Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2022 July 21

= July 21 =

Cookies and butter
Why is it better to let butter soften to room temperature prior to mixing with sugar when making cookie dough? And why is it preferred to let it soften overnight on its own, rather than using the microwave oven to speed up the process? --🌈WaltCip - (talk)  12:51, 21 July 2022 (UTC)
 * 1) It is easier to mix butter when it is softer than when it is hard from the refrigerator. 2) Microwaves don't heat evenly, and can easily melt the butter, or parts of it, which you don't want.  -- Jayron 32 12:58, 21 July 2022 (UTC)
 * If you try to mix the sugar with butter that is still cool or cold you are going to get clumps that will make unsavory cookies - I made that mistake when I was young. Considering the temps this summer you'll only have to take it out of the fridge an hour or so before using :-) MarnetteD&#124;Talk 02:44, 23 July 2022 (UTC)

Creating plastic solutions/alternatives database
I wonder if Wikipedia would be a good host for an encyclopedia of solutions to plastic, maybe even climate change. I wonder if creating a sub-wiki for that would make sense. Just thought to bring it up and see if and how it could fit best into Wikipedia structure? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.190.79.116 (talk) 19:55, 21 July 2022 (UTC)


 * In order to use WIkipedia for this, every one of the "solutions" would have to have been discussed by multiple independent reliable sources, to meet Wikipedia's criteria for WP:notability. I don't think it is a match for Wikipedia's purposes (see WP:NOTHOWTO).
 * The mediawiki software that Wikipedia uses is free to install, if you want to create an independent wiki; or there are sites such as Fandom.com where you can readily create a new wiki. See List of wikis. ColinFine (talk) 20:03, 21 July 2022 (UTC)
 * We have no sub-wikis. Instead, we organize the material in categories. We have article categories Plastics and the environment and Climate change mitigation, as well as the more encompassing category Global environmental issues. Surely, information that is relevant and verifiable can be added to some existing article or may form the basis of a new article. We also have a WikiProject Environment and a WikiProject Climate change. --Lambiam 13:18, 22 July 2022 (UTC)