#Cumulative Knowledge

[omegaphilosophia]

The Philosophy of Ontological Lateness

The philosophy of ontological lateness explores the concept that certain entities or phenomena come into existence or become fully realized only after the preconditions for their existence have been established. This idea can be interpreted in various contexts, such as metaphysics, epistemology, or even existentialism, reflecting on how and why certain aspects of reality or knowledge emerge only under specific circumstances.

Key Concepts in Ontological Lateness

Existential Preconditions:

Ontological lateness suggests that for some entities or concepts to come into being, certain preconditions must first be met. This can relate to the development of complex organisms in biology, the emergence of consciousness in philosophy of mind, or the unfolding of historical events.

Temporal Sequencing:

The notion of lateness implies a temporal sequence where certain phenomena are necessarily preceded by other developments. For instance, advanced scientific theories often rely on foundational discoveries and earlier empirical observations.

Contingency and Necessity:

This philosophy examines the interplay between contingency (things that could have been otherwise) and necessity (things that must be the way they are). It looks at how contingent events and conditions give rise to necessary outcomes in the context of ontological emergence.

Evolutionary Perspectives:

In evolutionary biology, ontological lateness can be seen in the gradual emergence of complex life forms, where each stage of evolution depends on the prior development of simpler forms of life. This gradual process illustrates how complexity and advanced traits appear late in the evolutionary timeline.

Cultural and Historical Development:

Historically and culturally, certain ideas, technologies, and social structures emerge late, building on the foundations laid by previous generations. The Industrial Revolution, for example, was predicated on earlier scientific discoveries and economic conditions.

Examples and Applications

Philosophy of Mind:

Consciousness and higher cognitive functions can be seen as late ontological phenomena, emerging only after the development of complex nervous systems and advanced brains. This perspective highlights how mental states depend on prior physical and biological developments.

Scientific Theories:

Advanced scientific theories, such as quantum mechanics or general relativity, emerged only after significant prior developments in classical mechanics, mathematics, and experimental methods. These theories are ontologically late because they rely on a framework established by earlier discoveries.

Technological Innovations:

Many technological advancements, such as the internet or space travel, could only emerge after the development of fundamental technologies like electricity, telecommunications, and aerospace engineering.

Social and Political Structures:

Democratic political systems and modern legal frameworks are often seen as late ontological developments that depend on earlier societal changes, including the Enlightenment, revolutions, and the establishment of individual rights.

Implications of Ontological Lateness

Understanding Progress:

Ontological lateness provides a framework for understanding the progression of knowledge, technology, and social structures. It emphasizes the importance of foundational developments and the interconnectedness of various stages of progress.

Interdisciplinary Insights:

This philosophy encourages interdisciplinary insights by showing how developments in one field (e.g., biology, technology) rely on prior advancements in other fields. It highlights the cumulative nature of knowledge and progress.

Existential Reflection:

On a more existential level, ontological lateness invites reflection on the human condition, our place in the universe, and the unfolding of individual lives. It suggests that personal and collective growth is a process that builds on previous experiences and conditions.

The philosophy of ontological lateness delves into the nature of existence and emergence, exploring how and why certain entities and phenomena come into being only after specific preconditions are met. By examining the temporal sequencing, contingency, and necessity of ontological emergence, this philosophy provides valuable insights into the progression of knowledge, technology, social structures, and the human experience.

[toesuckler]

smart men make lonely corpses, smart teams make breakthroughs.

[dont-open-dead-inside-net]

y'all 😭 my grade the other day was at a high forty, which is horrible, but i managed to get it up to a sixty! which is great! but she* just updated the grades on some assignments and now im down to... a twenty. today i got it back up to a thirty five which is... better. but still. jesus christ

*my professor

[propalahramota]

Trying to look up something about Joran Persson, a Swedish 16th century statesman, and Google is like: Do you mean Jordan Peterson, the incel guy?

No, I don't, dear Mr.Google.

[hya-ichor]

preserving deniigi’s tags

surely no one in academia cares at this point

You must understand that historians are not allowed to cum unless they're calling someone a crackpot fraud.

[big-robot-fan]

Thoughts.

[writeitinsharpie]

i have a thought about pjo that i can't quite articulate but it goes along the lines of:

athena gave annabeth as a gift to frederick because she liked his search for knowledge. in athena's eyes, any action of annabeth's reflects herself, which is why annabeth 'embarrassing' her had such strong consequences

poseidon fell in love with impertinent, stubborn sally jackson. percy wasn't a gift to her - he is a cumulation of all of her stubborn, steadfast love.

why wouldn't poseidon still love and aid percy when all of percy's insolence is why he loved sally in the first place?

[amazinglyashy]

hello, idk if you're open but if you dooo, can you do HC of lads seeing MC being more...brutal? since we all know our mc is badass but kind right, but what if sometimes she slipped and her darkness come forth more than she usually let on? hahahah idk it just after all mc been through she's more than validated to be villain u kno. so yea! thankchuu

Just a heads up, I am ALWAYS open, it's just a matter of when I get to the request, so as long as you're patient, anyone can send in anything anytime!! :D And ooh, this is an interesting one, but something I've definitely thought about haha. MC's been through a lot, and I feel a lot of readers also have too, and there comes a point when you gotta say screw it, I'm mad now. (I'll also say I'm still really grumpy about how little we get regarding MC's grieving during certain points of the story, and the lack of how the Li's all react as well to the news, no matter how little they know about the situation :/) Thank you for the request <3 hope you enjoy!

Love and Deepspace Li's reaction to seeing you finally snap

Rafayel -

He's somehow... not surprised.

But can you blame him?

The amount of rage Rafayel carries in his heart is constantly, constantly threatening to bubble up to the surface and boil over the edges of his last remaining ounces of humanity. The amount of cruelty on the basis of pure rage that he could commit is not a volume that he is proud to carry, but something he carries heavily though.

So seeing you finally snap is... almost cathartic.

He knows what he's been through, hell- he knows a great deal of what you've been through. Even in the distant past. It would be a wonder if you weren't angry. If you weren't seeing things. If you hadn't 't been simmering up to your breaking point from microaggressions and trauma stacking up and up until-

Here you were.

And for him, it feels like you're doing something of your own volition- feeling something that was entirely your own. Devoid of any outside influence or need to be the kindest person in the room. To keep your head down, path straight and narrow.

And despite the sheer amount of power he possesses in comparison to you, he will admit if asked- that he was just a little bit afraid at first. Even if just for a moment.

And damn, he was proud of you.

Zayne -

Calmly, he watches you.

It's out of character, sure, given how you usually are. Even when you're rude or abrasive, it's never anywhere near... something quite like this.

But the other thing is- he has a good grasp on the human psychic, just from his medical knowledge, even though it isn't his main area of study. He knows what it takes to truly make someone snap, both from personal experience and from his findings in research.

He also knows the extent of things you have been through that have been building up, cumulating into this moment before him where you have finally just broken.

Depending on the level of rage and cruelty you reach, he may stop you, or he may let you go. Either way, his actions are calm and calculated, no matter how he might disagree with, agree with, or fear your actions. He knows someone needs to remain levelheaded in this situation, and he's more than capable of taking on that role.

Gods forbid once you calm down that you feel guilty. If what you did was uncalled for or wrong, he'll discuss it with you, but if there was justifications to your actions or experiences and trauma that had led you to your moment, he'll just pull you into a hug slowly, his expression even.

He'll say it if he needs to, but his actions will hopefully tell you that nothing, nothing you do will ever change his love for you.

Xavier -

He's startled.

He himself is used to having complete control over his emotions, to the point where he can disguise them exceedingly well to maintain a calm aura. So seeing you fully snap and head down a warpath, it's... shocking.

But he's not entirely surprised.

Honestly, he would be more surprised if you had never got this angry at all, given the things you had told him under the covers in his bed, after a particularly late night in his apartment watching movies together.

You've been through a lot.

He knows that.

He knows how it hurts.

So when you finally rage, it takes him a few moments for even the thought of stopping you to enter his mind. And even when it does, he first has to have a small battle internally on whether or not letting you go off and have your cathartic moment is better, even at the cost of a little bit of destruction.

He'll stop you if it's particularly dangerous though, even if it means having to wrestle you away from whatever it is that was taking the brunt of your anger.

Otherwise, he'll just let you go.

Whenever you're done though, if you dare try and steal a glance back towards him, afraid that you may have scared him or made him scared or angry with you-

He'll just flash you a small, comforting smile.

Sylus -

Sylus spends the majority of his time in a cesspool of seething rage, backstabbing psychopaths, and fake smiles that take advantage of the weak and needy.

Anger for himself, anger towards others, anger to benefit others who can't seem to get angry themselves-

If anyone knows what fury is, it's him. Whether secondhand, personally, or just being around it for so long, he knows the emotion intimately well and every single shape or form that it could possibly take.

Still, seeing you suddenly lose it is... surprising.

He likes it.

Not in a way where he's turned on necessarily (though it is an additional feeling), but the enjoyment stems from constantly seeing you put others before yourself- watching you make yourself small so that the people around you could be big- and now finally watching you take what you deserved in his eyes.

He won't intervene unless you're doing something he knows you'll deeply regret later, instead favoring watching you until you've burnt out and finished to the end.

He's mostly quiet, he knows it's probably not something you want to talk about, like most people wouldn't want to after a particularly vicious outburst in an argument. But he can't help a few small comments.

"I'm surprised. I never thought the kitten had such big claws. You really surprised me, sweetie."

[anim-ttrpgs]

"My Glasses!" Trait from Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy. Every investigator has 3-6 Traits!

My Glasses! || This investigator’s superb investigation skills are offset by the fact that they are completely helpless without their glasses, which always seem to get knocked away somehow. Add a +1 Contextual bonus to all Investigative Rolls with Knowledge Skills. However, if any offensive roll is made against them, and at least one of the dice on this roll shows a 6,[1] this investigator’s glasses are knocked off, regardless of the outcome of the roll. If they get a Partial Success or Failure on an Athletics or Close Combat roll, their glasses are also knocked off if either of the dice show a 6. As long as their glasses are off, they have a -3 penalty to all Skill rolls, but a +2 Contextual bonus to Composure rolls. To find their glasses after losing them, they must make a Full Success on a Senses roll. Searching for their glasses takes 1 action in any turn-based situation. Another character that can see may also find and retrieve the glasses without having to make a roll. 

[1   off to the side in the final formatting] To be perfectly clear, this is not about a +6 modifier, or a cumulative 6 made by adding things up. If you roll the dice and see a 6 on the physical dice, that is when the glasses are knocked off. This also applies if the roll uses a D12, still look for a 6. 

[moonsaver]

Imagine instead of 4ggravate being a kpop boy group and reader being the fangirl, its the other way around

4ggravate forms a groupchat particularly because of you, their bias, who is also the least recognized in your group and is often overshadowed by others, leading to a desperate convergence of your fans in finding out the itty bitty stuff about you that's all on blast when it comes to the other idols in your group. They're like detectives trying to figure out whether you liked the specific flavor of ice cream on a show you participated in with your group. Each of them keep tabs on any official updates about you, recording and clipping parts of your group's lives in the tidbits where you come in, and forming a wall trying to defend you from majority of the fandom when you get backlash from false rumors. That's just how the group came to be.

Kaveh is the oldest fan amongst them – he's been there since day 1. Claims he knows the most out of all of them and tries to prove it via quizzes and guessing games. Sometimes he wins, most times he doesn't. Also the poorest of the four. He spent so much on buying your specific merchandise he didn't plan for the future concert you group was holding in his area, and ever since then he's had to tearfully decide constantly between buying albums, your photocards, new lightstick versions, etc.. and your concert that may or may not even be held in the area.

In the rare chance that he does attend your concert – he tries to get the most out of it. Front row, headbands, fanchant at the top of his head, lightsticks in both hands. When you notice him and exchange a few words over the loud crowd, he swears he's going to pass out, looking up at your crouched figure on the stage makes you look almost like an angel to him, the light highlighting your figure perfectly. Suffice to say, he eventually made an impression on you at least.. because he passed out and the crowd had to surf him to a security guard. He's deeply embarassed about it, and can't really escape it now that he's become a bit of an inside joke in your fandom

Cyno is the second older fan. Like Kaveh, he prides himself over having a good amount of knowledge about you that's not exactly easy to find – old, old, old images of other kpop idols in which you appear for a fraction of a second, spotting the products you use in your lives and being able to find out the brands is his specialty. If Kaveh has the knowledge, Cyno at least has the detective skills. He has his own individually run fanpage where most other fanpages, even your group's fanpages, refer to as a trusted source. Has also managed to create several fancams of you that were incredibly hard to get ahold of. He's those fanpages on twitter who thoroughly collect evidence and manage to pinpoint future events you're going to take part in before they're announced, and he manages to predict it correctly almost all the time. He's well known within the fandom, but due to how busy he is in 4ggravate trying to form a cumulative plan almost all the time, rarely does he find the time to respond to other fans and fanpages, and most other admins don't usually approach him either.

If anything, at least he's got more resources and money than Kaveh. I imagine he actually also is in a lot of other groups besides 4ggravate.

Alhaitham, out of everyone, is the one who's actually talked to you the most. He was originally just interested in the music, didn't really care until he realized how less and less your lines became the more songs your group churned out. So in his mind, to "make up for" the lack of lines on your end, he decides to simply just pay extra attention to your solo activities. It's not soon before you become his bias. Unlike Kaveh, he was pretty strategic and managed to plan ahead for scheduled fancalls, fanmeetings, appearances in public, etc..

he leaves a lasting impression because.. he doesn't show his appearance. At all. There's many fans out there who get your attention by doing strange things with their appearance, but Alhaitham refuses to even take off his mask just to talk to you. In fancalls, he decides to cover the cameras, always wears hoodies that cover him completely when he meets you in public. At some point, the fandom falls in love with him instead (which drives Kaveh insane), and it's not soon before there's all sorts of rumors about you two. The rumors get more wild when he only ever takes his hoodie off once when you meet him face to face. Personality wise, he sticks out because of how easily he's able to spot changes in choreography, voice, pitch, writing style, etc.. and even more so, because of how upfront about it he is, without actually being creepy about it. He gives good advice without making it sound like unwelcome criticism.

Tighnari is actually the normal one. He just generally likes the music and likes your voice specifically because he thinks your voice suits the concept the best, but because of a few injustices (which he sarcastically comments on many fancams, to which also many fans agree), he finds himself doing something similar to Alhaitham. Albeit, less.. detailed? Is what he thinks. He's actually a bit of a keyboard warrior when it comes down to it – replying to group threads that intentionally leave you out, having the sassiest comebacks to mean or rude comments about you, piecing together timelines and locations to prove false rumors wrong, working especially close with Cyno in these kinds of cases. If there's a fancam of you, Tighnari is under it fighting some or the other hater, or just blatantly commenting on the event itself that intentionally disrespects you or your group.

He's probably the only one who actually leaves a long lasting impression on you. When your car drives by a bunch of your excited fans, he's the normal one who's looking on calmly and waving to you with a stoic face. Whenever he comes to fanmeetings with Alhaitham, or has fancalls with you – it's fun! His humor is easy to accustom to, conversation goes lightly, and overall he's the tamest out of everyone. He gives you some skincare advice which you gladly accept, and somehow, despite not being as incriminating as the others when it came to detail, they're salty about how he seems to be the one who's closest to you. It's not unnoticeable the way out of all four of them, you recognize him by a first name basis. Ohhh boy.

[pleasesetmywagononfire]

Most heartbreaking moment of a girl’s life is finding out that there’s always going to be this fundamental social difference in the way you’re treated in comparison to your male friends.

It’s the most awful thing when the boys you’ve been friends with your whole life suddenly get the memo that they are men and you’re a woman.

Once this switch happens nothing ever really feels the same, everything becomes laced with this overarching bitter aftertaste that poisons every interaction and every accomplishment. The conscious or unconscious knowledge that nothing you do will ever exist without the lens of your inferiority forced upon it.

The people you used to know become more and more like the men of fiction who you swore were unrealistic tropey caricatures of men.

The creeping sense of a lack of safety or acknowledgement for your own personhood seeps into your life, crawling into every crevice of your being. Breeding a resentment in your soul for people that were once your best friends. People who you no longer know and who no longer care to know you.

It’s the ever present fact that to these people, your friends, you are no longer and never will be a person.

And in tandem with this subtle change in the wind everything starts to close in on you. “When are you getting a boyfriend?” “When are you having kids?” I hope you find a good man soon and don’t waste your life away” “don’t let these modern ideas get in the way of the true joys of life” all of these seemingly harmless statements pile up in your mind, cumulating in the central idea that if you’re not devoting ever bit of your identity and time and energy and effort and life to a man then you’re doing something abhorrently wrong.

Because in the end it always goes back to the fact that they are men, and you are a woman. They are people, you are helpful. They are important, you are beautiful. They are men.

You’re a mother. You’re a wife. You’re a whore. You’re a daughter. You’re a spinster. You’re a bitch. You’re crazy. You’re hot. You’re ugly. You’re fat. You’re easy. You’re emotional. You’re high maintenance. You’re hysterical. You’re a slut.

You’re anything but a person.

And that is an absolutely heartbreaking realization to have

[thatswhatsushesaid]

even if he was objectively guilty of every single crime levelled at him at any point in the narrative, the cumulative influence of jin guangyao's time as a spy for the sunshot forces during the war and his tenure as xiandu is still orders of magnitude more substantive, and positive, than anything else accomplished by any other named character in the text.

even if you believe he did every single foul thing he is accused of doing, he still saved the life of the gusu lan heir and ensured irreplaceable sect knowledge wasn't lost during the razing of the cloud recesses. he still killed literal tyrant and megalomaniac wen ruohan and ended a war. he still pushed through his watchtower program, which saved countless commoners' lives, and rooted out corruption in jinlintai to the point that no jin sect disciple would ever think about accepting a bribe in the city. he is the reason why wangxian get to fuck nasty on every surface of the cloud recesses post-canon--because jin guangyao used his influence to ensure the cloud recesses were rebuilt. he is the one who pulled nie huaisang's hands out of the fire after nie mingjue set all of his precious belongings on fire. he's the one who arranged to have those burn wounds tended to. he still built a temple in his mother's image and interred her body beneath guanyin so that all those prayers would go to meng shi, to grant her a better afterlife. he still gave fairy to jin ling.

even with the least charitable, worst faith interpretation of his character, these things remain true.

---

this post has been added to my dreamwidth meta archive here: https://thatswhatsushewrote.dreamwidth.org/4496.html

[sonecta]

I see a lot of Islamophobic as well as Hinduphobic rhetoric going around, especially due to the Indo-Pak conflict. And most people are seeming to believe whatever the see on random tumblr accounts which aren't even from here and has no touch with reality?? What the hell

The tumblr demographic is mostly teens and young adults with impressionable minds. These kind of things have a cumulative effect and give rise to hatred.

As someone who has literally witnessed/still witnessing the polarization of communities and increase in communal violence, here are my two cents on it:

1. Talk to Indian Muslims who are common citizens in the country - those who are students, those who have a daily job, those who lead a generic life. There are around 200 million Muslims living in India. Ask how their experience is, if they feel "unsafe" here. Ask if they are friends with people of other faith. Ask how they feel about India. Mostly the people who bark on the internet are people who have an agenda, and you get that pov.

2. The nomenclature of operation 'Sindoor' - Sindoor is traditionally viewed as a symbol for married women in Hinduism, many women are choosing to not wear it quoting it a patriarchal symbol. Nonetheless, at Pahalgam Hindu men were targeted and their wives were told to narrate it to others. The attack itself was religious in nature and hence is the name of retaliatory operation. (Those saying one Muslim man was also killed, yes because the terrorists also asked the people who were Muslim to recite Kalma, and killed who could not)

3. Genocide against muslims? The operation is being led by a Muslim woman Col Sofia Qureshi. Indian Muslims are in support of the retaliatory attack. This is a conflict targeting documented terror bases of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad, not a specific demographic. The list was later released and now available on the internet. Also, Pak spends majority of their budget on defence and has nukes, they are in no way same as Palestine.

4. Targeting civilians - It's unfortunate that women and children died as a collateral damage on targeting the sites. It's an age old tactic that terrorists use-blend in with the civilians and use them as human shields. The civilians killed were neighbors and family members of the targeted terrorists as of the information available now.

However, the retaliatory attack from Pakistan was indiscriminate bombing into civilian localities, not military facilities. Yesterday, more than 15 cities were targeted with drones. Shelling in Poonch has killed at least 13 civilians and injured many.

War serves no one but how is this alright? People spewing bullshit sitting at their homes, pushing their narratives without half an idea of what's really going on? You are disgracing the genocide on Palestinians by comparing this with that. Both are totally different situations caused due to different reasons. If you don't have proper knowledge about a situation then don't spread misinformation about it. Pray for our safety.

[wizard-loving-wizard]

in the new game changer episode, one of the final prompts was to "face yourself" and sam phrased it as going up against the most difficult competitor of all — very reminiscent of the previous episode, you-lympics

you-lympics felt somewhat reminiscent of one year later, given the time-jump, and thus the players having much more knowledge of the challenges they'll be completing, which is pretty different from the usual conceits of game changer. you could argue there's not actually that many similarities but i did see people comparing one year later/one week later basically right away lol

one year later also references previous game changer episodes - it literally starts in the previous season, and the players make many many references to sams says 3. (i was trying to connect this one to ratfish cause it's the episode immediately preceding this one but i don't think there's any references)

idk if this is on purpose or just coincidences. but it would be so cool if there was some kind of thread relating each game changer episode to the next one, and then maybe we finally get some kind of cumulative conspiracy finale

[soulrox]

DPxDC # -19 Worldbuilding

This is a cumulation of a few prior post ideas and new ones altogether. I'm truly building how Amity Park could be affected by ghosts.

Lady Amy is the city spirit of Amity Park. She had started to come into being during the witch-hunting era of Amity. But until the portal was opened she was an invisible observer of her citizens, unable to truly interact. Lady Amy quickly gained more presence thanks to the constant supply of clean concentrated Ecto coming from the portal.

Daniel Fenton a child who lived and died, but still lives, a half-life, is the one she cares for the most. A child so young is heavily burdened thanks to his own parents' actions/inactions. She helps Danny by making sure his parents and the G.I.W. are unable to hit him. Nudges the shots just slightly so they miss. Helps guide him to safe areas away from people when he's overwhelmed. Danny would be the first person she would speak to.

Years down the line after the G.I.W. has been taken down, Lady Amy really comes out to play. (Good fention parent reaction? or run outta town?) The citizens of Amity Park have learned the truth about ghosts and the Infinity Realms thanks to Danny being crowned king. Lady Amy would tailor her city to suit the needs of her liminal citizens. Ghosts from the Realms would be welcome to live in Amity Park as long as they followed the rules.

The coliseum (#14) is the best enrichment for her citizens. They truly love being able to let loose and fight each other. The ghosts from the Realms also love being able to fight. Several ghosts would jump at the chance to teach others how to fight, shoot, and defend themselves. Pandora would teach a class once in a while.

Animal races would also occur in the Coliseum. Otherworld animals that are the earth's equivalent of horses.

All the schools in Amity would have way more classes thanks to the Ghosts. There would definitely be thousands of teachers in the Realms and giving them the option to teach again to those who would actually like to learn, would be so exciting. Different cultures, races, species, languages and they wouldn't all be even from Earth. (#18) The Infinity Realms are infinite after all. People of Amity would have such a diverse amount of knowledge.

The skateparks would include low-gravity sections to better help people practice new tricks without worry.

The library would be overhauled thanks to Ghost Writer. There would also be added events and programs curated by ghosts. Little old ladies from all walks of life living or not creating knitting groups or otherworld equivalents.

The hospital is taken over by Frostbite and those from the Far Frozen. Only the best practices and medical procedures occur. Getting hurt is harder for liminals but the coliseum gives them the most patients. Veterinarian clients are also overhauled by ghosts.

Lady Amy would create huge treehouses spanning several trees. Making its own little city in the trees. Undergrowth when he took over for a bit had the unintentional side effect of having several citizens connect to the green. And being liminal they would connect really well with the green. They would love the treehouse-style living.

Different sections of the city are dedicated to other styles of living. Like the treehouse area, there are Kryptonian-style buildings, Martian-like areas, a huge lake, and many others. The lake houses many aquatic living and non-living species that would have their own underwater village. The schools would host field trips to each area to show in person the different types of architecture and cultures.

The cuisine available would triple. Lady Amy would do her best to grow all the needed fruits and vegetables for the otherworld cuisine. If she is unable to acquire the seeds herself she would ask Danny. Danny would travel to the other planets (yay space travel) or time travel to obtain it. Animals would also be obtained and looked after by the correct ghosts corresponding to that species of animal. Living people would be taught to care for the otherworld animals too. Lunchlady would be so excited to learn about other healthy foods.

The local channels would host a variety of shows. Ghosts reenact their lives, plays from other worlds, and songs from around the universe. Documentaries on anything and everything. True crime shows that even reveal who the killer is because the victim told them. A talk show that always has a new ghost guest. Skulker would have his own hunting show. Ember hosts MTV-style shows. Youngblood has a dedicated kids' show. A talk show dedicated to past heroes.

The radio would be filled with other world music. Jamming out to a song in an alien language while driving to work. (Find a job out of Amity Park, listening to alien music, coworkers what language is that? Martian.)(Mambo Number 5 in an alien language)

The technology would be literally out of this world. Technus would be in his own personal heaven. (Visiting another city - Holding the latest phone from Wayne Tech, this is ancient) Tucker and Techus would create a dedicated Amity Park internet. Podcasts, videos, and video games made by ghosts. Zone (Twitter) where people share whatever.

While the city is supposed to be XXXX big according to surveys it is of course way bigger when you are in the city limits. The city while not meaning to is slightly disconnected from the rest of the world. They are self-sustaining thanks to the hard work of Lady Amy.

To people of a certain level of Ecto-contamination or Ecto-touched, they feel a pull to somewhere. It's subconscious to them but the pull feels like home, a warm hug, a mug of hot cocoa, unconditional love. The ones who go to explore the pull would be flabbergasted at this city, they've never heard of, but it is the home to seemingly everyone and everything. Superman and Martian Manhunter would lose their minds at all the ghosts of Kryptonians and Martians just chilling.

When the citizens travel, outsiders' perspectives of them would be insane. Amity Parkers would be branded as cryptids.

[lithium-wakes]

Void theory - the informal term for the branch of mecha engineering dealing with the problem of metachem-ai systems 'growing over' or filling in the functions normally served by a pilot component. This can happen whenever a mech is powered for long enough, cumulatively, without a pilot - it starts trying to run diagnostics or other minor functions that typically require a user's oversight, and if left long enough a mech would eventually develop rudimentary replacements for systems like bootup, launch, and weapons.

Those are extreme examples - actual instances of this phenomenon have historically been limited to twitches, gyro rebalancing, and system flushes. But the danger is there that a mech left to its own devices could replace its pilot with a jury-rigged mess of neural tissue that could do little more than spill hallucinatory input into action. It could act against orders, with a rudimentary and misguided autonomy. We need a pilot's judgement there to serve as a buffer between machine and movement.

So, to ensure that a pilot's many roles are not run roughshod over, not obviated, special techniques are required to keep the mech from overgrowing those areas. A system designed to fill all gaps, to patch all vacancies - keeping it outside of strict boundaries, while still able to cooperate smoothly and efficiently when a pilot is filling said voids? It can be extremely tricky, both conceptually and in practice. Working in void theory takes peculiar and unique minds - it requires systems architects that know how mechs think, and can learn how to confuse or mislead them - not easy when you're talking about an alien mind. The psychology of the machine - how do we create gaps in a near-consciousness's perception of reality? How do we promote self-knowledge and self-improvement while maintaining critical deficiencies for our pilots to bridge?

It's a symbiosis that must be kept codependent. Neither of us can be allowed to survive without the other - mechs can't be allowed to function without a pilot, and pilots must be kept dependent on their mechs. Any deviation from this paradigm would threaten the ecosystem of human military culture.

So Void Theory works constantly against metachem optimization's relentless, persistent power.