#limits of human survivability

[tomorrowusa]

A news story which has not gotten the attention it deserves here in North America this week is the intense heatwave in South and Southeast Asia. While Trump chants "drill drill drill" what's really needed is to get the planet to chill chill chill.

Thailand is reeling under the grip of a severe heatwave with temperatures soaring to record highs in some areas and authorities warned of harsher weather in the coming days. More than three dozen districts across Thailand’s 77 provinces have seen record temperatures in April, generally the hottest month of the year, with new highs beating records held as far back as 1958, according to data from the Thai Meteorological Department. Temperatures have topped 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in 26 provinces this month, according to the agency. The northern province of Lampang has seen the highest temperature so far this year at 44.2 degrees, just shy of the highest temperature ever recorded in Thailand – 44.6 degrees – that was last seen in 2016 and 2023.

Thailand is roughly in the center of the affected area.

The Philippines, at the eastern end of the heatwave, is seeing a strain on its power supply.

Meanwhile, parts of the Philippines face potential disruption to electricity supplies as an intense heatwave fuels cooling demand and leaves power systems “overloaded”, according to President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr.

Schools in the Philippines have suspended in person sessions. There is talk of returning to an academic calendar which sees the school year end in March.

Students suffer in wilting heat, thwarting education efforts

In this audio report from ABC Australia, we hear how the current heatwave is closing in on the limit of human survivability in some areas.

Dangerous heatwave sweeps south east Asia

Any politician preaching increased use of fossil fuels is a danger to the planet.

The transition to sustainability may occasionally be bumpy but any other road leads to climate dystopia.

NOTE: For all you Fahrenheit fans, here's a quick way to convert temperatures mentioned in some of the links.

Celsius to Fahrenheit Conversion | (°C to °F)

BTW, Asia won't be the only place hit with adverse climate incidents this year. The 2024 Atlantic Basin hurricane season is predicted to be well above average in number of storms.

[dailypearldoodles]

Day 452

Revisiting what I've been calling the Those Left Alive AU, where the winners of the life series are cursed creatures and pets still alive by the end of the season are humans. Here we have Tilly and Froggie as humans and Pearl as a wolf!

I have been writing a little bit for these three, though anything can change as new life seasons come out hehe

[cestacruz]

Drawing the messiest sketches is actually so good for my brain

[hephaestuscrew]

In Ep55 A Place for Everything, when Minkowski thinks Kepler is doubting the likelihood of Eiffel still being alive after he's floated towards the star in his spacesuit, Minkowski says "Eiffel had plenty of air left, and let's not forget he survived for -" It seems pretty likely that she was about to say that Eiffel survived nearly 200 days stranded in deep space on Lovelace's shuttle. It's interesting to me that Minkowski uses that incident as evidence that Eiffel will survive this time too, because that's not really how situations like that work.

We don't know exactly how much Minkowski knows about Eiffel's time on Lovelace's shuttle, but the reality is that he survived for those 193 days due to an extremely specific combination of impressive ingenuity, incredible perseverance, access to the right resources, a fair dose of stupidity, and an extraordinary amount of sheer luck. Without just one of those ingredients, he would never have made back to the Hephaestus alive. The ingenuity and perseverance could serve him well in this situation too, but the other factors don't exactly apply in the same way.

In my view, it isn't really that Eiffel's survival on that shuttle serves as evidence of any specific attributes that will guarantee his survival this time. I think it's more that the events with Lovelace's shuttle - Minkowski thinking Eiffel was gone forever but then being miraculously reunited with him - have given Minkowski a non-specific sense of Eiffel as a person who survives, a person who ends up in nearly inescapable peril and yet somehow always escapes, a person who makes it back alive against all the odds. It's not a piece of logical practical evidence. It's just an emotional instinct that allows her to believe that she's not going to lose him, allowing her to focus on what she can do to try and find him.

Minkowski's 'Goddamn it Eiffel' when he floats towards the star in Ep53 is so much less dramatic than the way she yells his name as the shuttle drifts away in Ep28. And that's partly about what the story calls for in those moments. And it's partly about the specific situations and the agency Eiffel has had in them. But it's also that in Ep53 she already believes that he will be okay, that he'll come back. He's done it before. He'll do it again.

[tcfactory]

I'm slowly hashing out a sort of low-stakes college/humanformers AU and look at this dork ass looser, would you believe that he's one bad day away from committing arson?

Sentinel is supposed to be working on his PhD in economics, but that's stalling for various reasons (something something post-Quintesson economic collapse) so he took a job to manage the college's finances after the last guy quit and then wormed his way into the position of dorm manager because if he doesn't have control over something in his life he's going to explode and kill someone. Even if that something only amounts to bossing the younger students who can't afford to rent a flat around.

...He also might be embezzling money from the college, but we don't talk about that because their finances are still somehow better than before he took over. Even with the shameless embezzlement.

Bonus Orion and Dee sketch + a bit of extra info under the cut:

Orion is a Prime (essentially elf/demigod) and Optimus' son, other progenitor unknown. He's here because of Dee and hasn't decided yet what he wants to major in. He's debating between Law and Library Science, but he's so far undecided.

Dee is a Disposable (artificial Quintesson-made slave laborer underclass; they were only very recently freed from bondage even after the Quints were kicked off the planet, hence the current economic collapse.) He's Megatron's (armed and very dangerous disposable rights activist) adopted son. He's been dragging his feet about asking Orion out for ages because their dads are dating and it makes things awkward. Lit major, but takes some political science classes on the side.

They both have the means to rent a flat (separately or together), but Optimus was asked to investigate the sudden suspicious activity around Iacon College's finances, so they are staying at the dorm to make it easier to get info on Sentinel.

They don't find out wtf Sentinel is doing with the finances, but they do find out why he's embezzling funds: he's not actually a Prime like he claims, but a disposable made to look like one, using cloned tissue from Prima (which is illegal on so many levels it would put him in a precarious situation if anybody made it public). One of the few remaining Quintessons found out about it when he had to get new ID papers on the black market and started blackmailing him.

[theevilcactus]

i miss poptropica so much

[carsickcrow]

the future is really freaking me out i don’t know how i’m supposed to be in college in a year that’s so freaking scary. but! thinking about the concept of riding the bus or other form of public transportation. 👍 i can’t drive nor have i made any effort to learn how to and i am turning 18 in. 4 months and 10 days. so. y’know. i gotta love walking and buses and the like. and i do i think (i can listen to my music :). )

[animalsgettingmedicalimaging]

I think this is a rattus rattus!! Correct me if I'm wrong. Maybe hand reared too. I hope he's STRONG. Info dump about this situation in the tags

[pinkrabit]

I hate when I hear others use people who went through horribly traumatic experiences without therapy/mental help as a reason why depression and PTSD aren't real.

They survived, and they are alive.

But you're telling me they don't feel panic when they hear their abuser's name? That their life doesn't flash before their eyes when their plane takes off? They don't feel every fucking bruise their parents left them when someone raises their voice? They don't look for open exits when entering a new room?

If they survived and coped without therapy, then good on them. Not every person can do that, and they would probably benefit from therapy if they wanted. Therapy can only be as good as you let it.

Your pain and trauma are valid. Don't be shamed because you asked for help.

Don't let people guilt you because you feel pain. Don't let them compare you.

[cosmicsproutcake]

Yeah if you need an entire board of doctors and advocates to tell the difference between two things, then the distinctions between said things are not "obvious". If they were, you'd be able to tell the difference on your own, regardless of your knowledge base, as that is sort of what "obvious" means :/

[abylae]

Rant somewhat about burnout, disability/illness (esp 'invisible'), "lost potential/time". I'm just thinking.

Someone told me I've lost so much time. I have so much "potential" wasted. Lost. That I'm "finally being smart" now that I started "doing something with my life". But. People who didn't have access to education or work did get education of other things. Outside of school, there is what we call life. Not only talking to people, but also discovering other things. Hours not spend in a classroom learning about numbers or language etc are hours spent learning about ourselves and other people, about the troubles of everyday life. Students and workers do learn too, of course, everyone does. But so did we.

If they have less hours spent thinking about what they learn at school, or working 30+hours a week, they use that energy to see their emotions, process them, and noticing other people, other things.

A tired student might not give a glance to a homeless man, or give him some money, then go on their way. Or maybe not. Someone who has more time, because they have the same energy to think, to learn, will maybe notice more about them. There's a lot around. The amount people gave them that day. Maybe not, maybe they're just busy.

Maybe you don't have friends, so you'll have a discussion with someone who needs it. Or maybe you don't talk, but you still observe. You exist, after all, we think, we can't stop thinking. We all learn of these things at our own pace, and people who suffered sooner, who are free sooner, could notice those teachings sooner.

You were poor. Always on the brink on being on the streets, caregivers scrambling between loans and medicine and rent and food for you. The thought that anyone abuses governement help is an absurd thought. Maybe that person who suffered in work thinks that since they didn't get enough help, others shouldn't have it. They believe in the fearmonging, in the 'stealers'. They cope with that suffering that way. Maybe that seeing that from another point of view made it that you don't think that.

Your sibling sold drugs. For whatever reason, money or addiction or both or anything. You wish it would be easier to get a job that respects workers right. But they're 16 and it's easier to do this. The thought that drug dealers are a "stain" in the city is absurd.

You lived with a sex worker. They could not work more than a few hours a week. You wish they weren't in danger when they work, that they could have justice if anything happened. The thought that it should be even more punished is absurd. What would they have done instead ? Break their back even more, until bedbound and poor from dept ?

Maybe you didn't live any of that. Instead of making friends outside, you were stuck at home for whatever reason. You see all these stories on internet, instead of the cleaned stories of the TV. You have so much time to see the personal lives of strangers. You are not at school, you are in a bad place, you learn.

You are too sick to think. Too sick to learn. You spend weeks, months, years doing "nothing". Maybe some people are "sad" you lost so much time. Maybe some people are "disappointed". Maybe you are too. Later, you have enough energy. You feel like you're actually living. You learned; you see someone who feels like you all this time ago. The thought that they're lazy is absurd.

Who is bad ? Who is smarter ? Who knows more ? Who lived more ?Who has more "worth" ? That's subjective, right. Did you bring anything good to the world, to "them" ?

Did they ? Did they. Or did they tell you nice basics, love yous, money, then spit on your time ? Your thoughts ? Your very being ?

Does our mother, disappointed in us for "wasting" years, bring something better ? When those years we learned a bit about everything. A bit of this, a bit of that. Got some new interests, left some, had fun, had not fun. We learned. We now have words for our sickness that are not "being lazy". We know more than before about suffering, we know more than before about quite a lot of things, actually.

Isn't that something ? Isn't that humanity itself ? Isn't the goal surviving, originally ? Isn't it beautiful that we see so much ?

Isn't it beautiful that once we survive, we now know what surviving is ?

[manojnaironline]

What's something most people don't understand?

Here’s a simple truth many don’t understand: Earth’s resources are finite. There’s no room for waste—not when this planet is our only home. As of now, no nearby star system or habitable planet offers a backup plan for humanity’s survival. No Plan B exists. So why do we keep squandering what we have on conflict? Wars drain resources we can’t afford to lose. Maybe it’s time to pause, reflect, and…

[honouredsnakeprincess]

🔴Dear human, I want you to imagine that you are living this... Hello, I need urgent help and donation.💔🙏🍉 The situation is very urgent Gaza is a very dangerous place and the atmosphere of death is everywhere.I am Mohammed and my family consists of 13 people from North Gaza💔I have an explosive bullet wound in my hand and I need immediate treatment, injections and bone grafts and I have no extra money🙏My house is completely destroyed and we need to build a new home and life💔Basic needs👀Help me buy winter clothes for the children and family, mattresses and sleeping covers to protect us from the severe cold.🌧My children, my sister Amir and Malak, need weekly for each child😭Diapers $120💔Milk $100🍉Medicines and diapers $200🍉Basic needs Food is expensive up to $150 every three days💔🙏Please help me and donate Verified and shared by @90-ghoset @fairuzfan🙏🍉

[enterstellars]

and with that i do believe that my run with interstellar in imax has come to an end.

[procrastiel]

To be fair, that’s kind of what they did with humans when Covid hit only 5 years ago, so. I’m not surprised he has that perspective. The perspective is that of a mass murderer, mind you, but… it doesn’t shock me, is all. They do. not. care. About you your wellbeing and the sooner you understand that the sooner you can start building your own communities & safety networks.

[gimmick-blog-bracket]

Now for the final round!

@hellsitegenetics

I love them

I didn't know I needed to know that the weed-smoking girlfriends post was genetically a wolf, but I did, and I do. Also puts great stuff on my dash.

it’s so fun to be scrolling unhinged posts and then boom. an organism!

so many moths‼ also, unexpected comedy with some of the matches

perfect blend of silly and informative, and makes for an excellent punchline at the end of a long post. puts creatures on my dash. literally what more could you ask for

It's a really unique blog concept and a lot of times the results are pretty funny. It's great when the sequence matches the post content too!

Creatures 👍

Finds beautiful creatures out of the mess of the hellsite

Offers finality AND gives us a creechur.

I love them. English speakers talk like moths

If this blog wins, they could run the text of the winning announcement, and determine the post's genus and species!

They're also very good about tagging the type of creature depicted in the results, so as long as you mute tags of creatures you don't want to see, it's a very fun time seeing iconic legacy posts (and new submissions) being reduced down to a string of letters and assigned a random species of fish or moth or something!

uhh it’s cool

BLAST

There are so many weird bugs in the world

Yippee!!

If, as Haldane said, God has an inordinate fondness for beetles, then surely this blog proves that Tumblr has an inordinate fondness for moths.

Top tier blog as a geneticist, I love seeing obscure organisms and MOTH

Admin got rate limited after trying to blast the bee movie

the knowledge of biology to pull this off (i have taken one biology class in my life) and also the work to find all the strings honestly deserves quite a bit of praise

This gimmick blog has it all: science, pictures of animals, interaction with the text of other peoples' posts, interesting information, and a unique and fun premise. As a biologist, I'm rooting for hellsitegenetics to reach the end and take the tournament, because it is truly a standout among gimmick blogs.

If they win, perhaps this blog too shall become a cool organism :3

@hasgavlebockenburneddownyet

What's more happy holiday cheer than cheering on the destruction of a giant straw goat?

The birds may have won 2023, but I believe in humanity's capability for arson for 2024 <3

a vote for me is a vote for arson! This message was approved by hasgavlebockenburneddownyet

gavle is SUCH a public service and holiday feature

what's more tumblr than comical destruction and holidays?

sometimes you just gotta vote with your matchsticks

Bringing a cultural staple to tumblr since 2021

Arson is so much more fun

It would be really funny and ironic if it survives the tournament

you have no idea how much joy watching the chronicling of the gavlebocken brings me every year

hasgavlebockenburneddownyet provides an essential public service

always love seeing a bit of Swedish history on my dash 'Swedish bamboo season'

the goat account is peak gimmick blog

If I don't get to beat the goat then nobody does. -pointless-achievements

Never ask Tumblr to choose between lies and arson! The winner threatens by nature to rip apart the very fabric of our DNA!

goat statues made out of straw are exciting and interesting

I wanna see things burn

the goat is an essential part of tumblr culture and the goat blog is a sacred keeper of the tumblr high holidays

watching to see if the big straw goat has burned down each year is a true delight, something I never knew existed until tumblr and the blog dedicated to it

the incredibly focused nature of @/hasgavlebockenburneddownyet is what makes their gimmick superior.

Please guys bite gavlebocken

Look, I'm Danish. I was put on this earth to annoy the Swedes and vice versa, but even I voted for @/hasgavlebockenburneddownyet

gavlebocken is also such a fun name and this blog informed be about its existence, so for that I am grateful

hasgavlebockenburneddownyet is providing a vital service! Every year, people rely on their updates regarding the fate of our most beloved Yule Goat! How could they NOT deserve the win!?

sacred anti-corporate arson

a vote for gävlebocken is a vote for anarchy!

pls vote for them they're the funniest gimmick keeping track on the funniest phenomena in recent human history, like when i look at their acc i think to myself this is what tumblr was created for

the goat is the GOAT

HASGAVLEBOCKENBURNEDDOWNYET DESERVES TO WIN, I have them on post alert for a REASON

the holiday season wouldn't be the same without them

they do important reporting. Do you look at the news and be like 'the reporters aren't doing work they're just telling you whats happening.' Have some respect for the goat news

let the weird burnt sacrificial ritual of it all appeal to you

nothing makes my December more interesting, arson should win

doesn't barge in on other peoples posts which is always a good thing in my books. not a fan when obnoxious gimmick blogs turn a decent post into a garbled mess