#merger objection cases

[metrotransitposter]

This Minneapolis Blogger supports Farmer-Labor voters (including TCDSA members) in the Minneapolis Democratic Farmer-Labor Party.

[thefemmefatalexo]

Nanami SMAU - A Verdict of Us

Chapter 13 - Objection Overruled

Summary: Kento Nanami was perfect—disciplined, untouchable, and entirely focused on his future. Emotions didn’t fit into his plans. You were everything he avoided—bold, warm, and impossible to ignore. You told yourself he didn’t matter, but you couldn’t stop watching him.

He never looked your way. Not until the day his perfectly controlled world unraveled, and you were at the center of it.

an: Phew…. How we feeling? SMOOCHES 💋💋💋

{chapter 12} ; {next}

taglist: @giasssslife @getovibesonly @inthedarkshadows000 @burpzz @sleepykittyenergy @fuzzycollectiondeersblog

࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚

The dining room of the Nanami estate was a picture of refinement—high ceilings, a crystal chandelier casting soft golden light, the long mahogany table set with fine china and gleaming silverware. The quiet hum of classical music played in the background, nearly drowned out by the voices of the two families engaged in discussion.

Nanami sat at the far end of the table, his posture rigid but practiced. His father, seated at the head, was deep in conversation with Mr. Takahashi about upcoming business mergers and legal strategies. It was a familiar setting, one he had been raised in, where every conversation had a purpose, every alliance a calculated move.

“The key to a successful firm,” Mr. Takahashi was saying, “is knowing which cases to take and which to leave alone. Not every battle is worth fighting.”

Nanami’s father nodded approvingly. “Exactly. Some lawyers waste their careers chasing ideals instead of securing real power. At the end of the day, reputation is everything.”

Nanami’s mother took a delicate sip of her wine. “It’s like that upcoming case involving the [Your Last Name] family. They always involve themselves in causes that are… questionable, don’t you think?”

Mrs. Takahashi smirked. “Oh, absolutely. I heard they’re throwing yet another charity event soon. Always parading themselves around as if that’s the same as real influence. Honestly, I wonder what they even gain from it.”

Nanami remained silent, his fingers tightening around his fork. He forced himself to keep his expression neutral, even as irritation twisted in his chest. They spoke about you and your family so casually, as if you were nothing more than a misguided idealist playing at generosity.

He wanted to correct them. Wanted to tell them they were wrong about you. But he knew better.

His father was already displeased about his association with you. Speaking up now would only draw more scrutiny—scrutiny he couldn’t afford.

So, he stayed quiet.

Across from him, Ayaka Takahashi, their daughter, turned to him with a charming smile. “You’re awfully quiet tonight, Nanami. Is dinner not to your liking?”

He met her gaze, giving a polite nod. “The food is fine.”

“You always seem so serious,” she mused, resting her chin on her palm. “Maybe you just need the right company to loosen up.”

Nanami didn’t react, but his father did.

“Ayaka is an exceptional young woman,” his father said smoothly, cutting into his steak. “She comes from a family with strong values, and she’s already making a name for herself in the legal world. Kento, you should take the time to get to know her better.”

Nanami kept his expression unreadable. “I spoke with her at the conference. She’s impressive.”

Ayaka smiled. “You think so? That’s nice to hear. Maybe we should have dinner sometime—just the two of us.”

Before he could reply, Mrs. Takahashi chuckled. “Oh, I agree. They would make such a perfect match.”

Nanami’s mother hummed in approval. “We’ve always wanted Kento to be with someone who understands our world. Someone with the same drive, the same ambitions.”

His father nodded, his gaze sharp. “Ayaka is a smart choice, Kento. A relationship should be built on more than just fleeting emotions. It should be built on stability, power, and strategy. You would do well to remember that.”

Nanami didn’t respond immediately. He was used to this—his life planned out in careful steps, his future mapped by decisions he was barely given a say in. He was used to expectations.

But for the first time in a long time, he felt like resisting.

And he knew exactly why.

The dinner at the Nanami estate was perfect, by every standard that mattered to his parents. The company was prestigious, the conversation strategic, and the atmosphere calculated.

But for Nanami, it had never felt more suffocating.

As he listened to Ayaka laugh beside him, as his father spoke of futures he was expected to walk into, all he could think about was you.

And the truth he hadn’t wanted to admit.

That no matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise, he didn’t want the life his parents had planned for him.

And he didn’t want her.

He wanted you.

But he wasn’t sure if it even mattered anymore.

The campus cafeteria was a buzzing mess of students chatting between classes, the smell of coffee and fried food lingering in the air. You sat with Shoko and Toji’s reader, idly stirring your drink as you waited for Gojo’s reader to arrive. The day had been dragging, and for once, you weren’t sure you were looking forward to this meetup.

Shoko exhaled a lazy puff of smoke before putting out her cigarette. “Saw Nanami last night, by the way.”

Your interest piqued immediately. “Oh?”

She leaned back in her chair, looking entirely unbothered. “Yeah. Looked like he was on a date.”

Your stomach dropped. “What?”

Toji’s reader raised a brow. “With who?”

“Some rich girl,” Shoko said, waving a hand dismissively. “Ayaka Takahashi. You know, her family’s loaded. I saw them at this fancy restaurant—real expensive place. They looked cozy.”

Your fingers tightened around your cup. Nanami on a date. With another girl.

You felt something you didn’t want to name twist in your chest. He had been pushing you away for days, ignoring your texts, acting cold and distant. And now you were hearing that he had been out with someone else?

You weren’t sure what hurt more—the fact that he had gone on a date, or the fact that he hadn’t even bothered to tell you.

You opened your mouth, but before you could react, a voice interrupted.

“Hey, sorry I’m late!”

Gojo’s reader slid into the seat beside you, completely unaware of the storm brewing inside you.

You forced a smile, pushing everything down. “No worries. We were just catching up.”

But even as you tried to focus on the conversation, your mind was elsewhere.

On him. On the way he had shut you out.

And on the realization that maybe you had been foolish to think you were ever different to him.

[letomills]

TS2 CC downloaders & creators discussion recap

Under the cut is a recap of the feedback gathered from the comments, community replies and reblogs on this thread. Thank you for taking the time to give your input! I tried to organize everything clearly in categories, with what was most often brought up at the top of each. I hope I didn’t forget anything. If I did, or you feel I didn't do your point justice, or you didn’t get a chance to say your piece, feel free to comment (I can always make edits). The text in brackets [] is my own remarks that I'm adding to the report.

About CC in general:

The people clamored for clear swatches/pictures that show which file corresponds to which recolor, so we can pick and choose what to keep.

Many people would like creators to put their usernames in their file names (or object descriptions) so they are easier to trace back to later. Two creators had counterpoints to this. One who has a long username said: “as a creator, I don't like to be told how I should name my files (besides identifying the thing clearly, which I think we really should do). If I've made the effort to make a thing, take previews, upload it, write the post etc. Just spend 5 seconds of your life renaming the file to whatever is convinient to you, I'm not going to add 16 characters to each of my files to include my username (I still think that longer names = longer loading time).” The other creator said: “As a creator, I don't want to put my full username in tooltips (just SB) because some hair names are quite long and I do not have the time to re tooltip the names.”

On the topic of file names, many people agreed that creators should not put special characters and spaces in their file names, to optimize loading times. One creator clarified: “the filenames should always have _ instead of spaces, as apparently this allows the game to load them easier/faster [...] underscores should be the only kind of special character in them” [use the Bulk Rename Utility - see tutorial by @ilovethesims2cc].

Still on file names, a Mac user said they dislike when file names are too long because apparently long file names are enough for Macs to shit themselves [sorry if I misunderstood, never had a Mac].

Several people mentioned disliking poorly optimized CC (one person listed: “bulky for no reason, unused bump maps, comically large or duplicated textures, things that could easily be repo'd but are not”), one person pointed out: “There is no reason a TS2 object needs a texture bigger than 1024x1024 unless it’s a special case like a skybox.”

One person said they dislike when a CC post lacks basic text info about what the download is. On this note, another person said they dislike when a creator isn’t clearly stating what mesh their recolors are for.

Two people asked that creators state their stuff’s polycounts.

Two people said they dislike when the recolors for a piece of CC are only available merged together, as they want to be able to easily choose which they want to keep. On the other hand, someone who “takes all recolors anyway” said they would like creators to offer a merged version of their recolors [you can merge CC to reduce loading times using LazyDuchess’s CC Merger].

One person recommended avoiding just using “here” as hyperlink text, but instead describing what you are linking to, so that if the link gets broken we still have a chance to find the thing. In the same vein, they and another person advised against reliance on an image alone to give info about the download. As we know, images can disappear, and a Google search won’t lead to the item if your post has no text that Google can detect.

About the images that creators do show, one person mentioned a download not having a proper preview as their pet peeve. On previews, two people recommended that the piece of CC be clearly visible and the main focus. Two people said they like when a preview of the item is included in the archive (“helpful when looking through old CC”).

One person said they appreciate when creators give two download links to two different hosting platforms, in case one of them ever breaks.

One person asked for creators to always test their stuff before uploading [it should go without saying but we do see egregious things to this day]. Their pet peeve is “CC with obvious issues that can’t have been tested properly in game! Don’t just look at it in build mode or bodyshop, actually use the item in live mode. Have a Sim wear the clothing or use the object!” They pointed out as an example that some CC lights don’t light up. Someone else said: “if there are minor imperfections, that's ok! But let your downloaders know what to expect.”

One person said that they enjoy reading detailed descriptions of CC: “Share your inspos, what went wrong, tag the pieces you used if you are Frankenmeshing because I might want those items too! Creating and sharing is deeply personal, don't be afraid to share a part of who you are in your downloads if you feel comfortable doing so.” [If I may offer a slight counterpoint, I think detailed technical info + proper crediting should always be frontloaded. And then, in a separate paragraph, you can write about how you made this because your grandma used to wear something similar on those cool autumn days back when you were 6. But please, don’t expect your audience to have to parse through your life story to get the basic info they need to even understand what the download is.]

On subfolders: one person mentioned that they dislike when individual files are placed in subfolders; someone else said they don’t like many subfolders within an archive; a third person said that when downloading a ‘bulk’ CC pack, they dislike when each item has its individual subfolder (unless the object has dozens of recolors).

One person said they dislike downloads that include a large number of things that aren’t all part of a single coherent set.

One person said they dislike gift/mega packages that don’t give the possibility to pick and choose what you’re downloading.

One person asked that creators compressorize their CC, unless there is a good reason for not doing so, reason that should be stated [yes please! Use jfade’s Compressorizer, found on this page].

One person said they like when creators who make recolors give a link to the mesh they are recoloring whenever possible, even if the mesh is included.

One person mentioned appreciating when creators include base PSDs in their downloads [they were talking about hair specifically but I suppose it can be done for other things too].

About Bodyshop CC specifically:

Many people mentioned disliking when a piece of clothing lacks a fat morph (as one person put it: ✨“its literally bigotry”✨ [iconic]), or has a fat morph that's blatantly a quickly WSO’d afterthought. Someone said: “Absurdly shaped/clipping fat morphs that were most probably never tested in game before uploading are pretty annoying”; someone else said: “I make male content and am constantly flabbergasted by some of the UM Top fat morphs that make no attempt to align with Bottom items, or look completely ridiculous. [...] WSOs are a great starting point, but that's just it: a starting point" [I couldn’t agree more]. One person added that clothes should also have preg morphs.

One person really wants tooltips. Someone else further asked that creators give actually helpful tooltips to their recolors to make it easier to identify which recolor corresponds to which file [you can use CatOfEvilGenius’s Tooltip utility to give your recolors tooltips that correspond to their file names].

One person mentioned gaps in meshes being their #1 pet peeve [putting this in this section because I’m assuming they’re referring to Bodyshop CC].

One person asks that creators give their accessories unique BIN numbers to make them layerable with other accessories.

The same person would like creators to remember to delete the inapplicable ages in their accessories [this also goes for hairs].

The same person also appreciates when creators make custom thumbnails for their accessories, “especially for accessories that are not on the face”.

The same person said: “Accessories that are 'part of the sim' (like ears, tails, etc.) should be showerproof”. Another person had the same request: “Body part accessories (such as animal ears, tails, horns, wings) should be available for all types of clothing.”

One person appreciates when hair meshers specify if their hair is animated or not.

One person would like to see more hairs for toddlers and children.

For geneticized skintones, one person said they find it helpful when the genetic number is indicated in the file name.

About Build & Buy CC specifically: 

Several people said they dislike when CC objects are set to an absurd price (like a couch for 1 simoleon) [this can be fixed with Pick’N’Mix’s Object Relocator], and two people added that they dislike when an object’s price isn’t congruent with their stats (like when an expensive bed has a low energy score). A creator further said: “whats worse is sometimes items are cloned from a very expensive item, and then the creator has reduced the stats shown in the description, but the bhav still has very high ratings, or sometimes it can be the other way around, an item might have been cloned from a cheap one, then their displayed stats are set to 10 but the bhavs still have low ratings”.

Three people said that they really appreciate when creators state which category their object is in and what the price is. One person said they appreciate when creators give info about how their object functions (“Is it just deco? Does it have hobby enthusiasm?” etc.). For complex objects, they like when there’s a video to show how it works. 

One person said they dislike when creators place objects in categories that don’t make sense. Someone said more specifically that they like when objects are put in categories other than deco/sculptures or deco/misc.

One person said they dislike blank object descriptions or object descriptions that were left the same as that of the Maxis object that the piece of CC was cloned from.

One person said they don’t like when objects aren’t enabled for quarter-tile placement [can be fixed in simPe or with the Object Relocator].

One person said they dislike non-functional objects (like a sofa that’s a sculpture).

One person brought up two experiences they and their friend had with CC beds that didn’t have unique GUIDs and therefore would override other beds. In the same vein, someone else said they dislike when a creator forgets to mention that their CC is not custom but default and will override something in the game.

One person encourages creators to learn about the TXMT settings of objects (e.g. should an object be reflective?) and praised @pforestsims and @shastakiss for their CC in that regard. Another person said they dislike when an object is too shiny, which is also a TXMT setting.

One person said they dislike “transparent cut out textures”. [I quote because I’m clueless about this:] “I’ve seen this a lot on TS3 or other game conversions, where the texture has been imported without enabling transparency, and you get ugly squares around draw handles and such. Import the texture as DXT 5 and enable AlphaTest in the TXMT.”

One person said they like when 4t2 conversions have several subsets.

The Mac user among us would like creators to resize their walls and floors for Macs, otherwise they show up grey in game.

About lots specifically:

Two people said they like when creators show the floor plans of their lots.

[contemplatingoutlander]

JOURNALISTIC CHOICES: Telling the Truth vs. "Bothsidesism"

Ben Raderstorf does a great job in this article discussing the dilemma modern journalism has in covering a lying, dangerous authoritarian like Donald Trump, without "appearing partisan." Raderstorf argues against bothsidesism, and in favor of good journalists just simply telling the truth.

[T]he best way for independent, fact-based media to win back the audiences they’re losing to polarization is to not chase them.... But rather, to double-down on independence, objectivity, and honesty. To report reality as it is and to let the chips fall where they may. To draw a hard distinction between the normal political jockeying of healthy democracy and actions that threaten our system of government.   Back in 2022, in response to questions from reporters about how to discern between those two things, we wrote a report on how experts understand threats to democracy: The Authoritarian Playbook: How reporters can contextualize and cover authoritarian threats as distinct from politics-as-usual. 

"Modern autocrats don't crush journalism — they corrupt it." 

Raderstorf also talks about how 21st century autocrats like Viktor Orbán (who is a role model for Trump) apply pressure in subtle ways to eventually "corrupt" journalism.

These days, many autocrats don’t just smash printing presses, throw reporters in jail, and be done with it. Often they pursue a more nuanced, and more insidious, strategy.   With a combination of intimidation, coercion, and financial manipulation, they slowly corrode the independence and autonomy of the press until it ceases to be a meaningful check on power. The media still exists; it’s just an empty shell, a useful facade.   Put differently, modern autocrats don’t crush journalism — they corrupt it. 

[See more below the cut about the role of "anticipatory obedience" and the changes in leadership at CNN and The Washington Post.]

[edited]

"ANTICIPATORY OBEDIENCE": An Explanation for Why CNN and The Washington Post Changed Their Leadership

Raderstorf mentions how the two journalistic outlets that Trump targeted most vehemently as president are the two that eventually replaced their leadership--and as a result, weakened their journalistic integrity.

In an article this week in the Columbia Journalism Review, my colleagues Ian Bassin... and Maximillian Potter ... dive into several case studies. They connect troubling dots suggesting that Donald Trump deployed the Orbán strategy in his first term to greater effect than many realize. [...] In their piece, Ian and Max explore the two major instances in Trump’s first term when he attempted to wield the powers of the presidency against journalists for coverage he didn’t like. First, by threatening to block a proposed merger between CNN’s parent company, Time Warner, and AT&T. Second, by looking to raise shipping rates on Amazon, whose owner, Jeff Bezos, also owns the Washington Post.  In both cases, Trump mostly failed to carry out his threats. But… it’s also true that both CNN and the Post subsequently went through high-profile leadership shakeups at least partly in response to Trump. For CNN, this was Chris Licht’s short-lived tenure and disastrous efforts to make the network “more neutral.” For the Post, it was Bezos installing a new publisher: “Will Lewis, a former Rupert Murdoch executive who has spent most of his career in right-wing media.” [...] Timothy Snyder writes in On Tyranny that autocratic leaders often succeed simply because the media, business leaders, and civil society look ahead to possible repression and move preemptively towards self-preservation. What he calls “anticipatory obedience."

[yuujiheart]

If Sukuna had won the battle in Shinjuku do you think he would kill Yuuji to the end? Because I like to think that before activating the merger, Sukuna would show a shred of mercy and give Yuuji a quick death, allow him to die in his arms without pain.

Honestly it was hard for me to imagine such a scenario as for me no such reality exists where yuji was gonna lose to sukuna.. Not because he was strong or anything but I can't imagine him not getting affected by yuji's humanity..

But to answer your question I think sukuna would have not killed yuji till he broke him completely.. Based on chp 248 and 265 it was clear yuji's ideals were something he wanted to mince into bits . In that moment he wanted to punish yuji So in my opinion he would have activated the merger in front of him , let him see that it's his humanity that got him here.. Maybe then he will kill him or would leave him in despair enjoying that he finally broke yuji's will and he will never recover from it. Because yuji has touched a part of sukuna that he never even knew existed or was capable of. Which only made sukuna extremely angry. And he wouldn't have calmed down until he proved yuji wrong..

I can only see what you mentioned happening in case sukuna survives 268. As he had already lost the battle and had no choice but to listen to yuji moreover he was extra gentle to sukuna.. Or if yuji said those same words with same gentleness when sukuna wasn't in his blob form..

But my heart still says yuji's humanity would have convinced sukuna whether he wins or not as I believe the reason sukuna became a cursed object was coz of him not wanting to die alone so him and yuji reconciling was inevitable..

[klimkovsky]

Warped Spiral Galaxy ESO 510-13

Warped Spiral Galaxy ESO 510–13 by Hubble Space Telescope

This galaxy is a fascinating object, located about 150 million light-years away in the southern constellation Hydra. It’s a spiral galaxy, but unlike the typical flat, orderly disks we often picture when we think of spirals — like the Milky Way or Andromeda — ESO 510-13 has a strikingly warped structure. Its disk, which spans roughly 100,000 light-years across, is bent and twisted, giving it a unique, almost contorted appearance when viewed edge-on.

The warping is most noticeable in its equatorial dust plane, a dark band of interstellar dust and gas that cuts across the galaxy. This dust lane is silhouetted against the bright central bulge — a dense, smooth region packed with older stars — which makes the distortion stand out even more. The galaxy’s disk isn’t just a static, solid plate; it’s a dynamic collection of billions of stars, gas, and dust, all orbiting the galactic center under the influence of gravity. Normally, these disks flatten out over time due to the sticky collisions of gas clouds during a galaxy’s formation, but ESO 510-13’s shape suggests something disrupted that process.

Astronomers think the most likely culprit for this warp is a gravitational interaction with another galaxy. It could have been a close encounter — or even a collision — with a nearby galaxy that tugged on ESO 510-13’s disk, pulling it out of shape. Some speculate this might have involved a merger with a smaller, gas-rich dwarf galaxy, with the dust lane still settling into a more stable, flat configuration. The idea is supported by the fact that warped disks aren’t entirely rare — our own Milky Way has a subtle warp, though nothing as dramatic as this. In ESO 510-13’s case, the distortion is so pronounced that it’s been captured in stunning detail by the Hubble Space Telescope, which imaged it in 2001 using its Wide Field Planetary Camera 2.

What’s also intriguing is the evidence of ongoing activity in the warped regions. In the outer parts of the disk, especially on one side, you can see bright patches of blue stars — hot, young ones that have recently formed. This suggests that the gravitational upheaval might have compressed gas clouds, triggering new star formation. It’s a vivid reminder that galaxies aren’t static; they’re shaped by chaotic, messy interactions over cosmic timescales.

There’s still plenty we don’t fully understand, though. The exact cause of the warp — whether it was a single dramatic event or a series of interactions — isn’t pinned down. The dynamics of how these warped disks evolve, rebound, and eventually flatten out are also still being studied. ESO 510-13 is like a snapshot of a galaxy caught mid-transformation, offering a glimpse into the forces that sculpt the universe’s grand spirals.

Grok AI

Constellation Hydra

Additional information from Human

To say that some object - for example, a galaxy, nebula or star cluster - is located in the constellation Hydra means to say almost nothing. Not everyone knows this, but Hydra is the largest constellation. And it is not so much large as long. It begins from the constellations of the winter sky, bordering on Canis Minor and Monoceros. And Hydra ends at the junction of the spring and summer constellations, touching the borders of Libra and Virgo, its tail just short of reaching the Claws of Scorpio. The head of Hydra, located north of the celestial equator, is clearly visible in winter and early spring. And the tail of Hydra, plunging deep into the southern celestial hemisphere, is visible in late spring and early summer. Hydra seems to connect the winter and summer groups of constellations. But it is quite difficult to see it in its entirety in the sky. Because when the head of Hydra is visible, the tail is still below the horizon. But when the tail of Hydra rises, its head leaves the visible part of the sky.

So, the galaxy ESO 510-13 is located in the tail of Hydra - literally on the border with the constellation Centaurus. Its declination is -30 degrees. It is inconvenient to observe the galaxy ESO 510-13 from the northern hemisphere of the Earth, especially given its low brightness, which is weaker than the 13th magnitude. It is not surprising that there is only one decent picture of this star city on the Internet - taken by the Hubble telescope - and who else could show this galaxy in detail? Pictures from most other telescopes are not very impressive.

It may seem that this galaxy is not very large, since its images are so nondescript (even the Hubble picture does not create the feeling of something very large). But the thing is that the galaxy ESO 510-13 is quite far from us. It is not at the edge of the Universe, but it is not in our immediate intergalactic environment either. The distance to it is 150 million light years. You can compare how far it is: The Andromeda Galaxy is 2.5 million light years away. The Sombrero Galaxy (which is also visible edge-on) is 30 million light years away. And this curved universal "propeller" is 150 million light years away. This is a lot - even for Hubble. But nevertheless, the space telescope has revealed many details that arouse interest in this galaxy more and more.

The size of the galaxy ESO 510-13 corresponds to the size of the Milky Way - it is in many ways similar to our Galaxy. It has the same diameter - 100 thousand light years. It is also spiral (although we don't know - it has a bridge from the core to the spiral arms - this is not visible when viewed from the edge). And what is most important for us - our Milky Way Galaxy also has a significant curvature of the spiral arms. Usually astronomers carefully say that the deformation of the galactic disk of the Milky Way is small. But how did we know this? Only by indirect signs - when studying its shape from the inside. And from the inside, you can see little.

How much can you say about the shape of your house, being inside it, and never going outside? Or - being on the surface of the Earth, is it easy to verify its sphericity? It's not that easy. That is why many people still cannot accept the sphericity of the Earth's shape as truth. It is approximately the same with the shape of the galaxy. Being inside it, it is very difficult to understand how it looks from the outside. But, fortunately, we have the opportunity to see other galaxies from the outside, and draw some conclusions, understand the reasons and correlation of what is happening there with what is happening with our Galaxy.

Our galaxy is constantly absorbing other galaxies - those that are smaller. That is why it has grown to such gigantic sizes - 100 thousand light years - this is a very large galaxy. But each absorption necessarily deforms the Milky Way. And the next deformation begins long before the absorption or merger. For example, dwarf galaxies located near the Milky Way - the Magellanic Clouds - are already noticeably influencing the shape of the spiral arms of our star city, pulling them in their direction.

It is also interesting that after the merger, the deformation does not disappear by itself. It may happen that it will acquire a stable character, catching a resonance wave, when the bend will start to swing first to one side of the galactic equator, then to the other, as if falling under the galactic plane, and soaring from under it on the second half of the turn of the galactic orbit. Incidentally, this is exactly how the Sun moves around the center of our Galaxy - its galactic orbit does not lie exactly in the plane of the galactic disk, but makes sinusoidal oscillations - dives through the plane of the spiral arms. The passage of the Sun and the Solar System through densely populated regions of the Milky Way correlates with some processes in the Earth's biosphere, such as mass extinctions and evolutionary bursts in the appearance of new species. And this, too, may have a cause associated with galactic mergers in the history of the Milky Way.

It is quite possible that the galaxy ESO 510-13 in the tail of the constellation Hydra is literally showing us our history, only from a very large distance - both in space and in time.

Warped Spiral Galaxy ESO 510-13 in the SIMBAD Astronomical Database

[princepv]

FN/FreshNight/ "Hey, what are you doing?" (He didn't come up with a name for himself cooler than two letters)

The parasite fresh mutated under the influence of negativity, gained intelligence thanks to the same transformation

A five-ray parasite missing one tentacle (has been lost) Spontaneous. Mentally, it only pulls at a teenager

At the very beginning of his life, he had poor coordination due to changes in his body. He is almost half blind because of the liquid substance that covers the carriers. He often uses tentacles in order to "examine" any objects due to poor eyesight.

There are enough monsters as well as people. Its parasites are extremely weak, from which they die after a maximum of a day. It is extremely problematic to create them — in addition to negative energy from himself, he needs a positive one

The bodies that he takes on are subjected to strong negative pressure, which, in most cases, does not last long.

He takes anything in his mouth, very tactile. He loves literature, is naive, gullible and extremely noisy, despite the fact that he can still be occupied with something.

IN FACT, THIS IS A MERGER, BUT NOT A CHILD. Previously, until the moment when he was quite able to survive the state when he was completely defenseless, lived with Maverick, now he remains on friendly terms with him, often harasses him and tries in every possible way to protect him in places.

Despite his BRIGHTNESS, this guy is just a slightly immoral cultural friend, ready to put all his thoughts and judgments into practice, without thinking about the fact that he is capable of hurting others.

HE JUST LOVES RUBBER DUCKS. he often laughs off his indulgences with his eyesight or stupidity.

[a-d-nox]

lenormand cards: key phrases and an example of a card combo (part 3)

this is just a beginners guide to the lenormand. these are key phrases that come to mind when i think of the cards - NOT how they should be directly applied. they needs to be thought about situationally - the card / when it is in specific combos can change or alter its meaning in a reading.

paid reading options: astrology menu & cartomancy menu

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ring: unity, attachment, alliance, marriage, vow, affections, commitment, engagement, agreements, promises, partnerships, mergers, valuable objects, jewelry, completion, solution, full circle, etc.

ring + cross = joint suffering, spartacus energy, feeling burdened by your commitments, relationship trials, bad karma, being "cursed", being humiliated by your partner, disappointed by your partner, etc.

book: curiosity, knowledge, education, wisdom, intelligence, hidden things, mysteries, secrecy, information, facts, data, learning, education, projects, cases, assignments, audits, research, monetary accounts, research, exams, school, esoteric studies, discoveries, breakthroughs, confidential information, books, journals, files, deck of cards, etc.

book + ring = marriage license, wedding planner, knowledge about prenuptial agreements, combined assets in a partnership, a finished project, final exam, etc.

letter: news, messages, information, notes, memos, documents, reports, written correspondence, awards, certificates, licenses, credentials, diplomas, records, permits, authorizations, warrants, liens, titles, contacts, advertisements, flyers, brochures, junk mail, invitations, announcements, cards, posters, etc

letter + book = lecture notes, hidden messages, literary analysis, awards for intellect, learning permit for driving, etc.

man: brother, lover, father, spouse, fiancé, etc.

man + letter = a guy with news, a message from a man, doctor, educated man, famous man, etc.

woman: sister, lover, mother, friend, spouse, fiancée, etc.

woman + man = siblings, twins, couple, etc.

lilies: royalty, honor, nobility, purity, innocence, knowledge, respect, wisdom, maturity, happiness, protection, pregnancy, aging, peace, slow down, etc.

lilies + woman = queen, maid of honor, a nun, baby girl, a virgin, woman teacher/professor, grandmother, mother, motherhood, etc.

sun: new beginning, life, warmth, heat, success, glory, victory, happiness, glory, desire, courage, hope, recognition, fame, power, reputation, ego, pride, high self-esteem, charisma, alluring personality, summer, beaches, positivity, optimism, masculine, etc.

sun + lilies = pure joy, contentment, joan of arc energy, being well liked and trusted, invincibility, king, patriarchy, etc.

moon: imagination, musing, passion, unconscious, feminine, maternal instincts, intuition, psyche, dreams, creativity, inspiration, innovation, honors, fame, recognition, popularity, celebrity, emotions, passions, seduction, romance, intimacy, affection, desires, fantasies, motherhood, the womb, menstruation, hormones, instincts, perception, sensitivity, awareness, mystics, mediums, psychics, etc.

moon + sun = prologue, dream life, "the warm and fuzzies", psychic power, pearl energy, charming personality, awareness of yourself and your power, etc.

key: wishes, hidden things, success, unexpected results, karmic lessons, breakthroughs, etc.

key + moon = manifestation, creative success, overnight success, karmic lover, awareness of your lesson, etc.

fish: abundance, water, fertility, spirituality, prosperity, eternity, unity, happiness, transformation, femininity, adaptability, knowledge, creativity, freedom, luck, intuition, independence, self-employment, entrepreneurship, sales, purchases, exchanges, abundance, wealth, emotions, beaches, independence, etc.

fish + key = having a lot of wishes, murky water, the unknown, things working out, a gamble paying off, etc.

anchor: stability, security, safety, immovability, trust, faith, loyalty, stubbornness, consistency, endurance, destinations, support, reliability, lifestyle, etc.

anchor + fish = stability income, stubbornness paying off, enduring beliefs, freedom to choose, supporting yourself, lifestyle that supports the self, etc.

cross: suffering, martyrdom, burdens, challenges, worries, troubles, trials, pains, hardships, concerns, hardships, obstacles, hindrances, regret, remorse, guilt, shame, humiliation, disappointment, religion, faith, belief, esotericism, psychics, mediums, empaths, etc.

cross + anchor = financially struggling, lacking faith, being in your own way, struggling with consistency, regretting your life's choices, being disappointed by where you are, faith worth relying on, being a psychic/medium, etc.

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[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Astronomers Detect Missing Ingredient in Cooking Up Stars

Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics astronomers are part of a team of researchers that have identified a key element in the formation of stars

The missing ingredient for cooking up stars has been spotted for the first time by astronomers. Much like a pressure cooker has a weight on top of its lid to keep the pressure in, merging galaxies may need magnetic fields to create the ideal conditions for star formation.

Previously, the existence of such magnetic fields had only been theoretical.

Now, an international team, including researchers from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), has announced evidence of magnetic fields associated with a disk of gas and dust a few hundred light-years across deep inside a system of two merging galaxies known as Arp 220.

Arp 220 is one of the brightest objects beyond our Milky Way in infrared light. Astronomers think it is the result of a merger between two spiral galaxies full of gas, which has triggered great bursts of star formation.

Astronomers think disks of gas and dust could be the key to making the centers of interacting galaxies like Arp 220 just right for cooking lots of hydrogen gas into young stars. Magnetic fields may be able to stop intense bursts of star formation in the cores of merging galaxies from effectively ‘boiling over’ when the heat is turned up too high.

“This is the first time we’ve found evidence of magnetic fields in the core of a merger,” said David Clements of Imperial College, United Kingdom who led the study, “but this discovery is just a starting point. We now need better models, and to see what's happening in other galaxy mergers.”

Researchers used the Submillimeter Array (SMA) on Maunakea in Hawaii to probe deep inside Arp 220. Located near the summit of Maunakea on the Big Island of Hawaii, the SMA is one of the flagship observatories of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, which is part of the CfA, and consists of eight radio dishes working together as one telescope.

To form a lot of stars in a short period of time, a large amount of gas needs to squeeze together.  As the heat from young stars builds, the gas gets dispersed, thereby inhibiting more stars from forming.

“To stop this happening, you need to add something to hold it all together – a magnetic field in a galaxy, or the lid and weight of a pressure cooker,” added Clement.

Astronomers have long been looking for the magic ingredient that makes some galaxies form stars more efficiently than is normal. One of the issues about galaxy mergers is that they can form stars very quickly, in what is known as a starburst. This means they're behaving differently to other star forming galaxies in terms of the relationship between star formation rate and the mass of stars in the galaxy – they seem to be turning gas into stars more efficiently than non-starburst galaxies. Astronomers are baffled as to why this happens.

One possibility is that magnetic fields could act as an extra ‘binding force’ that holds the star forming gas together for longer, resisting the tendency for the gas to expand and dissipate as it is heated by young, hot stars, or by supernovae as massive stars die.

Theoretical models have previously suggested this, but the new observations are the first to show that magnetic fields are present in the case of at least one galaxy.

“Another effect of the magnetic field is that it slows down the rotation of gas in the disks of merging galaxies. This allows the force of gravity to take over, pulling the sluggish gas inward to fuel starbursts,” said Qizhou Zhang of the CfA, a co-author of the study. “The SMA has been one of the leading telescopes for high angular resolution observations of magnetic fields in molecular clouds in the Milky Way. It's great to see that this study breaks new ground by measuring magnetic fields in merging galaxies.”

The next step for the research team will be to search for magnetic fields in other ultraluminous infrared galaxies. With their result, and further observations, the researchers hope the role of magnetic fields in some of the most luminous galaxies in the local universe will become much clearer.

IMAGE: This image of Arp 220 was taken by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. Arp 220 is the aftermath of a collision between two spiral galaxies. It is the brightest of the three galactic mergers closest to Earth, about 250 million light-years away. Astronomers studied Arp 220 with the Submillimeter Array (SMA) to determine the role magnetic fields play in the formation of stars. Credit: NASA/ESA/STScI/HST

[theresa-of-liechtenstein]

somewhere only we know

—or, herc visits captain fairbairn’s new office.

They walk through the terminal, the same way they once did all those years ago, though now Herc can sometimes be a little unsteady on his feet. It should be difficult to reconcile with the robust captain Linda remembers from the beginning of her career, who had been a bit of a health-nut even before it had been overly trendy, but—everyone who has loved Linda, and she has loved in return, is getting older. Such, she reckons, goes the arc of life.

“All right?” she asks him, who has a hand looped through her arm. He sends her a positively sappy look, and she rolls her eyes. Beside them, a respectful distance away, walk the two other pilots on this long-haul flight. The first officer operating out tows Linda’s flight kit along with hers.

“You’ve come such a long way, my dear,” Herc tells her as they continue down the terminal to their gate. He hasn’t been flying for a little over two years now—he had seen his last student to a multi-engine certification before hanging up his hat and bowing from the flight-school enterprise that Carolyn’s airline had metamorphosed into, the one Arthur had inherited and was currently managing back in Fitton. “You’ve worked so hard.”

“But you are to thank for…a lot of it,” she returns, focusing on guiding him onto the moving walkway ahead of her first officer and relief pilot.

“I’m honored to have been part of your journey, in that case.” He pauses, and Linda looks aside and sees the twinkle in his eye. “Captain Fairbairn.”

She feels her ears grow a little warm, and she ducks her head with a shy smile. It has taken some getting used to, but after moving from short-haul legacy A320 to long-haul A330 and subsequently bidding into one of the inaugural A350 captain positions, she finds that it’s less of a foreign title than when she began at Swiss. It’s just that when Herc calls her Captain, or her dad…those are the only times it makes her blush.

They approach the gate; a gate agent comes up to them. “Good morning, captain. You requested a non-rev seat for a guest today?”

“Yes,” Linda nods aside at the man on her arm, who’s now staring outside the terminal windows at the glistening A350 on stand at the apron, its fuselage narrowing into a daintily pointed nose and its wings gracefully curving up at the tips. She doesn’t blame him—the A350 is objectively a beautiful aircraft. “Hercules Shipwright,” she tells the gate agent, and Herc tears his gaze away from the airplane to acknowledge the agent with a nod.

She can’t wait for him to see inside of her aircraft.

“Wonderful,” the gate agent says. “Welcome, sir,” she says to Herc. “We’ll give you priority boarding, as requested.”

“Thank you.” Herc disengages himself from Linda, and she misses the comforting presence of her friend at her side. “Linda, I’ll find a seat by the window. I’ll see you out there, yeah?”

“See you,” Linda tells him, and leads her flight crew down the jetbridge.

The previous crew has left the plane turned around and ready for them; Linda pops her head into the galleys while her first officer starts preflight checks, greets the flight attendants, and reminds the purser about her guest.

As preboarding approaches, the first officer excuses herself to do the walk-around, and Linda is left alone with her thoughts in the flightdeck.

She peers out of the wide windows, past the six touch-screen LED displays. Though kitted out with more technology than she could ever have dreamed of, the family resemblance is clear in the design philosophy of the flightdeck—it’s very clearly an Airbus, from the fold-out tray tables to the blatant absence of a yoke. There had been a time when she’d thought she might make the switch to Boeing, but when Swiss had decided that the A320s it had taken in the merger with Cal would stay in the fleet, Linda’s future as a true-blue Airbus pilot was cemented.

Not that she’s complaining about it, when some of her happiest memories are framed by an Airbus-designed flightdeck.

Herc, true to his word, has taken a seat by the window of the terminal and is staring out at her with a smile.

Linda gets up, leans over the displays, and holds a hand up to the window in greeting; in return, Herc languidly waves at her. She grinned as he holds up a finger, one minute, and gingerly takes his phone from his pocket to snap a picture. Once finished, he lowers his phone, checks the photograph, and flashes a thumbs-up at her through the terminal window.

A knock at the doorway, and Linda turns to see the redcap peeking inside. “Captain?”

“Yes,” Linda acknowledges, and rises from her seat.

Before long, her first officer has returned, and the boarding time is flashing on the chronometer. Linda feels strangely nervous.

“You okay?” the first officer asks. “You look a little…” she trails off.

Linda shakes her head. “I’m fine, it’s just…” she casts a look out the flightdeck windows. Herc is no longer at his post by the terminal window. Her heart begins to pound.

“He’s…” The first officer ponders a little. “He’s not your dad, right? I forgot. I know you told me earlier.”

“He’s my best friend,” Linda replies automatically. “We haven’t been in a flightdeck together in—years.”

“I see. Well, I’ll just greet passengers outside,” her first officer tells her sympathetically, squeezes outside, then Linda hears her say, “Oh! Welcome onboard, sir.”

“Thank you,” says a voice she would know on any frequency, anywhere in the world, and Linda is immediately at ease. A second later, Herc pokes his head through the door, bracing a hand on the doorway. “Hello there, Captain. May I enter?”

She rises from her seat. “I’m coming, Herc.”

Linda stands at his side once more in the doorway, and he stares all around the A350 flightdeck with an expression of wonder on his face. “Good Lord, Linda, so many screens. How do you manage?”

“You pull the stick for up and push the stick for down,” she replies dead-pan, and Herc lets out a laugh so loud that several flight attendants and boarding passengers look in their direction. “Herc!” she hisses reproachfully.

Still grinning from ear-to-ear, Herc loops an arm around her shoulder and pulls her close to him. “Yes, Linda?” he asks, maddeningly innocent, and she rolls her eyes.

“Come on, let’s sit,” she says, and begins to lead him further into the flightdeck.

“You’re on the wrong side,” he points out, and Linda realizes she’s automatically drifted to the right seat and her first officer’s already-configured chair.

“No I’m not.”

“Yes you are, Captain Fairbairn,” Herc returns with the patience of a primary school teacher.

“I want you on my left.” She knows she sounds like a child insisting it, though she’s got several strands of silver running through her hair and glasses on her nose, but—she knows also that having Herc on her right in a flightdeck like this is not what she had envisioned when dreaming of bringing him up here. “Please,” she adds, as an afterthought.

He cracks a smile. “How very silly,” he says, and it doesn’t sound patronizing from him—it’s got all the affection she remembers. Yet he sits anyway, situates himself in the captain’s seat next to her, and—

The technology is so different from the ancient A320s of Caledonian, and yet—the flightdeck is so familiar.

Like they never left it.

Herc looks across the console at her with a breathtaking smile, and it’s like he’s de-aged about twenty years—maybe more.

“We should have done this,” he says softly, and despite the smile on his face, his eyes are suspiciously bright. “Even if it had been just once.”

“Done what?”

“Long-haul.” He casts a glance over the screens, the evolution of the same instruments that must have guided him for longer than Linda has existed. “Linda, I’ve half a mind to steal this plane,” he changes the subject.

She laughs at him, knowing that regret and Herc are two things that she’s careful not to let mix too much, and goes along with it. “I’m sure you could figure it out if I set it up on the ground,” she says lightly. “If I weren’t concerned about such things as, you know, keeping my job.”

“True, that is of slight importance.” Herc looks behind him, then curls his left hand around the sidestick lightly. The sight sends a wave of nostalgia through Linda—he could very well have been preparing to lift the nose at V1 on Bristol’s runway. “In any case…” He lets go of the sidestick, turns to Linda, and smiles gently at her. A single tear is tracing the groove of a smile line. “I wouldn’t steal an A350 with anyone else in the flightdeck but you.”

Linda reaches across the flightdeck, brushes the tear away with her thumb, and rests her hand on his face.

He leans into it, still smiling.

[artmolonara]

Since I see you also like Psychonauts- have you also considered a LTWW Psychonauts au?

Obviously in this case the detective is part of the Psychonauts group- (maybe the old scientist guy is the head of whatever division the detective is in,) maybe the detectives speciality power is clairvoyancy. (Ofc if you have a better idea I’m all ears)

In this case their mission is to infiltrate the mind of a certain serial killer.. the only problem is, once inside Waldo’s mind, he isn’t so eager to let the detective out again…

(I imagine Waldo’s mind to be similar to the meat circus, just striped insanity. Whatever memory faults the detective finds are weird and confusing.)

Yeeeessss, a merger of my obsessions!

The Detective I see doing a powerful Psi-Blast and a past version of Clairvoyance, where they are able to see what happened with an object by touching it, an imperative ability for a psychic detective. I see him as being a division of the Psychonauts that works with local law enforcement to solve crimes on a larger scale.

Oh man, going into Waldo's mind is gonna be like that film, the Cell. One big trip that is possibly themed on elimination/death, morality/judgement, and clowns/grandiosity, so a deadly courtroom that's also a circus perhaps (or that game We Happy Few)? It will be extremely crowded regardless.

I think the twist will be that Waldo himself is psychic, and extremely powerful, enough that he's able to hide it and spring it on them. His powers would be Time Manipulation (in which he's able to make himself move really fast), a form of Mental Projection to create his doubles (extremely advanced, his doubles are perfect copies), Confusion/Hypnotism ala the Noodler, Invisibility (maybe) and the rare Teleportation.

Im trying now to imagine designs for them that would fit the Psychonauts' art style. The Detective is probably gonna look similar in design to Boyd Cooper, and Waldo is gonna be closer to looking like Dr. Loboto.

Imma have to draw this later...

[levunalangs]

T’owal T’uesday #16

I really liked this post so I decided to translate it into T’owal! I should really update the font so I can make this look a little nicer.

First tweet: Pof k’ós e twus yul gwen su fán tso sú tsés ót í tsyén sú túl da tu k’eyen hú dá fén ts’af bon wan ikal htsts’

Quote retweet: Psil wum bus hú li ót máyol a hoh twít

The original tweets, as translated in the linked post, read:

I saw a piece of fabric? on the floor of my room so I went to pick it up but it was actually the moonlight that entered through the window lmao

1000 years ago this would have been a poem, not a tweet

Translation notes below!

One thing that was pretty convenient to translate was “fabric?”—the word pof in T’owal is usually used as an adverb to mean “maybe” or “possibly,” but in this case is used as an adjective to modify k’ós “cloth,” making pof k’ós “a possible cloth.” The unmarked word order would be k’ós pof and it would come later in the sentence, but moving the object to the beginning emphasizes it, and putting pof first further emphasizes the uncertainty.

On the note of the question mark, I didn’t write any punctuation in the image. I’m not sure why, really, other than that it felt more internet-ish. I don’t speak Japanese so I don’t know if there are any similar orthographic shortcuts in the original tweets, but putting all the proper punctuation just didn’t feel right.

Something that was much trickier to translate than expected was “moonlight.” What I wanted was more like “a patch of moonlight,” and the closest I got was tyot ts’af tso fen ts’af bon wan ikal: literally, “an area lit by an instance of shining of the moon, going through the window.” Not nearly as awkward in T’owal as that translation, but I didn’t like the repeated ts’af (once for “lit” and once for “shining”). I even tried out a version tyot ts’af tso bon tsin ikal, “an area lit by the moon via/using the window.” I ended up with fén ts’af bon wan ikal, literally “an instance of shining of the moon, going through the window.” To me, fén ts’af bon reads a little more like “ray of moonlight” than the intended meaning, but I think simpler here is better.

“lmao” is translated as htsts’ which is actually only three letters in T’owal (ts and ts’ are one each). It’s an acronym of hah tsin ts’o, “laughing with the voice.” Yes, the T’owal word for “laugh” is hah—before the recent (and tbh still not set-in-stone) merger of /x/ and /h/ it was xax, which is at least not as obvious.

[monslord]

The Ten Shadow's ties to Shintoism and it's significance for the end 

With only five more chapters left, my previous theory regarding the resolution of the story went officially down the drain. To summarize, I had assumed that it would be through the merger that Yuji would accomplish freeing everyone of Cursed Energy. At this point it's safe to say that the merger will not happen. But what does that mean for the resolution of the problem of Cursed Energy and all the subsequent issues it causes in the story? I have too much faith in Gege to believe that he simply abandoned those issues. Therefore I believe that the answer to that is a character I hadn't been able to place properly in my previous theory: Megumi.

Before Jujutsu Kaisen there was Jujutsu Sousen, a previous version of the story that centered Megumi as the main character. Curses were described as a type of malediction and Megumi's goal in the story was to find a way to cure his sister of this malediction. It would be Megumi who would become Sukuna's vessel from the get go, instead of Yuji. This variation was dismissed, because editors deemed Megumi as not suitable for a main character. Still Gege had managed to write the story in such a way, that would have us end up in exactly the situation which he had wanted from the start: Megumi as Sukuna's vessel and on a quest to save his sister. Because of that I believe that Gege's idea for the resolution of the story likely also hadn't changed since then – Megumi is the key to finding that "cure". Gege had long mentioned that the resolution for Megumi's end is something he already knew for a while.

None of the information I'm going to share is new, I'm just going to summarize it here to make the case for my theory at the end of this post.

The origin of Megumi's Ten Shadows CT derives mainly from Shintoism. Gakuganji and Utahime are two other characters related to the Shinto religion, making Megumi's ties to it not entirely out of place.

Shinto call their gods "The Eight Million Kami" because they believe that there is an unknowable number of potential kami in the world. Kami are neither wholly good nor evil and are inherently connected to the living and dying world. They are hidden from the mortal world, existing in their own spirit world that is a mirror to ours - separate yet connected**.** The term Shikigami can also be read as Shiki-no-kami: Ceremonial Gods. 

This already tells us a bit about the Ten Shadows' ties to Shinto: Megumi has access to the shadow world of the Kami, or more specifically to his own Shiki-no-kami.

The Shikigami in Megumi's possession all have some relation to the "Ten Sacred Treasures" in Shinto mythology, with the markings on their bodies bearing similarities to the regalia they are associated with. I won't go into the details of the mythological history behind every single one of his Shikigami, there are already many other posts talking at length about it.

In order to summon Mahoraga, Megumi chants, “Sacred Treasure swing and ring, ring.” This phrase is part of a real chant called the Furu no Koto (also known as Hifumi no Haraekotoba). This is a Shinto chant, one recites while slowly swinging the Ten Sacred Treasures. It is said that in the event of difficulty, illness, or in order to dispel evil, one should chant the names of the ten regalia while flourishing the objects, and the desired effect will immediately appear in response.

Shinto believes in the inherent good and purity of people, which gets corrupted throughout life. The concept of an original sin is non-existent in Shinto, therefore making purification of all types of sins possible. Thus Shinto focuses a great deal on purification rituals (harae), which aim to cleanse people from the pollution of sins (tsumi). Tsumi encompasses the following three: Evil deeds, defilement and disasters. It's obvious that Tsumiki's name has it's origin in this term, as someone in need of purification of the defilement she has fallen victim to. Megumi, who's name means to grant a blessing, is the perfect counterpart to the corruption of Tsumiki.

All of this leads me to assume, that Megumi's full mastery of the Ten Shadows and his fully realized domain will lead to a complete purification of Cursed Energy. This might seem absurd at first, but what is Jujutsu Kaisen, if not a continuous exorcism of Curses? A purification is nothing else but an exorcism.

Let me explain a bit more:

There is simply no way that Jujutsu Kaisen will end without us readers seeing Megumi's fully mastered Domain Expansion. I believe his Domain Expansion is the externalization of his shadow - the shadow world of the Kami opened up. The term Chimera Shadow Garden already says as much: A shadowed garden for Chimera creatures.

We see Megumi's Domain Expansion form what seems to be a cervical vertebrae. I think this might be the beginnings of what would be a complete fusion of all his ten Shikigami. A completely fused Chimera creature, that possesses all abilities of each Shikigami.

Reggie Star VS Megumi also brought up some interesting insights:

In his battle against Megumi Reggie Star makes three statements, that might foreshadow what's to come:

Megumi's black shadow is like a fluid. At one point he confuses the feeling outright to drowning in water. Purification rituals in Shinto include washings with water.

Reggie remarks that he assumes, that if Megumi dies while Reggie is being held inside Megumi's shadow, that Reggie will be stuck in there forever. Unless Megumi is alive to open it, there is no way for anyone to exit this realm.

The weight of his shadow can potentially crush Megumi to death.

So here is what I think might happen in these final chapters

Nobara returns as a Cursed Corpse, so her Resonance technique can get applied to the remaining finger of Sukuna. As the finger is indestructible, the effects of her technique will simply echoe to Sukuna's reincarnated body, for as long as she keeps going.

Yuji will keep his promises and kill Sukuna with Megumi's (via resisting Sukuna) and Nobara's (via the finger) assistance, and through that save Megumi

Sukuna's remaining indestructible finger will get sealed into the Prison Realm, which will get topped off by additional seals

Megumi will use his completed Domain Expansion to purify all of Japan of Cursed Energy. True to his name, he will bless everyone by sacrificing himself and dying after the weight of all the absorbed Cursed Energy kills him and remains locked into his now inaccessible shadow realm.

This way Megumi would have realized his dream of creating a world that wouldn't have exposed Tsumiki to injustice and unhappiness, even if too late, while fulfilling his own wish: finally dying.

Happy leak day, y'all. Thanks for reading!

[sillyromance]

Good day Ma'am,

first thing I LOVE ALL YOUR DRAWINGS<3 They are just perfect and beautiful! Second I wonder how the childhood of a Man eater is. You mentioned that Vincent and Georgy different childhoods had, but as a Man eater must the childhood be really diffrent and maybe diffycult. But I also wonder how do people come with the solution that they are Man eater and from what age this is said. As always I really really thank you, if you answer and have a good day Ma'am!

Good day, dear @2003-anon-l !

Thank you so much for your compliments❤️!!! They really warm my heart!

Warning: mentioning of regurgitation

There are ways to know if a baby is a future man-eater. Bigger size and tendency of the the baby to mature faster than other kids can be the hints. Purring is another warning sign. Yet, everything becomes obvious once the baby’s teeth show up; as I mentioned before, they will be sharp and fangs – long.

And you're right - bringing up a man-eater is complicated.

Let's start with biology. Man-eaters have to gain complete control over their body to live a normal life. Swallowing and regurgitating mechanisms work a bit differently in their case. Unlike humans who make a swallow half-subconsciously, man-eaters can manipulate their inner muscles. Of course, they don’t think about it most of the time; yet, when they need to swallow something voluminous or bring it back, a predator does it, alternately activating certain sections of their throat and esophagus. If they don’t know the specifics, it can even cost them their life.

Therefore, some training is in order:

1) At the early age (around six-seven years old) a man-eater should start swallowing small edible objects like eggs, for instance. Size of them gradually gets bigger as time goes by. It will help a young predator to understand how their muscles react at their commands.

2) When the first stage is behind, it’s time to learn how to bring eaten objects back. Again, no dependence on reflexes – the child consciously makes their muscles work in reverse.

3) Once a man-eater knows the basics, they have to train their stomach to stop or start digestion on command which is crucial for keeping a prey alive if they want it. It’s a much harder task demanding self-discipline and patience since now they have to shut down their natural instincts. But in the end an experienced man-eater is able to manipulate their body without thinking.

Speaking of the public attitude… There are two common scenarios in terms of the family itself. A man-eater is either hated and neglected, or washed in love since parents know: it’s almost impossible for their baby to receive affection from anyone else. As tough as they seem, man-eaters are very sensitive when it comes to social connections. For example, they are extremely loyal to their friends and romantic partners; it’s one of the reasons why merger exists (a man-eater and their prey combine in body and soul). So, public judgment can hit them hard. Besides, psychologically, it’s often challenging for a man-eater to accept themselves. Realization may even traumatize them if it comes as a result of a tragic accident or harassment (the latter has happened to Vincent). Especially, because urges don't come until they are 18. Teenage hood is already not very fun, considering constant mood swings and body changes – insatiable hunger for something that isn’t meant to be food doesn’t help at all. However, the “first time” can be less overwhelming if someone helps the newbie, volunteering as their prey (usually it’s safe for the latter), and if there are people who support and love the predator unconditionally.

In other words, a man-eater can be brought up with minimal damage to their mental and physical health only if they are not struggling with their nature alone. It defines what kind of person they will finally become. Vincent’s parents were good people who gave him all the warmth he needed, teaching him that he and others like him aren’t monsters – he is compassionate because he had a living example of compassion. Meanwhile, the unlucky predators usually grow into heartless beasts lacking any sense of mercy to anyone. They despise social norms, see humans as lesser beings (call them “prey-things”), appear to be animalistic and psychopathic.

P. S.:  A bit more information about merger. It’s the only option for a man-eater to stop devouring humans without unpleasant consequences for themselves. I’ve been thinking about predatory hunger as a metaphor of sorts which, beside other things, can mean searching for a partner, the “second half”, literally. When a predator and their prey fuse, hollowness within the former disappears because all their body gets reconstructed: their height reduces, they lose control over their insides, their teeth become normal. At last, they are complete. However, not many man-eaters actually go through this because they don’t want to steal freedom from their loved ones. Usually, merger is used as an emergency solution when there is no other way for two people to stay together.

Thank you for asking! Have a beautiful day and stay healthy!

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Object permanence

Picks and Shovels is a new, standalone technothriller starring Marty Hench, my two-fisted, hard-fighting, tech-scam-busting forensic accountant. THIS IS THE LAST DAY to pre-order it on my latest Kickstarter, which features a brilliant audiobook read by Wil Wheaton.

#20yrsago Gilberto Gil’s extraordinary engagement with Brazilians https://web.archive.org/web/20050130034511/http://www.lessig.org/blog/archives/002400.shtml

#20yrsago Social Security “crisis” commentary that had me laughing aloud https://fafblog.blogspot.com/2005_01_23_fafblog_archive.html#110687103723037689

#20yrsago Details on cracking Apple’s iTunes DRM https://web.archive.org/web/20050129031800/http://osdir.com/Article3823.phtml

#20yrsago Outstanding tips for community moderation https://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/006036.html#006036

#15yrsago Copyright-maximalist judges plagiarize lawblogger in opinion https://www.24oranges.nl/2010/01/23/judges-plagiarize-blog-posting-in-copyright-case/

#10yrsago Comcast ghost-wrote politicians’ letters in support of Time Warner Cable merger https://www.theverge.com/2015/1/26/7878239/comcast-twc-fcc-merger-letters-politicians-ghostwritten

#10yrsago Koch brothers raise 2016 election warchest that’s on par with either party’s spend https://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/27/us/politics/kochs-plan-to-spend-900-million-on-2016-campaign.html

#10yrsago Podcast: The case for … cities that aren’t dystopian surveillance states https://ia802809.us.archive.org/11/items/Cory_Doctorow_Podcast_325/Cory_Doctorow_Podcast_325_-_The_case_for_cities_that_arent_dystopian_surveillance_states.mp3

#5yrsago Listen: loudspeakers broadcast corona virus closure messages to the empty streets of Shanghai Disneyland https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1221812589161799682

#5yrsago Amazon threatened to fire two tech workers who spoke about climate and Amazon’s business, then 357 more workers joined them https://amazonemployees4climatejustice.medium.com/amazon-employees-share-our-views-on-company-business-f5abcdea849

#5yrsago Climate denial has destroyed the libertarian movement https://jacobin.com/2020/01/libertarianism-climate-change-environment-private-property

#5yrsago Why I won’t buy an Ipad: ten years later https://memex.craphound.com/2020/01/27/why-i-wont-buy-an-ipad-ten-years-later/

#5yrsago One of the CIA’s waterboarding torturers called himself “The Preacher” and shouted religious nonsense while performing executions https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/25/some-folks-were-tearful-cia-waterboarding-on-trial-in-guantanamo

#5yrsago The privacy-invading, junk science “home DNA test” industry is cratering https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/01/23/276092/is-the-consumer-genetics-fad-over/

#1yrago Solar is a market for (financial) lemons https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/27/here-comes-the-sun-king/#sign-here

Check out my Kickstarter to pre-order copies of my next novel, Picks and Shovels!

[klimkovsky]

Globular star cluster Messier 2

Messier 2 (M2), also known as NGC 7089, is a globular star cluster located in the constellation Aquarius. Here are some key details about M2:

Location: It is situated approximately 37,500 light-years away from Earth towards the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

Discovery: M2 was discovered by Jean-Dominique Maraldi in 1746, but it was Charles Messier who included it in his catalog in 1760 as the second entry (hence the designation M2).

Physical Characteristics:

Magnitude: M2 has an apparent visual magnitude of about 6.5, making it visible with binoculars under good conditions, though it appears as a faint smudge to the naked eye.

Size: It has an apparent diameter of about 16 arc minutes, but its true physical diameter is around 175 light-years.

Star Count: It contains hundreds of thousands of stars, with estimates suggesting around 150,000 to one million stars.

Age: Globular clusters like M2 are some of the oldest objects in the universe. M2 is estimated to be around 13 billion years old.

Composition: M2 is known for its high density of stars in the core, where stars are packed closely together. This cluster includes various types of stars, from red giants to blue stragglers, which are thought to be the result of stellar collisions or mergers within the dense environment.

Scientific Interest:

M2 has been studied extensively for insights into stellar evolution, particularly because of its variable stars like RR Lyrae variables, which are used as standard candles for measuring galactic distances.

Observations have included detailed studies with the Hubble Space Telescope, which has helped in understanding the dynamics of the stars within such densely packed regions.

Observation Tips: For those interested in observing M2:

Use a telescope with at least a 4-inch aperture for a better view; larger apertures will reveal more detail.

It's best seen in late summer or early autumn from the northern hemisphere. In the southern hemisphere, it's visible during winter months.

M2 is not only a beautiful object to observe but also a treasure trove for astronomers studying stellar populations, dynamics within globular clusters, and the history of our galaxy.

Grok AI

In addition to what the neural network has said, it should be added that astronomers have not yet come to a consensus regarding the distance to the M2 cluster. Along with the estimate of 37.5 thousand light years, another value is no less persistently mentioned on the network — 55 thousand light years. This disagreement looks very similar to a banal error in converting miles to kilometers, although this could not happen in astronomy. In fact, the difference in the distance estimate is due to the use of different methods. The method of direct parallax measurement gives a smaller result, but at such a distance, parallax measurements are extremely unreliable. The method associated with the Cepheids and RR-Lyrids gives a larger distance to the cluster, although it cannot take into account the absorption of star light by the interstellar medium, and as a consequence — a drop in their brightness with distance, which near the plane of our Galaxy no longer obeys the inverse square relationship.

Does the truth lie somewhere in the middle — at the level of 46 thousand light years? — in this case it is hardly correct to assume such a solution as the most probable.

In addition, the shape of the M2 cluster is noticeably flattened, which indicates a fairly rapid axial rotation. This gives rise to the assumption that the globular star cluster Messier 2 in its distant past is the core of a dwarf galaxy that merged with other similar galaxies, forming our Milky Way galaxy in the first few billion years of the Universe's existence.

There is also a clarification regarding the age of the cluster — it is most likely somewhat younger than the AI assumed — not 13, but about 12.5 billion years. But according to the results of some studies, the age of the M2 cluster is estimated to be less than 12 billion years.

Globular star cluster Messier 2 by Hubble Space Telescope