#this week's poll for a cause!

[akajustmerry]

In the past year, how have you stood up for a free Palestine?

(poll is intended to spotlight @ahmedpalestine Ahmed's gofundme, more information below)

I made this poll to spotlight Ahmed's vetted gofundme. Here is his story:

My name is Ahmed Khader, a 29-year-old from Gaza, now living in Belgium. I left in 2019 to build a better life and support my family, but they remain trapped in Gaza, facing constant bombings and danger. On October 7th, the war forced them to flee to a refugee camp, but safety is still out of reach.

Ahmed's Gofundme is sitting at 💷4k out of a 55k goal. His GFM is very low and needs both attention and support. Please, reblog and/or donate. Everything helps. May our love and support for Palestinians outmatch our disgust at the Zionist entity.

[aceofstars16]

I know I’m gonna forget some cause I literally don’t know half of them lol

I’m also going to *attempt* to explain the AUs in case you don’t remember/don’t know what they are (if I mess one of them up it’s cause I don’t know that AU very well 😅)

Timestuck - Mabel gets stuck in the past with mullet Stan (variations can include Dipper also getting stuck in the past, or one or both getting stuck with Ford, basically any AU where the twins meet/get stuck with younger versions of one or both of their grunkles)

Drifting Stars: Mabel gets sucked into the portal at the end of “Not What He Seems” and goes dimension hopping with Ford (meanwhile Dipper and Stan are having a horrible time)

Reverse Falls: The twins and other characters swap personalities, where Mabel is more introverted and Dipper is more extroverted and same with the Stans…I think? (there is also an AU where I think maybe Gideon and Pacifia are good and Mabel and Dipper are bad but I genuinely can’t remember what it’s called, I’m sorry if this is what that AU is called but I don’t *think* it is?)

Relativity Falls: The twins roles are swapped, so Mabel and Dipper are older and Stan and Ford are the kids, visiting “Grantie” Mabel while Dipper is in the multiverse

Monster Falls: The characters are monsters instead of humans. I genuinely don’t know much about this AU but lots of people make the characters different monsters so there are probably a bunch of variations

Reverse Portal: Where Stan gets pulled into the portal instead of Ford. I know there are other AUs probably more popular than this one, but like I said I’m not the best as remembering AUs 😂

[icewindandboringhorror]

On average, what is the total MONTHLY amount that you spend on dining out*?

*(This doesn't only count going out to restaurants, but also stuff like picking up fast food to bring home, getting a coffee on the way to work, getting a premade sandwich from a grocery store deli during lunch, buying a quick snack from a convenience store or food cart whilst walking somewhere, ordering a pizza or any other food to be delivered to your home, etc.)

*(If you often dine out in groups/as a household: calculate and divide the costs so that you get a Per Person average. This is for YOU individually, NOT the total household/group costs)

(I'm sure polls similar to this have been made before (very common topic), I just haven't personally seen one that I can remember, so, I was curious to do my own! I was discussing this with a group of people today and it was very interesting to see how widely the number varied between individuals. :0c )

(Reblog for bigger sample size if you can, and feel free to explain your answer in tags if there's anything extra to add!)

[abd-illustrates]

Ty to everybody who voted in those character polls! The results were a fun surprise haha -- I'll definitely be takin note of 'em next time I get to sit down n' do some heartless doodles! (^^)/

[pizza-feverdream]

Listen up (again)

You choose one to save. The other disappears forever.

Reblog to test your followers

[bestanimal]

Round 1 - Phylum Arthropoda

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

Arthropoda is a phylum of animals that have segmented bodies, possess a chitin exoskeleton, and have paired segmented appendages. They are colloquially called “bugs” though this is often only used for terrestrial arthropods, and sometimes only used for insects specifically.

After Nematoda, this is the most successful phylum, and it is far more diverse, with up to 10 million species! Arthropods account for 80% of all known living animal species. The three major subphyla include the Chelicerates (sea spiders, horseshoe crabs, arachnids, and the extinct eurypterids and chasmataspidids), the Myriapods (centipedes and millipedes), and the Crustaceans (shrimps, prawns, crabs, lobsters, crayfish, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, opossum shrimps, amphipods, mantis shrimp, entognaths, and insects).

Arthropods are so diverse in fact that it is next to impossible for me to describe a model arthropod. They are important members of marine, freshwater, land, and air ecosystems and are one of only two major animal groups that have adapted to life in dry environments, the others being chordates. All arthropods have an exoskeleton and must molt as they grow, replacing their exoskeleton. Some arthropods go through a metamorphosis in this process. They have brains, a heart, and blood (called hemolymph, though some crustaceans and insects also use hemoglobin). They sense the world through small hairs called setae which are sensitive to vibration, air currents, and even chemicles in the air or water. Pressure sensors function similarly to eardrums. Antennae monitor humidity, moisture, temperature, sound, smell, and/or taste, depending on species. Most arthropods have sophisticated visual systems ranging from simple eyes (ocelli) which orient towards light, to compound eyes consisting of fifteen to several thousand independent ommatidia capable of forming images, detecting fast movement, or even seeing polarized or ultra-violet light. Some arthropods are hermaphroditic, some have more than two sexes, some reproduce by parthenogenesis, some by internal fertilization, some by external, some have complex courtship rituals, some lay eggs, some give live birth, some have prolonged maternal care. The first arthropods are known from the Ediacaran, before the Cambrian era.

Propaganda below the cut:

Insects are the first animals to have achieved flight

The smallest arthropods are the parasitic crustaceans of the class Tantulocarida, some of which are less than 100 micrometres long. The largest arthropod is the Japanese Spider Crab (Macrocheira kaempferi) with a legspan of up to 4 metres (13 ft) long. The heaviest is the American Lobster (Homarus americanus), which can get up to 20 kilograms (44 lb).

Many arthropods are popular pets, including various species of crab, shrimp, isopod, crayfish, mantis shrimp, millipede, centipede, tarantula, true spider, scorpion, amblypygid, vinegaroon, mantis, cockroach, beetle, moth, and ant! Some are even domesticated, including silk moths and honeybees.

Many arthropods are eaten by humans as a delicacy, and farming insects for food is considered more sustainable than farming large chordates. These farmed arthropods are referred to as “minilivestock.”

Arthropods feature in a variety of ways in biomimicry: humans imitating elements of nature. For example, the cooling system of termite mounds has been imitated in architecture, and the internal structure of the dactyl clubs of mantis shrimp have been imitated to create more damage tolerant materials.

Spider venoms are being studied as a less harmful alternative to chemical pesticides, as they are deadly to insects but the great majority are harmless to vertebrates. They have also been studied and could have uses in treating cardiac arrhythmia, muscular dystrophy, glioma, Alzheimer's disease, strokes, and erectile dysfunction.

Shellac is a resin secreted by the female Lac Bug (Kerria lacca) on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. It is used as a brush-on colorant, food glaze, natural primer, sanding sealant, tannin-blocker, odour-blocker, stain, and high-gloss varnish. It was once used in electrical applications as an insulator, and was used to make phonograph and gramophone records until it was replaced by vinyl.

One of the biggest ecosystem services arthropods provide for humans is pollination. Crops where pollinator insects are essential include brazil nuts, cocoa beans, and fruits including kiwi, melons, and pumpkins. Crops where pollinator insects provide 40-90% of pollination include avocados, nuts like cashews and almonds, and fruits like apples, apricots, blueberries, cherries, mangoes, peaches, plums, pears, and raspberries. In crops where pollinators are not essential they still increase production and yield. Important pollinators include bees, flies, wasps, butterflies, and moths.

Many arthropods are sacred to humans. In Ancient Egypt, scarab beetles were used in art, religious ceremonies, and funerary practices, and were represented by the god Khepri. Bees supposedly grew from the tears of the sun god Ra, spilled across the desert sand. The goddess of healing venomous bites and stings, Serket, was depicted as a scorpion. Kalahari Desert's San People tell of a legendary hero, Mantis, who asked a bee to guide him to find the purpose of life. When the bee became weary from their search, he left the mantis on a floating flower, and planted a seed within him before passing from his exhaustion. The first human was born from this seed. In Akan folklore, the cunning trickster figure Anansi/Ananse is depicted as a spider. Western astrology uses the crab constellation, called Cancer, and the scorpion constellation, called Scorpio. Dragonflies symbolize pure water in Navajo tradition. In Anishinaabe culture, dreamcatchers are meant to represent spiderwebs and are used as a protective charm for infants. They originate from the Spider Grandmother, who takes care of the children and the people of the land in many Native American cultures. The Moche people of ancient Peru often depicted spiders and crabs in their art. In an Ancient Greek hymn, Eos, the goddess of the dawn, requests of Zeus to let her lover Tithonus live forever as an immortal. Tithonus became immortal, but not ageless, and eventually became so small, old, and shriveled that he turned into the first cicada. Another hymn sings of the Thriae, a trinity of Aegean bee nymphs. Native Athenians wore golden grasshopper brooches to symbolize that they were of pure, Athenian lineage. In an Ancient Sumerian poem, a fly helps the goddess Inanna when her husband Dumuzid is being chased by galla demons. In Japanese culture, butterflies carry many meanings, from being the souls of humans to symbols of youth to guides into the afterlife. Ancient Romans also believed that butterflies were the souls of the dead. Some of the Nagas of Manipur claim ancestry from a butterfly. Many cultures use the butterfly as a symbol of rebirth. And the list goes on…

cute crab eat a strawbebby:

[harpieisthecarpie]

Talked to my therapist and came to the conclusion that I want to focus on community and joy so, heres an interaction thing!

Hopeful Lighthouse Poll

I just really want there to be spaces away from negativity, and places to foster community. So. Here is a little bastion of hope in the ocean.

(Yes, the horrors exist and persist, we're not ignoring them. Hope is a lighthouse that orients us through the fog. Take care of yourself!)

[PPS, feel free to rb without adding! That helps spread it >:3]

[thesoftestcowboy]

I'm curious about something... (and fucked up the last poll. if u saw no u didnt)

*As in, you enjoy listening to it, like it aesthetically, think of it as attractive, whatever. This is NOT about whether or not you understand the language or if you like whatever you associate with it or whether or not it's "useful" (e.g. If you do not speak a single word of japanese but really love how it sounds, vote for it. if you think italian sounds sexy but don't really care about visiting Italy, vote for it. If you like the look of the hebrew alphabet but not how it sounds, DONT vote for that. It's about the sound.)

Before you come at me: These categories are not perfect. Some of them are sub-categories of a bigger family (Indo-European), some languages are in the same category but sound really different etc etc. I had to leave out or group some of these together in a way that I felt made most sense for what I wanna know & the demographics of this site. I'm not a linguistics expert.

Feel free to share your thoughts in comments or tags! 👍

[jewishrizahawkeye]

no third option. you have to go on this date no matter what.

i’m just genuinely curious in this. i know people don’t like taylor or her fans (ngl y’all are based in that at times) but i want to know if people would rather spend time with a massive hater or a massive fan

[mari-lair]

round 2, rb for a larger sample

[bloodydeanwinchester]

actually i think that maybe next tuesday is gonna kill me

[somegrumpynerd]

Time for a new toy!

Camera stayed ahead pretty much all week, so tomorrow there will be a camera in the garden!

So now...

("Nothing" option will still attract a cat!)

[xofemeraldstars]

i've been thinking about making some gifs as i tend to do heh and i got a question, which one would yall like to see first, whenever i will finish it 👀👀👀

[makahitaki]

Absolutely unhinged question incoming btw

(if you have no clue what reference this is, I advise you to pick the funnier option) ((Trunks is a man BTW))

[lyn-ne]

I’m curious.