Science Memes
Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!
A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.

Meta Post Tags
Rules
- Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
- Keep it rooted (on topic).
- No spam.
- Infographics welcome, get schooled.
If you are here asking: "Is this a science meme?"
Probably, yes. We use the Dawkins definition of meme: a replicating idea, not just an image macro with a fact on it. A good post here doesn't need to teach you something. It needs to make you ask something: who, what, where, when, and especially why or how.
Science isn't a filing cabinet of facts, it's a conversation. For example, a photo of an eel or other localized wildlife counts because most people never see one, and wonder is the first step of inquiry. A car meme counts if it makes you curious about what's under the bonnet. If you want to talk about something you noticed in the world, chances are someone else wants to talk about it too.
We moderate for vibe, not category. Pruning is light, especially where a post creates interesting discussion. Experimenting is encouraged, but keep it in good faith and never punch down.
Research Committee
Other Mander Communities
Science and Research
Biology and Life Sciences
- !abiogenesis@mander.xyz
- !animal-behavior@mander.xyz
- !anthropology@mander.xyz
- !arachnology@mander.xyz
- !balconygardening@slrpnk.net
- !biodiversity@mander.xyz
- !biology@mander.xyz
- !biophysics@mander.xyz
- !botany@mander.xyz
- !ecology@mander.xyz
- !entomology@mander.xyz
- !fermentation@mander.xyz
- !herpetology@mander.xyz
- !houseplants@mander.xyz
- !medicine@mander.xyz
- !microscopy@mander.xyz
- !mycology@mander.xyz
- !nudibranchs@mander.xyz
- !nutrition@mander.xyz
- !palaeoecology@mander.xyz
- !palaeontology@mander.xyz
- !photosynthesis@mander.xyz
- !plantid@mander.xyz
- !plants@mander.xyz
- !reptiles and amphibians@mander.xyz
Physical Sciences
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !chemistry@mander.xyz
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !geography@mander.xyz
- !geospatial@mander.xyz
- !nuclear@mander.xyz
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !quantum-computing@mander.xyz
- !spectroscopy@mander.xyz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Practical and Applied Sciences
- !exercise-and sports-science@mander.xyz
- !gardening@mander.xyz
- !self sufficiency@mander.xyz
- !soilscience@slrpnk.net
- !terrariums@mander.xyz
- !timelapse@mander.xyz
Memes
Miscellaneous
view the rest of the comments
Dumpster fires? Do you mean the untrusted repository of user-submitted build scripts getting malicious user-submitted content? :P
Keep your official packages and AUR separate, if nothing else at least don't pull from both sources with the same command
I don't know how Arch works as a Minter here. That's good that there's a separation line... Not sure if Mint's Software Mgr has that...
I suspect Mint might just not have anything like the AUR.
AUR stands for Arch User Repository, and it's a place where anybody can create a package. But those packages aren't going into a regular repository, instead they're kept as build scripts, simple code that describes how to make a package.
This is useful for two reasons - it allows users to share packages that aren't making it into the official repositories (because not everything will, there's just too much stuff out there), but it can also have things which can't go into the repos due to licensing (because the AUR doesn't distribute the software, just instructions on how to automatically get it)
There's no official utility to install packages from the AUR - you have to find a package you want on the site, clone the repository, and run
makepkgto build and install it. And for updates you have to pull changes and rebuild it manually. And you're supposed to check yourself to make sure what you're installing is safe. But there are popular unofficial utilities that are intended to replace Arch's built-in package management, automatically finding packages both in the trusted repositories and the untrusted AUR, with no separation.Oh, so it's like a second, unofficial Software Manager. That sounds scary.
Well, yes and no. If you're using any graphical utility to install software, you're already using something similar, since the actual package manager in a distro is usually a commandline utility, and you're using a wrapper around it. Those unofficial package managers don't actually mess with your system files (at least for the most part), they just look at package lists, dependencies, and automatically build AUR packages as necessary before handing everything off to the actual package manager.
The scary bit isn't the package manager being unofficial, it's how it puts untrusted packages on the same level as trusted packages, letting you install it unknowingly.
Gotcha, thanks for the explanation. I'm sure something has been done about it by now!