#science illiteracy

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

Break The Science Barrier : Why Science Matters - Richard Dawkins

Break the Science Barrier is a TV documentary that I presented on Channel 4 in 1996. It argues for the importance, for society, of scientific ways of thinking. In it, I interviewed David Attenborough, Alec Jeffreys, who discovered DNA fingerprinting, and Douglas Adams, who gave a wonderful impromptu eulogy for science. I also interviewed a man who was wrongly convicted of murder because none of the lawyers, on either side, knew anything about science. The program ends on a more positive note – what I later came to call Science in the Soul.

-

"Like most scientists, I'm a realist, but I'm also a bit of a romantic. I appreciate that there are people who think they need something more than science can offer. Something, frankly, undefinable. But I think science does offer all we need. Not just to understand the 'how' of life, with its great richness and complexity. For me, science goes as far as we meaningfully can go towards answering the 'why' as well."

[imkeepinit]

[awesome-casuallyfamouscollector]

Neil DeGrasse Tyson on How Did America Become Stupid

Neil DeGrasse Tyson Talks about how the United States is being left behind in areas such as physics, math, and engineering comparing it to Europe and Japan which are generating more scientific papers and have better infrastructure. Drawing upon his deep understanding of scientific trends and global dynamics, Tyson highlights the contrasting landscapes of scientific progress between the United States, Europe, and Japan. He articulates how these regions have surged ahead, not only by generating more scientific papers but also by investing in cutting-edge infrastructure and fostering collaborative research environments(..)

P.S. Interesting and funny video: In today's society, it is quite often seen that many people are ready to believe and live with complete nonsense in their heads and behaviour, just so they don't have to think rationally.

It's a strange thing to say, but America is literally overrun with religious fanatics and victims of silly commercials...

But, this is not only a specific American problem! How do you think the Islamists managed to fool the Arabs and the Kremlin managed to turn the Russians into mindless orcs!? Very simply, the people living in the respective societies did not want to think and use common sense...

[sjbattleangel]

"I'm not (media illiterate)."

Lily, you are one of THE MOST media illiterate people on the face of the earth! You decided Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur was "automatically garbage" because you heard it was going to be serialized; You dismissed Amphibia as "irredeemable trash, sight unseen" because you heard it had a story and fell for some stupid nontroversy regarding a crew member's fanart; You sided with Disney suits when they cancelled The Owl House for being "too dark and scary for kids" to appease some moral guardians and watchdogs (who may've not even existed)! You want to control what kids watch, you want all of animation to be nothing but toothless, slice-of-life romantic comedies with no action, stakes or soul. Just like your crappy coffee shop AUs.

Not to mention whenever any piece of media contains disturbing and/or problematic moments, you automatically believe it equals "endorsement" and to you, we're all impressionable babies who can't tell fact from fiction and need to be "protected for our good." You just want censor and police fiction to satisfy your own holier-than-thou self-indulgence. Helen Lovejoy much?

"I didn't (accuse Rebecca Sugar of being a sex fiend)."

Hermana, WE HAVE RECEIPTS!

You and your simps decided that a sweet, wholesome picture of Steven wearing his mother's hand-me-downs is somehow Rebecca Sugar's way of "sexualizing him." Even more, in your awful Rebecca Sugar Must Die video, you accused Sugar of sexualizing the character of Stevonnie and that through fusion, Sugar made Seven and Connie "have sex". For this you constantly attacked Sugar as a "creep", "pervert", "disease", "fascist sympathizer", trying your hardest to convince everyone that Sugar is some Neo-Nazi pedophile.

No, Lily! Rebecca sugar is not-and never has been-a Neo-Nazi pedophile! She didn't sexualize Steven! She didn't sexualize Stevonnie! But most of all, fusion was never a metaphor for sex!

The only ones sexualizing Steven, Connie and Stevonnie are YOU and your simps!

[moderndaymadscientist]

*attempting to hide the Illiteracy-Ray behind back* heyyyy buddy why don't you get just a little closer i promise i won't hit you with the Illiteracy-Ray i swear i just wanna tell you something cool i promise

[monriatitans]

LITERACY QUOTE OF THE DAY

Thursday, March 14, 2024

“To be scientifically illiterate is to remain essentially uncultured. And the chief virtue of a cultural activity–be it art, music, literature, or science–is the way it enriches our lives.” – Lawrence M. Krauss

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Check out Kids Need to Read to help children discover the joy of reading and the power of a literate mind! For the curious, the purpose of the Literacy Quote series can be found here!

Enjoy what I do? Please consider supporting via Buy Me a Coffee! Like what you see and want to know when there’s more? Click here to subscribe for updates and/or hit the Follow button!

Watch MonriaTitans on Twitch and YouTube! For more about MonriaTitans, click here!

[alleycat4eva]

Hey so this is a lie. This study is a fucking mess and they God damn admit it.

Nearly half the people contacted didn't respond. Responders had HIGHER RATES OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY.

THEY FULLY THREW OUT 10% OF ANSWERS BECAUSE THEY DIDNT LIKE THEM AND THEY DIDNT AGREE WITH THE RESULTS.

THIS "STUDY" IS BASED OFF A SINGLE FUCKING SURVEY SENT OUT LIKE. FUCK DUDE.

This conclusion reeks of bias.

we love when studies confirm shit we already know 🥳🥳🥳

[priyafied]

S.O.S. Earth: The tipping point of no return

Earth is at a critical juncture, with wildfires, floods, and record heatwaves signaling a climate in crisis. This isn’t a distant threat—it’s our current reality. The tipping point is here. Beyond this is no return. We need to take action now!

Climate change is no longer a distant threat lurking on the horizon—it’s here, reshaping our world in real-time. From devastating wildfires to unprecedented floods, the signs are clear and the time for action is now. As record temperatures scorch our cities and rising seas encroach on our coasts, we find ourselves facing a stark reality: the tipping point of no return is upon us. From the melting…

[creatingblackcharacters]

“It’s Giving” AAVE, and the Denied Yet Undeniable Impact of Black Culture

I grew up knowing it as Ebonics; I didn’t hear 'AAVE' until I was an adult. Apparently it’s used derogatorily- I did not know. But when Robert Williams coined the term in the 70s, its meaning was:

“…the linguistic and paralinguistic features which on a concentric continuum represents the communicative compentence of the West African, Caribbean, and United States idioms, patois, argots, ideolects, and social forces of black people…Ebonics derives its form from ebony (black) and phonics (sound, study of sound) and refers to the study of the language of black people in all its cultural uniqueness.”

Familiar Examples include but are not limited to:

The History

It was unbelievably difficult to find a solely Black perspective on the subject. I’m gonna need everyone to let Black linguists talk, it’s literally their job. Anyway, I need y’all to actually WATCH this video. Don’t skip it thinking I’ll summarize. Watch it. Actually listen. That’s part of the problem to begin with, is not listening. Even if you have to read this lesson later, so be it.

One of the points emphasized in this video was that AAVE was formed of the need to communicate, and specifically to communicate in a way that hid what we were saying and thinking from antagonistic white society.

“…“the disguise language used by enslaved Africans to conceal their conversations from their white slave masters to the lyrics of today’s rap music, [the magical power of] the word has been shaped by a time when, as observed by Harlem newspaper writer Earl Conrad, ‘it was necessary for the Negro to speak and sing and even think in a kind of code.’””

Because it was in a form that white people could not understand, as well as already existing racist biases against the humanity and intelligence of Black people, naturally it was assumed that our way of communicating was ignorant and ‘false’. Even acknowledging it as a valid language was seen as abhorrent, by nonblack and certain Black people.

“For decades, linguists and other educators, pointing to the logic and science of language, have tried to convince people that Black English exists, that isn’t just a politically correct label for a poor version of English but is a valid system of language, with its own consistent grammar. In 1996, with the unanimous support of linguists, the Oakland School Board voted to recognize AAVE, or the more politicized term “Ebonics” (a portmanteau of “Ebony” and “phonics”), as a community language for African American students, a decision which might have opened up much needed additional funding for education. Instead it resulted in intense public backlash and derision due to the still widespread, incorrect belief that Black English was an inferior, uneducated form of English associated with illiteracy, poverty, and crime. It’s hard for a language to get ahead when it keeps getting put down. Some linguists, such as John Russell Rickford, have noted how even sympathetic linguistic research, which has derived a lot of benefit and understanding from Black English grammar, can unknowingly focus on data that represents African American communities negatively, giving “the impression that black speech was the lingo of criminals, dope pushers, teenage hoodlums, and various and sundry hustlers, who spoke only in ‘muthafuckas’ and ‘pussy-copping raps.’” The term “Ebonics” even now is used mockingly by some as a byword for broken English.”"

(Some of) The Rules

AAVE is a full dialect with grammar and social rules. But the ones most people are familiar with include:

Th becoming D (“dats”)

Double Negative (“I ain’t see nobody”)

Habitual Be (“It’s cuz he be on that phone”)

Possessive s absence (“I’m going to my grandaddy house”)

Question word order (“who that is with the ice cream and cake?”)

Zero copula (“who that?”)

"Why do you talk like that" Would you rather I code switch?

“Code switching, or adjusting one’s normal behavior to fit into an environment, has long been a strategy for BlPOC individuals to navigate interracial interactions successfully. Code switching often occurs in spaces where negative stereotypes of Black individuals run counter to what are considered appropriate or professional behaviors and norms in a specific environment, and regularly happen in work settings.”

In this context, you might recognize it better as “using your white people voice”.

Some Black Americans, for varying reasons including internalized antiblackness and a desire for assimilation, hate AAVE! Some people will hate that you don’t use AAVE! Never assume we’re all on the same page about its use! My own mother used to be big on speaking ‘proper English’.

Regional Differences

The same way regional differences affect standard pronunciation, it’ll affect the AAVE used. Culture in the area as well will affect the words that come from it. So someone Black using a phrase in Philadelphia might not automatically know what someone Black from Compton is saying.

Someone did their dissertation on this topic, and while I’m going to link the summary for yall to give it a shot, Imma be honest- I do not understand this. I tried. It’s interesting how something that comes so innately, once written out like this is like WHAT. But the research has been done!

Easier examples include:

"Aaron earned an iron urn"- Baltimore

GloRilla and "Mursic"- Memphis

A lot of AAVE from New York City is popularized; so you might hear words from anywhere that originated from Harlem or Queens, or New York Ballroom culture

Tonal Languages

One major source of misunderstanding AAVE is people not understanding tonality. AAVE is often tonal, similar to many African languages, languages in general- meaning that unless you hear it or are innately familiar with how it’s spoken, you might not know HOW I’m saying something and therefore will not understand what I’m trying to convey. Given the history, this was on purpose!

Black language- Black culture in general, really- is often conveyed orally. Everything we say and do is not going to be written down for someone else to study. Doesn’t mean we weren’t saying or doing it. If you want to understand, you have to listen!

“Linguist Margaret G. Lee notes how black speech and verbal expressions have often been found crossing over into mainstream prestige speech, such as in the news, when journalists talk about politicians “dissing” each other, or the New York Times puts out punchy headlines like “Grifters Gonna Grift”. These many borrowings have occurred across major historical eras of African American linguistic creativity. Now-common terms like “you’re the man,” “brother,” “cool,” and “high five” extend from the period of slavery to civil rights, from the Jazz Age to hip-hop: the poetry of the people. This phenomenon reflects how central language and the oral tradition are to the black experience.”

Some examples:

1) "You Good" can mean, depending on how it is said and the context in which it is spoken:

Are you okay?

Do we have a problem?

You’re okay.

You don’t want these problems so chill.

Do you have enough money/resource?

It’s fine! Don’t worry about it.

2) This was an interesting experience, watching the misunderstanding of AAVE occur live. It’s the realization that people read this as “This is something Bugs Bunny would wear” versus “Bugs Bunny would wear the fuck outta that outfit”. But if you didn’t know that, if you aren’t familiar with the tonality of AAVE, of course you’d think the first one is what it meant! And it's not wrong-wrong - he would wear it, but that's not necessarily all it meant.

3) “Chill-ay” versus “Chile”. Yeah, we didn’t forget that. This is often why AAVE is used to sound “aggressive” on the internet- if you perceive (however subconsciously) how Black people speak is aggressive, then when you decide to emulate my speech in your moment of aggression, it is because you think my Blackness will make you seem more intimidating! You find Blackness… intimidating. Same reason you think it makes you funnier than if you were to deliver the same joke using your own dialect. It means the jokes not funny; my language is what’s funny.

Black American Sign Language

We even communicate differently in sign language; there’s an entire history and culture behind the Black deaf experience.

“In April 2020, Nakia Smith, aka Charmay, created a TikTok account introducing five generations of her Black Deaf family and how they communicate in Black ASL. As a social media influencer of Black ASL content, Charmay made a series of educational and informative videos on the history and practice of Black ASL. Charmay’s video went viral, landing in a New York Times article, Black, Deaf and Extremely Online, and Blavity: TikToker Has Gone Viral For Putting The Culture On To Black American Sign Language. Additionally, Netflix requested Charmay to explain the difference between Black ASL and ASL.”

Everyone doesn’t speak AAVE!

If your Black character is not Black American, and has never once been connected with Black American culture or people, they are probably NOT going to speak AAVE! They’re going to speak whatever dialect THEY have! And that doesn’t make it any less “Black” of them!

Different dialects and languages across the diaspora include but are certainly not limited to:

Black British English

Haitian Creole

Gullah

Jamaican and Caribbean Patois

Everyone Owes Rihanna an Apology

Y’all remember the song Work. I know you do. It was mainstream’s love and joy when this song dropped to be overtly racist about it, Black Americans included. Everyone claimed it was ‘gibberish’, that she was just mimicking language on a song and ‘it would be popular’.

Meanwhile, it was her singing in her native island patois! The people who spoke her language understood it! Anybody who actually tried to understand it, understood it! Another popular song, Sean Paul’s Temperature, is also in patois! And I thought we loved that song!

So next time Black people speak and you find yourself thinking- ‘wow, this makes no sense’, I want you to think to yourself: ‘does it make no sense, or do I just lack the context/knowledge/language to understand it?’

NOW THAT WE’VE HAD SOME EXPLANATION BEHIND THE LANGUAGE!

Writing AAVE

Me personally, I admit I don’t like it being used in stories where it is clear the author doesn’t understand the dialect, or where it’s clear the only person who speaks it is the “Black character who OMG DID I TELL YOU THEY WERE BLACK”. I’d rather it be the regular Queen’s English. We speak that too. I’m not going to decry your fanfiction or your regular modern-day original story as “bad” if you choose to use whatever language your region commonly uses. We know how to speak it. We will be okay. Using AAVE is not going to sell me that this character is “Black” if the rest of the character writing is still bad.

If it means that much to you, because it is important to the character, then you as the writer need to commit to learning proper AAVE! This isn’t going to be a “look up every turn of phrase on google” or “ask Ice what every single thing means”. You’re going to have to do what everyone who learns a language does- immerse yourself in it! If you can’t be bothered to learn my language, I’m going to know that when I read your work.

Obviously if there’s a context where the Black people involved do not know how to speak a language, it is perfectly fine to show that, as long as you are showing that it’s not due to some innate stupidity or other stereotype that this person cannot communicate the same way others communicate around them.

“The N Word”

I know someone’s thinking it, so let’s address it. There’s a translation for this word in damn near every language that’s ever come across Black people. So don’t go “oh we don’t have that word in my language-” I bet money you do.

Yes, it could be used in historical context- the ‘hard -er’. Yes, it could be used in social context- the ‘-a’. It follows the tonality rules I discussed earlier; that is, the way it’s used and who is using it makes ALL the difference in how it will be received.

Everyone is not on the same page about the use of this word within our community. Some Black people think it should never be used, period, even by us! Some Black people think that it should be reclaimed and use it as such! The only thing we’re on the same page about is that YOU should not be using it.

I say this to say to nonblack writers: put the pen down.

My stance is, if you can’t understand AAVE, you CERTAINLY aren’t going to be able to incorporate the social use of this word. Period. If you scared of the potential smoke incurred if you fuck it up- and if we see it, you will catch it- don’t bother. Trying to “write realistically” does not cut it. You should be doing everything in your power to understand and write a great Black character in all ways before ever thinking this is something you should do. In fact, if you're that thirsty to use this word, you have some other things you need to consider.

In the historical context, just watch yourself. If you’re gonna drop that word, you need to be damn well-researched on every other aspect of Black life and oppression in whatever era you’re writing. Just dropping this word to say “life is racist” shows a lazy lack of understanding of antiblackness. You don’t even have to drop the whole word. A “ni-” at the end of the sentence is enough for me to know exactly where we’re going! But if you not gone do the rest of the work… you know what they say about stupid games.

The Fundamental Disrespect

If you watched the prior videos (and you should have) and paid attention up to this point, you have already heard the struggles that both AAVE as a dialect and those that speak it go through.

There’s a societal connotation of stupidity, aggression, and silliness behind the way I speak. None of those things are true, and it’s hard to be told that even the way you communicate with others is bad.

But the other reason it’s so hard is because we spend our lives hearing that those are the connotations… when WE speak it. It is not the language- it’s ME that makes it so! And that gets into the other part of this lesson, something that AAVE is oft victim to.

This part is a little scarier for me to write, because people don’t like it when you talk about Black Americans as a separate entity from the US of A as it is known. I’m gonna put on my political hat for a second, but I promise this ties into my overall point so stick with me!

Stolen Cultural Hegemony

The reality is that the United States of America has forced a cultural hegemony upon the planet (amongst other forms). Yes. That is due to the capitalism, colonialism, imperialism and damn near just about every other -ism at the US government and military’s disposal. I am not saying that part somehow changes, of course not. That’s just facts. There are people far smarter than I (Edward Said, take the wheel) who could explain this far better. But I’m only here to explain this one point.

What DOESN’T get acknowledged is how much of what is deemed American pop culture across the world is both 1) stolen 2) Black culture! We do not have equivalent political power despite what our hypervisibility would suggest, but our social currency is raw diamond- so naturally, it has to be plundered! The white American dollar might mean far more than my life, but it’ll pay for my creations- even more so when I’m not involved!

The issue is that if your society says that I am less than, how can you justify how you covet everything I create? If I’m supposed to be so much less than you, why do you seek my language, my fashion, my music, my body? Why do you feel entitled to my creation, but you think you should have it… Without me?

Sit on that one for a second!

Appropriation of AAVE

Let's refer back to that chart at the beginning. How many of these have you seen or even used before? How long did it take for you to know it was AAVE? Don’t get me started on the influence of AAVE in queer spaces!

Of course I’m going to get started. Ballroom culture, created by Black and Latino people in New York City in the 80s (Paris is Burning, anyone?), has spawned so much popular “gay” lingo, and it’s not even just “gay”- it’s of color! Black English in particular is the source of many of the words that queer people use now in casual conversation, brought into the ballrooms, normalized, and then proliferated with other communities.

I can always tell when a new phrase from AAVE has hit nonblack audiences because it’ll suddenly be in every sentence I see, often butchered. Remember that historical context- of having to speak in code. Have you ever considered why AAVE is always evolving? Why we have to find new ways to communicate with each other? Have you considered that when people are constantly taking and misplacing your words, they may lose meaning or value, and so you have to come up with something else?

Appropriation of Black Music

Jazz, swing, the blues, disco, rock and roll, pop, even rap and hiphop have all been subject to appropriation- intentional or not. Far more intentional than you might want to believe. And it all comes back to money!

White audiences in the 1900s loved Black music- as long as they didn’t know Black people were singing it! Often, songs would be completely lifted and given to white bands to re-record. When Frankie Lymon first came on stage to perform, some of the audience was stunned! Even you know Itty Bitty Pretty One!

A more modern-day example: not to pick on the K-Poppies, but unfortunately it’s a low hanging branch example.

What K-Pop groups are doing now is heavily influenced what Black pop, rap, and R&B artists were doing from the late 90s to this very day. Part of the reason I enjoy K-Pop is because it reminds me of the stuff I used to listen to growing up. How many times have you heard someone think a Korean rapper in a K-Pop group is “fine”, but “don’t like” rap otherwise? Or will listen to K-Pop groups, but have very few to no one Black of the same sound on their playlists?

Examples:

Rover by Kai (2023) vs Swalla by Jason Derulo (2017)- Idk how popular Kai is outside of EXO, but I do know that some influence was had. And I like the song, btw! I prefer the music video! It’s just not the first time it’s been done!

Sweet Juice by Purple Kiss (2023) vs Say It Right by Nelly Furtado on a Timbaland beat (2006)

Taemin and Michael Jackson, period. Taemin having a song called The Rizzness. How did ‘rizz’ get to him? How did he know? More relevantly, how did the people who wrote his music know? How did something that started with Black people in Baltimore get all the way to Taemin in South Korea without influence?

I’ll use another example, so it doesn’t feel like I’m picking on K-Pop. I’m currently listening to CĂN NHÀ TRANH MÁI LÁ (Vietnamese, if you couldn’t tell) and as much of a banger as it is, with its own amazing cultural spin on the delivery… it is CLEARLY influenced by Black American rap. He nicknamed himself Vietgunna. Yall.

A non-American musical example: Afrobeats has taken the music industry by storm… How many of those people who enjoy an afrobeat from a nonblack artist will enjoy it from Wizkid or TEMS?

Those polls, where they ask how many Black artists you listen to… try paying attention to see just how much of your music takes inspiration from Black creators, but there’s a non-equivalent amount of Black artists that you support!

Political Bastardization of Powerful Black Colloquialisms

The appropriation of Black English isn’t always for entertainment. Sometimes, it’s a purposeful, malicious tactic to demean the words, and therefore the intent behind them.

“Woke”

“Michael Harriot, columnist at TheGrio and author of the upcoming book, Black AF History: The Unwhitewashed Story of America, explains that this kind of insidious takeover and flipping of Black vernacular to anti-Black pejorative has numerous parallels in America’s past and runs all the way up to present day. “When you look at the long arc of history and America’s reaction to the request for Black liberation – every time Black people try to use a phrase or coin a phrase that symbolizes our desire for liberation, it will eventually become a cuss word to white people,” Harriot says in an interview with [Legal Defense Fund]. It’s perhaps this very context — Black people’s awareness of their history and their power to resist injustice — that made woke so ripe for the pernicious mutation it has now undergone. Indeed, the forced transformation of the colloquialism echoes how countless other Black ideas and intellectual contributions have been maligned. “When people during the civil rights movement began saying ‘Black power,’ all of a sudden it became a term that people equated with communism and anti-white sentiment — and then it eventually gave birth to ‘white power,’” Harriot tells LDF. “The ‘1619 Project’ [which centers the ramifications of slavery and the contributions of Black people in American history] has become an insult. ‘Black Lives Matter’ became an ‘anti-white sentiment’ that was banned in school and spawned ‘all lives matter’ and ‘blue lives matter.’”

#SayHerName

This discourse is happening again, it happens like every six months on here, and it’s one of the things on here that fills me with a hatred that I struggle with every single time. It is hard, I literally feel that hatred in the pit of my chest right now as I type this.

Kimberle Crenshaw (Black woman and the originator of the legal term ‘intersectionality’), the Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies, and African American Policy Forum coined the hashtag in 2014. TWENTY FOURTEEN.

It was meant to highlight the violent deaths of Black women and girls at the hands of police, which happens at a high rate like Black men and boys, but often goes far less acknowledged. By appropriating the hashtag, you are actively choosing to speak over the very names and deaths of Black women and girls we don’t know, because we are NOT SAYING THEM, and therefore are allowing those deaths to continue as though they do not matter.

I’m going to stop before I get more upset. But know what violence you’re contributing to in your negligence.

How to Avoid Cultural Appropriation while Showing Appreciation

Everything is obviously not appropriation. It is possible for people to appreciate, replicate, and take influence without being disrespectful! It happens! And because it is possible, is why it’s so infuriating that it does not.

It’s frustrating that when something is on me, it’s ghetto, ugly, ignorant. But when it’s on the right stick thin pale girl, it’s chic, it’s fashionable, it’s new. So if it’s not the language, and it’s not the fashion or music you don’t like… It must be… Me. I am somehow not worthy of respect for the very culture I create.

Can you imagine being told that? That you are not worthy of being… you?

If you are worried about cultural appropriation, both in your writing and in your life, the easiest way to avoid that is to:

1) acknowledge and support the culture that created what you’re saying or doing and

2) actually treat them like human beings instead of zoo animals or a species to study. Show respect! It’s not hard!

This is my body, my language, my creation. It’s not just to entertain you! It’s my life! I talk like this because this is how I speak, not because I want to get Tiktok cool points. If I’m around people who treat the way I talk like childish babble, it makes me feel stupid and disrespected. We can see that, and we can read it in your writing.

And yes, you may be saying “well none of that is unique to AAVE, that’s how other languages work!” Okay then go speak those languages then lmao. But if you’re absolutely determined to understand and utilize mine, then you need to treat it with respect and not like the Gen Z slang babble (or worse- the threat) y’all treat it as. It’s a form of antiblackness that is so normalized that we don’t even think about it… but now that you’ve read this lesson, you can start! You can start taking the time to actively dedicate a thought to what you’re saying and doing and where it came from. You can take the time to notice when something isn’t right- and maybe even choose to speak up, because it’s the thought that counts, but the action that delivers.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

The Three Laws of Creationist Apologetics The First Law Faith in Creation can never be destroyed. In a closed mind, the level of ignorance must always remain equal. The Second Law Creationists will always conflate separate scientific fields of study. As a result, all conversations tend towards entropy. The Third Law In any conversation, the replies that are simply links to "scientiif" creationist articles, tends towards constant, as the understanding of those articles approaches absolute zero.

[imkeepinit]

[robinlynnemabin]

Social Capital Housing 🏡 Social Capital Science Social Capital Literacy 🗞️📰Social Capital IlliteracySocial Capital Finance 💰Amish, Mennonite, Hutterites, 🐝, 🍯 etcHow To Develop Social Capital 🥑🥝Social Capital vs Fiat Money 💰Social Capital vs Credit ScoreSocial Capital vs Social ServicesSocial Capital vs Municipal ServicesSocial Capital vs Government ProgramsSocial Capital vs Reparations  "DIY Housing TV 📺 Mission Statement": Teach people how to build their own 📴 Off The Grid 🏠 House using Social Capital.  

[nekropsii]

yo, since people listen to you, can you confirm that the alpha trolls are infact described to be the alpha trolls in the comic and that "dancestor" refers to both alpha and beta trolls? I've seen so many people lately act like you can't call them "alpha trolls" and you must refer to them solely as "dancestors" and it's ridiculous as hell lmao

That's fucking wild, especially considering "Dancestor" is coined by an Alpha Troll specifically to describe the Beta Trolls, lmfao.

Illiteracy strikes again!

Also, denying that the Alpha Trolls are the Alpha Trolls is a ridiculous position that people keep trying to endear to me. It won't ever work. I've seen people try to deny it by saying that, essentially, "Beta and Alpha purely refer to Scratch Iterations", but that logic holds as much water as a sieve. "Pre-Scratch" and "Post-Scratch" are terms independent from "Beta" and "Alpha". The relation that Beta and Alpha has to each other is purely that one comes before the other, specifically that Alpha comes before Beta, because they're referencing Development Versions of specific plot-relevant programs.

LIGHTNING ROUND:

The Beta Kids are the Pre-Scratch Humans playing the Beta version of SBURB.

==> Homestuck, pg. 1 The Beta Trolls are the Post-Scratch Trolls using the Beta version of Trollian.

==> Homestuck, pg. 2009 The Alpha Kids are the Post-Scratch Humans playing the Alpha version of SBURB, and were initially known to the audience as the Guardians of the Beta Kids, meaning they came first.

==> Homestuck, pg. 4115. ... And The Alpha Trolls are the Pre-Scratch Trolls that were presumably using the Alpha version of Trollian, and were initially known to the audience as the Ancestors of the Beta Trolls, meaning they came first.

Logically speaking... Why would they not be called the Alpha Trolls?

This isn't rocket science, and takes way less mental gymnastics than saying, "Actually, everyone's been wrong in calling The Beta Trolls 'The Beta Trolls' this entire time, because 'Beta' and 'Alpha' just has to do with Scratch Iterations", even though the version of Trollian being used by the Beta Trolls is literally referred to as the Beta Client in the text of the comic. Which is a real argument I've been presented with. Several times. And it's a bad one. Every time.

It also takes way less mental gymnastics than saying that The Alpha Trolls are purely "The Dancestors", despite the term applying to almost every main character in the comic and specifically getting coined to describe The Beta Trolls, and saying that The Alpha Trolls isn't a valid term because 'they aren't explicitly called that in the comic' even though they don't need to get explicitly called. Like. Anything. In order for the reader to intuit that this is following the same very consistent train of naming logic that the entire rest of the comic has been following this entire time.

So, yeah, that argument is stupid. It is also bad, dumb, and silly. And a myriad of other terms.

[juicywritinghoard]

a few more prompts

This crime is going almost too well?

Can you play with my hair? 

Of all the people to body swap with. Of all the days. 

This is no time for cute cat pictures and heart emojis!!!

And ANOTHER THING. Zombies-

Hey. Honestly? [deep breath] [SCREAMS]

Nothing like yard sale drama and intrigue! 

I did not see your text. Actually I can't read. It's very sad. Sudden onset adult illiteracy is very real-

Do not put it in your mouth! 

I know I got in trouble for buying them a very cool toy last time, but hear me out. 

Bite me. You gotta.

I am not eating this raw, actually. Nope.

How long did it take you to make that for me? NO I am not crying 

You drive me insane. Obviously I would go to hell for you 

What does this button do? I gotta know

Sword fighting is even more charged than I expected and I was not prepared 

I know you grew up in a wet cardboard box all alone but I cannot believe you have not experienced this. I think we have to, right now,  immediately 

We both showed up alone to the couples cake decorating class, so obviously-

Oops! Run

It hurts, but it rules

After a bad day, what we really need is some chocolate and violence.

Meow? Are you kidding me? 

Oh don't even get me STARTED on monsters- 

Pick your battles. As in let go of some of them please I swear you cannot fight it all

You know that object from the thrift store we thought was haunted? Haha so guess what,

Good chances we all die. Counterpoint, everyone who lives gets ice cream with sprinkles, so gear up!

I think I pretty explicitly said not to get it on the carpet.

So your mic wasn't off,

Please dress up with me? Please please please?

It isn't my blood. Don't get it twisted 

Can we kiss behind the mini golf windmill one more time? 

Magic is real, it just looks fake. 

Quick! Propose to me! Also, what's your name? 

We have to get you a new super costume.

You're enchanting. You're resplendent. You're a little bit on fire,

I gotta be honest. I have no idea what's going on and I think I waited too long to say so. Sorry?

Why do they have cat ears? They're supposed to be DEAD

I have normal feelings about this. And regular opinions. And I'm vibrating a reasonable amount.

Help, help, I'm not supposed to be in this universe!! 

I will help you ruin your hair, obviously, but you have to tell me what's going on. 

You wore that to the funeral?? 

Baking is science. Wizardry is science. You know what isn't science? 

Tired, angry, and covered in spaghetti sauce, and here I am at your door. But I can explain?

Bear. Seriously 

gonna destroy you and end your legacy forever xoxo <3

Nothing could possibly make me laugh right now. Don't you dare start doing silly voices at me. 

You know what this giant fancy crystal is good for? Blunt force head trauma 

I know it's super dangerous but when your eyes glow like that I can't focus on the battle at all…

Life finds a way?

Fighting? No, no, we're having a great time arguing about this. 

[monriatitans]

LITERACY QUOTE OF THE DAY

Thursday, April 25, 2024

“The gulf between science and education has been harmful. A look at the science reveals that the methods commonly used to teach children are inconsistent with basic facts about human cognition and development and so make learning to read more difficult than it should be. They inadvertently place many children at risk for reading failure. They discriminate against poorer children who could have become successful readers. Many children who do manage to learn to read under these conditions wind up disinterested in the activity. In short, what happens in classrooms isn’t adequate for many children, and this shows in the quality of this country’s literacy achievement. Reading is under pressure for other reasons, but educational theories and practices may accelerate its marginalization.” – Mark Seidenberg

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The purpose of the Literacy Quote series is to shed light on the problem(s) of illiteracy. For more details, click here! Check out Kids Need to Read to help children discover the joy of reading and the power of a literate mind!

Enjoy what I do? Please consider supporting via Buy Me a Coffee! Like what you see and want to know when there’s more? Click here to subscribe for updates!

Watch MonriaTitans on Twitch and YouTube! For more about MonriaTitans, click here! The image was made with the Quotes Creator App!

[maths-screaming]

Commence the Screaming

This is a blog about innumeracy.

Innumeracy is like illiteracy, but for numbers. I have dyscalculia - or "math dyslexia," if you prefer something easier to say that more people also understand.

Like most people with dyscalculia, I've had it my whole life. I've also been functionally innumerate my whole life. I can count (usually); I can do basic addition and multiplication (kind of), subtraction (sometimes) and division (ehhh....). I hate games that involve counting money or keeping score. I can read an analog clock if you make me. I mix up my right and left more than random chance allows. I get lost a lot.

My math skills top out at "calculate a 20% tip on this bill" or "count change." I can't even reliably use a calculator for a lot of things, because calculators need the user to know what they're trying to get the calculator to calculate, and I can't always tell the thing the steps in the right order.

I'm 42, and for 42 years, I've hated, avoided, and feared basic math. I have three college degrees - not one requiring a single math course. I'm fascinated by several topics involving math, but I can't do them. The numbers knock me out of contention every time.

So why - now, when I have my own house, a stable job that requires only the occasional calculator arithmetic, a reliable car, and something resembling a savings account - do I care to change that?

Honestly...I don't know. There are certainly a few factors in play, including:

Most of my friends are math nerds, science nerds, and/or spatial-reasoning-artist nerds, and I want to appreciate their nerdery appropriately;

My students are aware that I'm a giant nerd who is interested in everything and thus love to ask me questions, and it hurts to admit to 15 year olds that I'm better at ancient Greek than at basic algebra;

I read Ben Orlin's Math With Bad Drawings and I want to be able to do the math, dang it. (I can already do bad drawings.)

But the biggest one is this:

Having learned what it is like to spend 40 years of one's life hating and fearing math, I don't want to spend another 40 years of my life hating and fearing math.

So...here we go. Middle-aged librarian tries to get slightly less bad with the numbers. Much screaming ensues. Ask me anything.