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Zagorath

@ Zagorath @aussie.zone

Posts
297
Comments
3044
Joined
2 yr. ago

Formerly /u/Zagorath on the alien site.

  • Couple from Kazakhstan allegedly used hidden camera and earpieces to win $1.18m from Sydney’s Crown casino

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  • If casinos want to be able to use laws like this, they shouldn't be allowed to kick out people who are too good at the games.

  • Crossherd #267 2025-11-30

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  • Oh wow, nice one. I found it really tough today.

  • Crossherd #267 2025-11-30

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  • Crossherd #267🟩🟩🟩⬛️⬛️🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩⬛️🟩🟩🟩🟩Time: 2:29crossherd.clevergoat.com 🐐

  • Circuits #776 2025-11-29

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  • Crossherd #266 2025-11-29

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  • Crossherd #266⬛️🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩⬛️🟩🟩🟩🟩Time: 0:21🐐crossherd.clevergoat.com 🐐

  • Crossherd #266 2025-11-29

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  • Bloody hell! And I thought I did well today!

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • Yeah, I won't disagree with you there. You can check elsewhere in the thread if you want to see more details, but in summary: the specific combination of heavy loads and steep hills (take away either one, and 250 W is easily sufficient) do make a 500 W limit more necessary.

  • Favourite (least hated) and Most Hated Prime Ministers ?

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  • Abbott is most tolerable as a human being, if you put aside politics. But his politics was by far the most toxic in my lifetime. Turnbull probably had the best personal politics but was a complete pushover and allowed the right of his party to rule. Morrison had no personal politics, except that he saw personal success as literally godly. So he's the worst as a person.

    They're all awful in their own way, but I gotta give it to Abbott as most-hated, because he's the guy who cemented the toxic obstructionist approach to Opposition. He tripled down on the racist politics started by Howard. He set us back a decade in climate, by turning it into such a highly polarised issue. His was a politics of hate, and we're still feeling the consequences. His genuine support for rural fireys and his involvement in triathlon just don't change his terrible behaviour in and around Parliament.

    For best, Whitlam is pretty obvious, but within my lifetime, Gillard for sure. She was the only PM who actually believed that a politician's job is to do the right thing by the Australian people, by respecting their wishes and working with the Parliament that they elected. Where Labor has a long history, both before (with Rudd) and after (with Albanese), of being obstinate and playing a "my way or the highway" game, Gillard was an excellent negotiator who worked meaningfully with the cross-bench to get through numerous policies, including climate policy that was far better than anything Albanese has shown signs of doing even with his massive comfortable majority.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • Please explain what you think the appropriate solution is, then, and why it's better than mine.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • Well, no. For starters, you're forgetting that gravity it's probably the only force acting on a bike that's linear with speed. And even it technically isn't linear—just close enough to be a good approximation over human scales. But air resistance goes with the square of speed. i.e., to double your speed requires quadrupling the power.

    More importantly though, there's also a speed cap. EN15194 has a hard cap of 25 km/h. It can provide up to 250 W of assistance if you're doing 24.9 km/h, but the motor must cut out entirely and be no help at 25.1 km/h. It also must be pedal assist, meaning it can only provide power while you are also providing power through your legs. The exception is up to 6 km/h it is allowed to assist with a button or throttle, sometimes called "walk mode".

    The NSW law is a 500 W cap at present, but the law specifically calls out that it must "progressively reduce as the bicycle's speed increases beyond 6km/h", in addition to cutting off at 25 km/h, and the pedal-assist requirement.

  • Thoughts?

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  • Frozen might be a bit of a fuzzy one, but there's no villain in Encanto or Moana, by any reasonable metric. Antagonist != villain.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • I think I take a slightly softer position than you do, because in my view 250 W is a viable alternative to a car the majority of the time. It becomes a problem on very steep hills when carrying heavy loads, but most people are not doing that very often, and a better cycling network buildout (which is always my first priority) would reduce the need for it even further, if people had safe convenient routes around hills that didn't force them up and over unless either they want to take the shorter, harder route, or their destination is actually on the hill.

    But I do still ultimately agree with you. Ideal world, we'd change it to allow them. It's more accessible to more people, and I cannot see much disadvantage, if the speed regulators work correctly.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • I don't know in what world any comment ending with "I don't know why you think it is" could be read as anything but condescending.

    You’re complaiing [sic] about legal e-bikes not doing specific tasks you want them to

    Yes, she is. So am I. Because I want cycling to be accessible to everybody. Because of the massively lower cost of a bike compared to a car, and the massively lower risk of them, they have the inherent power to be much more accessible to a lot more people. Building better infrastructure is the most important part of that and we mustn't lose sight of that fact, but the laws governing how you ride are also relevant. In this case, ebike laws. EN15194 comes out of famously flat parts of the European peninsula. Hills are not as much of a factor there as they are here. For most people, most of the time, that's still sufficient.

    But something as basic as being allowed to use your bike to go grocery shopping, or if somebody wanted to do something like Martin Broer in the UK and run a small tradie business out of an electric bakfiets, should be a legal option. In Dutton Park and Highgate Hill in Brisbane's inner south, or around Everton Park/Arana Hills in the northwest, that's just not going to work very well if you're not allowed any more than 250 W on your motor. Heck, even the lesser but still noticeable hills of St Lucia/Toowong/Indooroopilly might be a struggle if you're carrying a bunch of stuff.

    If there's any task that forms part of people's daily lives that a bike can't do, I'm going to ask "why not?" and wonder if it would be appropriate to change things so that they can. In this case, the solution is obvious and simple.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • Can you explain why?

    Look at the comparison I did elsewhere in the thread. One hill I know of and have climbed many times, going up at just 12 km/h, I'm putting out over 500 W at some points. And that's on a carbon analogue bike, as a lighter-than-average dude, carrying nothing more than a bottle of water. I'm out of the saddle, working my arse off to get up that hill.

    As a cycling advocate, that's unacceptably difficult. Great for when cycling for fun or fitness, but as an advocate, I do not want people to have to exert themselves that much just to get around. I try to set a baseline effort of 100 W, but up to 200 W for brief periods is not unreasonable. 250 W (plus a 250 W motor) when climbing up a hill even with the lightest possible load, which would easily become 500+ W (plus the 250 W motor) on the way home from shopping or transporting kids to their cricket training, is not reasonable. I want cycling to be accessible to as many people as possible. It has the potential to be a far more accessible form of transport than driving is, if our network design and laws allow it to be. A Dutch-style network is by far the most important thing and would work for 80%+ of potential cyclists, 60%ish of the time.

    But to get that last 20% of cyclists 100% of the time, laws designed for the famously flat Netherlands are not necessarily appropriate. And that could include allowing up to 500 W motors. Especially with the NSW law, which states the power must be

    progressively reduced as the bicycle’s speed increases beyond 6km/h.

    So (assuming it's linear), at 16 km/h you'd be getting about 250 W of assistance, maximum. At 20 km/h you're down to 132 W, and at 23 km/h it's just 52 W. To do that 12 km/h up the hill I was talking about, you'd get about 340 W of assistance, or go down to 10 km/h and get 390 W, plus 1–200 W from your legs, which should be enough to get an older or less physically capable cyclist up the hill with their shopping or (grand)kids.

  • Millennials are the first generation to move left as they age

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  • Always wondered why people “traditionally” moved right as they aged

    I don't believe it has ever been seriously suggested (by serious researchers) that there's a link directly between age and conservatism. Rather, there are links between conservatism and various things that tend to be more common with age. Marriage, home ownership, higher wealth, etc. So it's unsurprising that a generation where that is happening much less would be the one where the correlation with age disappears.

  • Long-awaited environment laws might get Australia sued. Here’s why [They do not require the government to assess climate impacts of fossil-fuel projects]

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  • Article from before today's announcement of a deal with the Greens to get the bill passed. But that agreement does not change the lack of a key clause being described in this article.

    In summary, international courts have determined that countries must consider climate harm caused by fossil-fuel production, including down-stream impacts when you export your fuels elsewhere.

  • Australian Politics @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone
    They do not require the government to assess climate impacts of fossil-fuel projects

    Long-awaited environment laws might get Australia sued. Here’s why

    theconversation.com /long-awaited-environment-laws-might-get-australia-sued-heres-why-270453

  • Thoughts?

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  • There're no real villains in Moana or Encanto, and the villain in Frozen doesn't play a role anywhere near as big as in classic or Renaissance era Princess movies. I've not seen Raya and don't really remember the plot of Brave, but I do see some people making similar comments about each of them.

    Stepping a little outside the classic "Princess" genre, Inside Out, Elemental, Soul, and Turning Red don't really have villains either (according to what I'm reading—Inside Out is the only one I've actually seen).

    For movies within this era that actually have proper villains, that leaves Luca, Wish, and Coco. As far as I can tell, that's it.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • The real problem that's not being explicitly talked about here is unregistered electric motorbikes being sold (often to children) as "ebikes". Vehicles that don't have pedals, or have only vestigial pedals, and are reaching speeds well over 25 km/h (often fast enough to keep up with cars in traffic) without any pedalling. Morrison's Government changed the rules to allow importing of these electric motorbikes, and there have been multiple deaths in SEQ over the past few months as a result. The change to ban the import and sale of these vehicles is absolutely a good one. Even if you think, as I do, that EN15194 is a bit too strict.

    Also, as much as I am a vocal supporter of !fuckcars@lemmy.world and related movements, it's not exactly the same comparison. Ebikes can be ridden on bike paths, shared paths, and (except in 2 states) footpaths with pedestrians. They require zero licensing, and are often ridden by children. Quite different from driving a car, on roads (where a speed limit does apply), after qualifying for a driver's licence.

  • E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

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  • Yeah I think NSW's approach is pretty good. As you say, 250 W is a bit limited with heavy loads up hills. To put this into perspective, on my analogue bike, up one of the steepest hills I've ever climbed in Brisbane, I do about 400–500 W for about 20 seconds. Ebikes are all required to be pedal-assist, so let's assume a baseline of 100 W from the cyclist's legs (about what a casual cyclist who just wants to cruise along would do), plus the 250 W maximum output. That's 20 seconds where they're having to pedal extra hard, even if their total load (including bike, rider, and water) is comfortably under 90 kg. Make that a serious cargo bike (++kg) loaded with shopping, sports equipment, or kids (+++kg) and you're likely going to end up putting out more power with your legs than I do on my analogue bike even after you account for your motor assistance.

    NSW also has a rule requiring the motors to smoothly taper their power. So at the 12 km/h I climb this particular hill at, you might get 400 W of assistance, but if you're getting up to 22 km/h it might be just 100 W[^1]. Basically, it naturally self-corrects for any risk that might be associated with higher power at higher speeds. EN15194, otoh, is 250 W flat. It allows peaking above that amount for a short time, but from what I can tell it's not clear how long that time is, or how it works in practice on compliant bikes.

    A counterpoint to this take would be: the hill I'm describing is extremely steep, and chosen in part because it's steep. I'd go a different, easier route, if I wasn't on a training ride. And 90% of the time, most utility cyclists will have options that avoid climbs that steep. And also that perhaps it's not unreasonable to expect ebike users to put out more effort on hills than they do on the flat. Personally I find both of these arguments convincing enough if used against even higher power limits, but not convincing enough for me to oppose 500 W. Especially since I'm also in favour of increasing the speed cap from 25 km/h to 30 or 32 km/h (20 mph), since that's the speed I feel I can comfortably reach without too much effort on the flat, on an analogue bike.

    [^1]: I made no attempt to actually do the maths on this. And I'm not sure if it's meant to be a linear drop-off or if some curve is applied anyway.

  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    E-bike rules in Australia will soon change with possible ban on sale of bikes faster than 25km/h

    www.brisbanetimes.com.au /national/queensland/e-bike-definition-tightened-as-australia-mulls-sale-ban-20251125-p5ni4s.html
  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone
    starting 1 December

    GPs [in Queensland] given ability to diagnose adults with ADHD in bid to cut wait times

    www.abc.net.au /news/2025-11-15/qld-gps-to-diagnose-adhd-and-prescribe-medication/106013548
  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Australia’s under-16s social media ban is weeks away. How will it work – and how can I appeal if I’m wrongly banned?

    www.theguardian.com /media/2025/nov/23/australia-under-16-social-media-ban-how-will-it-work-which-platforms-age-verification
  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    WeRide: Cycling community celebrates reinstatement of e-bike standard

    mailchi.mp /weride/cycling-community-celebrates-reinstatement-of-e-bike-standard-10901282
  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Australian airlines are banning the use of power banks on flights. Here's what to know

    www.abc.net.au /news/2025-11-21/what-to-know-about-qantas-virgin-jetstar-new-power-bank-ban/106036042
  • Fuck Cars @lemmy.world
    Zagorath @aussie.zone
    XKCD

    Car Size

  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    100 years ago today

  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Try again

  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Jonathan liked the paprika hendl tho

  • Australian Politics @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Former Prime Minister Paul Keating on the dismissal

  • Australian Politics @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone
    50 year anniversary

    The Whitlam Dismissal - 11 November 1975 | Constitutional Clarion

  • Bicycling @lemmy.world
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    'It has become untenable for us to continue' – Premier Tech terminate Israel-Premier Tech sponsorship despite name change

    www.cyclingnews.com /news/it-has-become-untenable-for-us-to-continue-as-a-sponsor-premier-tech-terminate-israel-premier-tech-sponsorship-despite-name-change/
  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Should Newcastle to Sydney bullet train really be first link built of Melbourne to Brisbane route?

    www.theguardian.com /australia-news/2025/nov/06/should-newcastle-to-sydney-bullet-train-really-be-first-link-built-of-melbourne-to-brisbane-route
  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Dracula Readthrough 2025, Note: 7 years later

  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Dracula Readthrough 2025, 6 November

  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Dracula Readthrough 2025, 5 November

  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Dracula Readthrough 2025, 4 November

  • Vampires @lemmy.zip
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    Dracula Readthrough 2025, 3 November

  • Australia @aussie.zone
    Zagorath @aussie.zone

    What is Red Rover, to you?