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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/live/2016/nov/18/would-you-want-your-body-frozen-after-death-join-our-live-look-at-the-week
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| Does it matter if movie romances are real? – catch-up on our live look at the week | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 4.45pm GMT | |
| 16:45 | |
| Thanks for joining us | |
| We’ve discussed everything from cryonics to cats on the internet today, so very much appreciate you getting involved and sharing your thoughts with us. You can continue the conversation in the comments and we’ll be back with another Guardian Social next week – in the meantime you can email sarah.marsh@theguardian.com or matthew.holmes@theguardian.com with any feedback or things you’d like to talk about. | |
| Have a great weekend! | |
| 4.32pm GMT | 4.32pm GMT |
| 16:32 | 16:32 |
| Cycling in the city: Detroit's problems pedal change | Cycling in the city: Detroit's problems pedal change |
| Nick Van Mead | Nick Van Mead |
| I didn’t know what to expect turning up in Detroit to write about American cities trying to find alternatives to the car recently, beyond the cliches of blight and abandonment. | I didn’t know what to expect turning up in Detroit to write about American cities trying to find alternatives to the car recently, beyond the cliches of blight and abandonment. |
| Those things are undeniable – and hit you as soon as you enter the city – but what I hadn’t expected was how they could lead to something positive. | Those things are undeniable – and hit you as soon as you enter the city – but what I hadn’t expected was how they could lead to something positive. |
| A contact suggested I have a look at the deprived Chalmers neighbourhood of east Detroit, so I borrowed a bike and headed over. The tyre shop, the chicken place, the beauty salon … more than half the high street stores along that section of Jefferson Avenue were boarded up; some optimistically offered as “development opportunities”. A glance at the residential streets behind revealed row upon row of vacant lots. | A contact suggested I have a look at the deprived Chalmers neighbourhood of east Detroit, so I borrowed a bike and headed over. The tyre shop, the chicken place, the beauty salon … more than half the high street stores along that section of Jefferson Avenue were boarded up; some optimistically offered as “development opportunities”. A glance at the residential streets behind revealed row upon row of vacant lots. |
| But Chalmers also had a few hundred yards of something new in the City of Detroit and rare in the United States – a protected bike lane. | But Chalmers also had a few hundred yards of something new in the City of Detroit and rare in the United States – a protected bike lane. |
| I poked around a bit, then pedalled east across the invisible line into the wealthy suburb of Grosse Pointe. The poverty stopped abruptly … but so did the safe space for cyclists. | I poked around a bit, then pedalled east across the invisible line into the wealthy suburb of Grosse Pointe. The poverty stopped abruptly … but so did the safe space for cyclists. |
| That was the point when it hit me that Detroit’s problems had created something most cities don’t have – and wish they did – space. Ironically, I didn’t have room to include it in the finished article. | That was the point when it hit me that Detroit’s problems had created something most cities don’t have – and wish they did – space. Ironically, I didn’t have room to include it in the finished article. |
| 4.14pm GMT | 4.14pm GMT |
| 16:14 | 16:14 |
| 'Fat letter' sent by schools: food for thought? | 'Fat letter' sent by schools: food for thought? |
| Rebecca Ratcliffe | Rebecca Ratcliffe |
| Getting a letter through the post saying your child is obese is never going to be a comfortable experience. Weight is a sensitive subject, and noone wants to feel their parenting style is being criticised. But, given that one in five children now leave primary school obese, do local authorities have a duty to warn parents? | Getting a letter through the post saying your child is obese is never going to be a comfortable experience. Weight is a sensitive subject, and noone wants to feel their parenting style is being criticised. But, given that one in five children now leave primary school obese, do local authorities have a duty to warn parents? |
| The comments below the line on this piece are an interesting read, including this from Pepperthecat | The comments below the line on this piece are an interesting read, including this from Pepperthecat |
| “I don’t actually know of any evidence the this ‘letter to parents’ intervention is an effective one (e.g. do kids getting letters have a lower incidence of obesity later on in life than a control group who have not received them?) Has it ever been tested properly ie in a randomised trial? If not, it is quite possible that it has no benefit, or is even harmful! | “I don’t actually know of any evidence the this ‘letter to parents’ intervention is an effective one (e.g. do kids getting letters have a lower incidence of obesity later on in life than a control group who have not received them?) Has it ever been tested properly ie in a randomised trial? If not, it is quite possible that it has no benefit, or is even harmful! |
| If the government were serious about childhood obesity they would focus on proven interventions at a population level, such as banning junk food advertising, heavy taxes on sugary drinks and the like.” | If the government were serious about childhood obesity they would focus on proven interventions at a population level, such as banning junk food advertising, heavy taxes on sugary drinks and the like.” |
| What are your thoughts? | What are your thoughts? |
| 3.59pm GMT | 3.59pm GMT |
| 15:59 | 15:59 |
| More of you are taking our quiz – and doing rather well | More of you are taking our quiz – and doing rather well |
| 9/10 on the false news quizz. I didn't pay strict attention to how ill Hillary was when walking to her SUV. | 9/10 on the false news quizz. I didn't pay strict attention to how ill Hillary was when walking to her SUV. |
| Have a go yourself here: | Have a go yourself here: |
| It seems many of you have really been swatting up | It seems many of you have really been swatting up |
| Re. the fake news quiz: 10/10 (though if it wasn't for reading real news, I would have probably fallen for one of the stories: can't say which...*spoilers*). | Re. the fake news quiz: 10/10 (though if it wasn't for reading real news, I would have probably fallen for one of the stories: can't say which...*spoilers*). |
| 10/10 - although I would have fallen for the last one if I hadn't already read that it was false somewhere else. | 10/10 - although I would have fallen for the last one if I hadn't already read that it was false somewhere else. |
| 3.42pm GMT | 3.42pm GMT |
| 15:42 | 15:42 |
| Epic love story | Epic love story |
| Stuart Heritage | Stuart Heritage |
| It’s sweet, in a way, that Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher had an affair on the set of Star Wars. After all, they played two of the most iconic characters in movie history, so in a way it’s a bit like hearing that Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd got it on during the Back to the Future wrap party. It’s sweet. But let’s not read too much into any of this. It was a fleeting thing, and it’s over now. And thank goodness for that – if Episode VII taught us anything at all, it’s that a Ford/Fisher pregnancy can only ever end badly. | It’s sweet, in a way, that Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher had an affair on the set of Star Wars. After all, they played two of the most iconic characters in movie history, so in a way it’s a bit like hearing that Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd got it on during the Back to the Future wrap party. It’s sweet. But let’s not read too much into any of this. It was a fleeting thing, and it’s over now. And thank goodness for that – if Episode VII taught us anything at all, it’s that a Ford/Fisher pregnancy can only ever end badly. |
| 3.23pm GMT | 3.23pm GMT |
| 15:23 | 15:23 |
| Science fiction becomes fact | Science fiction becomes fact |
| Luke Holland | Luke Holland |
| In the Guide’s special Future Issue we wondered just how much the grim predictions of pop culture past got right about the future. Back To The Future, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Simpsons, The Who and 1984 all foretold a scary amount of stuff that actually came to pass, but there was a lot we didn’t have room to get into the magazine. Driverless cars – like those pootling about in Total Recall (only without the creepy-as-hell robotic driver) and Demolition Man – are here; Star Trek’s replicators inch ever closer with each advancement made in 3D printing; and the virtual reality of The Lawnmower Man and Red Dwarf is now within reach of anyone willing to fork out a grand or so. | In the Guide’s special Future Issue we wondered just how much the grim predictions of pop culture past got right about the future. Back To The Future, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Simpsons, The Who and 1984 all foretold a scary amount of stuff that actually came to pass, but there was a lot we didn’t have room to get into the magazine. Driverless cars – like those pootling about in Total Recall (only without the creepy-as-hell robotic driver) and Demolition Man – are here; Star Trek’s replicators inch ever closer with each advancement made in 3D printing; and the virtual reality of The Lawnmower Man and Red Dwarf is now within reach of anyone willing to fork out a grand or so. |
| But, after we also talked about cryonics earlier what other cases are there of science fiction becoming everyday fact? And are there any instances where sci-fi predictions missed the mark? | But, after we also talked about cryonics earlier what other cases are there of science fiction becoming everyday fact? And are there any instances where sci-fi predictions missed the mark? |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.27pm GMT | at 3.27pm GMT |
| 3.15pm GMT | 3.15pm GMT |
| 15:15 | 15:15 |
| A lot of you have some LONG commutes! | A lot of you have some LONG commutes! |
| For a few years my commute was bout 4 hours a day (2 either way). I didn't really mind it at the time, as I just slept on the way up and the journey on the way back was a good length of time to read, watch videos etc, without too much disruption. I ultimately gave it up though as I was needing to work longer and longer hours and a 4 hour commute on top of that isn't sustainable. | For a few years my commute was bout 4 hours a day (2 either way). I didn't really mind it at the time, as I just slept on the way up and the journey on the way back was a good length of time to read, watch videos etc, without too much disruption. I ultimately gave it up though as I was needing to work longer and longer hours and a 4 hour commute on top of that isn't sustainable. |
| It was only when I gave it up did I realise how completely knackered I had felt the whole time. That seemed normal to me, and it was only in not feeling that way did I realise how unhealthy it probably was. I'd never go back to doing that as a result, unless things were absolutely dire (and given that the route in question is operated by Southern, it would have to be really, really dire to do that commute again). | It was only when I gave it up did I realise how completely knackered I had felt the whole time. That seemed normal to me, and it was only in not feeling that way did I realise how unhealthy it probably was. I'd never go back to doing that as a result, unless things were absolutely dire (and given that the route in question is operated by Southern, it would have to be really, really dire to do that commute again). |
| My husband has a 2 and a quarter hour commute each way, from Gloucestershire to Canary Wharf, three days a week. He goes by train so his strategy is to sleep on the way in, mop up emails and doze on the way home.Our next door neighbour is often on the same trains and I know at least four others that do it on a regular basis | My husband has a 2 and a quarter hour commute each way, from Gloucestershire to Canary Wharf, three days a week. He goes by train so his strategy is to sleep on the way in, mop up emails and doze on the way home.Our next door neighbour is often on the same trains and I know at least four others that do it on a regular basis |
| 3.05pm GMT | 3.05pm GMT |
| 15:05 | 15:05 |
| Donald Trumpalike | Donald Trumpalike |
| The world is full of Donald Trump lookalikes it seems – the Guardian’s video team has put this clip together after the latest was shared widely on social media on Friday ... | The world is full of Donald Trump lookalikes it seems – the Guardian’s video team has put this clip together after the latest was shared widely on social media on Friday ... |
| 2.43pm GMT | 2.43pm GMT |
| 14:43 | 14:43 |
| A post-truth year? | A post-truth year? |
| Further to that false news quiz (see here) we were interested to spot this week’s announcement of the Oxford Dictionaries’ word of the year ... We’ll let the Guardian’s Instagram feed explain: | Further to that false news quiz (see here) we were interested to spot this week’s announcement of the Oxford Dictionaries’ word of the year ... We’ll let the Guardian’s Instagram feed explain: |
| Oxford Dictionaries has declared 'post-truth' to be its international word of the year. The use of the term has increased by around 2,000% in 2016 compared to last year. Oxford Dictionaries explains that this is in the context of Brexit and the US presidential election. Last year's word of the year was - try to keep a straight face -the ‘Tears of Joy' emoji: 😂 | Oxford Dictionaries has declared 'post-truth' to be its international word of the year. The use of the term has increased by around 2,000% in 2016 compared to last year. Oxford Dictionaries explains that this is in the context of Brexit and the US presidential election. Last year's word of the year was - try to keep a straight face -the ‘Tears of Joy' emoji: 😂 |
| A photo posted by The Guardian (@guardian) on Nov 16, 2016 at 4:23am PST | A photo posted by The Guardian (@guardian) on Nov 16, 2016 at 4:23am PST |
| What do you make of the concept, and the phrase? | What do you make of the concept, and the phrase? |
| And here’s a response to the quiz: | And here’s a response to the quiz: |
| Oh, the embarrassment. I actually fell for two of those ten stories in the quiz. Goes to show, nobody is immune to the pernicious effects of this propaganda. (Most of it isn't satire--it's propaganda. Learn the difference.) | Oh, the embarrassment. I actually fell for two of those ten stories in the quiz. Goes to show, nobody is immune to the pernicious effects of this propaganda. (Most of it isn't satire--it's propaganda. Learn the difference.) |
| 2.34pm GMT | 2.34pm GMT |
| 14:34 | 14:34 |
| Why are cats so popular on the internet then? | Why are cats so popular on the internet then? |
| Cats + the internet work so well because in real life they're so full of contempt for humans and so aloof (my own cat only thinks of me as a reasonably efficient food dispenser AT BEST) that capturing them unawares on camera looking daft is very rewarding, much more so than dogs because you get the feeling dogs would be so happy that a picture of them looking silly made you happy. A new cat gallery everyday please or maybe a rolling liveblog. Thanks in advance. | Cats + the internet work so well because in real life they're so full of contempt for humans and so aloof (my own cat only thinks of me as a reasonably efficient food dispenser AT BEST) that capturing them unawares on camera looking daft is very rewarding, much more so than dogs because you get the feeling dogs would be so happy that a picture of them looking silly made you happy. A new cat gallery everyday please or maybe a rolling liveblog. Thanks in advance. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 2.34pm GMT | at 2.34pm GMT |
| 2.12pm GMT | 2.12pm GMT |
| 14:12 | 14:12 |
| Your daily commute | Your daily commute |
| Sarah Marsh | Sarah Marsh |
| The number of workers who commute daily for two hours or more has increased by a third in five years, a study shows. Why? Research finds stagnant wages and soaring housing costs mean people are forced to get jobs further from home. I am keen to hear from readers who regularly spend a good few hours en route to the workplace. How do you cope? Do you love it? What are your favourite commuting activities? Have you learnt any valuable rules of travel? | The number of workers who commute daily for two hours or more has increased by a third in five years, a study shows. Why? Research finds stagnant wages and soaring housing costs mean people are forced to get jobs further from home. I am keen to hear from readers who regularly spend a good few hours en route to the workplace. How do you cope? Do you love it? What are your favourite commuting activities? Have you learnt any valuable rules of travel? |
| As someone who gets the dreaded Northern line every day, I don’t know how you do it! | As someone who gets the dreaded Northern line every day, I don’t know how you do it! |
| 1.55pm GMT | 1.55pm GMT |
| 13:55 | 13:55 |
| Cats on the internet – a cliché made in heaven? | Cats on the internet – a cliché made in heaven? |
| Matthew Holmes | Matthew Holmes |
| I don’t quite “get” the obsession with talking about how cats on the internet are a perfect match. But sometimes you just have to roll with it. | I don’t quite “get” the obsession with talking about how cats on the internet are a perfect match. But sometimes you just have to roll with it. |
| My favourite from this gallery celebrating California-based photographer Seth Casteel’s new book (he’s most famous for his shots of dogs underwater) is Jon Snow, seventh down in this gallery ... and right here, all kangaroo-like hind legs and frog paws: | My favourite from this gallery celebrating California-based photographer Seth Casteel’s new book (he’s most famous for his shots of dogs underwater) is Jon Snow, seventh down in this gallery ... and right here, all kangaroo-like hind legs and frog paws: |