Negotiations between the United States and Iran in Geneva concluded Thursday night without a breakthrough, as deep disagreements persisted over core nuclear issues, according to World Israel News. The discussions, which brought together U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner with Iranian officials and mediators including Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi, were widely seen as […]

What makes a ‘good person’ is hard to quantify, but sometimes, you just know it when you see it. But that’s the problem, you can’t always see it. Have you ever met somebody new and wondered if they were a good person with a mischievous streak or a bad person who can turn on the charm and behave occasionally? Determining someone’s true moral character is important, especially if you start dating them or have a business relationship. It is crucial to get to the core of who they are and know whether they can be trusted. Popular TikTok philosopher and Substack writer Juan de Medeiros recently shared a great way to determine whether someone is good or bad. His rubric for judging someone’s moral character comes from a quote commonly attributed to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a German poet, playwright, novelist, and intellectual known for works like Faust and The Sorrows of Young Werther. How can you tell if someone is a good or a bad person? “Here’s a pretty good indicator that somebody is a bad person and vice versa, how you can spot a good one. And this goes back to a simple rule, a moral aphorism by Goethe in which he writes, ‘Never trust someone who is unkind to those who can do nothing for him,’” de Medeiros shared in a TikTok video with over 45,000 views. “Never trust someone who is unkind to those who can do nothing for him.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe @julianphilosophy Good vs. bad #good #bad #wisdom ♬ original sound – Julian de Medeiros De Medeiros then provided real-world ways to determine whether the person you have questions about is good or bad. “A bad person is unfriendly to strangers, to the elderly, to children, to service staff, to anybody they’re not trying to impress,” he said. At the same time, the good person treats people equally, no matter what they can do for him. They’re good for goodness sake, not to get anything out of it. “A good person carries grace within them and shares it freely with abundance. A good person treats other people as they would like to be treated as well. And it doesn’t matter who you are, it doesn’t matter what your status is, they will treat you and see you as their equal,” de Medeiros said. an instant green flag was when my current bf took me to a restaurant n the waiter brought us our food but had clearly forgotten about his drink and bc he didn't want her to feel bad he went "hey sorry I forgot earlier but could I also have a glass of water with my *drink name*?"— Redda (@fragoles) April 21, 2022 What is ‘The Waiter Rule’? Goethe’s quote echoes the common red/green flag test that many people have on dates. Sure, it’s important if your date is courteous and treats you well on the date, but you really want to watch how they interact with the server. The rule is often called “The Waiter Rule,” outlined by William Swanson. Swanson, the former chairman and CEO of Raytheon Company, wrote in his book, 33 Unwritten Rules of Management, “A person who is nice to you but rude to the waiter—or to others—is not a nice person.” Boxer Muhammad Ali is also known for saying something similar: “I don’t trust anyone who’s nice to me but rude to the waiter. Because they would treat me the same way if I were in that position.” 'I don't trust anyone who's nice to me but rude to the waiter. Because they would treat me the same way if I were in that position.'– Muhammad Ali pic.twitter.com/q1ffLjEBOJ— The Loneliest Sport (@LoneliestSport) April 5, 2023 Rudeness toward the waitstaff also indicates that the person isn’t very smart. It’s not wise to be rude to someone who is in charge of your meal for the night. Conversely, a good person is kind to others without looking for anything in return because they want to spread joy and believe that others deserve respect. You are what you do, not what you think or believe, and when someone treats others with goodness, it’s a clear indicator of the type of person they are. In the end, we are all a mixed bag of behaviors and attitudes, and even the most perfect of us has a devil on their shoulder telling them that it’s okay to occasionally get into a bit of mischief. However, when it comes down to determining someone’s core character, how they treat those who can do nothing for them says everything.   This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.The post Philosophy expert shares the 300-year-old rule to tell if someone is a good or bad person appeared first on Upworthy.

Art is magical because it can be found anywhere at any time. So when New Yorkers got close to three feet of snow dumped on their city, many dug deep into their creative sides. They took to the parks and contributed to building a winter wonderland of whimsical snow creatures. Of course, this wasn’t just any snowfall. It was a full-on blizzard causing travel bans, school and street closures, and power outages in all five New York City boroughs and the surrounding cities and states in the Northeast. NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced an old-fashioned snow day by FaceTiming an 8th-grade student named Victoria. “So my only ask to you is that you just stay safe, stay indoors during the height of the storm,” he told her. “Once that has passed, feel free to go out and sled.” View this post on Instagram Artists got creative For many residents, the powdery, white snow became a sculpting canvas. Photographer Matthew Dean Stewart took to a park in Brooklyn to show off some of the most adorable creations. Captioning the video, “I LOVE BROOKLYN,” we first see a puppy snowman who looks not unlike a Pixar character begging for love. Then he moves on to a more traditional snowman, complete with an orangey pink nose that he, of course, “boops.” Another snowman has an orange hat. Yet another is just basic snowballs piled atop one another. Stewart also points out a detailed pyramid that someone built. “How did they even DO that? That’s pretty impressive.” We next see a woman on the ground stirring strawberry ice cream in a silver bowl. “She’s making ice cream in the snow!” Stewart exclaims. She gives him a spoonful to which he replies, “This is so good. This is the best day of my life.” Aside from traditional snowmen (giant, faceless, tiny carrot-nosed), some sculptures were clearly made by potentially professional artists. One snowperson is wrapped around a tree, complete with hair made from leaves. “It has hair! And it has a butt!” Stewart points out. Another is a “study” Hello Kitty snow-cat. Then we get to the duck. “It’s a duck. What else would it be? That’s like super detailed,” Stewart quips. View this post on Instagram Some people got incredibly creative and used trees as the actual canvas and snow as the “paint.” “That is adorable. It looks like it has hair,” he says about one. Another artist used a similar idea to “paint” a snow lizard climbing a tree. Perhaps coolest of all: other artists built an actual igloo on which they’ve written “The people’s igloo.” They sit inside, illuminated by a light (possibly from a smartphone!). It’s Stewart’s joyous giggling and earnest commentary that gives the snow creature tour that extra delightful touch. “That s–t was whimsical as f$%$,” he concludes. The comment section agrees. The clip already has over 265,000 likes and thousands of comments. One notes, “The fact that I know without a doubt that every single one of them was made by fully grown adults and not one actual kid was around for the making of these snowmen is hilarious.” Others simply marvel at the whimsy of the city. “What a display of joy!” “This is incredible – so New York!” one writes. “Humans at their finest. It’s freezing and they made art. AI could never,” said another. A few of the artists eventually came forward to claim their work: Dori Miller (@dori.miller) writes, “I made that lizard!” And when asked who designed the “tree hugger,” Michael Galligan (@Michael_galligan) chimed in, “That was me and Maddy Rosaler (@maddyrosaler).” Dazed by the igloo, one Instagrammer writes, “I’m sorry, but there aren’t enough people in these comments talking about that igloo. A WHOLE IGLOO! WHAT? Incredible.” Perfect conditions for snowmen As terrific as these snow creations are, it takes a certain temperature and snow type to make it all work—even for the most brilliant artists. A 2015 article in Smithsonian Magazine explains the science behind it, citing perfectly-named physicist Dan Snowman, who says, “Snow can be either too wet or too dry.” “Scientists actually classify snow based on its moisture content—the amount of free water relative to ice crystals—not to be confused with the amount of water the snow would produce if melted. Snow comes in five categories: dry (zero percent water), moist (less than 3 percent), wet (3 to 8 percent), very wet (8 to 15 percent), and slush (more than 15 percent).” For snowman-building weather, it’s best to have moist snow. “Dry snow is like a loose powder with particles that don’t stick together very well, while slush is too fluid to hold a shape.” Temperature-wise, the weather needs to be just a bit above freezing. As for the “where” of it all: “Once the raw material is on the ground, it’s time to select your snowman-building surface. Level ground is best, but asphalt absorbs and holds heat from sunlight, so avoid driveways. A flat spot near the bottom of a large hill could provide shade and keep your creation safe from direct warmth from the sun—although it may wind up as a target for sleds.” The post Man walks around Brooklyn after blizzard to show off the most wonderful snow creatures appeared first on Upworthy.

Optical illusions are wild. The way our brains perceive what our eyes see can be way off base, even when we’re sure about what we’re looking at. Plenty of famous optical illusions have been created purposefully, from the Ames window that appears to be moving back and forth when it’s actually rotating 360 degrees, to the spiral image that makes Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” look like it’s moving. But sometimes optical illusions happen by accident. Those ones are even more fun because we know they aren’t a result of someone trying to trick our brains. Our brains do the tricking all by themselves. The popular Massimo account on X shared a photo that appears to be a person and two dogs in the snow. The more you look at it, the more you see just that—two dogs and someone who is presumably their owner. Turn the photo every which way and it’s still the same conclusion. That’s a person and two dogs, right? This is how optical illusions mess with your mind. First you see two dogs and their owner, and then… pic.twitter.com/67tm1UPGQa— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) January 8, 2024 But there are not two dogs in the photo. There are actually three dogs in this picture. Can you see the third? Full confession time: I didn’t see it at first. Not even when someone explained that the “human” is actually a dog. My brain couldn’t see anything but a person with two legs, dressed all in black, with a furry hat and some kind of furry stole or jacket. My brain definitely did not see a black poodle, which is what the “person” actually is. Are you looking at the photo and trying to see it, totally frustrated? The big hint is that the poodle is looking toward the camera. The “hat” on the “person” is the poodle’s poofy tail, and the “scarf/stole” is the poodle’s head. Once you see it, it fairly clear, but for many of us, our brains did not process it until it was explicitly drawn out. This outline helps somewhat: That one took me AGES to see. Owner is is a 3rd dog closer to the camera. The black fur hides the contours. pic.twitter.com/X8OvGfqlBV— Shield Maiden Io (@maidensheildio) January 8, 2024 As one person explained, the black fur hides the contours and shadows, so all our brains take in is the outline, which looks very much like a person facing away from us. People’s reactions to the optical illusion were hilarious. One person wrote, “10 years later: I still see two dogs and a man.” 10 years later:I still see two dogs and a man— Farhad (@farhadge) January 8, 2024 Another person wrote, “I agree with ChatGPT :)” and shared a screenshot of the infamous AI chatbot describing the photo as having a person in the foreground. Even when asked, “Could the ‘person’ be another dog?” ChatGPT said it’s possible, but not likely. Ha. I agree with ChatGPT pic.twitter.com/tNalhK3F9Y— Dr. Eli David (@DrEliDavid) January 8, 2024 One reason we love optical illusions is that they remind us just how very human we are. Unlike a machine that takes in and spits out data, our brains perceive and interpret what our senses bring in—a quality that has helped us through our evolution. But the way our brains piece things together isn’t perfect. Even ChatGPT’s response is merely a reflection of our human imperfections at perception being mirrored back at us. They say seeing is believing, but when what we interpret what we’re seeing incorrectly, we end up believing things that might not be real. Sure is fun to play with how our brains work, though. Also a good reminder that what we think we see, even with our own eyes, may not be an accurate picture of reality. This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated.The post If you see a person and two dogs in this photo, look again. It’s an optical illusion. appeared first on Upworthy.

by Martin Armstrong, Armstrong Economics: The press refuses to honestly review the facts because they are caught up in pushing socialism and they try to look the other way when some indicators show resilience and fail to understand that we are in the midst of paradigm shift in the economy just as we were during […]