've at least won that particular one! I have known a couple of people with prostate cancer - they're very much with us now after 10+ years. I love that Olympus binoculars! Saw them years ago and always admired them and thought they were from the future - surely by 1999 all binoculars would look like that.

Seems like there should be a way to boost the 12v from the main battery

Yeah, of course I can relate. Getting to 50+ doesn't really help, health wise. Anyway, if I remember correctly, there are multiple types of prostate cancer, and most are pretty easy to cure. Surely if you're in the early stages... I've just been looking at binoculars myself, and a really nice small one is the https://pentax.eu/products/sport-optics-binoculars-papilio-series. Of course you can pick these up for a lot less than 180 euros. Or mono: https://uk.hawkeoptics.com/nature-trek-8x42-monocular.html. Big advantage with both of those: you don't have to take your spectacles off. They work fine pushing them against the glasses of your spectacles... These have really quite good optics and you'd be surprised at how good they are....

Song 3 😂

Prostrate cancer is known as the cancer you die with, not of, as it’s relatively treatable i believe. Chin up 🤞

May you outlast all of your cassette deck belts! And music genres are so isolated today in the streaming era that I bet most Alternative Rock fans have never heard the #1 Hip-Hop song just as most Hip-Hop fans have never heard the #1 Alternative Rock song.

- Like you, Mat (and I believe we are of a similar age) it's just been one non-lethal thing after another health-wise all my life. Asthma put me the hospital several times as a kid. It's still a pain but it's much, much better controlled nowadays (thank you steroidal inhaler!) My "cancer scare" was leukemia and had to have a bone marrow biopsy. I wasn't scared or worried, I was more annoyed, honestly. I've got things to do and I don't want to be in an outpatient center for hours at a time! No cancer this time but I am fairly sure, or won't be surprised when the specter comes around again. I think if you don't have kids there's not that desperation to stick around to make sure everyone graduates and mates properly. That being said, I'd like to make it another couple of decades to see some project through. But if I don't, I won't know a lot about it, right? - "Mr. Brightside" to me still seems like a new song you'd hear on the alternative station. Of course it's basically the start of "Born Slippy" which I recall quite clearly from the end of "Trainspotting." I like the song well enough but it's remarkable that the Great British Public have embraced a Mormon pop band! Not since the heyday of The Osmonds have the Latter Day Saints had such inroad to the hearts and minds of the English! (I will confess that I get The Killers. mixed up with The Bravery because Pandora always seems to follow "Brightside" with "An Honest Mistake," Both of which sound like '80s alternative throwbacks. The latter being a dead-cert for "Nowhere Girl") - RE: videoing oneself... here's a question for you, Mat... if and when they develop the sort of hovering camera spheres like the ones from Bladerunner 2049, do you think you will feel more or less self conscious about the process? There's something about the GoPro style of stick camera that looks a wee bit too much like Vanity Smurf holding a mirror to his face all the time. With a third person or AI controlled camera, there's that plausible deniability that you are in fact JUST talking to yourself like a lunatic. I'd much rather be seen as a lunatic than a narcissist.

Hope all goes well. I've had this prostatitis on and off for ages, this latest bout now getting on for a year and a half. GP assures me it'll go, and my diuretics for the heart oddly help the symptoms.

Your quip about the "turbo drain system" had me in in fits! Very enjoyable oddcast, thank you.

Some EVs will periodically charge up the 12V battery from the main battery while parked. It’s ridiculous that they don’t all do it! Seems like a no brainer. Good idea using a battery monitor. Back when I needed one, I wanted Wi-Fi rather than Bluetooth, so I don’t need to be nearby with my phone. Couldn’t find a Wi-Fi model then, dunno if they exist now. I designed my own based on an ESP32 microcontroller. It connects when in range of my home Wi-Fi, and it integrates with my smart home system, so I can set alerts when the battery is running low.

UFOs are my favourite noodles. I eat them like this: ignore packet instructions; cover with boiling water and add all packets immediately. Leave for 4 minutes and stir. Eat noodles and drink the soup. Delicious and really filling!

Hey Matt, good luck with the tests. I had to go in for a blood test a couple of months ago and the surgery called me to come in asap once they had the results. Turned out my PSA was 15.3 which is not good. They gave me the old prostate inspection and could t find anything off, so told me to come back in a month for another blood test. That one came back as about 12 so they said I needed an MRI, which I duly had. I had pretty much accepted I had prostate cancer as it was about a 2 in 3 chance, but I was absolutely clear. So I hope you are all good 👍🏻

I have a monocular for hiking, though mine is rubber coated to survive rain and the outdoors. Sorry to hear about the squirrel, I currently have mice in my attic, very stressful. You can probably hire a pest control guy who can find out where they get in. On the video output stuff, although I do enjoy the normal videos of course, the oddcast are my favourite. It sounds like you're right about not worrying too much about the medical stuff. I won't do any well wishing, but just to say I'm sure all your patreons are thinking of you! Take care Techmoan!

The mug the squirrel gives to the camera after getting trapped is priceless. I bet he only thought one word: "Nuts! (I'm here all week.) You must live in a pretty spot in England. That walk looked so picturesque. To show how stereotypical we yanks are, I figured there would be more people around when you took your walks. You don't have the wide open spaces like we do in America. Part of it looked like you were walking in somebody's field. We don't do things like that in the states. There quite a few states that require all pickup trucks to be equipped with a gun rack, with a fully loaded rifle. Here you walk at your own risk. --- I had stage 2c on the prostate. Been cancer free for going on 10 years. (By the way, even before I became a Patreon and only posted on your regular YouTube videos, when I said that I was watching the video in the hospital during treatment, you responded back, wishing me well... so back at you, Matt!)

Thanks for the Oddcast - they’re always great!! If you feel the need for further descent into the monocular money pit, have a look at the Minox 6x16. Super tiny, rectangular format and very easy to use - I always have mine in my jacket or bag. I couldn’t find it listed on the Minox website, but several dealers are still offering the metal body version new. (Minox also made a nearly identical plastic version at a lower price.)

• Fuck Cancer https://ibb.co/J3FKHJV • You cannot die until we have a relaxing chat together about our favorite films prior to 2000 (i.e. 'Brainstorm', 'Narrow Margin', 'Solaris', etc). • Because you always share your nature walks, here's a short nature walk of my own (last week), thankfully un-narrated, with sufficient heavy breathing: https://youtu.be/TCT9uNJ3CNE • You look really nice at 27:57. The lighting is nearly perfect and I love that shirt. 🌸 ̶Y̶o̶u̶r̶ ̶e̶y̶e̶s̶ ̶a̶r̶e̶ ̶p̶r̶e̶t̶t̶y̶,̶ ̶h̶o̶w̶ ̶o̶f̶t̶e̶n̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶I̶ ̶s̶a̶i̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶?̶ ☺️ • I take meds that cause me to sweat profusely, it's an icky feeling. • I also see that floating fluff/pollen/seed stuff. Makes me want to sneeze. • Never heard that song 'Mr. Brightside', either. I was not listening to new music at that time. • I thought you were going to do the 'take it off' on the noodles bowl. 😂 • Could I get a job taking e-cars to power chargers all day? Time for naps. • Junior N was really thick. Funny to watch it being trapped and its expression at that moment. It'll be fine out in the countryside. • The monocular looks cool - could be a movie prop for spy photography. I love these updates. You won't tell us, but the hulk with the cover on it is piquing my curiosity so much right now. Take care🤍.

I'm 53. Regarding music, barring a couple of artists I think music went downhill after the 80s, there's some stuff in the early to mid 90s that was okay but by time the millennium came round I stopped paying attention to the charts entirely. Regarding those Olympus binoculars, there's a good chance they may have been made for the Japanese market; I believe, on the whole, the Japanese are usually of a smaller build than Caucasians, so they may have average inter pupillary distances smaller than ours. Might be worth looking through any instructions to see if you can find a reference to the range of eye widths it supports, some details and methods to check yours can be found here: https://newlenses.co.uk/measuring-your-pupillary-distance-pd Most opticians won't put it on your prescription for two reasons, 1. it can vary over time, 2. they like to do it when you buy a new pair of glasses, if they gave it out freely you'd just go online and order a pair. If you can find the IPD range and you find your own is larger than average, I'd possibly be interested to know what the range is, myself, I'd double check to see if mine falls within it.

Those Olympus binoculars look really interesting. After disappearing down a bit of a binocular themed internet rabbit hole I find that they won a design award in 1997. Are the optics any good? The monocular is a good idea to reduce size and weight for occasional use.

Thanks for the update Mat. I'm of the right generation to be familiar with Mr. Brightside, yet I have never heard it before either.

The Killers playing Mr Brightside live was brilliant - although I seem to be in a minority as I’ve heard of the band and the song! Anyway thanks for the update, ace bonus squirrel footage!!

Good look to you too Mat. Cards are dealed, you get what you get and everyone's will be punched out. It is of course what you do in between and how you look on it. I can only say that I am very grateful for the part I could see and enjoy. Also, take the Olympus with you and be the envy of all the Germans

The battery issue is a very real one. I work on the automotive industry and there is endless back and forth about it. You need to power all this stuff and be ready fast and this and that. Bottom line, probably is a good idea to have that monitor

A black and white CRT will always be sharper than a color one since it doesn’t need a shadow mask to separate the colors, it just splats the image directly on the phosphor. This is why video cameras (especially professional ones) stuck to using black and white viewfinders instead of color ones for the longest time, since being able to see if the image was in focus was more important than seeing the colors.

Well, I never heard about Mr Brightside nor the killers and no it was also not familiar.... So here we are

Mat - A couple of thoughts - Wouldn't you think when you plug your car in a charger it would also top up the 12 volt battery? Another thought - as you and I are insulin dependent diabetics. We do get more priority in hospitals eg when I go for an operation (I've had plenty) I am first on the list. Or they get me in outpatients pretty fast. Best wishes. PS I love the HDMI over ethernet especially when the internet goes off (in rural France) and we can listen to the radio.

This is a very beautiful hiking trail (if that's the right term). It makes me want to go for a walk too. Unfortunately, the weather here is a bit uncomfortable at the moment and my smartphone has just informed me of an approaching thunderstorm. Instead, I'm going to cosy up inside and make myself some potato soup. I envy your composure in the face of the somewhat worrying medical test results. Staying calm is undoubtedly the best strategy, but if I got news like that, I'd probably still panic against my better judgement. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for the best. I didn't know the song "Mr Brightside" either, and I'm a decade younger. According to Wikipedia, it peaked at 60 in the charts in Germany. Maybe I heard it somewhere back then, but I can't remember it for the life of me. The band doesn't ring a bell either. I don't think that being irrelevant and hidden is a big problem as long as it doesn't go hand in hand with loneliness. A bigger problem is when people perceive themselves to be more relevant than they are (I'm looking at you, social media), and for lack of their own achievements, gain attention at the expense of others.

The Lexus battery could be in the boot, quite a few cars have them there as there is quite often not enough room in the engine bay for the 12v battery. Also have you tried the Farm Foods Air fryer All day breakfast, as it is supposed to be good.

I hope your tests bring good news. If they don’t , you already know that the prognosis is likely to be good. I had my own encounter (stupid to call it a ‘battle’ - you just take the pills and turn up for the appointments) with cancer which coincided with lockdown and a period of about a year where it was either illegal or against medical advice to meet anyone. Your videos were a very welcome and enjoyable distraction during that time. In my case I’m lucky to have had surgery and still to be here. You mentioned that you have another cruise booked. You must already have experience of arranging travel insurance that covers existing medical conditions. Do you have any tips on where to go for this? Mr Brightside? I listened out of curiosity. Never heard it before. No plans to hear it again. Off now to attack the sticky surface my 10-year-old B&W speaker with isopropyl alcohol. Wish me luck.

Since you don't want any well wishes, I'll simply say (purely for selfish reasons) that if you knock off from cancer or a rogue bus, my life would be decidedly dimmer. So DON'T do it! (That's more of a demand than a wish, so I think I'm still alright). BTW, I also don't recognize Mr. Brightside, but I believe I'm even older and surely far less relevant than you, FWIW. And I love that you trapped and released the squirrel -- I did that for a small group of mice that decided to live rent-free behind my oven, and haven't had any trouble from them in years.

I’ve got loads of squirrels here in Minnesota in the US. Most of the ones you see around here are grey squirrels, but I’ve got a much less common red squirrel who has set up housekeeping near my backyard shed. They are smaller than the more numerous greys, but are very feisty and always chase the larger ones away. Makes for some mild amusement at times watching the show they put on. There’s a walnut tree in the backyard that produced a bumper crop of walnuts last year so I’m sure the little buggers are well-fed, but this year the tree won’t be bearing any nuts so we’ll see how they get on.

The 12V charging on EVs does seem ridiculous, I understand that the cars have big contactors for the main battery and those shouldn't be closed all of the time, but from what I read some cars weren't even charging the 12V battery when they were plugged in to a public charger. I use small solar panels to charge my car batteries, maybe those should be built into cars now.

Yeah, the 453 smart has the same issue with the 12v battery. It doesn't help that cars are made cheap as possible so they scrimp on battery quality. Battery manufacturers went from normal lead-acid batteries to SLA, to EFB, to AGM to Lithium Ion. But the car manufacturers stopped at EFB because the better AGM batteries were more expensive. I recommend upgrading any car's battery to a known brand AGM type. I have separate bluetooth battery monitors on 3 of my cars but that meant I had to buy the Multi-Batt Mon application as it monitors more than 1 at a time. It gives me occasional notifications about how they are doing. The extra 20% on your battery might be the bottom 20% and not the top 20% as running them flat causes way more damage than charging to full. So your real 20% might show 0% on the car. We don't have NACS on Teslas in Europe, only in America. Ours has type 2 with a modified additional DC connector for very fast charging (CCS - Type 2). The Government need to cap the amount that charging companies can charge per KW/h as the prices are disgraceful. Prostate cancer is pretty much the best one to get if you do get any. So, good choice on the type.

I've just googled it. Nope, I have never heard Mr Brightside either, so you are not alone.

We're all dying - the doctors just slow it down

Thanks for the update Mat, looking forward to another noodle review the next time you feel like trying something new for us.

A lovely lazy, sunny Sunday afternoon and nothing to do but watch the oddcast. Perfect.

I know what you mean about 1999 as well. Feels like the whole personal computing era is going away, everything is reliant on remote servers. Personal audio is still here, but the music is not stored locally. AI may potentially result in us seeking real things again. Seeing live music, seeing physical arts, things that can't be generated.

I have heard Mr Brightside, I just checked it out. I actually quite like it too.

Honestly, I can't believe how quick this year is going in - only seems like last week I watched the April oddcast. Ah well, at least I have something to watch now :) Thanks Mat!