- **Bootstrapping precision machine tools**: Discussion centered on modern paths to self-built machine tools—lost-foam casting, hot-wire CNC, cheap Chinese ballscrews/linear rails, open-source controllers, metal-reinforced epoxies (Moglice, JB-Weld) for precision surfaces, and air bearings on granite or epoxy-granite bases.  
- **Stewart-platform CNC concept**: fenn proposed eliminating traditional linear rails entirely by using Stewart-platform hexapods driven by ballscrews or roller leadscrews, aiming for higher precision with fewer custom-machined parts.  
- **Concrete lathe archive**: Link shared to archived design drawings (https://web.archive.org/web/20180611080154/http://concretelathe.wikispaces.com/Current+Design+Drawings) for the low-cost concrete-bed metal lathe project; participants noted the absence of build photos.  
- **Academic publishing strategy**: Extended debate on whether an undergraduate should “paper-max”; consensus that raw publication count is the dominant currency for academic advancement, with 2–4 papers per year seen as a practical target, and collaboration/multi-author papers an efficient route.  
- **Firefox vertical tabs**: Mozilla Nightly now ships native sidebar vertical tabs, ending decades of reliance on extensions; participants joked about Opera’s demise and potential new revenue models for Mozilla.  
- **Glutathione precursors**: jrayhawk highlighted whey and egg whites as rich sources of glutamylcysteine that bypass part of the transsulfuration pathway, similar to N-acetylcysteine (NAC).  
- **Antioxidant–glutathione interaction**: Discussion on whether exogenous antioxidants reduce glutathione demand; jrayhawk cautioned that oxidized polyphenols and ascorbate can be reactive, linking Whole Health Source posts on polyphenol hormesis.  
- **Independent authorship question**: A non-academic contributor asked whether solo-author papers appear suspicious; advice was to secure at least one PhD co-author for credibility and journal targeting.