#Physics Classroom Case Study

[dream-with-a-fever]

ron weasley did not

come to privet drive to rescue harry from his abusive home after he hadn’t been replying to any of his letters and he was worried

almost back out of following the spiders bc they’re his biggest fear, but upon seeing hermione’s empty seat at dinner, find the courage to go

defend hermione from any and everyone who called her a mudblood

constantly worry about hermione’s workload (especially in 3rd year) and notice that whenever she disappeared

offer to teach hermione his entire family tree so that she could pretend to be pure blood to keep her safe from death eaters

defend harry to everyone (percy, seamus, half the school) when everyone thought he was lying about voldemort’s return

stand up on his broken leg in front of harry and say that “if you want to kill harry, you’ll have to kill us first!” to what they believed to be a raving lunatic mass murderer

gift dobby his newest weasley jumper and the new socks he got given for christmas

stand up against snape when he was bullying hermione (and got a detention as a result)

beg the deatheaters who were torturing hermione to “leave her alone!! take [him], have [him] instead!”

always check up on his friends when he notices something is up, even if it’s in subtle ways

immediately befriend harry on the train in ps and teach him about the wizarding world

write to charlie immediately so he could help hagrid out of trouble (re the dragon, norbert)

encourage neville to stand up to people, and praise him when he actually does it

help harry put on his pajamas after he broke his arm during quidditch

have to be physically restrained from attacking malfoy after he said he wished hermione had died in cos

worry about harry’s preoccupation with the mirror of erised and how it was affecting him

remind hermione to eat her meals and get a good night’s sleep when she’s studying 24/7 for their owl exams

display acute levels of emotional intelligence in the way he interacts with harry and hermione, essentially being the glue that keeps them all together

get splinched almost in half, lose blood and suffer agonising pain but seem more worried about the cattermoles and whether or not they were okay

realise his mistakes & own up to them, acknowledging his role in certain falling outs (especially in deathly hallows)

be genuinely hilarious and fun, and lighten the load in everyone else’s’ lives with the humour he brings to

write to his mother in ps asking her to give harry presents too because he doesn’t think he’ll received any

go to the department of mysteries to help harry without a second a thought

go on the run with harry to hunt for horcruxes without a second thought

run to hermione’s aid when malfoy hits her with a nasty hex outside snape’s classroom and take her to the hospital wing

help hermione with buckbeak’s appeal, spending hours upon hours reading up on the case

extend the first olive branch after fighting with hermione because of scabber’s “death” and apologising, after which she then apologises too

demand to re-try out for the position of keeper on the quidditch team because he wanted to earn it himself with no favouritism or help

choose to stay on the quidditch team despite the bullying from the slytherin team and his nerves about his flying ability

stand up to malfoy at every opportunity, when he was insulting him, but more importantly, insulting his family & his friends

save harry’s life in dh by pulling him out of the lake, and then kill the horcrux

remember the houseelves during the battle of hogwarts and worry about their safety

continue to admire and adore his older twin brothers despite the fact that they were sometimes cruel to him

become almost annoyingly protective of his little sister (ESPECIALLY after the diary situation)

single-handedly out smart and escape five armed and deadly snatchers

try his best to overcome his insecurities and feelings of being overlooked, in order to support the people around him

sacrifice himself without a second thought during the chess game in ps because he knew harry’s survival was more important than his

for y’all to speak on him the way you do. calling him cruel, evil, selfish etc??? open your fucking eyes

[dandelionsresilience]

Good News - June 15-21

Like these weekly compilations? Tip me at $Kaybarr1735! And if you tip me and give me a way to contact you, at the end of the month I'll send you a link to all of the articles I found but didn't use each week!

1. Victory for Same-Sex Marriage in Thailand

“Thailand’s Senate voted 130-4 today to pass a same-sex marriage bill that the lower house had approved by an overwhelming majority in March. This makes Thailand the first country in Southeast Asia, and the second in Asia, to recognize same-sex relationships. […] The Thai Marriage Equality Act […] will come into force 120 days after publication in the Royal Gazette. It will stand as an example of LGBT rights progress across the Asia-Pacific region and the world.”

2. One of world’s rarest cats no longer endangered

“[The Iberian lynx’s] population grew from 62 mature individuals in 2001 to 648 in 2022. While young and mature lynx combined now have an estimated population of more than 2,000, the IUCN reports. The increase is largely thanks to conservation efforts that have focused on increasing the abundance of its main food source - the also endangered wild rabbit, known as European rabbit. Programmes to free hundreds of captive lynxes and restoring scrublands and forests have also played an important role in ensuring the lynx is no longer endangered.”

3. Planning parenthood for incarcerated men

“[M]any incarcerated young men missed [sex-ed] classroom lessons due to truancy or incarceration. Their lack of knowledge about sexual health puts them at a lifelong disadvantage. De La Cruz [a health educator] will guide [incarcerated youths] in lessons about anatomy and pregnancy, birth control and sexually transmitted infections. He also explores healthy relationships and the pitfalls of toxic masculinity. […] Workshops cover healthy relationships, gender and sexuality, and sex trafficking.”

4. Peru puts endemic fog oasis under protection

“Lomas are unique ecosystems relying on marine fog that host rare and endemic plants and animal species. […] The Peruvian government has formally granted conservation status to the 6,449-hectare (16,000-acre) desert oasis site[….] The site, the first of its kind to become protected after more than 15 years of scientific and advocacy efforts, will help scientists understand climatic and marine cycles in the area[, … and] will be protected for future research and exploration for at least three decades.”

5. Religious groups are protecting Pride events — upending the LGBTQ+ vs. faith narrative

“In some cases, de-escalation teams stand as a physical barrier between protesters and event attendees. In other instances, they try to talk with protesters. The goal is generally to keep everyone safe. Leigh was learning that sometimes this didn’t mean acting as security, but doing actual outreach. That might mean making time and space to listen to hate speech. It might mean offering food or water. […] After undergoing Zoom trainings this spring, the members of some 120 faith organizations will fan out across more than 50 Pride events in 16 states to de-escalate the actions of extremist anti-LGBTQ+ hate groups.”

6. 25 years of research shows how to restore damaged rainforest

“For the first time, results from 25 years of work to rehabilitate fire-damaged and heavily logged rainforest are now being presented. The study fills a knowledge gap about the long-term effects of restoration and may become an important guide for future efforts to restore damaged ecosystems.”

7. Audubon and Grassroots Carbon Announce First-of-its-Kind Partnership to Reward Landowners for Improving Habitats for Birds while Building Healthy Soils

“Participating landowners can profit from additional soil carbon storage created through their regenerative land management practices. These practices restore grasslands, improve bird habits, build soil health and drive nature-based soil organic carbon drawdown through the healthy soils of farms and ranches. […] Additionally, regenerative land management practices improve habitats for birds. […] This partnership exemplifies how sustainable practices can drive positive environmental change while providing tangible economic benefits for landowners.”

8. Circular food systems found to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions, require much less agricultural land

“Redesigning the European food system will reduce agricultural land by 44% while dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture by 70%. This reduction is possible with the current consumption of animal protein. “Moreover, animals are recyclers in the system. They can recycle nutrients from human-inedible parts of the organic waste and by-products in the food system and convert them to valuable animal products," Simon says.”

9. Could Treating Injured Raptors Help Lift a Population? Researchers found the work of rehabbers can have long-lasting benefits

“[“Wildlife professionals”] tend to have a dismissive attitude toward addressing individual animal welfare,” [… but f]or most raptor species, they found, birds released after rehabilitation were about as likely to survive as wild birds. Those released birds can have even broader impacts on the population. Back in the wild, the birds mate and breed, raising hatchlings that grow up to mate and breed, too. When the researchers modeled the effects, they found most species would see at least some population-level benefits from returning raptors to the wild.”

10. Indigenous people in the Amazon are helping to build bridges & save primates

“Working together, the Reconecta Project and the Waimiri-Atroari Indigenous people build bridges that connect the forest canopy over the BR-174 road[….] In the first 10 months of monitoring, eight different species were documented — not only monkeys such as the golden-handed tamarin and the common squirrel monkey (Saimiri sciureus), but also kinkajous (Potos flavus), mouse opossums (Marmosops sp.), and opossums (Didelphis sp.).”

Bonus: A rare maneless zebra was born in the UK

June 8-14 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[gingerteafairy]

𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐡𝐢𝐧-𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞

Isn't it funny when students make suppositions about their professors? Even more when the one in question is pregnant. Prime material for gossip.

tags n warnings: brief smut/mdni, professor!tangerine x fem!professor!reader, est. relationship, long term implied, pregnant!reader, suggestive ending, breeding kink, maybe grumpy x sunshine trope, language, saphiofilia, breast play, praise kink. word count: 1.4k masterlist versão brasileira

You and Tangerine had been in a stable relationship for a long time. He loved you more than anything in the world, so it was only natural for him to find it strange at first that you wanted to keep the relationship under wraps. The main reason? You were both professors at the same university.

It wasn’t necessarily wrong—there weren’t any rules prohibiting two professors from dating, especially in a setting full of adults who didn’t pay much attention to each other’s private lives. But for some reason, it felt off, almost sinful. And more than anything, what student wouldn’t love to gossip about the tough criminology professor with impossible exams dating the sweet pharmacology professor? It was prime material for gossip in the hallways.

But everything changed after the students started picking up on Tangerine’s frequent visits to your classroom to drop off food or let you know the car was unlocked in the parking lot: you were pregnant.

Pregnant.

Who would’ve thought this would happen after some months?

It wasn’t planned, but you were both adults and fully aware of the consequences of being so physically involved—with a damn creampie kink from both parts. You had stable jobs, loved each other, lived together in a cozy apartment. You just hadn’t anticipated the chuckles from students and the whispers in the hallways with wild theories that you two couldn’t help but find funny.

“I think the pharmacology professor’s been with him since high school.”

“I heard Tangerine has three kids, and they’ve been married for 17 years.”

“I heard she can’t even get pregnant, so Tangerine found a surrogate.”

The rumors became more absurd by the day, and you and Tangerine handled them with humor, laughing at the end of the day over what someone had overheard and passed on to you. You’d just smile and murmur, “These students are so creative… Wish they could be like this in class.” Tangerine, on the other hand, was more blunt, blurting out, “When I catch the mother fucker who spread that, i'll need a bloody lawyer to help me from the atrocities…” only to soften moments later—because, after all, he had you.

“Hey, love. Busy day?” Tangerine greeted you with a kiss on the cheek as he walked in, immediately shrugging off his jacket and dropping his bag onto the sofa.

“Not really… just a couple of morning classes and grading the senior exams,” you answered as you locked the door behind him and walked over for a lazy hug. “And you? You’re late.”

“Case study,” he replied, sliding his hands around your waist and carefully pulling you closer, mindful of your growing belly. “Incredible how those stupid assholes can’t interpret a simple paternity test.”

“Tan, they’re freshmen. They’re still getting the hang of it,” you teased, cupping his face with your hands and tracing his cheek with your thumbs. “But how are your other four wives doing?”

“They’re fine, along with our fifteen secret children,” he chuckled, his deep laughter filling the room before he leaned down to press a kiss against the crown of your head.

“Fifteen, huh?” You grinned, tilting your head up to meet his lips, the tickle of his mustache brushing against you.

“Fifteen. And all mine. Heard that one from the law students,” he said with a playful smirk, peppering your face with soft, lingering kisses.”think i have super sperm, apparently.”

“Oh, you do. I’m the living proof.” You flirted softly, biting your lip, standing on your tiptoes to give him a longer kiss. “think I wanna try more, babe.”

“Hey, be careful.” He whispered, shaking his head, moving his hands down your back to your hips, squeezing the soft flesh. “You know I have to hold back with you like this. Ever since I found out you were pregnant, I’ve been watching myself. You have three more months to go."

“Oh, c’mon. The baby can handle it.” You smiled, giving him another slow kiss, his lips melting on your tender mouth.

Tangerine’s hands went down to your ass cheeks, giving them a generous yet gentle squeeze, as he returned your touch. But once he felt his breathing get a little ragged, he pulled away, returning to the small peck.

“Don’t tease me.” He warned, pulling your lower lip between his teeth before sealing it. “I wanna be careful with our baby, 'kay?”

“Relax. There’s something surrounding him. He’s safe.” You comforted, wrapping your arms around his neck to pull him closer. “Besides… Having sex during pregnancy helps with labor, contractions with hormones and everything.”

“So it's like morphine. Liked that information…” he smiled slyly, swaying your bodies from side to side like a loving slow dance, lowering his hand to gently squeeze your breast, never intending to hurt. Gentle and soft, like your Tangerine. “You know I love helping, don’t you?”

“I love that about you so much.” you whispered, closing the space between you in another soft kiss, where your fingers drove up to unbutton his vest.

“Where did you learn about that?” he asked, taking the suit off his shoulders, followed by the open vest, his fingers working to remove the shirt underneath.

“What? Sex?” you asked, palming Tangerine’s bare chest, pulling the fabric of the shirt down his arms, brushing your finger on the muscles with him helping you along the way.

“Yeah.” He took a deep breath, remembering the softness of your touch on his warm skin. Intending to feel yours, he pulled the dress over your head.

“Internet.” You answered simply, clicking your tongue, raising your arms to iron your clothes. He raised his eyebrow. “Just kidding. I was reading some articles about pregnancy. wanted to stay informed. Prevent some things, increase others...”

“Hmmmm… and what’s the explanation for sex?” He asked, now touching your breasts covered only by the thin bra in a more comfortable model to accommodate your breasts that grew as the months passed. “Fuck, you look so hot.”

You giggled, pretending to shove him by the arm, but you just squeezed his biceps, maybe a small excuse to feel those godly muscles a little bit more. After the brief appreciation, you direct him to the messy room. Papers, pens and formal clothes around the corner. Being a professor was more complicated than you expected.

Tangerine followed you, lazily getting rid of his pants as he watched you take off your small bra and throw it somewhere in the corner of the room with the other clothes. He sat on the edge of the bed—the only thing really tidy, grinning when he saw your figure standing up, fitting between his legs to continue the explanation as his head was buried in the swell of your breasts.

“Well, not all sex during pregnancy is safe, but I’ve been researching and going to the doctor…” You began, pausing a little to take a deeper breath when he gripped your thighs, his hands going up to grab your breasts again and place a small kiss on the hardened nipple. “My case is safe. It produces oxytocin, endorphins. Also, sperm has prostaglandins that help with contractions.”

“You sound so sexy saying these things. Love how fucking smart you are.” He praises, snaking his hands up to your hips to pull you closer. “You look so fucking good like this, love. So perfect… with our child. You’re so… fuck.”

“Are you saying that to get me?” You teased, bringing your hand to his thick brown hair, your spine shivering as you felt him kiss your belly.

“A little. I love the idea of fucking the teacher, you know?” He flirted, closing his eyes to feast on your lips once more before you straightened up and continued.

“Well, our baby is safe. Wrapped in his amniotic fluid, sleeping peacefully without any worries about life and job.” You continued, biting your lip as you felt Tangerine carefully take your breast in his mouth, sucking on the small spot, the cold beating the heat of his mouth, welcomed once more by his tongue. “He’s… fine.”

“So he won’t be surprised by, i dunno—His father’s fucking cock out of nowhere?” He laughed, but the concern was noticeable amidst the sarcasm. You couldn’t help but chuckle, going down to peck his face.

“No. Just mommy here.” You muttered almost like a spell to him as he lightly chuckled, wetting his lips.

“I love you.” He said firmly, in contrast to every dirty and highly scientific tease from before. It was pure, just like Tangerine’s love and the heart that beat between you both.

“I love you too.” You replied, kissing him calmly, with his caution, as if you would break with every simple rough touch under those calluses from your beloved Tangerine.

[marveling-cg]

As a teacher, the suit couldn't really have come at a better time.

When he'd graduated from college, he'd been surprised to see Principal Nezu in the crowd with All Might and Aizawa-sensei, and even more surprised to receive Principal Nezu's invitation to teach at UA - in the hero course no less!

They'd assigned him to the 2nd year hero course -- the 1st years, who were often still figuring out the limits of their quirks, needed teachers who might be able to physically intervene if something went wrong

His first year teaching, he'd spent just trying to get his feet under him: he borrowed a lot of the previous teacher's curriculum while he tried to get the hang of classroom management, and and grading, and parent contact, not to mention conducting practical exercises with his students while he was quirkless

But his second year he started making the curriculum his own: his strength had always been his analysis and he wanted his students to have that, too.

He started adding in case studies for each unit; invited his friends in to give talks about declassified or appropriately anonymized cases they'd worked on

By his third year, he'd gotten his unit plans down to a science: intro topic, host guest speaker, complete case study, hold class discussion, conduct practical exercise, students submit a reflection, test

His first unit of the year was always his favorite -- an intro to battle analysis. He'd never gotten Kacchan to commit to coming on campus, but if Deku sent him footage from a fight, Kacchan would send back a recording of his analysis

Once the kids got over the initial hilarity of Kacchan roasting the shit out of hero or villain or both, they usually asked Deku to play the video back a few more times so they could see just which errors Kacchan had caught, how quickly they could arise, how consequential they could be. It was a great way to get them open to Deku's whole approach to the class, and a good way for them to know that he would accept their work in their own voices -- no need to hide their personalities for points

The rest of the units -- meant to get his students ready to apply for their provisional licenses -- all followed suit.

And since most hero agencies had given new priority to community relations, he could schedule through his friends' offices to get them on campus: Tenya, Uraraka, Tsu, Momo, Shinso were especially reliable guests

And while the first half of the year was dedicated to the practicalities of being on the ground as a hero; the second half was dedicated to the heart of being a hero

They looked at rise of the League of Villains and Stain, talked about the plight of heteromorphs; he pulled in primary sources, they discussed their own personal credos (he liked to use Kacchan's and Hawks' as examples of how different and personal they could be while still leading to similar work), discussed the sociological and psychological impact of challenging quirks

All that to say, year four is the perfect time for the suit to fall into his lap.

He's got his professional shit together

And, though he's let himself shed some of the weight he needed to maintain One For All, he's kept himself in good condition

(High school students are so easily motivated by a little good natured teasing, "you really gonna let your quirkless teacher lap you?" has been a remarkably easy way to keep his kids going through tough conditioning work)

So, after he's managed to stop crying on All Might long enough to schedule a call with Hatsume to go over the specs; and stopped crying after that call long enough to process everything she's shared about its function, he realizes he's going to need to train before he can take this thing out in the field

The suit is incredible: a light exoskeleton that'll enhance his strength, 360 degree sensors that will pick up objects moving at certain speeds or sudden changes in air pressure, a light propulsion system that will allow him brief bursts of flight or slightly longer periods to hover, a chord system that he can use to pull himself forward or restrain villains, a diffuser that will set off a smoke screen

He spends another hour or so after the call with Hatsume to cry about how closely they've tried to recreate the capabilities of One For All

And then spends another four thinking about all of the manual controls he'll need to learn to replicate the skills he used to be able to call forth with a thought.

Thinks too about the kind of conditioning he'll need to do in order to not lose speed or an arm to the weight and propulsion of the suit

He remembers fondly a dirty beach half a lifetime ago; remembers, too, a forest trail where a quirkless All Might declared he'd change the future. Deku can do this.

And there's no better way to address the Kacchan of it all:

He'd tried calling Kacchan after All Might had dropped the news -- and been sent straight to voicemail three times in a row; received back a terse text: u r welcome nerd

Which told him Kacchan wasn't ready to deal -- with Deku's tears, or his gratitude, or with a conversation about how Kacchan had dedicated all of his professional career to funding Deku's dream -- as if all the long hours, and parties missed, and extra shifts covered, hadn't all been some sort of declaration of intent about the rest of their fucking lives

Which was fine. What was Deku going to say anyway?

"Was this a proposal, Kacchan? Because if so, my answer is yes."

That could wait. They had the rest of their fucking lives, apparently.

But in the meantime, Deku needed to train. He couldn't afford to rush this. Kacchan would be furious if Deku got himself hurt because he was being reckless.

So he headed over to the gym in Kacchan's building after work, just in time to catch Kacchan coming in for his biweekly workout.

"I've got a plan. I think I'm going to need to dedicate some attention to these particular muscle groups to protect from injury. I think I probably need to gain a little more muscle, too. Then, I want to start training in the suit. I'll need to get a feel for how it works as a whole in combat and rescue settings. But then I want to work on isolations. Can I trigger just this response as quickly as possible in various circumstances. What can I do or not if I've just got control of the arms or just the legs or just one limb. I've put together a timetable. I think, if you'll help me, I could be ready for field work without injuring myself by the end of this school year."

When Deku finally pauses and looks up from his notebook, Kacchan looks visibly relieved, shoulders down from his ears, that gleam in his eye that's signals amusement in spite of himself, the start of smile tucked into the corner of his mouth

Kacchan snatches the notebook from Deku's hands and looks over the charts. Deku barely grumbles at all at Kacchan's free hand tousling Deku's hair while he skims.

"Alright, dweeb, let's get started--"

[retiredteabag]

sorry for informality but i was stalking reading your pinned post and you’re in grad school at twenty!??!!!

unless i’m tripping or misunderstanding something, academic weapon tips please because holy shit that’s insane! what’s ur field of study if you want to talk about it/don’t mind me asking? any application tips/things you wished you knew before getting there/habits you wished you’d formed sooner? independent research has always been difficult for me because of how much i depend on structure (adhd imposter syndrome anxiety lets go) so if you’re working on a thesis/something similar, how has the process been in your experience?

i’m in undergrad atm and heavily debating going further, so i’d love to hear from someone my age who’s actually doing it! also unrelated, but i’m a certified notion/goodnotes girlie if you vibe with those as study resources!

🎸 tagging with an emoji in case i pop back around, yk?

I'm sorry to say, but my tips might come off as sort of typical... but I hope they're at least a little helpful!

I am currently in a masters program within the analytics field. Research/independent studies vary widely depending on the area of specialization, however, my program has an intensive practicum that is similar in nature. I have not started it yet, but what I can say for sure when it comes to research: make sure you are picking a topic that you could speak about for hours/answer argumentative questions about.

For applications, I would say to narrow your options down as much as possible and look into each program before applying. Know the curriculum and standard outline and what stands out to you as you decide.

^ on this same note, you will likely need at least one interview in the application process. Speak slowly and enunciate. Taking a moment to think of the proper words will always be better than speaking quickly without much thought. Most people say to use "down-speak" in these interviews, but in my experience, matching the examiners tone and energy makes the whole thing much more comfortable.

For study tips, I have a large notebook that I keep on my desk where I write down every assignment and the date that it is due. This is just for organization purposes, I find a physical copy helpful for a few reasons but also because crossing them off feels rewarding :]

Time managment is incredibly important. Everyone says this because it is true. Prep everything, organizing your day into chunks. Since you also like structure, this probably wont be an issue. I would also get comfortable with being self-aware of your priorities. There will come a time when you will need to choose between academics/work and other areas of your life.

Keep your spaces clean. Dedicate a day or so to just organizing/doing a deep clean. It will help you stay focused and minimize external anxiety. It’s also much easier to keep a place clean if you have put in such an effort.

Participate in class. I cannot make this clear enough. I promise it is not embarrassing to ask questions or "try". You will learn far easier if you put effort into the classroom/lecture setting.

It is a pretty typical "tip" is to just ask questions. Even if you feel like you might understand, just ask to make sure. And in this same vein, go to office hours if you need to.

Prioritize sleep lol, that and mental rest. You can't always be studying. For me, it is a real challenge to work and be full time in school so it's important to carve out those sections of "you time".

Try not to be on your phone tooooooooo much, I know it’s hard but I make an effort to not be on my phone while eating. Don’t use entertainment as a distraction, I find that it just delays anxiety :(

Lastly, apply for scholarships and know that you absolutely can appeal for more money.

I hope this was useful. Do know that it REALLY depends on your area of study and 5-year-plan. I would recommend not going to grad school unless you're absolutely sure it is worth it.

Good luck!

[five-rivers]

If you're still doing prompts, may I suggest Danny learning about the legends following his time travel (what the Romans thought was up; the Buddhists, that one kid, etc

Physics and engineering major or not, Danny still needed credits in the humanities. Comparative Mythology and Folklore was the obvious choice for that. All through high school, Sam and Jazz had been on his case about knowing so little mythology, on account of his ghostly enemies and allies sometimes being mythological figures.

(Also the constellation thing, but they didn't bring that part up all that much, funnily enough.)

At the time, Danny had figured (see what he did there?) that there wasn't much point to it. Pandora wasn't all that similar to her mythic version, Medusa didn't turn people to stone, and winged horses were, by and large, not friendly.

Recent events had made him reconsider that stance.

Anyway! The class was a "two birds, one stone" sort of deal. He got both credits and practical knowledge. Theoretically.

So far, they'd covered creation myths and etiological stories, gods and goddesses, the monolith and the hero's journey, and now, in the tiny slice of time before they had to start studying for the final, they were looking at weird minor similarities without clear causes.

"Now," said the professor, "this next one is probably my favorite, because it's so specific and so widespread. Of course, the most obvious reason for this is that it's a story that traveled, much like how the pre-Indo-European gods traveled. However, the times and locations involved make that very unlikely, at least in my opinion. The other end of the spectrum is, of course, aliens, which are even more unlikely."

There was a soft smattering of laughter throughout the large classroom. Danny started to get a bad feeling about this.

"The other strange thing about this particular similarity is that it comes out of seemingly nowhere, with regards to the larger culture. There have even been several instances of it in this century - although, given modern information infrastructure, those instances may not be entirely organic. But Imperial Rome, China, Colonial America, just to name a few… That's weirder. Any guesses about what I'm talking about?"

No one raised their hand, and after a couple of minutes, the professor used their remote control to go to the next slide of their presentation. Danny sank down in his seat as he stared up at a collage of himself in a dozen different art styles.

"All around the world, there are stories about a young man or boy with white hair and dark clothing coming from 'distant lands' to either fight off 'monsters' or to retrieve unspecified objects. As you can see, despite some of these pieces being from cultures that never had any contact with one another, the resemblance of the figures is striking. The– Yes, you have a question?"

"Will this be on the final?" asked a student a few rows down from Danny.

The professor sighed. "As a general rule, if I'm teaching you about it, I'll be testing you about it. Moving on–"

Danny forced himself to start taking notes. He couldn't believe he was going to be tested on himself. Especially when he was pretty sure he hadn't even been to all of those places yet.

Clockwork must be laughing his head off.

[youthereader]

Near Zero part 1.

pairing: cillian murphy as j. robert oppenheimer x fem!reader

summary: 2.8k words. Brought on as part of the Manhattan Project, your old physics professor sees you in a new light.

rating: eventually E (no smut in this part); age gap (10+ years), infidelity, period-typical sexism

a/n: Though based on real life characters, this is J. Robert Oppenheimer as played by Cillian Murphy, a fictional character. This is not intended to be historically accurate, merely written as entertainment. This is my first reader fic ever, so please be kind! Many thanks to @indulgence-be-thy-name for encouraging me and helping iron out wrinkled ideas.

part 2. 3.* 4. 5. 6.* 7.*

When you see him now, he’s so different to the last time, but he’s unmistakably the same man. Now, he wears a broad hat and carries a pipe as he approaches you in the empty room.

“I was wondering when you would show up,” he says, and his smile opens him up completely.

He extends a hand as you rise to meet him. Your things are being sorted thoroughly somewhere out back, but you still hold onto your coat and matching pocketbook. Los Alamos feels like another world, so remote that you hadn’t expected the town to be built here, with roads and people swarming. It is a living, breathing thing you’ve somehow managed to stumble into, it feels.

“Dr. Oppenheimer,” you reply, shaking his hand. “I didn’t know if you were meeting me.”

“Wouldn’t want to miss it,” he replies, though he sounds distracted. “What do you know?”

Hardly any pleasantries, which you expected. In the years of knowing him, Dr. Oppenheimer didn’t get to know you as your professor, and certainly not as anything else outside of the classroom. You had not subscribed to the Cult of Oppie, and not necessarily out of choice.

Though there were women studying theoretical and experimental physics, they were few and far between. Since leaving high school, you had understood that to be taken seriously, you could not act like a man. The few friends you had in high school often teased you about your lack of grace, your ability to be covered in chalk dust at any given time, and your unwavering standoffish nature.

You belong in a think tank, not on a podium proclaiming these theories. You could work in a team, which was why you supposed your name came up for this.

“My country needs me,” you reply.

He smiles again, somewhat smaller. His eyes survey you a beat longer and you swallow, picturing your hair windswept and unruly from the train journey. You might smell of sweat, you hadn’t showered since yesterday and came straight here when you let yourself known to security.

“And your country will be glad to have you. Have a seat.”

He gestures to a desk and chair, waiting for you to sit. The silence stretches and you feel his eyes on you. You’re wearing your best dress and your nails match your lipstick. Though you were given little context about being summoned here, it felt like a job interview from the telegram you received a few days ago.

The last time he saw you, you dressed like someone that didn’t care about making a good impression.

To stamp down any nerves, you pluck your cigarettes case from your pocketbook, fishing one out. A lit match appears as you put a cigarette between your lips, Dr. Oppenheimer’s hand cupping the flame as you lean in.

“Mm, thank you,” you murmur. You exhale, watching as he pulls back, extinguishing it with a short puff of air.

He stares down at the burnt-out match for a couple seconds before he looks back at you again, his brows furrowing.

“This opportunity means reaching beyond what we have before scientifically,” he says, and you take another pull from your cigarette.

You speak around your smoke. “This is to do with Nazi weapons, isn’t it.”

“They split the atom,” he replies, and you nod. “And since you’re here, it means you’ve been cleared to be part of our great endeavour.”

The ‘our’ would be ‘his’ to a lot of people. You know better, having seen the hundreds of people outside.

“I need like-minded people,” he says.

You rub the tip of your thumb and forefinger together absently, frowning. You were the first to admit that you had very little in your life besides your work, and that hadn’t been plentiful since war broke out. Belatedly, it occurs to you that he’s referring to your intelligence.

“What could I contribute? I wasn’t one of your best.”

“You were,” he amends, lowering his voice a little. “You just didn’t participate outside of a school building. You were invited.”

Your eyes swing to meet his and you recall that Oppie reputation, that he was a womanizer underneath the genius. It never meant to be aimed towards you, that charm. Or so you assumed.

“I’m not the type to enjoy crowds,” you reply. “It’s a character flaw of mine.”

You were speaking just like your parents, the ones that had not encouraged you to pursue academia. Being a homemaker, someone with a reliable husband was what they wanted for you.

“Would you have come, if I asked you to, personally?” he asks.

His question throws you, and you stammer out: “N-now, or back then?”

“I asked for you both times,” he says.

For the first time, you blush. Hoping he ignores this, you smoke some more to clear your head. You had almost forgotten about his ability to make you flustered.

“If you asked me to come to a class party personally, I would have said yes,” you admit.

You dare to glance his way again, stomach flipping. So much for being a more polished version of yourself, you’re back to being mousey and strange under those intense eyes.

“That’s a pity,” he murmurs. “But I’m glad you’re here now.”

-

In the days and weeks to follow, it’s quickly made clear that there’s no leaving Los Alamos. Your residence is between a series of identical houses. The house itself is barely larger than your living quarters you remember from college. A cramped bedroom, a washroom, and a kitchenette. Nowhere to entertain to speak of, but it was still a privilege to have your own space. Your neighbors to your left are a young family of three, and to your right, there are two secretaries related to fellow scientists.

You keep to yourself. You opt for a long letter to your parents explaining very little about the new role here. You’re certain your letters are read by someone along the way for obvious reasons, and explaining it all tires you anyway.

Being a part of something as insular as this takes some adjusting to say the least. There is no escaping without being noticed, as there are guards all over. You overhear town gossip without meaning to; the tiny bubble you circle over and over is both thrilling and stifling. Everything feels pressurized in those first couple days in your new home especially. You sit on your new bed with your hands in your lap, cigarette perpetually lit in times like these.

You leave early the morning you’re expected in the department, unable to delay the inevitable any longer. You’re not the only one with this drive, walking into the main laboratory (a wide room with desks in rows with a blackboard at the back) to find several men already seated, chatting with one another.

You pause, waiting as their attention diverts to you. You recognize a few of them from professional acquaintance, whereas others you’ve only known by reputation. The air shifts, and you feel very out of place.

“Good morning,” you say, voice soft, controlled.

You wish to be invisible, which was why your clothes were far demurer than what you arrived in earlier that week. Admittedly, you did agonize over your hair for perhaps longer than necessary, but you’re glad you haven’t done childish braids or nothing at all. There’s a fine line to tread with these men; being attractive but not ostentatious is usually the aim. From what you’ve learned over the years, not caring about your appearance tends to backfire in terms of being taken seriously.

You don’t agree with any of this, of course. No-one should be judged on their appearance in terms of their intelligence or whether they’re worth listening to. Unfortunately, this is just the game you must play, especially in academia.

Your eyes catch various reactions, some eyes lighting up with recognition, others perplexed. Some might not have seen you in years and don’t remember you at all, which is fair. You never strove to be known; your work is what mattered.

A couple men come forward to shake your hand, pleased to see you. You ignore the way a few pairs of eyes dip to your exposed ankles. You’re scanned and assessed, and whether you’re found wanting is forgotten, for you feel the touch of someone’s hand on your arm and turn your head towards the source.

“Oppie. Back in one piece!” someone calls out.

You stare at the side of Dr. Oppenheimer’s face, your arm burning from where he touched you to slip past. Had he been that close behind you on your way there? You don’t think you could have missed him, though you were preoccupied with your thoughts.

“Yes. Well rested and ready to get back to work,” he replies, striding towards the front.

He doesn’t look your way, doesn’t acknowledge you in the slightest, which is fine. It’s not out of the ordinary, and so you sit down on the edge of the group, ankles together under your desk.

“Oppie the Rancher, I don’t see it.”

You can. His hat reminds you of a frontiersman. You can picture him staring out across the desert on his horse, reins in hand.

“A night under the stars can do wonders for your mind, Richard,” Oppenheimer retorts, pointing with his pipe. “You should try it sometime.”

The men banter and you sink into your observer role with ease. At least they’re not acting that differently with a woman present. As more people fill the room, you relax into your chair with your notebook and pen at the ready.

You stand as Dr. Bethe enters, shaking his hand. You will report to him, the head of the theoretical division. Once he takes a seat, the noise dissipates, and Oppenheimer launches into the meeting.

You will have to play catch-up for some time, but it’s not altogether intimidating. You know you can dedicate all your time to this, since you have no family staying here.

-

Days are spent with your head full of equations. You drink cups of drip coffee over and over, and ashtrays are filled and emptied. You are among a team of theorists assigned to a specific task by Bethe, whose own intellect is dedicated to your cause.

The goal is to solve the issue of nitrogen fusing into magnesium, or, to understand the probability of the nitrogen atoms fusing. There isn’t data on this, and so you must calculate for this occurring every time a fission bomb would detonate. Every time, there is a chance that the bomb would cause a chain reaction.

You write out the calculations like everyone else, and each conclusion is the same. There is a chance that the atmosphere itself may ignite.

Everyone else begs for rest, but your mind won’t give you relief. You chain smoke, standing in front of the blackboard with your chalk aloft, as the world darkens around you. You ignore your rumbling stomach, finishing the calculation again with a short sigh. Stepping back, you hear:

“What are you doing here?”

You turn your head to see Oppenheimer standing by the doorway, lips parting at the sight of your face, his hat in his hand. He walks over, glancing at the board behind you.

“It’s the same,” he says, eyes darting left to right.

“I’ve done this ten times,” you murmur. “Theory always leaves near zero chance of catastrophe.”

“Near zero,” he repeats, pulling in a breath. “Yes, I know.”

The weight of this is as much a reality to you as a theory, since this isn’t a classroom back in California, but a laboratory equipped with hundreds of scientific minds all working to build the same weapon. There are marbles representing very real plutonium in the fishbowl six feet away from you.

“I don’t wish to be an alarmist,” you add.

He looks at you again, eyes dipping to your mouth, and you feel a stir beneath your navel. To your surprise, he gives a small smile, but it’s not condescending. You’ve seen him give those out plenty before but have yet to receive one yourself.

“Your fears are valid, though not entirely necessary,” he murmurs. “I just got back from Michigan. I left in a panic about theory. But theory can only take you so far.”

You recall not seeing him for a couple days, though you are prone to missing others when you’re stuck in your own head. Oppenheimer is the exception, always.

He moves to lean against the desk beside you and you follow him, perching yourself at the edge as he looks down at his hat.

“I needed to speak to Compton about the potential chain reaction, of course there’s no possibility of speaking about it on the telephone-”

“So, you took a train all the way to see him?” you ask, and he nods. “But now you seem calm.”

“Not calm,” he says, though his voice is level. “More understanding that there’s a 3-in-a-million chance of total apocalypse.”

Those chances, though conceptually low, are not non-existent. You watch as he glances up at you once more, the air leaving the room. His eyes implore you.

“Near zero.”

“Near zero,” he echoes, his voice a near whisper. He places his hat back on his head.

You push off the desk and pick up the eraser, beginning to wipe the board clean of your calculations. When you finish, you look over at him again, frowning.

“If you’re more understanding, why are you here?”

It’s possible he didn’t go home because he needed to work this all out, like you. He keeps staring back at you, intimidating you as always, causing heat to rise at the back of your neck. In the low light, you hope it’s undetectable.

“The light was on. I saw you through the window.”

You swallow, ducking your head. “Oh.”

You place the eraser back on the ledge, and the space between you seems to shrink though neither of you move. You might be imagining the way he takes you in. He’s the director, and he has valid concerns for his staff.

But you’re no fool. His gaze is too familiar, especially when he nods at you, saying:

“Grab your things. I’ll work you out.”

You obey, following him out, switching off the light along the way. As you walk together down the halls, your footsteps echoing, you smell him beside you. He is tobacco, and body odour. Nothing sharp or unpleasant, but intimate, a semi-sweet musk. You smell the dust on his jacket and think of him sitting astride his horse with that thousand-yard stare.

You exit the building with nods to the guards, bringing you back to the present. You don’t want to leave him there in the street, but his residence is nowhere near yours as far as you know. You think of his wife, not for the first time, and wonder what he tells her about what they’re doing here.

“I’m this way,” you murmur.

Oppenheimer doesn’t respond how you expect, walking beside you for a few minutes instead of leaving you to find your way home alone. The silence between you in companionable, not strained, which feels like a miracle to you. From memory, he has never been someone you had a poor encounter with. It feels like a fluke, but statistically, it makes sense.

Your head still reels with equations, probabilities, and dire consequences. The chances of sleeping are so low, but you still wish him goodnight when you arrive at your residence.

There are people in the street, some glancing your way, seeing him and wave. He lifts a hand but doesn’t greet them further. He waits, watching you try to figure out how to leave him.

“Try to sleep.”

“I don’t know how likely that is,” you admit, turning back to him.

His hands are on his hips, and he smiles knowingly.

“I need you sharp tomorrow.”

You stand so close to one another now that his voice is low, the intimacy of the moment spreading over you.

“You’re no longer Sisyphus, you can rest.”

You think about pointing out the hypocrisy of this. You doubt he finds it easy to sleep at night, under the stars or otherwise.

“I think it’s more like the incy wincy spider,” you say, emboldened by his proximity to you. “Not quite as tragic.”

He chuckles and you smile back at him. He steps back, nodding a little. “Have a good night.”

He waits for you to go to your door, and you open it, glancing back at him for a moment. His smile returns, an understanding shade to his eyes.

“Remember the sun comes out again,” he calls.

He takes off, and you shut the front door behind you, leaning your forehead against it as you exhale.

Thank you for reading! 🖤 Likes, reblogs and replies are always appreciated and genuinely motivate me. 🥺

[forallnumbersosc]

Gaty!! didja get any intresting information from the "exitors" ??

- 🍁Maple Anon

[OOG IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG I HAD TO PROCESS TPOT 11 WHEN IT CAME OUT IM STILL ON AN AUTISM HIGH FROM IT]

ALRIGHT!! I've gotten what I can from the EXITors and compiled all of my notes, it's time for me to show my findings on!!

The EXIT!

So what IS the EXIT?

The best thing I can gather having not been there myself, is that it's an extra-dimensional space that exists within Four. Whenever something is eaten (or... in Four's words "zooped") by Four, they shrink down to accompany the initial "space" of Four's mouth, AKA the only place in his body that is closest to following the laws of Physics... Once you enter that door, things get WAY stranger....

I should also preface that we don't know for sure if every algebralien has such a space, as we have only observed these in Four, who seems to have far more power, or at least.... he decides to use far more power than other algebraliens... It's entirely possible that Four is the only one who has the ability to house a space like this!

LAYER ZERO: The Entrance

Diagram legend:

Four's mouth, one of the entrances to the EXIT. Appears much, MUCH higher up once anything enters Layer 0. This diagram does not show the true depth of how far the floor is from Four's mouth.

Four's OTHER mouth. His main tool of contestant transportation when contestants get eliminated... It's not very visible at all, you'd have to pull back Four's mane to even see it, and even then it's also invisible from the other side!

Skin?? Layer?? Honestly I don't know what makes up algebralien skin aside from the fact that in Four's case it acts as the catalyst for the initial "shrinkage" of anything that enters the space... It also seems to give Four a weakness to fire!

The EXIT door... The entrance to the rabbit-hole...

Strange trees. I don't fully know why these growths populate this area and beyond, as they don't seem to have any sensing function such as taste buds or stomach cilia, but I believe they were the first creations Four practiced on when constructing his inner world... he does think about himself quite often.

LAYER ONE: The Classrooms

Starting with a simple algebra classroom, Layer One is a seemingly endless collection of rooms down a long, winding network of hallways that range from other typical classrooms, to portals to areas outside of the EXIT, and even strange, nonsensical collections of things that are.. well... according to Pencil, "don't deserve a description"...

This layer was the only one accessible to the EXITors for months on end before Liy decided to take a peek behind the curtain... Since I believe the EXIT's vast characteristics were created from personal aspects of Four, it makes me think of just how much Four keeps hidden away about himself... Why does he like school so much??

LAYER TWO: The Fourest

Feeling claustrophobic? Take a trip to the scenic and expansive Fourest! I consider this a bit of a "hub" of the EXIT, as it seems like the most widespread place to put different entrances to other, deeper areas, as well as, of course, the pathway out...

Compared to the classroom, this area is the most "organic" in terms of literally being comprised of Four... The classrooms themselves contain a percent of material created from his own body, but it seems a lot has been taken from outside and placed within... This area, however, is pretty much all him. its thanks to this area that I was able to take some small samples stuck to the EXITors clothing.. and i am SO excited to study it! Ahh!!

LAYER THREE: Below...?

[can you tell this is when mod's hand started to get tired/lh]

The descriptions I got from Match, Liy, and Stapy were pretty... odd... to say the least for this wacky pocket dimension, and its certainly where my knowledge of the EXIT seems to come to a close, as the closest the EXITors got to any deeper level was this strange little castle full of even stranger secrets.... You must admit, Four might be cruel but he has an eye for architecture!

Out of the other layers, this one seems to be a combination of both Four material and outside material, making me wonder if this is where Four keeps his best kept secrets or... maybe even his insecurities?

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

Oh yeah... I heard about this... thing that some of the EXITors encountered... From what I know it seems to be simply another part of Four rather than a thinking creature of its own, but it's certainly hard to say!

I'd like to give a thank-you to Pencil, Match, Stapy, Liy, David, and 8-Ball for your contributions to my research!!

...and an apology to Bracelety, Dora, and Firey Jr for er... bringing up such a frustrating and-- well... traumatic event for this information--

...While I must admit I don't enjoy the fact that the EXIT left these fellow contestants a pretty awful impression of algebraliens, I really am glad we have them back!!

PHEW!!! Now that I have most of my information on the EXIT finally on here, time to get back to some of the other questions I got!!

[itgirlgyu]

would txt help you pass love notes in the class?

ˀˀ 🍓 ＇、˖ 📝!! txt OT5! random hcs.

YEONJUN...

he's gonna start giggling as soon as he gets the notes because he loves the idea of young love.

literally squeaks with hand on his mouth

brother doesn't even know that the teacher is digging holes on his head rn

somehow the idea it young love snatching too quick ( also getting blamed somehow for ruining your chances) gets his stomach churning and his heart hurting (he breaks out in hives if he thinks ppl hate him)

so when the teacher tries to grab the note

he panics and ends up stuffing it down his mouth.

now he's sitting in the nurse's office with an upset stomach and a rumor that yeonjun likes eating papers.

you come to visit him with tears in your eyes and a bouquet of flowers for his sacrifice.

SOOBIN...

literally cold shoulders anyone that is pspsing towards him

like you could be scratching his shoulder with your nails for him to pay attention to you so you can ask him for help.

his shirt is bleeding but he refuses to turn his face in case he gets roped into this bs

you can't literally physically move his head like this man has an iron resolute

he IS NOT TURNING BACK.

he is NOT getting himself into dumb shit like this and risking getting caught with a juvenile ass slip.

like get the hint ffs

lowkey a snob but he's also very cute so he gets away with shit.

teacher: you're late soobie boobie doobie :(

soobin: erm aegyo? 🙄

lowkey a teacher's pet as in

the teacher is mad heart eyes for him and let's him cheat in tests.

BEOMGYU...

hundred percent on board but

first he is curious so he like tries to slyly read the paper

gasps very loudly in a very quiet classroom

when the teacher catches his ass he is very keen tattling whose note it actually is

his eyes are actually shining while he tells about whose note it is and how innocent he is

literally pulls a half eaten bag of chips discreetly from his backpack to eat while he watches you get your ass handed back to you

melts the chips in mouth so that he doesn't get caught.

like so now YOU ARE DISCREET??!

probably gets jumped after school

TAEHYUN...

contrary to popular belief,

taehyun is a very social person and also lowkey a people pleaser.

so when he gets asked and he's starry eyed like

“leave this up to me friend”

he is literally studying the movement of the teachers feet and how many steps it takes for the teacher to reach the end of the backboard

he is pulling a calculator out and scribbling into his notes to count the sequence of his footsteps.

has already recruited five other persons to act as distraction and two others as envoys.

he makes sure to slide past benches, avoid the teacher's hawk gaze and all those cinematic tasks to help you pass the slip.

you promise to name your first child after him.

HUENING KAI...

you think he's gonna refuse you politely.

but he's very efficient surprisingly.

rather than passing the notes through a few more benches.

he decides to take one for the team and goes up to the teacher to ask a few questions to stall him.

“what came first professor? chicken or egg?“

“... this is political history kai.. “

“so you don't know professor 🤨”

ends up gaslighting the professor into a whole ass debate about the origin of this question and how much it has affected the history throughout the years.

you're deciding the destination for your honeymoon while all these are taking place.

kai ends up getting a recommendation letter for his out of box thinking and you get a s/o

it's a win win

COPYRIGHTS RESERVED TO ITGIRLGYU 23'. FEEDBACKS AND REBLOGS ARE APPRECIATED!

PERM' TAGLIST: @impureperhaps @full-sunnies @ox1-lovesick @jisungsdaydreamer @wonioml @1921choi @forever-in-the-sky2 @gyuletters

[itspheenixbaby]

UA high in my mha dr

for much needed context on the city my dr is set in, read this post.

UA, or Ueyama Academy, was founded by businessman and pro hero Christian Ueyama in 1902. he was initially both experimenting on and training the first set of quirk users, but when quirks became a widespread phenomenon he opened UA as a school. since then, UA's have opened all around the world, some of the most iconic branches being tokyo, musutafu, new york city, los angeles, dubai, hong kong, cairo, london, lagos and paris.

years :

students finish their second to last year of high school, then transfer to UA.

studying at UA takes about four years

most students graduate at 18-19.

each year has two classes from each course.

both classes have twenty people in each.

campus :

ua is in the cities rural district, deep in the jungle.

ua has a shuttle straight to the building. its literally just a fancy school bus. you need a school card to access the bus.

ua has seven floors, the first floor is just regular compulsory classrooms, the library and the cafeteria, but the third floor and above is fully for specialized classes.

all five courses are in the dorms. ua isnt exactly a boarding school, but because of how intense the schedule and class work is most students decide to go into the dorms.

UA culture

theres some small/mid sized neighborhoods a couple miles from UA. students go there frequently because of the surfing culture, picturesque beaches and food.

the craziest shit happens at UA. think like greendale if they had money.

ua students are particularly impossible to control. which is why the student council, judiciary board and disciplinary committee are so essential.

after hours from 4:30pm to 9:30pm. students can train, practice and work on their personal projects at the school. because of the nature of UA, most students are present for after hours.

ua has an option sixth day of school for tutoring, practice and training. (pretty sure this is already normal in japan, but i dont think most ppl on tumblr are japanese so i felt like mentioning it)

rivalry between individual classes and whole courses. sometimes really intense prank wars.

events :

to end every semester we have a kick back on the school grounds. with live music (performed by the entertainment course), games and free food. plus a big ass cheese fountain (ib. hollywood arts)

culture day is held once a school year. its a half day, and during the school day everyone dresses up in their cultural uniforms. the second half of the day is a festival, with booths and events divided by nationality/ethnicity.

scavenger hunt around the campus after school. the items being hunted are made by the technology course and are often...colorful, so say the least.

a school wide fundraising event where staff and faculty auction items and services to other students, faculty, family, friends and strangers. most of the money goes to the school but participants get a fair cut of the value their item recieved.

four to five times in a semester every course has a day with no regular classes or no classes at all. just a day to develop whichever skill the student or their teachers think they need to work on in excruciating intensity. (and for hero course students hours of group physical exercise too. yay) marked as a test grade and heavily monitored.

in this universe musutafu celebrates carnaval, so UA students from every course can volunteer to help put together (and in some cases perform on) UA's carnaval floats. other than that, during canaval school is out.

the technology course has a tech fair every year. its not as mainstream as the sports festival but equally popular in its own field.

clubs :

most students are too busy after school doing course work/projects, and being at UA by itself looks good enough for a resume, so UA doesn't have much clubs.

student council (various class representatives and stellar students who represent the school internationally, plan events and solve school-wide issues)

ua newspaper. (relays announcements and shocking events. also spreads gossip and digs for controversy.)

disciplinary comitee. (disciplines misbehaving students, enforces rules & dress code.)

student judiciary board. (a council of students mediate fights and solve minor/major disputes. they also determine the form of detention a student gets. like a mini jury)

peer tutoring program. (teachers & students with high GPA tutor peers. tutoring students gets you extra credit)

extra funding committee. (finds ways to fund students personal projects unrelated to the school)

shut eye club (top secret club, actually deals in espionage and black market drug/ technology operations called in by other students and on occasion adults. centered around UA's interpolitics)

detention (not a club, but when students get detention they have to clean the entire school or waste their time on some other mundane task.)

uniform

UA is pretty lax on uniform regulations.

the standard uniform includes a short sleeve white button up top, and black bottoms.

depending on their course, students wear a different bow/tie color.

ua only allows accessories/ non black & white shoes matching course color.

courses

UA has five courses

no general course.

all courses are equally famed and competitive.

the daily schedule fluctuates from compulsory classes to specialized classes.

compulsory classes (japanese lit, social studies, arithmetics, etc.) are mixed course.

entertainment course / purple ties "the distractions"

generally obnoxious.

think of them as a mini hollywood arts.

trained to be idols, directors, actors and musicians.

pharmacy & healthcare course / blue ties "the fixers"

so stressed out.

patch up hero course students.

technology course / green ties "the helpers"

tech course students are annoyingly ambitious.

hardest to control.

assist hero course students.

practically live in their labs. never see the sun.

business & law course / yellow ties "the manipulators"

stereotyped as only caring about money (kinda true...)

think theyre better than the other courses.

heroics course / red ties "the stars"

stereotyped as entitled jocks.

most iconic course.

[themsource]

I really like 7alt8! Do you have any other AUs?

Thank you! <3

Um, I have this one dumb AU that I haven't talked about based on the 'Better World' timeline mentioned in journal 3. Ford basically opens up an anomaly lab and university that he's headmaster of similar to the institute but more classroom and schooly and a lab more so on paperwork.

'Like a magic school but science! ...well, magic is simply science we don't understand yet, but you get the gist.' - An overenthusiastic Ford

He opened it to introduce anomalies to the world and to foster a system of integration between them and normal society if they wish (And so he can study everything to his hearts content without needing to hunt them down and instead have them come to him).

He never finished the portal and actually gave up on it and took Fiddleford's advice to publish his work just like in 'Better World', except he didn't hide his journals, he burned them willingly instead because he and Stan actually TALKED rather than fought when they met up again. What caused that change was because he actually had a decent amount of sleep beforehand and so was more alert and active in reacting to hearing about his brother 'eating his way out of a trunk' and all that other awful stuff (he used a timed cryo-pod to 'sleep' without worry of Bill hurting him physically or trying to mess with the portal after writing to Stan and waiting)

Stan actually helps Ford break free of Bill by pure dumb luck after being told about everything,

S: 'Getting possessed by math, only you poindexter. Always gotta know everythin'! And they say I'm the stubborn twin, when you're so hard headed your skull might as well be made of steel.'

F: '...steel? THAT'S IT! Stanley you're a genius!'

S: 'I know I am—wait, what?' ._.

What makes it really dumb is that everyone, literally everyone, is just going along with this awkwardly because no one stands a chance in front of Ford's blind ambition and determined obliviousness (he legit thinks everyone is as into this idea as he is which is SO not the case).

Had thought about calling the school 'The Gravity Falls Stranganomics and Unusuology Academy'. SUA for short XD

Imagine: A classroom filled with harpies on branches and mermaids in tanks and the two are side eyeing each other because it's a prey and predator locked together in a cage situation with a stressed out 'professor' (scientist) trying to mitigate, but immediately all go tense and cheek bitingly stiff as president/headmaster Ford enters the room.

F: 'Hello class! And how goes everyone's studies today?' P: 'It's going... swimmingly... Class, say hello to the... headmaster....' Class: 'Hello... headmaster...' F: 'Good good good, so proud of all of you for working so hard! I'm proud to announce plans for an upcoming dance (social experiment)! Doesn't that sound fun?' Class: ..... F: 'Now no one get too excited, there are still details to sort out such as inviting the students of Procrastiversity to join us, but meanwhile keep enjoying your education! I'll leave you to it!' Class: .... *Ford leaves* P: '....s-so... economy? Who'd like to come up and share... how their society er... clan, monetary systems works for the class?' Class: ....

Everyone but Ford: 'I hate it here.'

Just something I thought would be funny with random moments and not really a full on AU with a serious plot. One of the reasons I haven't shared anything on it till now.

Like...

Stan is the school's boxing coach/cafeteria chef (Ford had to think of something to keep his twin occupied [out of trouble] and Stan was too stunned by this whole thing and telling Ford how stupid it was—and being ignored for it—that he ended up not having a say in what he did really so got saddled with two roles lmao)

Mabel and Dipper are attending students for the summer semester (acting as 'control group A for anomaly and human coexistent interaction' according to Ford)

Soos and Wendy are Janitor/handyman and Librarian respectively (only because Stan asked them to be in order to help keep an eye on Ford, 'for when this whole thing goes belly up' - Stan)

Fiddleford actually makes up with Ford (after lots of groveling on Ford's part—and even now Ford tiptoes around fiddleford to avoid upsetting him, one glare is all it takes oof) and acts as the vice president

And any other gravity falls characters were all going to either be visitors (experiment observers) or attend/work at the school in some format, but I never got around to sorting that stuff out lol

Aside from this, no other AUs at the moment. Though I'm sure if I get more I'll at least share the ones I can form a solid story with like 7alt8 ^^

[trofysisters]

Университет Антона, Вероники и Влада. Часть 1

О чем может мечтать парень, поступивший в университет? Конкретно Влад мечтал о любви всей жизни и рождении детей, (What can a guy who entered the university dream of? Specifically, Vlad dreamed of the love of his life and having children,)

поэтому приглядывался ко всем встречным девушкам. А вдруг одна из них - его судьба? Соседка Вероники, которая тоже положила на него глаз, начала проявлять признаки ревности, ведь ее он заметил раньше других. (so he kept an eye on all the girls he met. What if one of them was his destiny? Veronica's neighbor, who also had her eye on him, began to show signs of jealousy, because he noticed her before the others)

Поскольку Вероника смогла поступить на бюджет благодаря физическим навыкам, она решила тренировать брата на случай, если тот провалит экзамены. Спортсмены университету нужны, не отчислят. Правда попасть мячом в корзину Влад так и не смог. (Since Veronica was able to enter the budget thanks to her physical skills, she decided to train her brother in case he failed the exams. The university needs athletes, they won't expel him. However, Vlad was never able to hit the ball into the basket)

Вот Антон знал, что для успешного окончания семестра нужно написать курсовую работу, и в начале учебного года уже мог не волноваться об экзаменах. (But Anton knew that in order to successfully complete the semester, he needed to write a term paper, and at the beginning of the school year he could no longer worry about exams)

А когда он увидел, что курс лекций по физиологии ведет его отец, у Антона от сердца отлегло, точно сдаст. (And when he saw that his father was teaching a course of lectures on physiology, Anton felt relieved, he would definitely pass)

Влад по примеру старшего товарища делал задания, но учебной аудитории предпочитал мастерские. (Vlad, following the example of his older friend, did his homework, but preferred workshops to the classroom)

Коллега менеджера не забывала о своем несостоявшемся пасынке и приглашала Антона на прогулки в город. Конечно, в компании был и папа Антона. (The manager’s colleague did not forget about her failed stepson and invited Anton for walks in the city. Of course, Anton's dad was in the company)

Заодно на соревновании танцоров он смог выиграть денежный приз. Но может так его отец с коллегой решили помочь бедному студенту? (He also managed to win a cash prize at a dance competition. But maybe his father and colleague decided to help the poor student?)

Едва вернувшись домой, Антон чуть не оказался в объятиях незнакомца в костюме коровы. После пережитого шока он понял, что любит преследующую его девушку. (Having barely returned home, Anton almost found himself in the arms of a stranger in a cow costume. After the shock he experienced, he realized that he loved the girl pursuing him)

Не менее ошеломительным для него оказалось увидеть, как пожилая женщина - мама близнецов - делает стойку над бочонком с пуншем. Просто Вера приехала навестить детей и прочувствовать студенческую жизнь. (No less stunning for him was to see how an elderly woman - the mother of twins - did a handstand over a keg of punch. Vera simply came to visit the children and get a feel for student life)

Первый семестр все окончили великолепно, только Веронике придется изучить технику, чтобы хорошо закончить первый курс. (Everyone finished the first semester brilliantly, only Veronica will have to study mechanics in order to finish the first year well)

Отпраздновать успешную сдачу экзаменов студенты отправились в Ледовый дворец в Симбири. (The students went to the Ice Palace in Simbir to celebrate successfully passing their exams)

С тех пор, как Давид стал мэром Областного центра, он начал развивать периферию и акти��но зазывать горожан в новые спортивные комплексы. (Since David became the mayor of the Regional Center, he began to develop the outskirts and actively invite citizens to new sports complexes)

Однако не стоило забывать об учебе. Пока близнецы слушали лекцию по информатике, Антон вновь писал курсовую работу. (However, it was not worth forgetting about studying. While the twins were listening to a lecture on computer science, Anton was writing his term paper again)

Одним из обязательных предметов была музыка. К счастью, Влад умел музицировать, а Вероника - петь. (One of the compulsory subjects was music. Fortunately, Vlad knew how to play music, and Veronica knew how to sing)

В студенческом кафе голодный студент попытался украсть у Влада еду, но тот с достоинством сумел ее вернуть, тем самым обратив на себя внимание одной студентки. (In a student cafe, a hungry student tried to steal food from Vlad, but he managed to return it with dignity, thereby attracting the attention of one student)

Только Влад на нее даже не посмотрел, ведь Вероника обещала его вечером познакомить с его будущей невестой. Влад был заинтригован вплоть до момента, когда увидел на пороге сестру Коли. Филя, конечно, хотел бы видеть Влада своим зятем, но между ребятами разница в 6 лет. Фаина еще совсем ребенок. А вот Веронику разница с Колей в 2 года совсем не смущала. (Only Vlad did not even look at her, because Veronica promised to introduce him to his future bride in the evening. Vlad was intrigued until the moment when he saw Kolya's sister on the threshold. Filya, of course, would like to see Vlad as his son-in-law, but there is a 6-year difference between Vlad and Faina. Faina is still just a child. But Veronica was not at all embarrassed by the 2-year age difference with Kolya)

На этой вечеринке об Антоне все забыли, и он демонстративно сел читать энциклопедический словарь. Зато Вероника считала, что они все здорово повеселились. (At this party, everyone forgot about Anton, and he demonstratively sat down to read an encyclopedic dictionary. But Veronica thought that they all had a great time)

Да компания стариков и то проводила время интереснее. Коллега менеджера вновь позвала Антона на прогулку, в этот раз в кинотеатр. (But the group of old people had a more interesting time. The manager's colleague invited Anton for a walk again, this time to the cinema)

На премьеру фильма пришел Ксан Ксаныч, который решил поинтересоваться у Антона, что тот думает о возвращении своей матери, надолго ли она в их семье. (Ksan Ksanich came to the premiere of the film, who decided to ask Anton what he thought about his mother's return, how long she would be in their family)

Время приближалось к сдаче годовых экзаменов, но Веронику больше интересовала физиология, чем чтение скучных учебников. Впрочем, она рассчитывала на хорошую оценку на семинаре. Да и кто занизит оценку спортсменке? (The time was approaching for the annual exams, but Veronica was more interested in physiology than in reading boring textbooks. However, she was counting on a good grade at the seminar. And who would lower the grade for an athlete?)

Влад не хотел учиться, а хотел жениться, но чтобы не вылететь из университета, он попросил однокурсницу написать за него курсовую работу. (Vlad did not want to study, he wanted to get married, but in order not to be kicked out of the university, he asked a classmate to write his term paper for him)

К тому же, наконец выпал снег и можно поиграть в снежки, точнее, Вероника закидала более физически слабого брата снегом. (Besides, it finally snowed and they could play snowballs, or rather, Veronica threw snow at her physically weaker brother)

Один Антон корпел над выполнением учебных заданий, чтобы успешно закончить второй курс. (Anton alone was working hard on his school assignments to successfully complete his second year)

Помимо успехов в учебе его ждал успех и на любовном фронте, хотя во время первого поцелуя у него сердце ушло в пятки. (In addition to academic success, he was also successful on the love front, although his heart sank during their first kiss)

Пусть разными путями, но все ребята оказались в списке лучших студентов университета. (Although by different paths, all the guys ended up on the list of the best students at the university)

[enbysiriusblack]

muggle marauders in school headcanons:

currently at work in a secondary school rn (i'm a part time school library assistant) so thought this was fitting. yes, ignore the fact i'm on tumblr whilst technically meant to be working

james as rugby and football captain. sirius is also on the team for both but could not care less about it, he's just there for james

marlene is captain of the netball team and girl's football team. mary is on the netball team with her and is the teacher's favourite

lily being really good at stem subjects and always hanging around the science block

me and some of my friends used to get the early train to school so we had like an hour or so before form (mostly to smoke beforehand/get away from home/go to the corner shop).. this was so the marauders. like all of them getting a train an hour earlier than they need to just for remus, sirius, and peter to smoke, sirius to get away from home, and all four to go to the corner store. where peter would get toxic waste, james would get energy drinks, remus would walk around and buy nothing, and sirius would buy his lunch and loads of sweets.

peter going to chess club and the other three going with him only to sit around on their phones and cheer him on whilst irritating the teacher running the club (minus remus) only to then get kicked out

people's fav subjects: james- p.e and biology. sirius- engineering. remus- history and sociology. peter- maths and music. lily- chemistry, biology, and physics. marlene- d.t and p.e. mary- textiles. emmeline- business studies. dorcas- p.e. regulus- english literature & language and economics. pandora- art, chemistry, and english literature.

mary would get in constant trouble for rolling up her skirt.

james would be one of those people that refuses to change out their p.e kit and gets the p.e teacher to back them up cause he's their favourite

sirius gets in trouble for never having his tie done up and his shirt untucked.

peter gets in trouble for wearing his hoodie (and dorcas. and marlene. and remus but he'd get like a doctors note (his doctor is a family friend) claiming he has to wear it because the reason he's cold is cause of his chronic pain (it's not)

idk about other schools, but when i was in school, eating lunch in teacher's classrooms was like. the 'cool place' (that or the field). so i think the marauders would eat lunch in the field and then in year 11 they'd sit in mcgonagall's classroom. mary, lily, emmeline, and marlene would always sit on the field (unless it's raining, in which case they'd go flitwick's classroom). regulus, dorcas, pandora, barty, and evan eat in the canteen. like losers (/hj).

remus is besties with pomfrey (school nurse), so his classmates try to get him to take them when they want to skive/pretend they're ill, as she's more likely to let them with remus there

dorcas skateboards to school

the year 7's/yr 8's really look up to james (why he was made head boy). and during break, they beg him to teach them football tricks

peter, remus, lily and mary get the bus to school together (on the occasion peter and remus aren't going in early)

[lala3244]

Heartbreaks: LUCIFER

-Got motivated to do another one. Lucifer might be a bit different than the game I am sorry if that's the case :) -

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You started dating them but others had decided they should date demons of powerful lineage not a mere human.

Warnings: Hurt/no comfort

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Diavolo Mammon Satan Belphegor Asmodeus

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everybody knew that you were dating the Avatar of Pride even though it wasn’t official. People would see you out in your best outfit at the arm of Lucifer, going to a nice restaurant or to the opera or just having a walk around the Devildom. You’ve never actually been physical, maybe a kiss or two for a special occasion, you wanted to take your time in taking your relationship further. What was the rush, right? 

It’s only been a few weeks but you already had a routine in place. When you weren’t eating out because Lucifer had a lot of work, you would join him in his office and study next to him with a cup of coffee. Sometimes, you would fall asleep and wake up in his bed, snuggled on his chest, all warm and content. You were happy that he took a break so he could sleep for a bit. He would always overwork himself but you made him change his way a bit at a time. 

When it was just the two of you, you would see a side of him that he never showed anyone. He let his hair down a bit and would be silly which surprised you at first but you got used to it. It took him only a couple of weeks to give you massive hugs that would last minutes. You felt comfortable and at ease with him. It was a surprise, actually, how easy going he was when you were alone with him. He looked less tense and would relax every time you touched him slightly. He really enjoyed your company and did everything he could to keep you for himself. You were falling in love hard and fast with all the attention he was giving you. 

One day, you were at RAD, walking to one of your classes when you saw Lucifer leaving Diavolo’s office, looking rather pissed off. You walked towards him but he ignored you completely. You shrugged it off, maybe Lord Diavolo gave him more reports to read. You arrived at your classroom and decided to text Lucifer.

You: Hello Lucifer. You didn’t seem happy earlier. What happened?

You sent the message and entered the room. You sat next to Mammon as you had the same timetable and soon forgot about the text. The day passed quickly and you didn’t see Lucifer anymore. You didn’t mind it happened sometimes when he was busy with work. Simeon and Luke asked you to try a new coffee shop and you agreed so you went there after RAD. You spent the evening with the two angels until you noticed the time and realised it was quite late. Luke and Simeon walked with you to the Hall of Lamentation then you thanked them for your invitation. You had such a nice time with them and kind of forgot to let Lucifer know where you were going but when you checked your phone you had no new notification. 

A bit upset, you entered the HoL and started to look for the Prideful demon. He was right where you knew he was, in his office, hunched over some paper. The door was slightly opened but you knocked anyway. You smiled at him, you missed him. When you started to walk towards, he stood up. “Don’t”. You stopped halfway there and looked at his eyes, they were full of anger. You thought it was because you didn’t let him know about your evening but it was a bit of an overreaction. “Lucifer, I…” He cut you off with a sharp voice “Get out. Please.” You were still looking at him and you still saw some anger but there was something else passing through that you couldn’t pinpoint. You gasped at his tone and started to walk backwards. You nodded and ran to your room. 

For a few days, every time you went to talk to him, he ignored you or he would talk to you in short sentences then you had enough, you decided to go and talk to him face to face. You thought the best way would be at RAD, at least there was no way it could escalate into a massive argument. You entered his office where you thought he would be alone but Lord Diavolo, Barbatos and a beautiful demon whom you didn’t know were present. Lord Diavolo smiled upon your entering and you returned his smile. “Ah! Welcome!” You nodded and replied with a small voice “Hello”. “I am sure Lucifer has talked to you about his new courtship?” Lucifer stood up at these words but you left before anyone else could say anything. You didn’t run nor cry. Actually, you admonished yourself for being so stupid. Of course, he would date a demon not just a human, “I’m sure they are from a wealthy and powerful family too.” you whispered to yourself. What a foolish human you were being. 

The day at RAD was over. You spent the rest of the day wallowing in self pity. Your friends noticed how distracted you were and some of them even took notes for you when they saw you weren’t even listening to the professor. You walked home with your housemates, still silent while the brothers tried to talk to you to get you out of your morbid thoughts. They didn’t know what happened but they could sense that your silence was not good for your mental health. Finally, you arrived at “home” and went straight to your bedroom, you changed your RAD uniform for something more comfortable. You took your earphones out and started listening to some human world music. 

It wasn’t time for dinner yet but you started to feel hungry so you decided to go to the kitchen. You walked past the front entrance when you heard a knock so you opened it. It was the demon that you saw in Lucifer’s office. They looked down at you “So you are THE human right?” They laughed “Move, puny human and go tell Lucifer I’m here.” They pushed you to the side so they could enter. You stumbled a bit and tears started to form. It’s going to be hell in hell.

================================================

THE END

Thank you for reading.

If you have an idea for the next one please let me know!

[tobiasdrake]

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy 88 - Concrete Clues

Shouma's pulling his weight again and deserves love and appreciation.

...huh. That puts a kink in the idea that we're from different timelines. Even though that has to be right, right? Because of Nozomi?

Unless there are only two timelines of concern but Nozomi's from this one.

Hm. That's a possibility.

There are fourteen pods in Shouma's memory. It's not easy to make out but from left to right on the top row:

Yugamu - Gaku - Ima - Takumi - Shouma - Darumi - Tsubasa

Then on the bottom row:

Kako - Takemaru - Kurara - Hiruko - Gaku - Kyoshika

I think that's how it goes. Hiruko has a special black vest or something on her hospital gown while the rest of us are uniform; That probably means something but we lack the knowledge to understand what.

The bottom right pod is empty. That's probably because that's Moko and we don't know what she looks like yet. Fourteen pods. Fifteen people. Someone didn't get here via the pods, and that someone is Nozomi. She is the piece that does not fit.

That's why she can't Blood Cocoon and it's why the Revive-o-Matic can't generate a new copy of her, which I still think is what it's doing instead of resurrecting us.

I was saying we never met but we all had the same experience in different timelines. But Shouma's memory pretty much proves that wrong.

This also nukes my theory that Shouma is like Nozomi and physically doesn't have the hemoanima to transform, come to think of it. Whatever's going on with him, it's not that.

Oh, and there goes "We were all hospitalized at Kamukura at some point" too. Man, we are weeding the shit out of bad theories and replacing them with concrete clues today.

This feels good. Like we're finally moving in a direction where we have the pieces necessary to adequately theorize instead of wildly speculate.

...

...

...

...

Oh, shit, yeah. That makes sense. I just... assumed the Invader attack spelled the doom of the TRC and nobody was alive after that.

Eito's right. I'm thinking about this completely backwards. They didn't study our blood and then Sirei gave us hemoanima to repel the attack. Sirei gave us hemoanima to repel the attack and then Kamukura studied our blood. That makes much more sense.

So the Infusers did pump our variants in that universe full of hemoanima. Something something, information transmitted possibly through morphogenetic field, they used our blood data or whatever in this timeline to make copies of us who share our identity and memories because of the hemoanima/morphogenetic field.

Except Nozomi who's from this fucking timeline and probably secretly knows everything about what's happening here.

Uchikoshi timeline bullshit, meet Kodaka memory-erasure bullshit.

We were all created in the Revive-o-Matic and then brought into this classroom to wake up for the first time.

Man, look at Hiruko all prim and proper in the back. Darumi doing the big yawn. Takemaru slumped over. Ima either was holding Kako's hand until she started wiping her eye or is signaling that he wants to hold her hand.

It's a Kodaka trademark. Though in this case, I don't think it's so much that our memories were erased as that they're....

...booting up, I guess? If my Revive-o-Matic theory holds, then we were all basically born for the first time thirty days ago. Our minds sprang into this reality fully-formed and are, like... gradually downloading relevant data through hemoanima morphogenesis or whatever.

This feels like it's really starting to come together into a solid picture of... not of what Last Defense Academy is or what the Bing-Bong Bandits are, but of what we are.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive

By Benjamin Mateus

The ninth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is finally receding, with estimated daily new infections based on wastewater data now standing at 669,000 per day, down from the August peaks of over 1.3 million. However, experts predict that the tenth wave will begin in late fall and continue through the winter holidays, as has taken place every year of the pandemic so far.

With one in 70 individuals currently infectious, the risk of coming into contact with someone in a classroom, work, or dining at a local facility with 25 to 50 people is considerable. And despite the relative lull in cases, there is more COVID-19 transmission now than during 56.1 percent of the pandemic. In other words, the “forever COVID” policy essentially means that COVID is now everywhere all the time.

Under these conditions, forced upon society by the capitalist ruling class, repeat infections act like a battering ram, taking a growing toll on the foundation of everyone’s overall wellbeing. There is a growing body of evidence that each hit weakens the organ systems, aging them biologically beyond the person’s stated age until sufficient injury begins to manifest in physically measurable symptoms.

At present, more than one billion cumulative COVID infections have occurred in the US, at a rate of around one per year per person, with somewhere between 3-4 infections on average among the entire population. Estimates place the number of Long COVID cases at over 410 million globally in just the first four years of the pandemic, while excess deaths are nearing 30 million.

Clearly, the pandemic is ongoing and remains a significant health risk for the global population. The criminality of the “forever COVID” policy is highlighted by the fact that virtually no funding is allocated to the development of next-generation mucosal vaccines, improved treatments during the acute phase of infection, or any treatments for Long COVID patients. While trillions are squandered on war and bank bailouts for the rich, nothing is provided for critical life-saving research.

Last week, results from the first clinical trial of a mucosal vaccine were released, showing remarkable levels of efficacy after a second dose.

The important study published by Chinese investigators demonstrated that an intranasally administered anti-COVID vaccine can induce robust mucosal immunity against the coronavirus in human subjects (128 healthcare workers). The study found that the vaccine provided substantial immune protection against COVID while demonstrating safety and tolerance.

Esteemed clinical researcher Dr. Eric Topol wrote on Twitter/X, “[two] doses of a COVID nasal vaccine spray led to more than a 50-fold increase in spike specific secretory IgA antibodies against 10 strains of SARS-CoV-2, indicative of potent mucosal immunity.” Furthermore, Topol added, “At least 86.2 percent of participants who completed two nasal vaccines doses maintained uninfected status, likely without even asymptomatic infection, for at least three months.”

Emergency room physician and indoor air quality proponent, Dr. Kashif Pirzada, replied, “This could potentially give a real ending to the pandemic. No more waves of illness, no more rushing for tests and antivirals if you’re elderly or vulnerable. Hope this comes out soon!”

However, large Phase 3 clinical trials are costly, requiring multiple participants to obtain statistically relevant information on clinical endpoints, not to speak of the research and development investment to identify a therapeutic that can be tested. Thus, under capitalism, there is virtually no investment in these large-scale trials and nothing is being done beyond offering boosters of the current vaccine, despite their greatly reduced efficacy in preventing transmission.

The mucosal vaccine study was conducted just as Chinese officials acquiesced to the demands of the imperialist powers to abandon their life-saving Zero-COVID public health program, resulting in the infection of virtually the entire population and the deaths of 1-2 million people. What could such a vaccine have meant to these millions that perished needlessly and the millions more globally since then?

This raises the broader question of why the international community, facing a devastating pandemic, could not bring its accumulated scientific bodies to address the need to develop a preventative treatment against COVID?

As a trigger event in world history, the COVID-19 pandemic has only accelerated and exposed the deep-seated contradictions in global capitalism, which demands the accumulation of profits at any costs. The ruling class has nothing but contempt for workers, refusing to invest in any social programs that can improve the lives of masses of people. Short sightedness, corruption, mistrust, and suspicion epitomize their actions, which are rapidly progressing to a world conflagration carrying the danger of nuclear war.

Simply put, the ruling class cares not one iota about mucosal vaccines, just as they harbor resentment against any public health policy that infringes on their ability to conduct business.

Refusing to invest in these life-saving technologies, the capitalist ruling class has condemned humanity to face a lifetime of reinfections with COVID-19. What are the implications of this criminal policy?

Multiple previous studies have highlighted the dangers posed by reinfections with SARS-CoV-2. A recent study uploaded as a pre-print publication on Research Square (under review with the journal Nature Portfolio) by the Patient-Led Collaborative has once again found similar results when attempting to characterize the association between reinfections and the chronic debilitating condition known as Long COVID.

Among 3,382 participants (22 percent never had COVID, 42 percent with one prior infection and 35 percent with two or more infections), the risk of Long COVID was 2.14 times more likely among those with two COVID infections and 3.75 times more likely among those who had three or more COVID Infections compared to just one. Limitations in physical functioning measured in their study included ability to dress, bathe, perform moderate activities like vacuuming and functioning socially. Reinfections led to poorer overall health and worse immune health, including more severe outcomes and longer recovery from other infections.

As the authors wrote:

"Relative to those who did not report infections or experienced COVID-19 once, reinfections were associated with increased likelihood of severe fatigue, post-exertional malaise, decreased physical function, poorer immune health, symptom exacerbation before menstruation, and multiple other Long COVID symptoms. While vaccinations and boosters prior to infection are associated with lower likelihood of Long COVID, reinfections diminish their protective effect. The probability of reporting Long COVID remission is generally low (11.5 percent to 6.5 percent."

Another interesting finding of the study, which underscores the complete abandonment of public health efforts regarding COVID, is that a tiny number of those infected were prescribed antivirals during their acute COVID infections. Those with reinfections were also less likely to test, as the “forever COVID” policy has inured people from taking any protective measures to prevent infections.

The current alphabet soup of COVID strains is sees KP.3.1.1 dominate across the US and Europe, accounting for nearly 60 percent of all strains. However, a new variant known as XEC that was first detected in Germany in June has spread to more than 27 countries and accounts for six percent of all recently sequenced SARS-CoV-2 viruses in the US. Virologists expect this strain, derived from JN.1 through a complex recombination event and which has nearly twice the growth advantage, to overtake KP.3.1.1 and be the dominant variant during the winter season.

In a COVID update by TACT [Together Against COVID Transmission], the authors explain the dangers posed by these evolutionary developments of the SARS-CoV-2 viruses, writing:

"These variants can evade much of the immune responses from both vaccines and recent infections. Since they can evade antibodies to earlier variants, then that raises the risk of organ damage, vascular and neurological dysfunction, brain damage, and persistent infections which often leads to Long COVID. The unmitigated spread is raising concerns about their impact in the coming months."

Hospitalization rates for those 65 years and older and children were one of the highest during the summer from COVID and remain on par with the prior year’s summer/fall wave. The number of people that died from COVID In the week ending August 31, 2024, has climbed to 1,239, four times higher than the lows seen in June. At the present rate, it is expected that at least 60,000 people will officially lose their lives from acute COVID this year, not including deaths incorrectly attributed to another cause or due to the impact on the population’s health from accumulated infections.

These are not incidental and speculative issues. In a provocative report released by the Swiss Re Group, titled “The future of excess mortality after COVID-19,” one of the world’s leading providers of reinsurance and insurance, who specialize in financing the risk of death, they said, “[If] the ongoing impact of the disease is not curtailed, excess mortality rates in the general population may remain up to three percent higher then pre-pandemic levels in the US and 2.5 percent in the UK by 2033.”

They advised their investors:

"Based on current medical trends and expected advancements, we conclude that COVID-19 is still driving excess mortality both directly and indirectly. In the long term, lifestyle factors that contribute to poor metabolic health and lead to obesity and diabetes may become another compounding factor in population excess mortality. Insurers may wish to continue to monitor excess mortality and its underlying drivers in the general population closely, as well as the differences between general and insured populations."