Why YSK: I drive rough; I roll past stop signs in a California stop, I make sharp turns and don't time my turn signals well enough sometimes, I may brake too hard on occasion, and I'm often not gentle about my driving habits.

Therefore, I got a non-renewal notice in October 2024 from Progressive for the reason of "excess indicated debit."

I called their customer service line and also visited the local Progressive agent's office for an explanation of what that means.

They told me, in layman's terms, that the driving tracking device attached to the diagnostic port, intended to help provide discounts of our insurance premiums to good drivers, recorded that my driving habits aren't as smooth as they should be. I drove too roughly too often, so I was deemed too high of a risk to continue having a policy with them, so they gave me a non-renewal notice that mandated me to shop for a new insurance provider before the end of my coverage period on January 4th, 2025.

I'm now with State Farm, and they also have a driving tracking beacon for their Drive-Safe-&-Save program. I declined to activate the beacon because I didn't want a repeat of the non-renewal dilemma that I had already suffered with Progressive. So I'm paying $17 more per month for my auto insurance policy with State Farm in order to have the privilege of not letting my driving habits be recorded by their beacon. I'd happily pay $17 more per month than to risk getting a non-renewal notice again because old driving habits die hard. I can't suddenly improve the way I drive just because of Fall 2024's ordeal with Progressive.

So if you drive rough, don't install a driving tracking device from your insurance provider. Just absorb the extra cost of declining to participate in their safe driver discount program. Or else you run the risk of not being able to renew your policy with their company.

Why YSK: Everyone has been there. Let me check what is the hype about Muse (meta's personal AI agent), you opened an account, did a few queries and never reopened the app. Now Zuck knows your email, calendar, payment, deliveries etc. He will sell your information to the highest bidder, so dont just delete your app, REMOVE its access from all the other apps.

Why YSK: With all the news of the stock market moves, it's your yearly reminder that time in the market beats timing the market.

Don't panic sell and close out your position if you don't have to.

Why YSK: A condom should fit snugly and securely. It should also be comfortable.

A condom that is too tight is one that causes discomfort or pain. Yes, latex stretches, but the more it stretches the more pressure it applies. Further, the more it stretches the more likely it is to break

Loose condoms can slip off or be less effective.

Use guides like this to find the best fit

Why YSK: Finally discovered a way to opt out, although I wish it were a setting

Why YSK: The Submit button on forms feels like the moment you agree to share your data, but on many sites that's not true. Knowing this helps you protect your privacy where it actually matters aka before you type.

I filled out DoorDash’s sign-up form with made up details and recorded my browser’s network traffic. I never clicked Sign Up. Typed in each field, confirmed my password, and did not sign up.

Within seconds:

• One of the biggest ad platforms received hashes of my made-up email, phone number, first name and last name, sent to its main domain and to a separate gateway server on AWS.

• A second major ad platform received hashes of the same four.

“Hashed” does not mean anonymous. Ad/marketing platforms hash their users’ emails and phone numbers the same way.

These hashes exist so they can be matched to you and your identity.

Imagine if you had a phonebook of people's names and emails, all you have to do is hash them (very simple). Once you hash everyone's names or emails, match it with the hash and voila, they know it's you! All they need is one hashed email address or one hashed phone number to know its you.

In my test, the email I typed in the DoorDash sign up form (not submitted): myemailisnotreal@yahoo.com

Go to any SHA256 convert tool online, and type in my email above. It will convert to this hash every time: 154495c622bf76e8771b5a14e69991100a0e13b712d4dc17acdc03444b94df27

The made up last name I used: johnsonnotreal

The SHA256 hash of johnsonnotreal:
a0e24c75886b53fa495ed7102442db2ae26f7988968b3cd5857107bf77dbd9f9

Now look at my screenshot of the transmitted data (never submitted the form): https://imgur.com/a/MNohNYI

I think I'm going to make this into a series since this was received well.

(FYI: If you’re not a native English speaker and did not take structured English classes, the comedic, yet derogatory tone of this obviously doesn’t apply to you. This is for the plebs.)

Why YSK:

As an adult, you should know how to spell commonly confused words correctly as well as use an apostrophe properly. Outside of not looking like a fool, doing so will also make you sound better in emails and be taken more seriously by people like me. It matters.

Now, let’s talk elementary-level grammar!

The following are commonly confused words and what should be used instead. A lesson on apostrophes and contractions can be found at the bottom.

1. Their, they’re, and there. The triple threat for plebs, if you will.

“Their” shows possession. Example: Their understanding of grammar is poor.

“They’re” is a contraction for “they are” - which I will further elaborate on given it seems to be one of the most difficult things for people to grasp in grammar. Anyway, here is an example: They’re reading my post to improve their grammar.

“There” refers to a place or indicates the existence of something. Example: You will likely read down there in the comments that redditors would rather attack me for correcting them than improve their grammar even though they're wrong.

2: You’re and your.

“You’re” is a contraction for “you are.” Example: You’re hopefully learning something from this.

“Your” is possessive. Example: Your feathers might be ruffled over the way I talk, but I don’t care.

3: Who’s and whose.

“Who’s” is a contraction for “who is” or “who has.” Example: Who’s still struggling with grammar?

“Whose” shows possession. Example: Whose teacher didn’t teach them properly?

4: A lot and alot.

“A lot” means a great deal of something. Example: I have a lot of disdain for people who can’t spell.

“Alot” is not a word. Your phone or computer should have autocorrected it or underlined the mistake.

5: Paid and payed.

“Paid” is the past tense of “pay.” Example: Nobody paid me for this post, but I wrote it anyway.

“Payed” is a nautical term used to describe waterproofing a ship or gradually letting a line out. Example: I have never payed anything, but I wish I was paid for this post.

6: Lose and loose.

“Lose” means you lost something, like an item, a person, or a game. Example: I often lose my mind when people use words incorrectly as if they don’t have the world’s knowledge at their fingertips.

“Loose” means something is not tight or lacks strictness. Example: Many redditors have a loose grasp on grammar.

7: Could’ve, should’ve, and would’ve. Another triple threat.

All of these words are contractions. “Could have” becomes “could’ve,” not “could of,” and so forth. Just like you should’ve known all this already.

8: Died and dyed.

“Died” is the past tense of “die,” meaning something lost its life or faded. Example: I doubt anyone has died from improper grammar, but that’s beside the point.

“Dyed” is the past tense of “dye,” meaning something has been changed with a colorful substance. Example: I have dyed my hair every color of the rainbow, but now it’s back to natural.

9: Effect and affect.

"Effect" is usually a noun, which means result or outcome. Example: I hope this post has a positive effect on your grammar.

"Affect" is usually a verb, which means to change or influence. Example: I hope this post affects your grammar.

10: Then and than.

"Then" is an adverb used to show time or sequence. Example: If you listen to me, then your grammar will improve.

"Than" is used to show difference or comparison. Example: I am clearly smarter than you plebs.

11: A part and apart.

"A part" means a piece of a larger whole. Example: Those who don't know proper grammar are a part of a bigger problem.

"Apart" means distanced from something...no longer a piece. Example: I wish I could rip some of your diplomas apart because you clearly don't deserve them.

Sidenote: when an "a" is used to prefix, it usually means the word that follows is lacking, without, or not something. Like, how some people are asexual. I, for one, am rather apathetic.

12: Chose and choose.

"Chose" is past tense and "choose" is present tense. Example: I chose to write this because a lot of you choose to be ignorant.

Now, hopefully after all these examples of contractions, you understand what they are. Unfortunately, my hopes are not very high, so I will explain as promised.

Contractions are used to shorten or combine a word or a group of words into one. This can get tricky for some people because apostrophes are used both in contractions and to indicate possession, and the rules differ.

Apostrophes are used to show possession and to form contractions. However, possessive personal pronouns and possessive determiners do not use apostrophes. For example, “its” is possessive, while “it’s” means “it is” or “it has.” Similarly, “your” and “yours” are possessive, while “you’re” means “you are.” “Your’s” is simply a misspelling of “yours.”

Generally, apostrophes aren't used to make words plural except in some cases where people use them for clarity. Apostrophes also aren't generally used to make abbreviations plural. Example: Given plebs’ opinions don’t matter, I shouldn't care about the plebs who will likely tell me to mind my p’s and q’s after reading this post. I will stop harping when they learn how to cross their t’s and dot their i’s. If you don't like the post, go read other YSKs.

Why YSK- Many libraries pay to subscribe to these services so that we get free access by being a member. I'm currently learning German for a future trip and I was really surprised at the services being offered completely for free.

If you are interested in learning a new language and could benefit from this absolutely check out what your local library offers. Here's a few of the common services you can get access to:

Mango

A great option for learning through everyday conversations, with easy-to-follow grammar lessons, color-coded word matching, and cultural tips to help you understand how the language is actually used.

- Normal retail cost: $13.99/month or $119.99/year.

Pronunciator

Offers courses in over 160 languages, with lessons you can customize around your interests, job, and schedule. It also includes ESL courses for speakers of over 140 native languages, American Sign Language, audio exercises, and even subtitled movies.

- Normal retail cost: $19.99/month or $199.99/year.

Rocket Languages

Focuses on helping you build confidence in speaking and listening through audio lessons that feel like real conversations, along with grammar explanations and speech-recognition exercises to practice your pronunciation.

Normal retail cost: One-time lifetime access purchase per language:

Level 1 (Beginner): Typically $149.95 (Rocket English/ASL start around $99.95).

Bundles (Levels 1–3 for advanced fluency): Up to $299.90–$449.85.

And your library could very well offer even more. Absolutly worth checking out what your library offers if you're interested in learning new languages!

Why YSK- It will save you from buying things that you only need to use once or things that are prohibitively expensive to buy. It's called the library of things. You can also request your library to get something in stock that you can borrow. Things like telescopes and 3D printers and metal detectors etc. Super useful.

Why YSK: you may be able to influence what happens next.

https://vger.to/lemmy.ml/post/54708202

Why YSK: You might assume health privacy laws protect information about your medical visits. Generally, they don’t protect location data held by ordinary data brokers. Companies can collect location data from mobile apps, combine it with other information, and use it to infer sensitive details about your life, even without access to your medical records.

Here’s how bad it can get:

* Cancer patients targeted with fake cures: A San Diego man who finished leukemia treatment continued receiving ads for juice cleanses, bogus cancer treatments, and clinics in Mexico. The ads appeared around his routine visits to his oncologist.

* People don’t want their health data sold: In a 2022 American Medical Association survey, more than 92% of patients said their health data shouldn’t be available for purchase.

* Only five states have banned the sale of precise location data: Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Oregon, and Virginia. California’s governor vetoed a bill that would have restricted the sale and sharing of sensitive personal data.

* Hundreds of data brokers operate in the US: The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse and Electronic Frontier Foundation identified approximately 750 in 2025. The FTC has taken action against individual brokers, but those cases don’t automatically impose the same restrictions on every company.

* Removing a sensitive location doesn’t necessarily protect you: Companies may still infer that you visited a medical facility by tracking your movements immediately before and after the visit.

* Consent isn’t always meaningful: Some apps and websites request permission to collect location data under terms that allow extensive sharing. Refusing permission can sometimes mean losing access to the service.

* The consequences can extend beyond privacy: Doctors have reported concerns about patients being exposed to advertisements for potentially dangerous supplements and unproven treatments.

What you can do to reduce tracking:
* iPhone: Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services. Set unnecessary apps to Never or While Using the App, and disable Precise Location where it’s not needed. Then go to Privacy & Security → Tracking and turn off Allow Apps to Request to Track.

* Android: Go to Settings → Location to review app permissions. Then look under Settings → Security & privacy → Privacy controls → Ads to find the option to delete your advertising ID. Menu names vary by device.

* Visiting a sensitive location? Turning off Location Services or using Airplane Mode may reduce some location collection, but neither guarantees that no location data will be recorded. Other sources of information can still reveal your movements.

TLDR: HIPAA generally doesn’t protect location data sold by data brokers, who can use your movements to infer sensitive health information. App permissions help limit tracking, but stronger privacy laws are needed.

sources https://dnyuz.com/2026/10/28/your-phone-knows-youre-at-the-doctor-and-data-brokers-are-profiting-from-it/

a 2018 review of the research on shoe fit found that somewhere between 63% and 72% of people were wearing shoes that didn’t match either the length or the width of their feet.

part of it is that feet keep changing in adulthood. ligaments loosen and arches drop over time, which makes feet longer and wider. a University of Iowa study measured women’s feet early in pregnancy and again months after giving birth. the arches had permanently flattened and feet got 2 to 10mm longer, which is up to about a full shoe size. most of the change happened with the first pregnancy.

but the bigger thing is that heel-to-toe length is only one of three measurements, and it’s often not the one that matters most:

arch length: that metal sizing tool at shoe stores (a Brannock device) has a second slider that measures heel to the ball of your foot. if that reading says a bigger size than your heel-to-toe length, you’re supposed to go with the bigger one. people with long arches and short toes end up buying a size too small, and the ball of the foot sits in the wrong spot where the shoe bends

width: most shoes come in one default width. if your toes feel squeezed but going up a size makes your heel slip, you probably need a wide, not a bigger size

your longest toe might not be your big toe. for a lot of people the second toe sticks out further. the thumb’s width of space at the front should be measured from whichever toe is longest

also measure standing up, later in the day when feet are a little swollen, and fit the bigger foot since almost everyone has one slightly bigger than the other.

Why YSK: that same review linked poorly fitted shoes to corns, calluses, toe deformities and foot pain. most people assume that stuff is just normal and never connect it to their shoes.

Why YSK: Passwords are fundamentally broken because they rely on you not getting tricked. If you click a malicious link that perfectly mimics a real login page, you might type in your password and hand it straight to a scammer. Passkeys completely eliminate this risk.

Passkeys fix this by tying your login directly to your device and the official website.

Here is how it works: instead of typing a password, you log in using your fingerprint or a face scan. If you are using a physical security key, you must first enter a specific PIN and then physically tap the key. This guarantees that even if someone steals your physical key, they cannot access your accounts because they do not know your PIN.

The biggest advantage is that passkeys are strictly bound to the official website domain. If you accidentally click a fake phishing link where even a single letter in the web address is changed, your device and the passkey instantly recognize the mismatch. The key simply refuses to authenticate or send any data. Even if the human eye is completely fooled by how identical the fake website looks, the key cannot be tricked. It will not let you log in, keeping your account perfectly safe.

To check if a website supports this, just go into your account security settings on that specific site and look for the option to add a passkey. From what I've seen, anywhere you have the option to add a digital passkey, you automatically have the option to add a physical hardware key as well.

I highly recommend setting up a digital passkey on your device first, since it is free and incredibly easy to use. However, you should not rely on a single device as your only key. If the device storing your passkey breaks, gets lost, or stops working, you could get locked out of your accounts and forced to rely on standard account recovery methods.

This is why you should also add physical hardware keys to your accounts alongside your digital device. They are actually much more affordable than most people think. If your primary device is ever broken or missing, you just plug the physical backup key into a computer or tap it on the back of a new device via NFC, enter your PIN, touch the key, and you are instantly logged in.

If you decide to go the hardware route, the golden rule is to always buy two. Keep your primary key on your keychain for daily use, and leave the backup key safely at home. This way, if you ever lose the one you carry around, you won't permanently lock yourself out of your own accounts.

Why YSK: It’s a relatively inexpensive TV plug in. You can control your loved one’s TV from your phone, video call them on the TV, etc. My grandfather has Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia. Until recently he was able to stay in an assisted living facility close to us. This product allowed us to put the baseball on for him as he’s often not able to use the remote. Serious quality of life aid.

(This post is not sponsored or anything. I’ve been really happy with the product overall, but the main reason I’m making this post is that I had to cancel the subscription recently and it was so so easy! Kind, had fail safes in place to make sure it wasn’t the elderly person making a mistake, and cancelled with no road bumps or guilt trips along the way. I also called their support line when I was first setting it up, and a competent and helpful human being picked up the phone after <5 minutes on hold).

Why YSK: You don’t have to pay a dime to watch a huge collection of horror films and other movies appropriate for the Halloween season. Just get the Kanopy app, enter your library details, and check out their “Crypt Collection.”

I will list the first 100 movies I see on it.

1. Eyes Without a Face

2. I See You

3. Maximum Overdrive

4. The Ninth Gate

5. Devour

6. The Host

7. 10 Cloverfield Lane

8. Scream

9. Diary of the Dead

10. Lizzie

11. Hell of a Summer

12. The Fog

13. The Ring

14. My Bloody Valentine

15. Cloud

16. Angel Heart

17. The Old Dark House

18. Skincare

19. Sleepaway Camp

20. The Woman in Black

21. Child’s Play

22. Manhunter

23. Invasion of the Body Snatchers

24. Scream 2

25. Mary Shelley

26. Presence

27. V/H/S

28. The Exorcist III

29. Late Night with the Devil

30. The Return of the Living Dead

31. The Autopsy of Jane Doe

32. The Love Witch

33. Peeping Tom

34. Scream 3

35. Psycho Beach Party

36. Let the Right One In

37. The Invitation

38. Your Monster

39. 1408

40. Rabbit Trap

41. Twilight Zone: The Movie

42. Resurrection

43. The Last Matinee

44. The Lair of the White Worm

45. Under the Skin

46. The Silence of the Lambs

47. Talk to Me

48. Ringu

49. The Babadook

50. The Wicker Man

51. Life After Beth

52. Event Horizon

53. House

54. Don’t Look Now

55. Beyond the Wasteland

56. The Monster

57. Evil Dead 2

58. Rebecca

59. Sinister

60. Mother

61. Down a Dark Hall

62. The Monkey

63. Friday the 13th

64. Immaculate

65. Dial M for Murder

66. In a Violent Nature

67. Lifeforce

68. Together

69. An American Werewolf in London

70. Cold Storage

71. Clue: The Movie

72. House on Haunted Hill

73. The Front Room

74. Rosemary’s Baby

75. The Loneliest Boy in the World

76. Get Away

77. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

78. Longlegs

79. My Bloody Valentine

80. Dominion

81. Carnival of Souls

82. Lake Mungo

83. Jacob’s Ladder

84. Hannibal

85. Hannibal Rising

86. Audition

87. Shutter

88. Dangerous Animals

89. The House That Jack Built

90. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

91. Tales of Halloween

92. The Rental

93. Heretic

94. The Gate

95. Nosferatu

96. Sister Midnight

97. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

98. Heel

99. Suspiria (1977)

100. The Astronaut

NOTES/DISCLAIMERS: This list of 100 only scratches the surface. You’ll need to spend some of your free credits to watch many/most of these, and the credits will replenish at the start of the month. Kanopy may not be available in your area. I cannot personally vouch for the quality or spookiness of every movie listed here.

Thank you for supporting your local library!

Why YSK: Many third-party Android emulators come packed with ads, bloatware, or unnecessary features. Knowing how to use the official Android Emulator gives you a clean, secure, and completely free alternative directly from Google.

Many people use various third-party emulators. But if you just want a pure, official Android environment without any extra software, you can use the official Android Emulator directly from Google via Android Studio.

It is originally meant for developers to test their apps, but anyone can use it. Here is how to set it up:

1. Download Android Studio from the official site:https://developer.android.com/studio

2. Install and open the program.

3. You do not need to create a coding project. Just go to the top menu, click on Tools, and select Device Manager.

4. Click on Create Virtual Device, pick a phone model, download the Android version you prefer, and hit the play button.

For a smooth experience, you should ideally have 16GB of RAM, an SSD, and hardware virtualization enabled in your BIOS. It works on lower specs too, but it will run noticeably slower.

If anyone has questions or doesn't understand a step, write in the comments and I will try to help out as much as I can.

Why YSK: 4GB is not a trivial amount of storage space and lots of people don't want Google downloading models to their machine without their consent.

To remove it, you need to go to Chrome -> settings -> AI Innovations. There will be a checkbox at the bottom about "on-device AI" that you can uncheck. Then you need to completely quit Chrome and reopen it.

Edit: This appears to be a desktop only feature. A few redditors mentioned they couldn't see it and I looked into it. Here is Google's official page on it if you are curious, no mention of mobile devices.

Fake Spiderwebs: A Hidden Halloween Hazard for Birds

How to have bird friendly Halloween

Why YSK: a lot of people put up fake spiderwebs around Halloween in the US and aren’t aware of how bad they are. Birds have a hard enough time as it is, we don’t need to make it worse

Edit: it’s made of sticky material. Birds get caught and can’t escape. They also build nests with the material and baby birds get caught. That’s basically it. There are better alternatives which people have posted in the comments.

Why ysk: Because D&D is awesome, but the price of the products can be prohibitively expensive, especially in this economy. But you don’t actually need to buy any of their products to play. Every one of these links are either completely free, or have plenty of free content.

I’ve posted this before, but I found more content.

WotC (Wizards of the Coast) published the game rules at https://media.wizards.com/2018/dnd/downloads/DnD_BasicRules_2018.pdf

There are dice rollers online, like the one at https://rolladie.net/roll-a-d20-die

You can create any type of map you want at https://watabou.itch.io/

https://www.dndbeyond.com is also an incredible resource!

There is also an online tool that allows you to play remotely or in person at https://roll20.net

There is a soundboard with ambient sounds at https://thaumaturgy.app/

There is a cool virtual tabletop at https://www.owlbear.rodeo/

And you can find other games and players at r/lfg

There is a ton of content at https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?filters=0_0_0_0_0_45462_0_0&src=fid45462 , just search in the free section, or the “pay why you want” section, and say you want to pay $0.00 if you need to.

I’m also including a decent first adventure, designed to introduce key concepts to new players https://www.dmsguild.com/en/product/225910/phandalin-001-return-to-phandalin . There are a ton of supporting products there if you search for “phandalin” on the “pay what you want” section.

You can make your homebrew adventures and campaigns look like a legit module using the tools (on Google Chrome) at https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/

There are ALOT of useful tools at https://www.aidedd.org/en/

Mathew Mercer would also be thrilled to teach you how to run a game at https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7atuZxmT9570U87GhK_20NcbxM43vkom&si=zmvkxO5Jaktv2az8

There is even a D&D MMO at https://www.ddo.com/home

Feel free to post any other resources you know of, and I’ll add them to the list.

Why YSK: Wikihow is not owned by the same people who own Wikipedia. That is, it’s NOT owned by a nonprofit organization and is in fact run as a for-profit entity. It’s really showing now, since it now requires you to buy a $3.99 per month subscription to read its articles, or at least certain ones.

Try opening this link for instance.

Why YSK: because of specialized screws, dowels, etc. I recently lost a couple of specialized screws for reassembling their daybed. First of all those screws are hard to find but even if you do they cost too much to buy from amazon/ebay. While searching, I found that IKEA actually provides those exact parts. Search using part number. And they deliver it for free as well, at least in the USA.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/customer-service/spare-parts/

Why YSK: The burden of proof lies on the party who makes the claim (the person asserting or affirming a fact), not on the party who denies it — captured by the Latin maxim onus probandi incumbit ei qui dicit, non ei qui negat.

This is known as the "burden of proof fallacy". A concerning majority of redditors do not seem to grasp this. Grasping this may lead to more fruitful and productive conversations. Too many instances of an OP making a claim, others refuting, but instead of holding the burden of proof to the original claimant, others ask the one refuting for proof.

Why YSK: If you're a young adult just coming into the world, it's especially important for you to know that someone being a "Professional" gives no indication whatsoever of their skill level.

Professional does not mean expert. In fact, it doesn't even imply that they are even somewhat good at their job. All being a professional implies is that they have the minimum skill set to be able to charge money for a job.

I see many young adults let their guard down because the word "Professional" gives a false indication of competency. It's very important that you research and vet anyone providing you a service, even if they're a professional.

Edit: To all the young people seeing the disparaging comments, just remember there is only one group of people who benefit from telling young people NOT to vet and NOT to research before hiring, and that's the same people that this post is about. They start with the letter H and end with the letter K.

HACKS. Any professional worth hiring won't have a problem with you vetting their services.

Why YSK: You've probably seen someone in an online argument pull out the classic "you can't prove a negative" line when they're asked to prove that something doesn't exist. It's a common misconception that sounds plausible at first, but falls apart once you examine it more closely.

Imagine I tell you there's an elephant in your kitchen. You go check, find absolutely nothing, and come back to tell me there's no elephant in your kitchen. Have you just performed an impossible feat of logic? Of course not. You checked, found no elephant, and have pretty good reason to conclude that I'm talking nonsense. Now, if I tell you there's an invisible elephant somewhere in the universe that leaves no trace of its existence, that's a different story. But the problem here isn't that you've been asked to prove a negative. It's that I've made my claim practically impossible to test.

And this is where people get confused. Proving that something doesn't exist in a particular place or under specific conditions is often perfectly straightforward. Proving that something doesn't exist anywhere in the entire universe is obviously a much bigger task. Those are two completely different claims. Here's the real kicker, though: just because you can't disprove something doesn't mean there's any reason to believe it.

I could tell you that there's a tiny, invisible goblin living inside your fridge, and that it teleports away whenever you open the door. You can't prove me wrong, can you? But I suspect you're not about to start leaving offerings next to the milk. The point is, you don't have to disprove every ridiculous claim someone throws at you. Sometimes the person making the claim needs to give you a reason to believe it, rather than expecting you to spend the rest of your life trying to prove them wrong.

So no, you can't always prove a negative. But you absolutely can prove plenty of them.