PSA: no name is impossible to pronounce. no name is too hard to learn, no name is justifiably butchered. kids with ‘different’ names should be taught again and again that being called by their name is a right, not a privilege
there are over 2000 unique phonemes (individual sounds) in the world’s languages, and each language has anywhere from around 20 to 60. you stop learning new phonemes it’s theorized at around age 12. this is where accents come from – using your own language’s/region’s phonemes to speak
so no name is impossible to pronounce world-wide, but it is very easy to not have the linguistic archive necessary to pronounce a given name entirely correctly. it is a simple case of physically not knowing where to place your tongue, whether or not to vibrate your vocal chords, etc. the only one of the dictators of sound you could be shown is how to position your lips
that being said… obviously you should still try. saying a name as correctly as you physically can goes a long way for making someone feel respected and humanized, and dismissing a name entirely as too hard goes a long way to disrespect and dehumanize people. just also accept that someone’s accent interfering with their pronunciation isn’t a sign of lack of trying, but a sign of physical limits
This is very true. I met a baby at my old store whose name was Navajo. I did my best and actually got a bit frustrated because there was a syllable I could NOT get, and her dad was like “it’s very hard if you don’t actually speak Diné, but thank you. Most people won’t even try.”
Be the one who tries.
THIS.
It’s sometimes impossible to pronounce names simply because you’re not familiar with the sounds (hell, some languages I literally do not hear the difference between certain vowels or constants because my language is rather poor in those and I literally never heard said sounds). But trying, that’s what counts.
And stop being little bitches when someone from a different culture tries but finds it impossible to pronounce your name. If they try and fail, they probably feel worse about it than you do.
I would agree with “always try”, except that there are people who have had their names mispronounced enough they’re tired of re-hashing the same conversation about what their name should sound like, and go by another name instead.
Really, it should be respect people’s wishes about their name. Use the name they tell you to use. If that name is hard for you to pronounce then yes, definitely try!
My surname is just not possible for most Japanese speakers, and that’s okay! (Same phoneme as Flip and Flint). I had an adapted version I used in Japanese class that fits Japanese sounds. I’ve also had an Afrikaans speaking professor who just got plain tired of American students who couldn’t handle van Der Merwe, so he went by Dr. [First name].
People have different preferences. Some want you to try (knowing how common failure is), some have adaptations to use, some go by a different name, etc. The key point is following someone’s preference. Same as you would for pronouns. “What would you like me to call you?” is never a bad question (and can help getting a reference to the sound). But I do think it is a stretch to think every human on earth can hear and make every phoneme. It’s a matter of muscle memory, often from when you are learning your first language as a baby.
Have you ever listened to a good beat boxer? There’s a ton of sounds the human mouth CAN make, but most people are restricted to a subset of those.
German people struggle to say “Squirrel”, English speakers can’t say “Eichhörnchen” (German for Squirrel). It gets so much worse for people when a language does not use letters in the same way as their language does. That’s why Anglophones fumble on Irish “Caiomhe” and “Niamh” - mh does not make a V sound in English Orthography. Orthography makes a big difference in how we approach unknown words. Applying English orthography to other languages almost always turns out wrong, though! You can’t “sound it out” for a word with an orthography you don’t know.
I feel this. Many people butcher my name so I go with a diminutive version just to make it easier.
Holy WHAT
no way can you predict how this is gonna end
This is NileRed. He has a YouTube channel if you want to see his content but don’t use Tiktok. On YouTube, he posts longer videos (like this one where he makes moonshine out of toilet paper), and he also has a second channel called NileBlue where he posts videos that are just as high quality as those on the main channel (mostly secondary content like cleaning up after main channel experiments but there’s also cool one-off NileBlue bits like the bismuth knife video).
Short videos like the one in this post can be found at NileRed Shorts. You may or may not have seen the short where he destroys a gummy bear with potassium chlorate circulating on Tumblr.
“Northern countries use four times or more material per capita than planetary boundaries allow. In comparison, a majority of countries (mostly Southern) use less material per capita than could be safely allocated. This is the result of imperial, neo-colonial relations between the North and South, such as the structural adjustment programs implemented by the IMF since the latter half of the 20th century. Among other things, these relations have regimented access to valuable resources for the North, and the fact remains regardless of whether the ‘transnational capitalist class’ is to blame. In order to liberate the working classes within Southern countries, the dissolution of imperial relations between the North and South is prerequisite. Without the possibility of absolutely decoupling energy and material throughput from planetary boundary variables such as land-system change, aggregate consumption in the North will have to be significantly reduced—both to accommodate renewed exchange with the South and as a measure against ecological collapse.”
— Gray Maddrey, Class struggle or degrowth?
There are many new friends on the archive, and many are young and have only known social media, which is why I wanted to say something!
Ao3 does not have an algorithm! It isn't a social media site, it's an archive.
Posting fics on Tumblr isn't the same as posting fics on Ao3
Ao3 is like a giant virtual bookshelf, and everyone is able to add their own stories to the bookshelf, all stored with different tags and different fandoms. Works are automatically sorted by newest to oldest, but filters, looking at bookmarks, and using the search function can change that.
Certain works are not pushed to the top like social media posts. More kudos and reads don't push a single work to more viewers by some algorithm. Unless otherwise filtered, works will be at the top of the page based on how recent it was posted.
Smaller fandoms get less views, less kudos, less bookmarks, and larger fandoms get more simply because of the number of people inside the fandom.
Ao3 is a giant virtual bookshelf- there is no algorithm, and there is no man behind the shelf pushing certain books forward.
Happy reading, and if you'd like to have more people notice a fic, why not share it with them! Send a dm to a fandom friend and it might turn into one of their favorite fics!
Me duele la cabeza
This is actually examples of the field of mathematics called topology and it’s fucking bullshit wizard shit.
finally, applied mathematics
Bullshit wizard shit
Sometimes I get curious about historical silence.
Two decades ago I couldn't stream nearly any song, show, or movie I wanted at a whim just to fill the volume of my living room. With background noise. Eighty years ago I couldn't turn on the TV and let it run during the day while I donut her things. A century ago I probably wouldnt have had a radio, and another 50 years before that a phonograph would have been a novelty not a household commonality.
What did homemakers and those who existed mostly in the domestic sphere do before technologies of recording and broadcast became common? Did they have other ways to divert their attention? Was the world literally quieter? Were they simply acclimated to it? Was conversation - forced or natural - the medium of the time?
Sometimes I get curious about historical silence, and how our forebears shaped it.
I think everyone just talked. All the time. And that thought is SO WEIRD to me!
today we live in much more enclosed spaces than we did a hundred years ago.
the farming family would be larger than today and would live in a smaller house that's less insulated. let me give you a soundscape memory or two.
yorkshire, the 28th of july, 1819. there's a small fire going a couple meters to your right. stew bubbles away on the hearth and your mother chops vegetables. it's summer and the door and windows are open. you hear several kinds of birdsong and the wind rustling through the fields. occasionally there's a chicken clucking and a faint moo from the cows your father is milking. old sarah-lou being pestered by the cat again. in your lap is the rustle of linen. you're mildly annoyed that your brother amos keeps tearing his pants doing silly things like jumping off the roof. there's creaking to your left. grandma crighton is in her rocking chair, grandpa made her that, and humming a tune from days gone by. there's the gentle clacking of her knitting needles. the old hound decides he'd like a little more warmth and there's the tik tik of his nails on the wooden floor. your mom tosses him a bit of meat which he snarfs down before lying down and sighing.
maybe you don't live outside of town. maybe you live in the city.
moscow, the 5th of april, 1910. it's a decent enough spring day so you have the window open. there's the familiar tverskaya din a few streets over, people selling all manner of wares and haggling over prices. there always seem to be a horse trotting by carrying people around the city. a busker plays folk music on their fiddle somewhere nearby. there are children playing ball. inside the dominant sound is the clock on the mantle tick tocking away. there are occasionally crackles from the stove as you bake some sweet bread for your elderly neighbor darya. you enjoy the tiny sounds of burning tobacco in your pipe. you adjust your position in the leather chair, it squeaking and your stiff uniform crinkling. there's a knock on the door! you set the pipe on its tray, stand, and straighten your clothes. mister grigorovich isn't one to overlook such untidiness. you open the door, which needs to be oiled, and who should be there but alexei, back a day early! you welcome him in, and can't help but giggle a bit at the sweet nothings he whispers in your ear.
I enjoyed the vignettes you invented
It’s actually really important to be able to entertain an idea without accepting it.
It’s also important to understand that our thoughts don’t always reflect our beliefs, and that’s normal. Being able to consider things, whether they fit within our morality or not, is actually a critical part of the brain’s function.
When you are one with the music
Luvs it
WHO IS SHE
ALONDRA DE LA PARRA
She looks like she’s casting spells
I'mma add some more, because her intensity and passion make her absolutely fascinating to watch.
And also: Aliens.
How to Ride a Werewolf
Now remember, a lady rides sidesaddle, NOT astride. Your mother would be in hysterics at the very idea that a daughter of hers would ride a werewolfastride! Why, next you’ll be showing ankle…
i genuinely do not know which is funnier:
The possibility of site renowned werewolf fucker actually adding something that the filter took down.
OR
just adding the ‘content has been removed’ image to imply that it was nsfw.
reblog if AAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
アアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアアア
啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊
This is such an abstract type of comedy I don’t even know how to handle it
The Addams family 1964 means a lot to me
also I’m notdayle on IG and on tiktok
not to oversimplify an extremely complex discipline but if i had to pick one tip to give people on how to have more productive interactions with children, especially in an instructive sense, its that teaching a kid well is a lot more like improv than it is like error correction and you should always work on minimizing the amount of ‘no, wrong’ and maximizing the amount of ‘yes, and?’
for example: we have a species of fish at the aquarium that looks a lot like a tiny pufferfish. children are constantly either asking us if that’s what they are, or confidently telling us that’s what they are. if you rush to correct them, you risk completely severing their interest in the situation, because 1. kids don’t like to engage with adults who make them feel bad and 2. they were excited because pufferfish are interesting, and you have not given them any reason to be invested in non-pufferfish. Instead, if you say something like “It looks a LOT like a tiny pufferfish, you’re right. But these guys are even funnier. Wanna know what they’re called?” you have primed them perfectly for the delightful truth of the Pacific Spiny Lumpsucker
I was in martial arts for years, and in particular I kinda specialized in working with the younger kids.
The two Big Rules when instructing younger students was- 1. Compliment before Critique 2. Don’t say ‘but’, say ‘now’
Praise kids on what they get right first, especially if they are struggling. Like OP said, kids don’t like to engage with people who make them feel bad. They need encouragement when learning new things.
Number two boils down to this. If you tell a kid a compliment, then say but you need to fix this”, that ‘but’ completely negates your compliment. It’s gone. It was canceled out like adding a negative to a positive.
Using “hey, that punch is looking great, now let’s focus on your stance” doesn’t verbally cancel out the progress they’ve made. It’s like they’ve checked off something on their list of stuff to work on.
Wording can absolutely make or break a child’s motivation and interest.
Rebloggling as it’s relevant in a Medical Education context
Honestly I use all of these to teach vet students too. I think people in general respond better to positivity in teaching. Not coddling, but acknowledging when a student got part way to the right answer, or had a good thought process, is something I’ve found keeps students engaged and builds confidence, which encourages them to keep going instead of shutting down and just “getting through” a lab or a rotation
Too many children in the comments like ‘I think authors should be able to share ko-fi links :) it’s just nice’ and ‘OP is just a cop.’ Homie, OP is trying to keep AO3 fully functional without interruption. I will report your ass, too, because I value fic artists and our freedom of expression and my audience and our shared history far more than I value the few bux you wanna make on a commission.
It is not hard to link to your Tumblr or Twitter with a vague message like, “If you’re looking for my other works or other ways of supporting me, go here: link.” I have had people buy me coffees after enjoying my fic and asking where to support me. I threw up a link to my Tumblr and people cared enough to follow it. They were fully understanding when I explained in the comments that they could not commission me and I could not link them directly to any donation platform, but they could go to xyz link to read more. And they did! Nobody has to put AO3 directly on the firing line.
Go ahead and commission independently. Just do it anywhere else except on AO3. And then don’t come crying to the community when you, personally, get a C&D from a massive corporation.
AO3 is our bullet shield. Tumblr will pull your shit down. Wattpad won’t fucking protect you. LJ and FF.net already sold our asses for one (1) corn chip. AO3 is trying to protect us, you goddamn lemmings.
If you cannot follow the rules that protect fanspaces, you do not belong in our fanspaces.
The only people who misunderstand this are doing so intentionally and maliciously. Do yourself a favor and block the infants who think this isn’t a big deal.
Please remember that this ALSO INCLUDES FANDOM CHARITY AUCTIONS.
When you post charity auction fics, DO NOT note that they are commissions in any way. You can note them as “here is my thank you gift to X for such-and-such event” but please please PLEASE do not list them as commissions.
I think a lot of younger people are seeing this as a moral panic by OP. These are NOT being laid out as moral injunctions! This is not about being good! This is about covering your own ass and keeping fandom away from larger-scale legal trouble. No one is saying “If you break the rules you’re BEING BAD!” They’re trying to tell you “breaking these rules is DANGEROUS for yourself and potentially others as well!”
One day I had to lie on the floor to reach something that fell under the couch and after I retrieved the item I just. Stayed there. For like half an hour
Felt great
i need to clip through the floor like bethesda made me
@kingscrown666 I love sitting on the floor too. I tend to start on the sofa and then I'll slide down. Getting up can be a bitch to my ankles but it never stopped me.