#also the last year or two is the most consistent I've ever been in technique and style

[lushslug]

oh yeah uhm, same anon from before but i was meaning to ask, like; how do you colour? Its okay if you don't want to answer that! The style is so nice, i only colour in flat colours but i've been meaning to change my style a bit but idk how ^^;;

Hope you don't mind me asking you question! Have a nice day!

Hello again! I don't mind at all, I'm happy to share - I love talking about this stuff! It'll probably get long and rambly so sorry in advance.

I don't always have the most consistent style or coloring method but the one I use the most is closer to how I like to paint with oil, I guess. I tend to put a real messy sketch down, maybe cleaning it up some without doing lines. Then I do some base colors underneath to get a general idea of how I want it to look before painting more details on top of everything (in a new layer or after flattening all the layers). During the first stage I like to throw colors I want to incorporate underneath like you would to "underpaint" in oil painting - just separate layers that I color drop from like this:

Which is what I used for this:

You can kind of see the base color stage w/ the underpainting on this one (it was just a sketch so I never got to detailing):

And I'm not always happy with the colors so sometimes I play with gradient layers to make adjustments to the palette retroactively.

Other times I do just paint in black and white and then use overlay layers to color after, which is another painting technique called glazing, I like it when I want something to have strong values (or when I'm feeling like painting in b&w):

Anyway, that's the gist! Feel free to ask more if you have questions or I didn't make sense lol. I happened to have some progress gifs and videos hanging around so it was a fun excuse to post them!

More than anything I think it's fun to just experiment throwing things down and seeing what you think looks cool! Breaking away from what you're used to doing can be hard but it's rewarding when you make something new!

[tysonfurybattlepass]

What kinds of martial arts/fighting do you do? I've always been interested in stuff like that but I'm really short and petite. It doesn't seem possible for me to do.

haha, you’ve come to the right place. i’m 5’3 (160cm) and at my highest ever weight right now, a whopping 115lb (about 52kg). ive been training for over a decade now and competing/teaching almost as long so I’m Your Guy lol

i started with brazilian jiujitsu when i was thirteen. i thought it would be fun and i wanted to strengthen my heart and lungs, as i was a frail victorian waif with pots and asthma. started with once a week, fell in love, and soon was clocking in an hour or two five days a week. i exclusively trained and competed in bjj for 3-4years before i decided i was done being bad at standup fighting so i added in muay thai. fell in love with that too. competed in a couple national tournaments and took third and second. post-covid, hopped into boxing. my most impressive achievements are on that stage imo, having taken gold and silver in two regional tournaments last year (gold/silver match was against the same opponent both times! so i guess that makes us even…) just recently started seriously building my standing-grappling game (which is still weak rip) by adding in freestyle wrestling and judo. i train and spar mma regularly, but have not competed under that ruleset.

so to answer your question: i do a little bit of everything.

some advice from a small but determined combat athlete:

1. being smaller than your training partners and opponents is frustrating. it is disheartening. people will get away with doing shit that is objectively bad and wrong on you because they can brute force it. it’s not because you aren’t good enough. there are also ways to mitigate this:

2. as a small person, your assets will be precise technique, accurate timing, agility, and endurance. because you are small, you will naturally be more technically competent. if you do something wrong against someone bigger than you, it simply won’t work. thus, you will have more incentive to do it right! once you build up to a consistent training schedule, you will have better movement and endurance than a bigger person because you simply have less weight to move. ergo, moving yourself is an easier task. use this to your advantage. wether the storm until big boy gets tired and then tool him around👍

3. this applies to exercise in general and i cannot stress it enough: do not go hard at first. do not jump into the deep end. start out with two classes a week. ideally 45min-1hr classes, on different days, with at least one rest day in between. your body needs time to adapt to new workloads, or else you’ll just be hurt and sore and burned out. do that until it feels easy! then bump it to four days a week, which is when you’ll start to see real technical progress.

4. establish your goals for training before you commit to anything! are you looking for fitness? competition? self-defense? or are you just trying to have fun? each sport offers different benefits and potential drawbacks. i’d be happy to elaborate more on that if you wish. feel free to ask about whatever you’re interested in and i can recommend what to look for :3

combat sports is half my personality and the entirety of my irl social life nowadays. 10/10 would do again despite mild ouchie and being tired a lot

[kittykatinabag]

Cab driver today asked if I had any plans for Christmas. I told him I don't and he was a bit flabbergasted.

The only thing I could respond with was "I'm used to it"

But that's a lie. I'm not used to it. I'm really quite bummed about missing another year of Christmas. I haven't seen any of my family's faces beyond the occasional post or picture sent. I guess we could video call but I don't like video calling because (probably autistic) reasons.

And I'm fighting the urge to blame myself for not thinking ahead and making plans way earlier in the year. But I was kind of in the midst of a depression slump. Still am, I can feel it in my mind and body. At least the anxiety is not that bad, and when it is bad I know how to control and get through it rather quickly. I just wish those techniques worked with the depression at a more consistent scale.

If there's anything that's settling into a bitter taste on my tongue about this last year and few months, it's that I'm both coming back in one sense with nothing physical to show for it (I don't care about this but this seems to be the lens most people understand the world through), but I'm also not coming back with some big ass trauma like I had after undergrad was done. There's some trauma there, but it's more of an extension of past trauma or a continuation of the constant trauma of living in a capitalistic society/the calamities of this reality. It's nothing world altering in my eyes right now.

That kind of annoys me. If I'm going to fail, at least let me have another god damn mountain to climb up and over. I've done this hike before, multiple times. Part of me wants to be able to shake a manifestation of the last year and few months scream "just let me get hurt, just let me feel the fucking pain!"

That's probably something I should go deeper into if I ever get the will to go back to therapy. But fuck after the shit show that was my therapist here, the thought of not only finding another person but also having to sit through what seems like 6-8 weeks of bullshitting around to figure out if they're actually a decent therapist or not sounds like a waste of everyone's time (but mostly mine).

I don't want to keep blaming my environment for how I've been feeling for the past however many months. But fuck, do I currently hate the dwelling I've been living in. I'll go into the city or somewhere and feel completely fine, good even. Then I'll get tired because walking around outside, it's windy and chilly, lots of people about- the usual. So I get back on the fucking hour tram ride back to this apartment that's in the middle of no man's land, only to get back to a dirty apartment (that I cleaned the previous day, so not even 24 hours of cleanliness), sometimes my flat mate's kid(s) are there and I lose psychic damage every hour they're in the place, and sometimes my other flat mate will have her friends over (they're nice enough on the surface but they're also mostly heavy drinkers, extroverts, and not my crowd 95% of the time). But there's always people here. Even when I'm home alone, it doesn't feel like a good place to just relax. Because by the time evening rolls around, people are back, and my flat mate slams every fucking door when she's back. She was this way at the university dorms too, and I get so fucking stressed when doors slam because it reminds me that for both me and my family, being loud is how we end up being when we're angry and hurt and the sounds of slamming doors is one way that comes out. Also sudden loud noise = stressful in most circumstances. She does this at any time, even at like 1am. It's almost as infuriating as her shit dishwashing skills.

I won't even get into the constant annoyances that is my other flat mate because he is simply summed up by the fact that he's in his early 40s, divorced with two kids from two different women and still single, and is less competent in cooking and cleaning than most of my friends when they were 20. Also he's misogynistic and a functioning alcoholic who does not recognize he's a functioning alcoholic.

I have had the patience of a deity, but even a deity ends up smiting some people. I'm just surprised and a little proud that I haven't blown up on them. But yeah I might cry when I get back to my parents house to see that the only thing not clean is the cat hair that kind of never goes away fully. And I'm okay with that because it's cats.

[queen-of-my-goofball-army]

Undiagnosed Autism-spectrum disorder in The Michells Vs The Machines

I'm sure that more well educated people have put two and two together in this film but I really, really want to put my own spin on it from my experience. For me, as an aspie, film is one of my biggest interests. I love studying and more than anything I love watching and rewatching films. My latest favorite movie was one that I just watched last night for my family movie night, The Michells Vs The Machines. I also went 17 years of my life asking myself the same question that both Rick and his daughter ask each other, what is wrong with him/her?

Well, I'll tell you, in my firmly undiagnosed autistic opinion for far too long, that this family is full of people with undiagnosed autism spectrum disorder. When I was watching it with my parents my mom made the comment that "the dad was a jerk" and maybe "he just didn't love his daughter enough to let her be her own person." I thought that was so not seeing the bigger picture even though it was only fifteen minutes into the film. I have felt like Katie so much with my own dad. My dad is a computer nerd and a physics major for those of you that don't talk to me very often. That means in laminas terms that he's extremely smart. Way smarter than I will ever be in my entire life. Both of my parents are insanely smart in their own rights. My mom is a CPA accountant. But that isn't what I wanted to talk about here. I want to discuss the effect of undiagnosed autism and what it can do to a whole family when they all have it and just don't know that they do. This will probably go on for quite some time so you may stop here or read below the cut because this also has the probablity of getting super, duper personal.

We'll start with Katie! To me, Katie is one of the most relatable characters that I have ever come across. She's a film nerd, which alone has made her supremely relatable as somebody who is thinking about going into a degree in film studies. I am more of a critic of film than somebody who wants to make her own film but nonetheless, there were SO many little moments that I related to. The first thing that I personally noticed and related to was the stimming technique that Katie has. She chews on her hoodie strings. As somebody who has chewed on the drawstrings of hoodies far too often long before I was officially put into the Aspergers box. Aspies are also known to stick with one "special interest" for the rest of their lives if it's one that is wide enough and varied enough to make it applicable. For Katie, that's film. For me that's animation. I appreciated that little detail of most of her dialogue being references to other films because as a lover of films and movies in general I could go for days on just fumes and movie references that nobody else understands. The little things from her hair being perpetually messy (same that's a whole ass mood like I just learned over quarantine how to tye my own hair back), only having one earring in her ear at all times, the way that she dresses and draws on her own hands, this was just me when I was first in high school. I was one of the few people that wore shorts underneath all my skirts/dresses. Everyone who knew about looked at me like I had grown a third eyeball.

Aaron, the younger brother, also just oozes spectrum lil buddy out of his every pore from his being. I do think that they should have picked somebody capable of doing a bit of a younger sounding voice (I know what they were going for, but like Ben Schwartz has become a huge deal in both voice acting and live action before switching mediums.) His special interest is actually quite a common one, he loves dinosaurs. I've met a bunch of people on the spectrum that are fascinated by dinos and what they meant for the world as well as the universe as a whole. To me, there was one scene specifically that was the scene where Katie was lightly teasing him when they were going to the half assed dinosaur extravaganza. For me, this was SO relatable because both of my parents will mess with me about my interests most of the time it's when we go to Disneyland, they'll tell me that we actually aren't going to land of magic but to Timbuckto (hopefully one day they'll say some place else just to switch things up.) I related so hard to Aaron's protesting and whining in this scene since that is always my reaction to doing something that I want to do but get told that I can't do that thing.

Linda is more of your traditional mom but I think that she's on the spectrum as well. Just a more... normalized version as opposed to her family. She's able to be a teacher, she's able to interact somewhat normally around her neighbors. If anything, she reminded me of my own mom. This independent, takes nobody's trash (especially not her husband's), strong minded, and amazing mother who is completely in control of everything. She knows the special interests of her children and is constantly thinking of what will make them happy. Whether it be taking a detour for something dinosaur related, reminding her daughter that her dad loves her no matter what, and even something as simple as watching something that her daughter made and put her heart and soul into. I can't tell you how many times my mom has watched something with me. She watched my first anime Soul Eater with me when I was 12 and ever since then has been trying to get me to watch other shows with her. She's a lot like Linda, your loving, but firm mother who just wants her family to work things out.

Whew boy. This one is going to be probably where I cry. Comparing my dad to Rick is... something that I did consistently when I was watching the film. He's the strong but silent type usually, unless your me and he's just this constant annoyance when I'm trying to do something. He could be seen as just a "Jerk" but I think that is the undiagnosed aspie talking. Rick and Katie just struggle so hard to see eye to eye because their special interests can't intersect to save their lives. This, this hurt me because so often I struggle to relate to my dad. Especially when he talks to me about computers or physics. Now I took physics but without having been in quarantine and having him as my live in tutor I would have failed, not gotten an A. This has resulted me in saying things that I don't mean in the heat of the moment when we do argue. It doesn't happen nearly as much as it used to back when I was in middle school but when it happened it was because of one thing. I lied. I used to lie a lot because I felt so unworthy of being his daughter because on my best days I am not technically smart. You want to know how many nations of the world there were in 1991 when the original Animaniacs was airing? You want to hear my Dot Warner impression? Did you ever wonder how to recognize a specific voice when your watching anime? Have you ever had to watch a panel of your favorite anime voice actor just to laugh at something? No, well I did. But ever since I have started taking a quarter off from community college I have realized something. I am not technically smart. I struggle at learning the rules for math. My dad can do this with his eyes closed but me, I struggle and look like a complete moron. It took years for my dad and I to see eye to eye. Sometimes I still wonder if I was the product of some laboratory experiment of what would happen if two intelligent people came together, fell in love, and expecting that the daughter was smart I was the reject. Watching this movie with my dad I saw so much of my relationship with him on the screen. Struggling to relate to one another, fighting and getting into arguments about petty things, and not being able to be in the same room as one another without heated words because I didn't get him.

The scene that I related to the most when it was in terms of how much Katie just doesn't understand her dad was after he was nabbed by the machines. When Aaron asked her why she said those things to their dad and her simple answer was "I don't know." This. This right here was when I saw me. So many times I've gotten into heated arguments with my dad when he has simply annoyed me at the wrong time and I've just blown up in his face. Then I regret my actions and not know how to apologize for losing my temper with him because "I don't know" just doesn't seem like a nearly acceptable answer. I felt this in my soul because it happened especially often before I was diagnosed.

When I was diagnosed, things started to get better with my dad and I. We haven't had a fight in nearly four years now. He watches cartoons with me now to try and relate to me, it's mostly Pinky and The Brain but it's more than I could have ever asked for. I love my dad so much, more than anything in the entire world. This movie is so, so good at telling a story about how a family of undiagnosed aspie's and people on the spectrum struggle to relate to one another because their special interests are different.

Special interests and family's are especially difficult and I applaud this movie so loud because of the way that it was able to treat the subject matter with integrity and honesty. I'm sorry if this analysis got a little bit long in the toof but thank you for sticking with me! I really hope that if you watched the film you loved my analysis.

[crestfallercanyon]

due to a fic that I'm probably never going to finish, I actually have found a headcanon where I could see Alby and Gally together romantically. And the only reason I bring this up is because someone asked about it a while ago, and I said that I didn't see it ever, but now I actually kind of love this hc despite its roots.

(Again, as I've said before, I'm happy to read fics with them together and am 100% positive it can be done well and compelling and in a way I'd adore, but in my own brain it usually doesn't align because of the way I perceive them in both canon and modern aus)

but I was thinking about what would happen post this very tragic fic I have all planned out, and what post-fic happiness might have looked like for Gally if it came in the form of a new romance. And I realized, it would probably be with someone like Alby. And then jumping off of that, I began to see patterns of how the two would come together, and it's always the same kind of scenario.

The way I can see the two of them pairing up is in modern aus, when they're a little older and already a little burned by the world, but are trying to be better.

(more under the cut, but TW: mental health, abusive relationships

The one time I see them getting together is after Gally's already been through a relationship that put him through the ringer. It ended horribly, not on his terms, and it will probably never have real closure. And moving on from it would be so damn hard. One of those times when life rips you open and while you learn how to bandage it up and keep moving, it's not scarring over. It's still this open wound that's very tender, and Gally doesn't really like talking about things until they're scars -- when they're healed as well as they can be, tough skin has grown in its stead, he is for the most part moved on, then he can talk about it freely -- but this is just not becoming that. So he doesn't talk about it. But externally, his life seems healed, he's got his job and his home and his friends, those are all in order and where they should be, so he just pretends he's fine to keep the status quo. Which is only making this wound fester and worsen and it's exhausting because he's literally bleeding out of this all the time and has no idea how to really heal it and he doesn't want to screw up everything to try.

That's when he meets Alby.

Alby in modern aus... I don't write him much, but I always headcanon him of having some mental health issues that he's been long learning how to manage, and being either a motivational speaker, a counselor, or like a group-therapy leader -- someone who helps others deal with similar problems that he's grown up with or just knows how to connect and guide people who have these sorts of life challenges. (I think it's because as a Glader I think his trauma and how he copes with it, movie or book verse, is such a huge part of him). To be specific, a lot of times I hc of having diagnosed OCD, or PTSD, clinical depression, things like that. But the key thing here is that Alby has been long learning about his coping mechanisms, and what his triggers are, and knows the signs that he's losing his balance of everything. Alby mostly does a very good job maintaining his mental health the best he can. So he's got his life pretty well together. And when hc-ing these two together, I feel like him having his life together is fairly long-standing and now he wants to put down roots.

So, when these two meet, neither are what the other thinks they are looking for. But they also hit it off in a way they weren't expecting either.

After years and years of teaching himself how to spot triggers and emotional tethers and self-guidance techniques, Alby can spot Gally's an internal disaster from a mile away, though he does admit he hides it well. And for the longest time, that would have sent Alby running. Alby's always striving for stability, consistency, and he was struggling to keep it in himself, so the last thing he thought he'd need is someone to come in with their mess and screw with his very carefully curated balance. Except the issue is, 1) everybody has baggage that makes things unstable and it's always been an unrealistic goal for him to find someone who doesn't, and 2) people who had no experience with any of the stuff he's gone through tend to patronize him for having it OR don't believe him because he's got his crap so together until shit hits the fan and he needs them for it and then they bail. And he's sick of that cycle. It's frustrating. It also brought Alby to a dark place because if his partner wasn't comfortable with his mental health, he would bury the fact he was struggling so that he didn't disappoint them. It was not good for him.

Gally for most of his life thought he was the stable fixture. Confident and sure in himself and good with boundaries. He didn't mind that between him and his ex-partners, he was the one with his shit together, because he didn't mind being his partner's safety nets. In fact, he kind of prided himself on it. Then he got himself fucking shredded. This last relationship showed him he was not those things he thought and was instead very good at: ignoring feelings of insecurity until he just feels anger which is the professionally "allowed" feeling so "hooray" for him, driving heightened emotions into physical action so he never had to think about why he felt the way he did, and having boundaries until something he's loyal to is threatened in which he tears all of them down and drives himself into the ground to try to make sure whatever he's loyal to is okay. And he's at least wary enough post-shitty relationship to understand he can't keep doing that or he's going to completely lose himself.

So, whereas in the past Gally would not have interested someone like Alby, now, he's actually kind of the perfect combination of what he needs. On the one hand, man Gally is terrible at setting up his own boundaries and putting himself first ever. But they can work on that, and honestly, the fact that this is Gally's default is kind of endearing in a terrible way (good motivations, bad outcomes). On the other hand, Gally is stable. He doesn't screw up Alby's balance at all, he's predictable, even in ways he shouldn't be, and dependable (to a fault, but Gally recognizes that in himself, they're working on it). On that note: Gally wants to learn, not just about how to help himself, he wants to learn how to keep Alby comfortable, too. Gally's genuinely interested in being there for him. He doesn't demean Alby's baggage or patronize him, nor does he freak out. He's very supportive, and he also is willing to call Alby out on his crap when Alby's lying to himself, which in the moment Alby gets upset, but Gally can take the upset if it means helping out long run. And Alby really appreciates that.

For Gally, Alby would have never interested him because he always conflated being wanted with being needed, and Alby clearly doesn't need him, so he'd never have been able to be convinced that Alby wanted him. Now, though? He knows that's not how it works. Alby not needing him? It's a comfort. And he certainly knows Alby wants him. He knows Alby cares about him, he checks in, and he expects Gally to check in as well. Alby is encouraging, and not just when he's apologizing for something, he's encouraging Gally all the time. Also, Alby doesn't let Gally drive himself into the ground. Won't. Gally hates and loves how good he is at making Gally talk through his garbage (in fact, Alby would protest him calling it 'garbage'). Deciphering what Alby wants from Gally is not this fucked up game where Gally can't win. Alby is clear with what he needs and what he wants. Gally doesn't have to worry about Alby constantly, because he knows Alby is capable all on his own.

So in the end, while the others might tease them on being so stable and kind of stoic (you two are the most adulty adults I've ever met, can't you at least pretend you're bad at taxes or something?), their friends are actually 100% on board of this relationship because it's so healthy and they both deserve it. And they clearly have fun. Because while they're both stable, they're both also extremely competitive in the same way, and they both have the same dry sense of humor (I kind of picture them getting old and having the same dynamic as Captain Holt and Kevin Cozner in B99).

So, to answer your long ago question for the second time, TMRAnon, I do see a situation for them to get together. A very very specific situation that is curated solely out of my other headcanons and niche fic ideas but, hey, that's what fandom is all about, right?

[guide-on-how-to-read-faster]

Guide on How to Read Faster?

Isn't it so much easier to get through school if you could complete your reading assignments three times as fast? Wouldn't it be more fun to jump right into a good piece of fiction and blaze through it in less than a day? Let's explore speed reading in more detail.

The two ways of thinking about speed reading may be familiar to you if you've already looked into the subject. It is said that speed reading is the essence of success and everything you have ever dreamed of. Others say speed reading is a myth and doesn't work. Truth usually lies somewhere in the middle.

When considering speed reading, the first thing you need to ask yourself is: "Why do I want to read faster?" While speed reading novels for pleasure requires a different approach than speed reading textbooks or research articles for understanding hard science, speed reading novels for pleasure requires one approach. When using RSVP tests or Rapid Serial Visual Presentations, individual words or blocks of two or three appear sequentially on the screen.

Reading Process

Before we move on to the techniques, it's important to understand the reading process.

Reading is the action of analyzing a piece of writing to understand its intended meaning. So, reading effectively requires more than just recognizing a series of words. You must also understand the relationship between the words and the unstated implications of the situation.

Compare this to skimming, which is the rapid consumption of text to gain a general idea of what you're reading. The gist of it will become apparent even if you don't comprehend the details. The goal of speed reading is to maintain skim-like reading speeds while maintaining reading-like comprehension.

An educated adult reads approximately 200-400 words per minute. It is claimed that speed readers can read thousands of words in a minute. To do so, they rely on peripheral vision.

The fovea, or center of your visual field, has the highest acuity, about 1° in any direction. The width of your thumb extended at arm's length is approximately this size. The parafovea has moderate acuity between 1 and 5° from the center, and the periphery is greater than 5° from the center. In peripheral vision, it is physically and biologically impossible to recognize and interpret the text.

Try looking at a stationary object, such as where the wall meets the ceiling. Keep your eyes smoothly moving from one side to the other of the line. Unfortunately, it is actually impossible. Multiple small, jerky movements of your eyes are called saccades. During reading, saccades allow the reader to fixate the fovea on a word by moving their eyes quickly.

When speed readers use their fingers to guide their eye movements, I initially thought they employed smooth pursuit. Smooth pursuit occurs when your eyes fixate on a moving object and can follow it smoothly. If you move your finger from side to side in front of you, your eyes will smoothly follow it without jerking. The finger technique speed readers use is less about the pursuit of smoothness and more about maintaining a metronomic pace as they read.

The saccades allow the fovea to focus on the next word. It is estimated that each fixation lasts around 250 milliseconds, but it can vary greatly based on legibility, difficulty, and whether it is proofreading or reading for comprehension or swiping. However, not every word is fixed.

In about half of the sentences, the word "the" is skipped. In certain cases, a word may be skipped even though it has been processed. The rapid serial visual processing (RSVP) technology is useful for displaying information (usually text or images) in which the text appears word-by-word in a fixed focal point. In addition to being a basic reading aid, RSVP is being investigated as a way to boost individual reading rates. Additionally, RSVP is being used for research in visual impairment, dyslexia, perceptual and cognitive psychology. There are many different languages and platforms available for RSVP.

Through these technologies, words are presented to the viewer in the center of the visual field in rapid succession, thereby eliminating the need for eye movements. In light of the aforementioned individual variations, visual processing physiology, and the way we comprehend language, I would argue that RSVP is an inefficient way to consume text. RSVP does not allow for regressions, which is another problem. Regression is a brief look backward in the text to return to an earlier word. The purpose of this is to correct errors' incomprehension. RSVP further reduces comprehension by eliminating the possibility of regressions.

According to proponents of speed reading, subvocalization, or using your inner voice while reading, will slow you down. Numerous studies have examined the effects of eliminating or minimizing subvocalization. Findings consistently indicated decreased comprehension. It makes sense that phonological processing is an important part of reading and comprehension, since all writing systems represent words, and since the primary form of language is vocal rather than visual.

What does all this mean? Perception of visual information occurs rapidly. However, reading is slowed down by linguistic processing. It has been demonstrated that language processing rather than the ability to control eye movements is the determining factor of reading speed in various studies. We are limited in our ability to read by our ability to identify and understand words rather than by our ability to see them. As a result, reading faster actually reduces comprehension, which may or may not matter depending on what you are reading.

Learn how to read faster

After we have clarified the science behind reading and speed reading, we will take a look at how to speed read faster. To read faster, one does not need to read the same way for every reading goal.

As a method of improving one's reading comprehension and speed, it is suggested that one practice more reading. Even though this does help, it's a very slow and gradual process that doesn't produce drastic changes.

To drastically improve speed, comprehension must be reduced. We need to read slower to increase comprehension. There's no way around that; you can only improve slowly.

In each case, we have to balance reading comprehension with reading speed. Is it possible to reduce comprehension minimally, while increasing speed maximally? I have found the following techniques to be the most useful over the years.

1) Determine the Type of Reading

Determine your reading goal and the type of reading you will perform first. It is not necessary to maximize comprehension for every reading task. Do you read nonfiction for pleasure? Do you proofread an essay for a friend? Do you read a textbook for class? Do you read high yield notes and bullet points for one of your classes?

Having a clear goal in mind will help you determine the minimum level of comprehension required and, therefore, the maximum speed that can be achieved.

2) Remain Flexible

Secondly, make sure your speed is flexible. During the reading process, you will come across sections of text that are easy for you. It's a simple language, you understand the concepts, and you can easily get through it. You don't have to focus on every word to understand it.

In other sections, you will be introduced to new words or concepts that require your attention. Often, this will happen, so you must be flexible with your reading speed to optimize your speed/comprehension balance. If you're not sure about the significance of a paragraph, focus on its first and last sentences.

3) Use a Pacer

Use a pacer, such as your finger or a pen. You can follow along with your eyes by running your pacer below each line from end to end. You will instantly increase your reading speed with minimal comprehension loss.

It is important to find the sweet spot between pushing the boundaries of your comfort zone and only slightly reducing comprehension. My opinion is that if you reduce comprehension by 10% but gain 50% in speed, that's not a bad tradeoff. The pacer will need to move faster in places and slower in others, as described above.

Different Types of Reading

1) Textbooks

There is often a lot of unnecessary text in textbooks. There's no need to worry if you accidentally skip a paragraph or a whole section. Pay attention to bolded words or sections that contain key information, and speed up while reading text that adds context to what you've already learned.

Identifying what is important in each section by looking at section headings and bolded terms will make it easier for you to read the section. It may take a few minutes at first, but overall, if you execute it properly, you should save time.

When I'm finished reading a section or page, I summarize what I've learned. Alternatively, I can write a few bullet points or speak out loud to myself. This greatly improves retention and comprehension.

2) Books for Pleasure

If you read for pleasure, you can do whatever you want. If you want to enjoy the nuances of language, then you should slow down. In contrast, if you only wish to grasp the gist, it won't be a problem if your comprehension drops considerably.

It very much depends on the book and what you hope to gain from it. Depending on the book, I read every word or skip sections. The majority of books fall somewhere in the middle.

3) Research

In reading research articles, which you will read a lot during your pre-med, medical school, and residency years, follow a systematic approach. The best way to gain a deeper understanding of the abstract is to read it slowly and carefully. Focus on those key points when you read the full article.

Spend a few minutes reading the abstract, a few introductory paragraphs, the methods and results in sections quickly, and then spend more time on the conclusion.

A Guide to Speed Reading

Problem – The amount of reading material available these days is so overwhelming that often it's impossible to keep up. In this way, we scroll headlines and teasers instead of reading content that will actually educate us. Our lives are often dominated by the pressure to finish our daily tasks on time or keep up with the latest developments in our areas of interest, regardless of whether we are at work or studying.

Solution – Today, speed reading is a highly valuable and essential skill. People who master speed reading techniques can read as much as three times faster than the average reader, who usually reads between 200 and 250 words per minute.

Benefits – When speed reading, the human brain is challenged to perform faster and better. With speed reading, your brain will be trained to absorb information much faster than it is used to. As a result, your memory and brain function will be improved. Additionally, you may benefit from increased general and specialized knowledge, improved problem-solving skills, or increased self-confidence.

A Final Thought

We have compiled this article to teach you how to read faster. This article will describe how speed reading techniques work and provide you with tips, information, and resources to help you read and learn more quickly.

[positivelypetty]

A REALLY long rant on the Joint Training Arc.

Okay, so since the Joint Training Arc is basically done, I thought I would share my various opinions and adress certain issues that A LOT of people had with this arc.

But, before we get into the actual rant, I think I should distinguish the difference between an opinion, criticism and just plain antagonism.

Here is an example of just misinformed toxicity:

This is just being TOXIC!!! You can’t shelter these horrible comments by saying “it’s just an opinion.” Please don’t act like after 4 years of really enthralling writing, he’s now the worst writer ever. Instead, explain why you don’t think this was the best story choice, instead of being clearly misinformed. It’s nothing absolutely terrible, but just a simple example on how people can be so demanding and completely inconsiderate to the creator.

“Forbidding” Horikoshi from writing is actually ridiculous. He WROTE AND CREATED your “precious sons” that you love so much. So, if you claim that the manga is now utter trash because it doesn’t personally cater to you, please abandon or take a long break from the manga/anime to maybe clear your head. Thank you.

We don’t need any more toxicity in this fandom than we already do.

Now with that said, let’s talk about the arc! (Also keep in mind that these ideas spurred from Reddit so, I decided to expand on it)

1-B vs 1-A situation:

I've been reading a ton of comments too, the good, and the bad and it's fine, everyone has their opinions and that's cool, but for me, it didn't seem it was about who won or lost, it was more about how each class was taught. And this boils down to both Vlad and Aizawa.

Vlad has obviously been pushing his students and their quirks to the max in regards to working in teams. This shines through in all of the fights they all work together very well and know the strengths and weaknesses of each other as well as their enemies. They go into a battle with a plan and are ready to execute the plan flawlessly.

Whereas Aizawa I believe has pushed for more individualist thinking style, and I think this comes from his basis of fighting villains. No one will come to save you, you have to be able to handle yourself whether escaping or defeating. He doesn't coddle his students, and he does push them to the brink as well. What's interesting is Class A has had more hands-on experience. With Aizawa’s teaching style I think they sometimes have a harder time working with one another and they can fall apart with their teamwork. HOWEVER their real-life experience has taught them that the best-laid out plans can not go as plan, and they are able to utilize their 'individual' thinking to fight regardless of a plan falling through.

I found it really interesting and I think there's value in both ways of thinking for Vlad and Aizawa. For Class B, they will have to learn how to abandon a plan that's not working and strategize on the fly, and Class A will have to hone their teamwork for long-running battles.

And let's be honest, these are just kids, pushing their bodies and minds to the limit, I don't find Class B to be 'trash' just because they lost, they still fought hard and worked better together in the long run then Class A. Class B didn't have any dead weight with their battles, everyone was utilized and contributed to all their fights. People are so set on who “won” or who “lost” the battle, that people overlook everyone’s overall individual quirks and techniques. I personally believe that many of the 1-B students were amazing and are forces to be reckoned with. It’s just that 1-A knows how to handle themselves when things don’t to go to plan rather than 1-B (as mentioned before) which gave 1-A the upper-hand in most of the battles, but I can definitely name a few fights where Class A's members were carried by their team.

Now to address the Shinsou thing:

To everyone who was PRESSED that Shinsou didn’t win....

What do you expect from Shinsou? I feel like people were overestimating him. Even with those cloth bindings and his quirk. All you need to do is shut your mouth, grab his cloth bindings (at best he has a few months training) keep focusing on him,restrain him, and boom you're done.(I obviously know it’s not that simple, but basically) I love Shinsou, I really do, but he’s basically Aizawa (I love Aizawa too don’t get me wrong). Aizawa mentioned that it took FIVE YEARS for him to truly master his quirk, and even though since this is the younger generation, so he’ll probably get the hang of it sooner, how long as he really been “training” his quirk under Aizawa? Definitely not long enough for him to go 1v1 with someone who is a close combat fighter. (It really isn’t that shocking that Deku won, he could probably win without Black Whip). Don't get me wrong Shinsou has improved MONUMENTALLY but not to the extent of 1-A who has direct experience in fighting villains. I just think people are mainly mad that 1-B lost is as because they think Shinsou won’t get into the Hero Course. Like chill. One of the main reasons 1-A won in the first match was because of Shinsou, so I think that proves that he is MORE than capable to get in to the Hero Course.

The whole OP Deku thing:

First off, I honestly don't expect him to ever match All Might at his prime in terms of consistent pure raw strength. Deku isn't a giant man of pure muscle, so I don't think he'd be able to go 100 and maintain it like All Might could. Deku is more of a person of different techniques and strategy, rather than brute force. Like, I don't know if Deku is going to be throwing punches that can blow away a city block.

That being said, each generation is getting stronger. Like, Endeavor will be surpassed by Todoroki by the time he graduates (if it even takes that long). Iida is already faster than Gran Torino. In the very beginning of the manga, they mentioned Deku will be the strongest holder of OFA, since it gets stronger each generation. Deku will have formidable rivals if the other strong students also reach their full potential. Hell, those rowdy kids we saw at the makeup exam already had really strong quirks at their young age. Generational power creep means that everybody around Deku will get way stronger than the current pros.

I understand the sentiment that Deku doesn't need more quirks, but Deku's quirk development was already approaching a plateau in terms of being able to fully control what power he could handle. He'd just work on his technique and slowly get stronger and stronger. Sure, he's gonna eventually be able to punch/kick hard enough to shoot himself around in the air, but we've already seen that stuff (plus Bakugo does that too). I know Horikoshi is creative and will develop some cool moves for Deku, but Deku's struggle to control OfA was mostly over. All he had to do wast master OFA steadily and he’ll be good. More quirks means that he may unlock more quirks when he's able to use more %. So instead of reaching 30% and just being X amount stronger physically, he may unlock a new tool to try and master/incorporate into his combat toolkit.

If this is a negative turn for the story, we won't even be able to tell until many, many more chapters are released. We may look back and decide that this was a bad move, but we shouldn't assume that's the case when it was literally introduced TWO WHOLE CHAPTERS AGO. (even though I don’t think it was a bad move AT ALL)

What I hope to see in future Arcs:

I think what fans would really enjoy and we could all use some real Deku character development. Deku’s my favorite character, but I feel like people can’t connect to him as much as someone like Todoroki, because his lack of emotional development. He’s indeed way more confident then he was in the beginning, I still feel like he has low self esteem. Someone needs to tell him that he’s worthy of this mega powerful quirk. ( he needs it 😭)We know so much about him, but rarely see him living his day to day life outside of training, costume updates and the occasional villain attack. Last time we got anything close to development in was only told through Aoyama's development.

These next few chapters will definitely give us something, but only as it relates to One for All. I'd honestly like to know Deku's thoughts about his situation, he seems determined that's for sure. Does he feel stressed, uninformed, unprepared, scared...resentful? We can infer a bunch, I'd just like to see him talk to All Might, Bakugo or his mom about it.

In Conclusion:

Honestly, to me,It never seemed to matter who won or lost any of these matches people were gonna complain regardless. When Class A wins they call it predictable and when class B won they say call it BS or plot amor. Even when it’s a draw people got upset saying Todoroki was disappointing. Some people wanted the matches to be fleshed out over a couple of chapters rather than rushed, then a few weeks later complained that it was taking to long. Bakugo wins his match quickly and those same people lose their minds about how they wanted the match to be longer. People complained about Horikoshi not letting the girls shine in battle after the second match, but conveniently forgets Tsuyu was the MVP of the first match and Kendo and Mushroom girl made 1-B win the second match. (AND WE’RE NOT GONNA FORGET HOW URARAKA AND MINA DOMINATED THE MATCH)Then you have the people who say all of 1-B is worthless and then Juzo and Tetsutetsu prove otherwise. Now we have people think Deku is OP but in this new chapter it seems that he much has a limit to using these other abilities but I’m sure that won’t stop the myriad of complaints. Every week the same people come to see the spoilers and complain based off of a fragmented non-contextualized summary of the chapter and wonder why they enjoy the chapter itself less. Maybe going into a chapter with a negative outlook will do that. The part that irks me is that virtually everyone whose binge-read this arc seems to enjoy it only seems to be us week to week readers with a issue. Either way I hope the discussion going into the next arc are far more level-headed constructive than they have been.

I think this will be one of the arcs that played out better once it was animated. Individual panels maybe favored over the anime, but overall pacing will surely favor the anime. Waiting week in and week out, over analyzing every short chapter has really done no favors for fans and Horikoshi.

[domliddle]

Potentially Great Albums. Eric B & Rakim - Follow the Leader

"Follow The Leader", Eric B & Rakim's 1988 second coming, is not a good album.

The duo had four albums before they went their separate ways - while most agree that "Paid in Full" was their magnum opus, from there it gets a bit more difficult. The other three have their own great parts, and their own flaws. Both "Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em" (1990) and "Don't Sweat The Technique" (1992) had broad underlying themes both musically and lyrically. They were demonstrably different from the duo's other works, and polar opposites of each other; there was a sense of artistic development in both cases without sacrificing their own consistency.

Therefore, Follow The Leader is recognisable as somewhat of a transitional album, sitting comfortably between the duo's debut and the more mysterious yet aggressive "Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em".

So why is it still loved, even quoted by some as an improvement on Paid in Full?

As it starts with the title track (Follow the Leader, obviously), it's plain to see that they are both in their prime; the beat is magnificent and perfectly fits Rakim's umpteen brilliant lines. This is where any doubts were dispelled. From there, we go straight into "Microphone Fiend"; a brilliant song that caters perfectly to Rakim's lyrical strengths. It employs a broad theme that allows him to deviate from braggadocio and metaphor into something more, without seeming forced. The beat is also perfect, different to the opener and employing a rhythm that allows Rakim to twist his words around it in different ways. "Lyrics of Fury" is the third track in a row to be one of their most praised; a raw, simple breakbeat that Rakim destroys.

So what's the problem? Well, from here, it falls off a cliff.

"Eric B. Never Scared" is nothing out of the ordinary. A good DJ interlude over a good beat. The problem is that it's over 5 minutes long - aside from the title track, the longest of the lot. Eric B's showcases are, at first, an important part of he and Rakim's albums. However, the track becomes repetitive at, if I'm being generous, 3 minutes in.

It gets worse though. I would contend that "Just a Beat" is the absolute worst song across the duo's entire work. It is simply Eric B, warped voice and all for some reason, talking nonsense before a nice beat comes in. His warped voice then reminds you that it's "a beat", in case you hadn't worked that out, and continues to do so throughout the whole thing. Thankfully, it's a bit shorter than the previous one.

"Put Your Hands Together" is strange. It begins with a minute-long piano piece - one that is actually great, but at odds with the rest of the album, and serves to needlessly drag the song out. When the actual thing starts, it's good - nothing surprising, simply Rakim rhyming over a good, stripped-down funky beat about how great he is in front of a crowd.

"To The Listeners" begins with a pretty awful beat, and someone whispering repeatedly about how it's "To The Listeners" and not the people smelling or tasting the album. Rakim's alright on this, but nothing more. In fact, he sometimes sounds off-beat, and raps too slowly to mesh with it.

"No Competition" is a good song. Not bad at all, and more braggadocio over a faster beat that sounds like Follow the Leader's little brother. "The R" is a song that I've never got - apparently ghost-produced by Mark the 45 King, so expectations are high. It's not bad, but clashes musically with the rest of the album, and Rakim himself. Compared to how raw the rest of the beats sound, it almost dominates the song - not catering to Rakim's strengths.

"Musical Massacre" is also great - probably the best of the lot aside from the opening 3 tracks. There's no unique theme lyrically, and the beat is fast and raw - fitting with much of the album's high points.

The ending is what saves the album. Actually, no it's not - it's the instrumental version of the worst beat on the album, appropriately titled "Beats for the Listeners". I wouldn't even have this as a bonus track.

So, judging from the above, not a great album. But I believe something great could have been made from what's there. So let's rearrange things.

Other opinions are available.

1: To The Listeners - cut down

I have to include this song. Therefore, let's begin by cutting the opening loop (and whispering) down - it's not really a song that needs to showcase the beat. Have one 4-bar loop, before Rakim comes in, and one verse - perhaps the actual opening one, or picking at lines that suit a broad, introductory song. Either way, as a stripped-down, slow interlude of a song, it's better placed to open the album.

2: The R - Extended Remix - cut down

Like I said, "The R" wasn't my favourite song on the album. However, I believe the 45 King's extended remix is a perfect opener after the intro. Strip down the opening part a bit, and cut straight after the "what happened to peace?" sample, and you have a good song. The rest of it can come later...

3: Musical Massacre

My main problem with "Follow the Leader" is that it promises so much - I don't think I've ever seen an album of any genre quite so frontloaded. Therefore, "Musical Massacre" is the perfect follow-up; different to the previous vibes, switching it up without giving away the absolute best. A fast, frenetic display that shows the variety on board. I imagine this as best with "The R"'s ending sample cutting straight into this without a beat.

4: No Competition

Same principle as the previous one - great without being the best.

5: Microphone Fiend

It's now necessary to deviate from the two similarly-minded songs, and at the same time throw one of the duo's best moments in. So here it is. Perfectly placed to break up the album.

6: Put Your Hands Together - cut down

The piano bit needs to go, unfortunately. But it's a smooth song that follows "Microphone Fiend" relatively well, not being too jarring.

7: Eric B. Never Scared - cut down

Well, obviously. Cut it down to 1:30 at the absolute max, and you have an interlude to break up the album. Take it simply as that, and instead of a bad song, you have a good buffer between the previous two relatively smooth tracks and...

8: Lyrics of Fury

One of the album's three great openers. Placed perfectly to remind any of the listeners how great the duo really is, in case they'd forgotten.

9: The R - Extended Remix

Another musical interlude. I love musical interludes. "Paid in Full" was helped a great deal by how Eric B's showcases broke up Rakim's - I would argue that one isn't enough on here. Technically there are 3 musical interludes on the album, but let's forget those exist. Cut in after the first half of the song cuts - starting with "Peace!", and it serves the purpose of giving the album a start-to-end correlation. It would also need to be cut down towards the end.

10: Just a Beat - with a rapper

Picture that. Who'd put Rakim on an Eric B. beat? Ridiculous. I think the levity of the song would at least allow for a grand verse or two from Rakim, broken up with scratching on the start and end.

11: Follow the Leader

To me, this is the perfect end to the album. It's a fantastic song, but one which is best suited to a roaring conclusion. In the end, the listener's last impression becomes that of the duo at their peak. Somewhat different to the quiet fart that is "Beats for the Listeners".

Ok, I understand - creative decisions are a small part of an album's tracklist. Record companies will obviously prefer an album frontloaded with the album's prime cuts. For me to argue that the above would make a better album is not only a matter of opinion, but also entirely moot. Granted, telling the reader that the article is moot at the end is the written "Beats for the Listeners (For the Readers - lolz)". But the great album was in there - with this minor shuffle, I feel that the album stands up as well as Eric B. & Rakim's others.

Disagree? Let me know in the comments below. Oh hang on, nobody's reading this. Don't let me know, then. Keep it all bottled up until years later you go on a blind date and vent to them about how "Beats for the Listeners" is actually a masterpiece.

Bonus Rubbish

- The Piano part of "Put Your Hands Together" could potentially serve as the backbone of a great song in its own right. As long as the mixing was right (as in, not Rakim being drowned out), and the rest of the song was similarly grand, it could serve as a great centrepiece for the album.

- Another thing that "Follow the Leader" would've benefitted from is a thematic song. The duo's other albums always have at least one track that steps out of braggadocio, keeping things relatively fresh. "Paid in Full" had the title track, "Let the Rhythm Hit Em" had a few, and "Don't Sweat the Technique" had a couple. The closest one is "Microphone Fiend" - a brilliant track, obviously, but one that doesn't deviate from Rakim being a good rapper. Said theme would only need to be broad, but it would help make the album seem less dry and repetitive.

- There's a great history of labels forcing changes and cuts to a song in order to make it suitable for single release. So here's where the original version of "The R" comes in - quite mainstream, grander-sounding than the other tracks, and a good introduction to the group. If you buy it and are interested, the real version's on the album.