#adhesion and cohesion

[inspired-lesson-plans]

Revisited

& Revised

Science, Middle School, Lab activity, Physical properties, Making observations MS-PS1-2 Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after the substances interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.

Prep:

Cover a lab bench with painters plastic, destined to be disposed of. Place toothpaste and petroleum jelly on it, with small containers for each to be kept separate and a third, disposable container in which to mix them (with ample supply of stirring sticks).

Bring in objects such as wood, tile, brick, coins, and cardboard. The point is to supply objects of different textures and porosity with which to test the properties of the admixture.

Do Now:

Perform the following in your Lab Journal.

Draw a Venn Diagram of the physical properties of Petroleum Jelly (Vaseline) and Toothpaste. You may draw upon your prior knowledge and also reference the two substances in display at the lab bench. Do not mix them (yet)!

Class Discussion: 

Students share their observations of the properties of each substance, and teacher writes exemplars using academic language such as "adhesive", "cohesive", and "viscous" into a Venn diagram on the board. Once full, the teacher asks students to make predictions about what properties a mixture of both substances would possess, then write them in their Lab Journals. 

Guided Learning: 

Select one student to perpetrate the creation of @inoppositionflorien's Lovecraftian admixture. I suggest asking for volunteers and rolling a die to select one at random, or else follow your own routines.

Dress the volunteer in a full lab coat, gloves, hair tied back and covered, and goggles. Get a picture if possible, as memorabilia. This is a good photo op activity.

Instruct the volunteer to mix 2:1 PJ-TP utilizing volumetric measuring tools (i.e. spoons), then test its application to various surfaces. The remaining students record observations in their Lab Journals.

Students repeat the process with 1:1 and 1:2 (if time permits, you may also try 4:1 and 1:4) until they have sufficient data to answer analysis questions. 

Volunteer (with help) disposes of gloves and other irrevocably tainted objects in the trash, or by binding them with the plastic table cover. 

Higher Order Learning: 

Answer the following analysis questions.

1. How did the physical properties of the substances change when mixed together?

2. Was this a mixture or a solution? How can you tell? 

3. What physical or chemical changes did you observe in the experiment? How do you know what kind it was?

4. What possible applications could this new substance have in normal life? Explain.

Your wish is my command, random advertisement. I don't know what you expect me to do with your devilish concoction, but your wish remains my command.

I need to know what demographic hates this! Dentists? Dermatologists? General Doctors? Counter-Terrorist Organizations? Interpol? The USPS? Grocery Store Employees? The lucrative 18-35 demographic? Will I be put on trial for war crimes? But you don't tell me, you just tell me to mix one with the other and fail to tell me who hates this one weird trick!

Well joke's on you I'm going to do it without looking at your probably actively malicious website, and find out what you're not telling me! If it turns into an explosive, it's entirely on you, random advertisement.

[awesomehoggirl]

guys when my windowsill is dry (my dad just repainted it) and all my posters are up i will post a room tour it is gonna rock your fucking worlds. like i have the ultimate fucking room rn. this is not just pinterest shit this is tumblr archive magazine shit

[joyamedicalsupplies]

Smith+Nephew Primagauze Cohesive Self-Adhesive Bandage 4cmx2m - Joya Medical Supplies

Primagauze is an elastic cohesive bandage that can be used to hold other devices in place, such as dressings and IV lines. Buy Smith+Nephew Primagauze cohesive self-adhesive bandage 4cmx2m in Australia from Joya Medical Supplies.

[joyamedicalsuppliesau]

Primagauze is an elastic cohesive bandage that can be used to hold other devices in place, such as, dressings, synthetic casts, back slabs and IV lines. Buy Smith+Nephew Primagauze cohesive self adhesive bandage 2.5cmx2m from Joya Medical Supplies.

[healthybalance]

Is Water Wet? A Comprehensive Exploration

The question, "Is water wet?" might seem trivial, but it sparks curiosity and debate among scientists, philosophers, and everyday thinkers alike. This inquiry delves into the very nature of water and its properties, leading to a surprising exploration of science, perception, and semantics.

What Does It Mean to Be Wet?

To address whether water is wet, we first need to define "wetness." The term "wet" typically refers to a state where a liquid adheres to a surface, often making it slippery or damp. For instance:

Wetness in Daily Life: We describe a towel as wet when it has absorbed water, or skin as wet when water clings to it.

Scientific Definition: Wetness is a sensory and physical condition caused by liquid molecules adhering to a surface.

From this definition, wetness involves a relationship between a liquid and a solid. But where does this leave water itself?

The Argument That Water Is Wet

Some argue that water is inherently wet because:

Water Can Transfer Wetness: Anything water touches becomes wet, leading to the inference that water must itself be wet.

Water Molecules Adhere to Each Other: Through a phenomenon called cohesion, water molecules are attracted to one another, forming hydrogen bonds. This interaction might be interpreted as water being "wet" to itself.

Common Usage: From a linguistic perspective, we often describe water as wet in casual conversation, suggesting that wetness and water are intertwined in our perception.

The Argument That Water Is Not Wet

On the other hand, many argue that water itself is not wet:

Wetness Is a Surface Phenomenon: Wetness arises only when water interacts with a solid. Water alone, without a solid surface to adhere to, cannot be wet.

Intrinsic vs. Relational Property: Wetness is not an inherent property of water but rather a description of the effect water has on other materials.

Scientific Clarification: Liquids like water are "liquid" by definition, but the term "wet" describes a state of interaction rather than a fundamental characteristic.

Scientific Insights Into the Nature of Water

To further explore, we can analyze water’s unique properties:

Cohesion and Adhesion: Water molecules bond with each other (cohesion) and with other surfaces (adhesion). These forces are what make materials wet when in contact with water.

Surface Tension: Water’s high surface tension allows it to bead up on surfaces, demonstrating its adhesive and cohesive properties.

Hydrophobic vs. Hydrophilic Surfaces: Whether a material gets wet depends on its interaction with water. For example:

Hydrophobic surfaces repel water (like rain on a waxed car).

Hydrophilic surfaces attract water, leading to a spread-out wet layer.

While these properties allow water to "make things wet," they do not inherently make water itself wet.

Philosophical Perspectives

The debate about water’s wetness also touches on deeper philosophical issues:

Perception of Wetness: Wetness is a sensory experience. Without the context of a surface or observer, can water be considered wet at all?

Semantic Relativity: The term "wet" may simply be a linguistic construct, with no absolute truth in its application to water.

Ontological Inquiry: Is wetness an essential quality of water, or is it only attributed through its interactions?

ALSO READ: How to Make Rose Water: The Ultimate DIY Guide

Experimental Observations

For a more practical approach, consider this experiment:

Submerge your hand in water. Your hand is wet because water adheres to your skin.

However, water molecules within the body of water are surrounded by other water molecules. There’s no solid surface for them to adhere to. Therefore, they lack the defining characteristic of wetness.

This suggests that water itself, in isolation, cannot be wet.

Conclusion

So, is water wet? The answer depends on how you define wetness:

If wetness describes the intrinsic property of a liquid, then water could be considered wet.

If wetness is strictly the result of interaction with a surface, water itself is not wet but makes other things wet.

This debate blends science, semantics, and philosophy, demonstrating how a seemingly simple question can lead to complex discussions. Whether you believe water is wet or not, this inquiry is a reminder of how the ordinary can inspire profound thought.

[mariasont]

Lip Gloss - S.R

a/n: wow this is really short and i feel like i overuse the lip gloss shtick but

masterlist

‧₊˚ ✩°｡⋆♡ ⋆˙⟡♡ ⋆˙⟡♡⋆｡°✩˚₊‧

pairings: spencer reid x bimbo!receptionist!reader

summary: in which spencer really likes your sparkly lip gloss

warnings: none? fluff

wc: 0.5k

Pink. Sparkles. Lip gloss. Those were the only thoughts running through Spencer's mind as he walked into the break room. Which this was a surprise to him because usually his mind was running a mile a minute — mathematical equations, book references, and case theories. But when you were near that was all reduced to a heaping pile of nothing. Especially now, as you leaned casually against the counter, in pink pumps and matching skirt that definitely wasn't up to the dress code, but he wasn't sure if you cared.

Cradled between your hands was a white mug, its side inscribed with the words 'Britney survived 2007. You can handle today' in stark black letters. He had no idea what it meant, but he noticed it was your favorite, a staple in your daily routine, unless it found its way to the top self, an inconvenience Spencer would subtly always rectify when he went to pour his own cup.

The focal point of his attention, however, was your lips, more precisely, the sheer layer of shimmering gloss that clung to them. Words were forming on those same lips, presumably directed at him, but they seemed to dissolve before reaching his ears, his gaze transfixed by the glistening movement of your mouth.

"Huh?"

With a smile, you pressed your glittering lips together and took a step in his direction. He managed to clear his throat, trying to redirect his attention to your eyes, but his gaze remained helplessly planted.

"I swear, half my routine is just reapplying this stuff after every sip," you said while your thumb worked diligently to wipe away the sparkling smudge from the mug.

"Considering the non-Newtonian fluid dynamics of the lip gloss's polymeric substances, which exhibit both viscous and elastic properties, it leads to a higher propensity for adhesion and cohesion on substrates with varying thermal coefficients."

Your fingers absentmindedly toyed with your earlobe as you cocked your head, a bemused furrow forming above your eyes, but your smile remained undiminished.

"Sorry, that went right over my head," you laughed, nose scrunching in the process. "But it's sweet of you to assume I caught all that."

"Oh, sorry, well, lip gloss is made of oils and waxes that give it that shiny appearance. However, these ingredients don't fully absorb to your skin, so when you press your lips against something, like a hot coffee cup, the excess transfers over."

Heat suffused his face as he registered the unwavering attention you afforded him, as if you were hanging on his every syllable. He sensed your struggle to comprehend, but your effort was evident. He really liked having your attention.

"So, with all that brainpower, do you have any tips for keeping my gloss on my lips instead of my mug?"

"Maybe a straw?"

Your laughter was like music to his ears, filling his senses as your hand, perfectly manicured, lightly touched his arm. A rush of warmth flooded his neck, and he looked at you, momentarily lost for words, as you murmured, "I'll try that out, thanks, Dr. Reid."

"Spencer," he corrects.

"Right, well, thank you, Spencer," you said, standing on tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek, before twirling on your heels, your smile lingering in the air.

Spencer could feel the stickiness on his skin, his fingers pressing against the spot you had left, feet glued to the ground. He starting to think he really likes lip gloss. 

[demigods-posts]

Are you a water is wet believer? (no judgement either way but i thirst for knowledge)

I've been waiting for this question! Okay, so:

Water adhesion is the process of water molecules sticking to other molecules, like how water can stick to hair or paper towels, which is how things get "wet". Water cohesion is the process of water molecules sticking to other water molecules or water-based substances, like when you add water to water. So, whether or not you believe water is "wet" is really based on if you consider water cohesion (attaching water to water) the same as making water wet. In which case, I do not. Thus, water is not wet. But if you disagree with me, I'm open to counterarguments!

[hezuart]

LN Channel Change AU Sequel: “Seven” {1} {2} {3} {here/final}

And they lived happily ever after. Or did they? We've established our main characters Mono (TV/space-time) and Six (Soul Sucking) have strange supernatural powers. I wanted Seven to have one too. (Hydrokinesis aka water bending)

Notes for how I came up with Seven's powers and the deeper meaning behind his interaction with Mono:

1. Each child has nightmare prophecies (something to do with Mono's time loop?)  at the beginning of their stories. Six's is the Lady, Mono's is the door that leads to the Thin Man, and Seven's is being pulled underwater. Six and Mono's nightmare visions are fulfilled at the end of their stories; revealing that the thing they dreamed about, they essentially become or usurp.  Seven's differs. His dream resolves in act 1 and he kills the Granny, the creature assumed to be the one pulling him underwater in his nightmare. But what if Seven's dream prophecy was still valid... even post-Granny? Being dragged underwater... for a different fate?

2. Seven is the only main cast character shown with the ability to swim. 3. "Seven Seas" anyone? Water is a symbol of purification & life, hence, Seven gains his new powers after he survived and Mono broke the timeline loop to start fresh. "Washing it away" so to say. 4. Water is a liquid; passive in nature, but powerful in circumstance. Seven is kind and sneaky but kills the Granny when continuously attacked and threatened by her. He does the same to the Octopus monster.

5. Water molecules have adhesion and cohesion, meaning water likes to stick to itself, and stick to other things. Seven has an attachment to Nomes. He is always drawn to other people and other creatures, wanting to help them. His belief is that survival chances are higher amidst a group. Water is also known for containing life, no matter how strange or deep, such as ocean fish that often travel in schools/packs often to confuse or fight off predators, thus, another reference to Seven's new life, and his teamwork with Nomes and Mono.

6. Seven is often in fandom depicted by a circle. A water droplet. 7. Seven collects flotsam; typically boat debris, but in this case, bottled messages that come from the sea. Yet another connection to water.

All this indicates heavy implication and well-fitting power to bestow hydrokinesis onto Seven. I was inspired by the INSIDE game's drowning chapter and Stanley and Stanford's secret boat hide-out on the beach from Gravity Falls. Which is why I have selected Mono, Seven, and all their future friends to a lovely and sunny (future) beach house, far away from everything they've suffered. And living near the largest body of water on the planet with a kid with hydrokinesis? ...Certainly has its perks!

But Seven gaining powers is important to not only their survival but also him. He was still nervous about Mono. He knew Mono was very powerful and mysterious. In more ways than one. Mono is stronger than him and can also use telekinesis on objects on the beach. He's a better food hunter and seems more like a leader. Seven also likes to lead, but he felt outshined by Mono. (I don't portray that well in my comic) Seven is weaker and defenseless. His only shining quality in comparison is his ability to swim, but even that can only get him so far. He risks his life for his Nome friends and loses his life doing so. Or so he thought. By a miracle, his powers over water awaken. He drains the monster of its water, beaching it. He walks to Mono in a new light. It's a new him. He holds up his hands as if to say "See? I'm like you now." He's leveled the playing field. (It also helps that he now has jurisdiction over power Mono cannot interact with) Now they are truly equal. Two kings; one of land, one of sea, both ruling the island in equal standing. Seven will never again feel like a burden left behind. (Seven's powers activating also has something to do with the fact he bit the Octopus creature to save the Nome. Mono and Six both consume their powerful prophesized enemies to gain some of their power, if they didn't already have some before. Seven biting into the Octopus's flesh and unknowingly consuming some of it may have jumpstarted his power deep within him, on top of him encountering Mono; supernatural kid extraordinaire that brought him through a tower wormhole to escape the city)

~~~

A threequel is planned, and maybe the last addition to this series, but the next one is not fully fleshed out yet so it may be another year until I can really touch upon it yet. Otherwise, hope you guys enjoyed!

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Cheese

VISUAL

Sight/appearance: colour; openings due to gas; moulds.

OLFACTORY

Aroma.

GUSTATORY

Taste: sweet, salty, acid, bitter, savoury.

Trigeminal sensations: pungency, astringency, burning, refreshing.

Mouthfeel: chewiness.

SOMATOSENSORY

Texture: waxy, fatty, friable, soluble.

Body: hardness, cohesiveness, elasticity, adhesiveness.

Functionality: shreddability, sliceability, grateability, crumbliness, meltability, stretchability, spreadability.

Fox et al., 2017; Guinee, 2016; Lahne, 2016; Tunick, 2016 ⚜ Source

[mybeingthere]

Once upon a time in 1885, Welsh singer, songwriter, scientist, and philanthropist Margaret Watts Hughes accidentally invented a method of turning her voice into images.

Hughes explained her invention, the eidophone, and her image-making process in an article for Century Magazine in 1891:

"In 1885, while seeking means to indicate readily the intensities of vocal sounds, I first met with these [voice] figures, and, owing to their variety both in form and production, they have since absorbed much of my attention. The apparatus I have employed I call the eidophone. This is very simple. It consists merely of an elastic membrane, such as thoroughly flexible soft sheet-rubber, tightly stretched over the mouth of a receiver of any form, into which receiver the voice is introduced by a wide-mouthed tube of convenient shape. In some cases the receiver may be dispensed with, and the membrane be stretched across the open end of the tube itself.

My first experiments were made with sand, lycopodium powder, or the two substances mixed. I then tried for the production of voice-figures, flooding the disk of the eidophone with a thin layer of liquid ; e.g. water or milk. Upon singing notes of suitable pitch through the tube, not too forcibly, beautiful crispations appear upon the surface of the liquid, which vary with every change of tone. A note sung too forcibly causes the liquid to rise in, a shower of spray, the movements of which are too rapid to be readily followed by the eye. To facilitate observation denser liquids may be used. By using such liquids as colored glycerin particularly beautiful effects may be obtained. Subsequently I found that by employing moistened powder of different consistencies yet another description of figures appears. The earliest result of my experiments in this material shows centers of motion from which radiations diverge."

By varying the sound of her voice and the materials and methods used to capture it, different patterns emerged.

If we dig a bit deeper into the process, we find greater complexity. Sophie B. Herrick did just that in Visible Sound – Comment [Century Magazine 42, 40 (1891)]:

These voice-flowers are not the simple visual forms corresponding with the vibrations of the air set in motion by the voice. The waves generated in the closed bowl of the eidophone are reflected again and again from the sides of the vessel. The volume of air inclosed has its own rate of vibration; the stretched membrane has also its own rate, which in turn is modified by the character and thickness of the paste spread upon it. Added to these are molecular forces of cohesion and adhesion between the particles of paste, and again between the paste and the membrane. The form which grows into shape is the resultant of all these complicated forces, and, in some instances, new elements of change have been added. A glass plate is placed on top of the vibrating membrane and moved over it. We have a new body introduced with its proper rate of vibration, besides a mechanical motion further to complicate the problem.

According to an article in MIT’s The Net Advance of Physics Weblog, Hughes’ “flower-like forms” were rediscovered in the 1960s by Swiss researcher Hans Jenny, who went on to coin the term cymatics to describe acoustic effects of sound wave phenomena. However it appears as if Jenny was only familiar with the black and white reproductions of Hughes works as published in her Century article.

The larger color works were thought to be lost(!) but were found in 2016 by the staff of the Cyfarthfa Castle Museum, located in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, while digging through their archives. Taken as a whole, Hughes’ work has a foot in two camps —as part of the history and study of the physics of sound, and as part of the history of art. These works were displayed as such during her lifetime.

One can imagine that the Surrealists would have been quite taken with these voice-figures, automatism sans hands, and I find them quite beautiful and striking as works of visual art that do not fit the tidy androcentric narrative of history, art or otherwise (see Hilma af Klint for a similarly jarring example).

[talonabraxas]

Aurveda Talon Abraxas

The Five Elements of Ayurveda - Ether, Air, Fire, Water & Earth

The Five Elements

Aurveda's core view is the connection between the macrocosm and the microcosm, from the universal to the individual, meaning what cxists outside also exists within us. The five great elements (pancha mahabhuta) that compose the world around us also make up our inner world. These elements-space, air, fire, water, earth-form the building blocks of life and mirror the basic principles in physics of space, energy, transformation, liquid, and matter. Each element is connected to a subtle energy, a tanmatra, that is associated with our senses--sound, touch, vision, taste, and smell.

Let's explore how the elements form our physical body.

Ether/Space (Akasha)

Ether or space, akasha, is the first and subtlest of all the elements. Ether is the space in which everything exists. It is universal, nonmoving, and formless. Its qualities are clear, light, subtle, soft, and immeasurable. This clement is related to the actions of expansion and vibration. The tanmatra of space is sound (shabda), and the ear is the Sensory organ that perceives sound.

Air (Vayu)

The air element, vayu, is the energy of movement. It initiates and directs motion. Its qualities are mobile, dry, light, cold, rough, and subtle. The tanmatra of air is touch (sparsha), and the sensory organ is skin, which helps detect movement. In the body, air expresses itself in the movement of the muscles, lungs, heart, and impulses of the nervous system. Its responsible for breathing, ingestion and elimination, and the flow of thought. Prana is the basic principle of the air element, the vital life force that is primarily taken in through breath and which life cannot exist without.

Fire (Agni)

The fire element, agni, is the energy of transformation. The qualities of fire are hot, sharp, light, dry, and subtle. The tanmatra of fire is vision (rupa), and the eyes are the sensory organ responsible for sight. The fire element governs all metabolic processes, aiding in the digestion of food, transformation of thoughts, and perception of light. Tejas is the subtle essence of fire, the burning flame of pure intelligence that pro-cesses all perception into knowledge.

Water (Apas)

From subtle to gross, the next element is water, called apas. Its main actions are cohesion and adhesion. Its qualities are cool, liquid, dull, soft, oily, and slimy. The tanmatra of water is taste (rasa). The tongue is the sensory organ that plays a large role in our experience of eating and our sense of satisfaction. Water lives in the body as plasma, saliva, mucous, cerebrospinal fuid, urine, and sweat. Ojas is the subtle essence of water, giving vitality and immunity to the bodily tissues.

Earth (Prithvi)

The earth element, prithvi, is the densest of all. It creates shape and structure. It is heavy, dull, dense, hard, and gross. The tanmatra of earth is smell (gandba), and the sensory organ is the nose. The earth element shapes all the body's solid structures and tissues, including the bones, cartilage, nails, teeth, hair, and skin.

Incorporating Ayurvedic principles into massage therapy goes beyond mere relaxation; it offers a holistic approach to harmonizing the mind, body, and spirit, promoting overall well-being. By addressing the elemental balance specific to an individual's constitution, we can tailor massages to effectively target stress and tension, ultimately leading to a more relaxed and grounded nervous system.

[joyamedicalsupplies]

Smith+Nephew Primagauze Cohesive Self Adhesive Bandage 6cmx2m - Joya Medical Supplies

Primagauze is an elastic cohesive bandage that can be used to hold other devices in place, such as dressings, synthetic casts, back slabs, and IV lines. Buy Smith+Nephew Primagauze cohesive self-adhesive bandage 6cmx2m from Joya Medical Supplies.

[joyamedicalsuppliesau]

https://joyamedicalsupplies.com.au/product/primagauze-cohesive-self-adhesive-bandage-2-5cmx2m

Primagauze is an elastic cohesive bandage that can be used to hold other devices in place, such as, dressings, synthetic casts, back slabs and IV lines. Buy Smith+Nephew Primagauze cohesive self adhesive bandage 2.5cmx2m from Joya Medical Supplies.

[zaksdolls]

The Skelita Howliday doll has been on sale on Amazon (at fluctuating prices) so I gave in and bought her as a birthday gift for myself. As I scrolled through the reviews I was concerned that she would arrive in a mangled box and damaged. Thankfully, she turned up pristine!

The packaging is quite nice. I very much like the skull winged butterflies. It's a shame that they are not really used anywhere else besides the fabric print of the dress.

Anywho, I've already complained enough about the doll's design and I'm sure there are plenty of reviews out there so I'll go quickly!

STAND:

Yes, very nice details on stand base. Good. I was surprised when I realized it's a saddle stand. I've had to stick a wad of putty on the saddle to keep Skelita in place lest she falls out.

Now she topples over stand and all! X'D

HEADPIECE:

I was happy to see the skullettes in the flowers have all this sculpted detail! Unfortunately, the painted detailed are a bit off.

The headpiece is made of a harder plastic and is hollow with an open back.

At first, I thought, "Oh, nice. It's much lighter than the first adult collector Skelita's headpiece!"

But then I remembered that I actually really dislike when companies cut corners by neglecting the backside of their toys and products. All angles should be taken into consideration.

Especially on a collector doll.

SHOES:

Shoes are nice. I like the detail of the sole and flowers.

JEWELRY:

Itty bitty skullette beads.

And another skullette with sculpted details. A nice touch.

I'm honestly surprised to see a total of six bracelets and a necklace on this doll. They don't have much in the way of painted details, but I'll take what I can get.

DRESS:

Skelitas used to come with a plastic piece in the shape of the standard Monster High torso to help clothes fit on her boney frame. Now she comes with this. Undergarments I guess? ;P

The ruffle and sleeves are made of the same stretchy fabric and covered with some gold glitter. The sleeves' edges are secured with an overlock stitch while the ruffle is left raw.

Beginning to fray.

The dress's skirt fabric is that thick plasticy fabric that kind of feels like paper. I do not care for this fabric in the least.

(I was trying to capture the stiffness of the fabric by scrunching it in the photo.)

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

After disassembly, I washed her and her clothes. The purple stretchy fabric began to stick onto itself during the washing process. Perhaps the glitter adhesive reactivated with the water and/or the heat. Thankfully, I was able to separate it all again. The top portion of the skirt ruffle folded over during washing and I actually prefer it this way.

Happy accident.

I was able to bring down and relax the sleeves with some added (light) heat. Thank goodness because I did not like how those sleeves looked from factory.

I also took it upon myself to straighten and quickly style her hair with a half ponytail.

For a collector doll, I expect some styling from the company but she came with nothing.

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

Here she is:

The more I look at her, the more I appreciate her. The colors are nice and are pretty cohesive. There are some nice details and she's a "pretty" doll.

However, for this being a collector doll priced at almost 50USD and knowing that Mattel can and has done so much better in terms of design and materials, I'm very disappointed.

But for what I actually paid?

She's okay.

Either way, I'm very happy to have her.

In truth, I would like to buy another one. Either for fodder, or to keep one as factory and another customized. Will only do that if she drops considerably in price.

[emsleyanbluejay]

Cryptids, Cusps, and Anons, Oh My!

(or: Blood is Immutable. Blood Lies.)

As far as Alternia is concerned, you’ll never be more than your blood. All your ambitions, all your effort, none of it matters in the face of the system baked into the core of society. You can be the best rustblood jeweler on the planet, and at the end of the night, you’re still just another rustblood. The lowest on the hemospectrum. To hope for more is idiocy.

Every troll has a close relationship with blood, but mine was perhaps more intimate than most. I was a paint-maker. I took blood, from both troll and lusii, and broke it down into its base components in order to extract the pigment. 

Spin the flasks in the centrifuge to separate the plasma, red blood cells and pigment, and platelets and white blood cells. Freeze the plasma to be sold later for a dozen different things. Use the right metal to get the pigment to separate from the red blood cells. Blue binds to iron. Red binds to copper. Yellow binds to calcium. Mix the red blood cells, platelets, and white blood cells. Turn them into blood meal for fertilizers and for bronzes to feed to lusii. Dry out the pigment and store it with the rest of the stock until it’s time to mix with oil and make paint for market.

Trolls’ blood has a very distinct smell. It’s sweet and metallic, almost cloying in the way it clings to your nose. My hive was always thick with the scent, even outside of my workshop. Inside, though, it could make your head spin if you weren’t used to it. The pigment doesn’t smell like much, a bitter note here or a savory note there, but I could usually pick out bloodcaste by scent. 

You could tell a lot about a troll just by their blood. 

The hormones that made you male or female are carried through the circulatory system, and it was easy to pick them up via chemosense as long as you were right over the flask. I could extract those too, for highbloods who thought they were too good to gorge themselves to kickstart the transition from one sex to another on their own. But none of that was anything special; you could smell/taste the hormones coming off any living troll you were close enough to.

Pigment was where things got interesting. I’d guess there were a couple genes involved in their production, but I wasn’t much of a biologist so I can’t say for sure. Blue, red, and yellow. What color your blood ends up as depends on how much of each you produce, but always the same total amount for healthy trolls.

There were mutations that could cause a troll who is genetically one caste to not produce enough, or any, of one or more of their pigments, making their blood appear to belong to a different caste. We called those trolls cryptids, hiding in plain sight. Cryptids who appeared as lowbloods could survive to pupation, provided there weren’t any obvious highblood phenotypic traits. A cryptid violet who presents as rust is just going to be culled, after all. 

Most of them turned out rust, actually. Turns out if you’re at the bottom of the ladder no one cares whether or not you really belong there; your blood is red, and you don’t have fins. Welcome to the gutter.

I knew about cryptids for a long time before I encountered one. I say I encountered one, but it was really just their blood. It was an odd shade of blue, not quite cerulean not quite indigo, and at first I thought it might’ve been a cusp between the two. 

But it didn’t behave like it should’ve; I spent a while before putting it in the centrifuge just swirling the flask around wondering why it seemed so thin. Normal blood clings to the glass, tries to climb it, something about capillary effects and cohesion vs adhesion, but this blood didn’t seem to want to do that. It just stuck to itself, swirling inside the flask faster than I’d seen any blood move before. Although, I didn’t worry about it too much more; it separated properly, the pigment precipitated out just the same, and I had a big order.

Later, when I encountered more flasks of blood that behaved like this I figured out it was because of the missing pigment. Without the right ratio, the blood is thinner than it should be, and I guess that would give cryptids low blood pressure. Karkat certainly seemed to have issues in that regard. He also seemed to have trouble breathing when he exerted himself, never grew as much as he should’ve, and with the way pigment mixed with and clung to red blood cells, cryptids probably can’t transport enough oxygen to attain their proper size.

Circling back to cusps, most of them don’t know what they are and will never find out. If they’re closer to one caste than the other that’s where they’ll be sorted, never to be questioned again. Bronze-gold cusps without psionics are just classed as bronzes, purple-violet cusps are classed based on whether they have fins and/or gills. I was rare, in that I had half-formed gills on my neck and chest and vestigial fin spines melded in with the helix of my ear, but I was still a purple. My blood was closer to that than violet, so into the arms of the church I went.

Violet-fuchsia cusps are called tyrians, and they are the exceptions that prove the rule. They have their own place on the hemospectrum, right in the lap of royalty but with none of the power that comes with it. Aberrations allowed to exist as a subcaste all their own solely because their blood is close enough to the top. They have money, of course, more than any violetblood, but they can’t challenge for the throne or hold any real career. Violets are influencers, fuchsias, or female fuchsias at least, are heiresses. Tyrians get none of that. Go back to partying and sleeping around, the real seadwellers are talking.

Cusp blood was valuable because it meant less pigment wasted mixing in-between shades, while tyrian was valuable more for its ability to be mixed with rust and what we used for titanium white to create a mock fuchsia, as true fuchsia rarely found its way into my workshop.

Overall, though, it wasn’t terribly special or interesting to me, except that it meant a better payday, especially from the church. It just smelled a little odd, too bitter or too sharp or too savory. Some I classed as cusps might’ve actually been closer to cryptids, as their blood was oddly thick like there was too much pigment, but it didn’t matter. I bet if I saw the corpses my flasks came from, they would’ve looked enough like cusps.

And as for hemoanons, it’s funny how the fandom talks them, as a troll who remembers how difficult it was to truly obscure your bloodcaste. Most trolls who made even a passable attempt were mid- and lowbloods, as the higher you got up the ladder the harder it was to hide what you were. Highbloods and even high midbloods simply got too big, or had too many caste-locked traits. Can’t exactly pass for anon with fins, or the multiple pupils of ceruleans, after all.

The thing everyone gets wrong is that anons still have a place on the hemospectrum. They’re sorted in the rung previously occupied by limes—too high to be lowblood, too low to be midblood. It’s a somewhat decent upgrade if you’re rust, bronze, or gold, and a significant downgrade if you’re anything else. Which makes the main benefit obscuring some mutation or failure to live up to your caste, rather than trying to access or deny privilege.

Not every troll has the time or resources to put into being hemoanon, and honestly, Karkat makes it look easy. As a cryptid who lacks all his pigment, he doesn’t have an undertone to his skin, and especially to his bioluminescent markings, that he needs to hide. If that weren’t the case, he’d have to wear foundation to cover them every time he left his hive, and that gets expensive fast. He wears loose, thick clothes to obscure the shape of his body and thus the neotenous traits limes hold onto well past their first molt. His horns are generic—close enough to the nubs of grubs and freshly pupated wrigglers that nobody will be able to guess his caste based on them.

For every other troll hoping to be anon, you really have to weigh effort against reward. How much are you willing to put into concealing your blood, and everything that comes with it? For some rusts, it’s worth it, but almost no gold ever tries, because they’d have to cut one of their sets of horns off to even have a chance.

We didn't treat any of these groups well if we found out what they were. A cryptid is mutation to be weeded out of the gene pool. A cusp is a threat to the rigid categorization of the bloodcaste system. An anon is a failure to be retaught the role assigned to them by blood. But a cryptid can fly under the radar if they keep their head down, a cusp can be overlooked if they live up to the caste they're closest to, and an anon can be forgiven as long as they're hemoloyal and unobtrusive.

Alternian culture is strictly normative and intended to be violently enforced by all involved parties, even if you fail to live up to it. Especially if you fail to live up to it, because everyone does in some way or other. No troll is the perfect example of their bloodcaste, because the standards are unattainable on purpose. There always needs to be some failing, something to strive for, and if a troll tells you they're the pinnacle of their caste, they're lying.

We all know we're flawed, and we're all hiding something. Ferret it out in someone else, and either fix it or cull them. It's for the betterment of our species, for the betterment of us.

If that sounds like eugenics to you, you're right. You are never more than your blood, and your blood must be perfect.