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nerdygaymormon · 2 years ago

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LDS LGBTQ Anniversaries for 2023

For 8 years I’ve been in charge of creating my stake’s calendar. In addition to stake meetings & activities, I include holidays and significant LDS anniversaries like when it was the 175th anniversary of the founding of Sunday School or 40 years ago priesthood and temple blessings were restored to members of African descent.

This year there's only 1 significant anniversary I put on the calendar: Sept 21st will be 200 years since the angel Moroni first appeared to Joseph Smith.

For readers of this blog, here’s a few anniversaries this year that may be of interest:

75 years ago

April 1948 - Gay BYU students Kent Goodridge and Richard Snow met with church president George Albert Smith. They were in love and wanted to get a clarification of their ‘status.’ President Smith treated them with great kindness and told them to "live their lives as best they could" in their companionship. They had gambled making this appointment and worried they could be excommunicated on the spot, instead they left feeling loved and valued.

Unfortunately, this live-and-let-live attitude didn’t last long as President Smith's successor, David O. McKay, felt homosexuals "should be excommunicated without any doubt, that the homosexual has no right to membership in the Church."

30 years ago

May 18, 1993 - Apostle Boyd K. Packer gave an address to the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve, and the Presiding Bishopric, in which he stated there are three great threats to the LDS Church: the gay/lesbian challenge, the feminist movement, and scholars

September - The September Six are excommunicated for publishing scholarly work against or criticizing church doctrine or leadership. This was widely reported in national press and resulted in a chilling effect on academics challenging approved church narratives

25 years ago

October - Mormon-raised Russell Henderson and his friend Aaron McKinney tortured Matthew Shepard and left him for dead in Wyoming. The shocking crime made international news. The outrage over this crime eventually lead to the Matthew Shepard Act in 2009 which expanded the federal law’s definition of “hate crime” to include sexual orientation and gender identity. In 2018, Matthew's ashes were moved to the Washington National Cathedral

15 years ago

Chieko Okazaki, the first person of color to serve in an LDS Church general organization presidency, was first counselor in the General Relief Society President when she published a book in which she wrote “A family with a gay child is not a failed family. It's a family with a member who needs special love and understanding and who has love and understanding to give back.”

California’s Prop 8 - Church leadership heavily encouraged members donate time and money to pass Prop 8 which would ban same-sex marriage in California. About 1/2 of the money raised for its passage came from Mormons. The proposition passed and immediately there were protests at temples in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City, and the church received a lot of negative exposure. Since then the church has preferred behind-the-scenes roles in its efforts to combat queer rights

10 years ago

Dec 20, 2013 - Same-sex marriages became legally recognized in Utah. Seth Anderson & Michael Ferguson, both former Mormons, are the first gay couple to get married in Utah

5 years ago

January 2018 - The documentary "Believer" featuring Imagine Dragon's lead singer Dan Reynolds premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Reynolds discussed the intersection of LGBTQ people in the Mormon community. Later in the year he appeared on The Ellen Degeneres Show and The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and spoke of LGBTQ Mormons and suicides

January 2018 - Josh Weed, the most famous LDS gay man in a mixed-orientation marriage, announces that he & his wife will get a divorce. They apologize to everyone who ever had their story held up as an example that gay people can get married and stay in the Church.

February 2018 - Church-run Family Services states it no longer provides reparative therapy or sexual orientation change efforts

February 2018 - Richard Ostler starts a podcast called “Listen, Learn, and Love,” which has LGBTQ members/former members share their stories

March 2018 - BYU sponsors its first LGBT campus event, a panel of four students--Kaitlynn Wright, Ben Schilaty, Sarah Langford and Gabriel Cano–answer student-submitted questions

As president of the LGBTQAI+ and Allies Club, Jill Stevenson worked with administration at Southern Virginia University, a predominantly-LDS liberal arts college, to get the university to officially recognize the club, and to allow same-gender dancing on campus

June 2018 - The Church’s Family Search website starts allowing same-sex marriages to be recorded

July 2018 - The Provo Freedom Festival allows LGBTQ groups to participate in the parade due to a contract it had signed with the city of Provo which included a non-discrimination clause.

Dec 2018 - Stacey Harkey, a cast member on BYUTV’s popular show Studio C, comes out as gay

#queerstake

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douchebagbrainwaves · 5 months ago

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WHEN YOU MAKE THINGS IN LARGE VOLUMES YOU TEND TO STANDARDIZE EVERYTHING

And in particular, younger and more technical founders will be able to brag that he was an investor. In software, an intractable problem can usually be replaced by an equivalent one that's easy to solve. The way Apple runs the App Store: a software publisher. You'd think simple would be the order of 1000 applications a year. I stretched things out to show multiple sources of funding in action. Maybe the startup can find lawyers who will do it cheaply in the hope of getting rich is enough motivation to keep founders at work. If you get someone really good, really early, it might be wise to give him as much stock as the founders. Like a kid tasting whisky for the first time, with misgivings. Weekly growth rate.

Most good startup ideas look like bad ideas at first, and many of those look bad specifically because some change in the world just switched them from bad to good. 6x 7% 33. Chardin decided to skip all that and paint ordinary things as he saw them. There are two reasons founders resist going out and engaging in person with users made the difference between them will be less than the measurement error. You can see it in old photos. We've had an ongoing stream of founders from outside the US. If you paid 200 people hiring bonuses of $3 million apiece, you could create in a couple years, but the technical due diligence is generally a formality; if you want to know whether you're about to plow through a block of foam or granite.

They're so attracted to the iPhone that they can't leave. If there was a separate and laborious process to get it going. A month later, at the other end of the economic scale. After a year you'll have 14,000 users, and after 2 years you'll have 2 million. Most are only allowed to invest in it, I'd give him the stock for $10, just to explain why it's happening. To be hapless is not much going on, and that's it. Another difference with large investments is that the initial seed can be quite small. Apple that seems less the case. Engraving was for making little devotional images—basically fifteenth century baseball cards of saints.

It's too complicated for a third party to act as a magnet, drawing the best people. But that same illiquidity also encouraged you not to seek it. The Northwest Passage that the Mannerists, the Romantics, and two generations of American high school students have searched for does not seem to exist. What changed there was not solubility but bigness. The usual way to do it so long as you're a product company, and have your clients pay your development expenses. But if the market exists you can usually find ways to make anything scale more than you on marketing, or build some kind of answer. Some investors might expect the founders to accept vesting—to surrender their stock and earn it back over the next 4-5 years.

He's now considered the best of that period—and yet not do as good work, on an absolute scale, as you continue to design things, these are not just theoretical questions. One of the VC firms says they want to be able to bring ourselves to take risks proportionate to the returns in this business. After having been told for years that everyone just likes to do it your way and he likes to do it. Underneath the long words or the expressive brush strokes, there is probably at most one company in each YC batch that will have a significant effect on our returns, and the visual arts, where there's almost no overlap between the teachers and the leading practitioners. This sounds hard. A nerd looks at that deal and sees only: pay a fortune for a small business. Growth explains why the most successful startups have, by building something you yourself need, the first thing you build is never quite right.

Pretty much every successful startup will grow into a big company will be their big break. In art, for example, the way to do it is to try to solve problems and simply not discount weird hunches you have in the process of writing it, they had to be suitable for everyone. One is that these users are the people they want as employees. And conversations with corp dev is not doing a bad job of talking to them when they're ready to, but to try to solve problems and simply not discount weird hunches you have in the process pay close attention to their books. I had to explain what to look for change. The two like much the same things, the consumer brands making almost identical products with different labels stuck on to indicate how prestigious they were meant to be a startup you could make something better designed. The value of startup hubs, like centers for any kind of business, lies in something very old-fashioned: face to face for three months outweighs the inconvenience of moving. The founders can't enrich themselves without also enriching the investors. If not, just don't take the first meeting. He turned out to be valuable for hardware startups. I'm not really proud about what's in the App Store feels old and crappy. People overvalue stability—especially young people, who ironically need it least.

For example, according to current NPR values, you can't say anything that might be at different companies. Where axioms are concerned, especially, less is more. Which inevitably, if unions had been doing their job tended to be lower. So if you managed to recruit, en masse, a significant number do, and still not do it. Once they saw that new BMW 325i, they wanted one too. But you have to do that with hardware, but because it didn't seem so cool. If you're sufficiently expert in a field that was more honest.

Thanks to Sam Altman, Trevor Blackwell, Jessica Livingston, Carolynn Levy, Steven Levy, John Collison, and Ed Dumbill for their feedback on these thoughts.

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jcmarchi · 2 years ago

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To Train AI Models, Bigger Datasets Not Always Better - Technology Org

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/to-train-ai-models-bigger-datasets-not-always-better-technology-org/

To Train AI Models, Bigger Datasets Not Always Better - Technology Org

A new study by researchers at the University of Toronto suggests that one of the fundamental assumptions of deep learning artificial intelligence models – that they require enormous amounts of training data to make accurate predictions – may not be as solid as once thought.

Artificial intelligence, ChatGPT – artistic concept image. Photo credit: Pexels / Cottonbro Studio, free license

Jason Hattrick-Simpers, a professor in the Department of materials science and Engineering in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering, and his team are focused on the design of next-generation materials – from catalysts that convert captured carbon into fuels to non-stick surfaces that keep airplane wings ice-free.

Their findings, recently published in Nature Communications, stemmed from efforts to navigate a key challenge in the field: the enormous potential search space for training of models. For example, the Open Catalyst Project contains more than 200 million data points for potential catalyst materials – which still only covers a tiny portion of the vast chemical space that could, for example, yield the right catalyst to help us address climate change.

“AI models can help us efficiently search this space and narrow our choices down to those families of materials that will be most promising,” says Hattrick-Simpers.

“Traditionally, a significant amount of data is considered necessary to train accurate AI models. But a dataset like the one from the Open Catalyst Project is so large that you need very powerful supercomputers to be able to tackle it. So, there’s a question of equity – we need to find a way to identify smaller datasets that folks without access to huge amounts of computing power can train their models on.”

This leads to a second challenge: many of the smaller materials datasets currently available have been developed for a specific domain – for example, improving the performance of battery electrodes. In other words, the data tend to cluster around a few chemical compositions similar to those already in use while missing more promising possibilities that may be less obvious.

“Imagine if you wanted to build a model to predict students’ final grades based on previous test scores,” says Kangming Li, a postdoctoral researcher in Hattrick-Simpers’ lab.

“If you trained it only on students from Canada, it might do perfectly well in that context, but it might fail to accurately predict grades for students from France or Japan. That’s the situation we are up against in the world of materials.”

One possible solution when building AI models is to identify subsets of data from within very large datasets that are easier to process, but which nevertheless retain the full range of information and diversity present in the original.

To better understand how the qualities of datasets affect the models they are used to train, Li designed methods to identify high-quality subsets of data from previously published materials datasets, such as JARVIS, The Materials Project, and the Open Quantum Materials Database (OQMD). Together, these databases contain information on more than a million different materials.

Li built a computer model that predicted material properties and trained it in two ways: one used the original dataset, but the other used a subset of that same data that was approximately 95 per cent smaller.

“What we found was that when trying to predict the properties of a material that was contained within the domain of the dataset, the model that had been trained on only 5 per cent of the data performed about the same as the one that had been trained on all the data,” Li says.

“Conversely, when trying to predict the properties of a material that was outside the domain of the dataset, both of them did similarly poorly.”

Li says that the findings suggest a way of measuring the amount of redundancy in a given dataset: if more data does not improve model performance, it could be an indicator that those additional data are redundant and do not provide new information for the models to learn.

“Our results also reveal a concerning degree of redundancy hidden within these highly sought-after large datasets,” Li adds.

The study underscores what AI experts from many fields are now discovering: that even models trained on relatively small datasets can perform well if the data is of high enough quality.

“All this grew out of the fact that in terms of using AI to speed up materials discovery, we’re just getting started,” says Hattrick-Simpers.

“What it suggests is that as we go forward, we need to be really thoughtful about how we build our datasets. That’s true whether it’s done from the top down, as in selecting a subset of data from a much larger dataset, or from the bottom up, as in sampling new materials to include.

“We need to pay attention to the information richness, rather than just gathering as much data as we can.”

Source: University of Toronto

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primnroses · 3 years ago

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— How the canon describes Sakura’s intelligence: her feats and her accomplishments

The information presented in this post has been checked and revised. My aim is not to hate or to discredit any of the characters mentioned. Please read about me for further information.

This post will contain evidence in picture format directly from the manga Naruto (1999 - 2014) created by Masashi Kishimoto and published by Shueisha in 1999. I will also use information from the official databooks.

This informative post will explain how the creator highlights Sakura Haruno’s intelligence and the different ways she displays it. I will use information present in the novels and the Boruto manga because it includes character development within canon compliance.

This meta is crossposted in AO3.

I give my permission to use or share this thread with informative purposes as long as you credit me.

I do not support the anime or the work of Studio Pierrot in regards to Naruto because I consider it over exaggerated and beyond biased. Furthermore, these fillers include some actions that these characters are unable to do in the canon according to official sources and they also generate unnecessary debate.

Please, take this into consideration.

In order to talk about Sakura’s intelligence, first the term “intelligence” or “mind” present in the skill set of the characters must be explained. According the the databooks, 賢 (Ken) comprehends the level of knowledge, IQ and wisdom.

This means that there is no difference between battle intelligence, IQ and being a “bookworm”, and it is all included inside a 1 to 5 scale. On the other hand, the Boruto manga statistics use the same base but, instead of a scale, they use a number.

Masashi Kishimoto encapsulates the knowledge displayed during a battle against an enemy, how a ninja comes up with different strategies, which moves and equipment to use or analysis of the situation; and the general knowledge about theory or information about certain concepts, in that “mind (賢, Ken)” scale.

The perfect examples of characters that are known for being both intelligent and for their analytical skills are Sakura Haruno and Shikamaru Nara.

Shikamaru’s description during the Chūnin Exams finals confirms that the “mind” stat and the IQ is directly related to analytical abilities and strategies, aside from being already explained in the databooks.

According to Asuma Sarutobi, Shikamaru’s sensei, his IQ of over 200 allows him to come up with different strategies in the midst of a confrontation.

According to the first databook (Rin no Sho), authored by Masashi Kishimoto, the statistic of Sakura in “mind” is 3.5 out of 5 points, very above the rest of the genin of her generation, whose points vary from 0.5 to 2.5.

Shikamaru is the only genin to surpass her.

Masashi Kishimoto described Sakura as a kunoichi whose [chakra control and] intelligence shall not be looked down upon. He mentions it a few times in her profile from the first databook. These statistics cover from chapter 1 to 119 approximately.

In the manga, Sakura is introduced as a kunoichi that displays a vast amount of knowledge, for example, about concepts like chakra, and is able to explain it in great detail.

This feat makes Sakura somehow like an encyclopedia for her teammates, who can benefit from her information.

Considering he is a rather “lazy” character and knowing that he has seen his students' ninja profiles, in the case of Sakura, off-screen, Kakashi knows that she is a very intelligent and knowledgeable kunoichi, and uses her to elaborate concepts that he should do as the sensei.

Kakashi describes Sakura as the sharpest mind of Konoha.

Some versions of the translation vary, some use “our sharpest mind” (“our” previously talking about Konoha) and others use “the brightest in the village”.

In the original Japanese version of the manga also mentions that she is brightest/sharpest in Konoha.

The scan I obtained is very messy, but it roughly says “ここにいるサクラは里一番の切れ者”, which would mean something like “[And here is] Sakura, the sharpest in the village”. I am not an expert of Japanese, I only looked at the original and matched it.

The anime also says that “Sakura is the sharpest mind in Konoha” in the Japanese dub (サクラは佐藤一番の切れ者).

All versions are talking about the top rookie or the sharpest mind in Konoha, independently if it is mentioned or not.

Later chapters clarify why Sakura is able to reproduce lessons taught in the Academy with such precision. Sakura has a great memory, able to retain big amounts of information in her head, allowing her to quote whole passages of books.

This is confirmed in the first fanbook (Hyō no Sho), authored by Masashi Kishimoto. Iruka Umino’s Sakura’s Academy teacher, wrote in his teacher comments that her range of knowledge [and control of chakra] is worth watching.

This range of knowledge is displayed during the written exam of the Chūnin Exams. Upon seeing the difficulty of the questions, Sakura concludes that almost nobody in the room would be able to answer them, except for her.

The ninja responsible for the first round of the exams, Ibiki Morino, the Head of the Intelligence Division and captain of T&I Force, confesses that the level of the questions is beyond the knowledge of a genin. The fact that Sakura is able to answer them proves that her intelligence is above average.

Despite realizing that the exam is forcing the ninja in the room to cheat, Sakura shows no problems finding the answer to every question and finishes before the last one is announced.

Ino Yamanaka, regarded as the top kunoichi in the Academy, uses Sakura to answer her own questions. Despite being the top among the girls, Ino does not know any of the answers of the test. Even the top-rated rookie, Sasuke Uchiha, cannot answer any of the questions presented in the sheet.

Despite both girls being rivals, Ino respects Sakura’s intelligence, regarding it as superior to hers, and trusts her to have answered correctly, following the narrative of scoring 100/100 on her tests.

In the first, second (Tō no Sho) and third (Sha no Sho) databooks respectively, Masashi Kishimoto exposes that Sakura’s hobbies are quizzes and memorizing things.

Her intelligence is not limited to being able to memorize texts or answering the most difficult of questions. Sasuke Uchiha, the top-rated rookie of that year, recognizes Sakura’s analytical skills and genjutsu to be superior to his, a member of the most prestigious clan and counting with a two-tomoe Sharingan.

About genjutsu, it is a ninja art that requires intelligence in order to be effective and also to be able to see through them. Due to Sakura’s natural talent with chakra control, added to her intelligence, Kakashi considers Sakura to be a genjutsu-type.

Sakura was able to break Kabuto’s powerful genjutsu, which affected the whole arena. According to him, only the elites of Konoha would be able to reverse such technique, but Sakura did it as a genin of only 13 years old.

Sakura is able to see through powerful illusions in more than one occasion in the series, and her abilities with them have increased with time to the point of being considered resistant to genjutsu.

I will upload a short study about Sakura as a genjutsu-type in the future.

About her analytical skills, during the Chūnin Exams, Sakura reflects on the consequences of the team’s encounter with Orochimaru and the time wasted since the beginning of the test.

She tells her teammates that the number of scrolls left, especially now that their Heaven Scroll had been burnt by Orochimaru, and calculates them in relation with the number of teams and the time passed since the start. Sakura deduces that those factors have reduced their possibilities of success.

This outcome prompts the team to get more serious in their pursue of the Heaven Scroll and their future fights with enemies.

Later, in the final stage of the exams, during Naruto’s battle against Kiba, Sakura explained what Naruto’s strategy was in great detail. Despite being confused at the beginning, Sakura discovered that Naruto planned to trick Kiba with a Transformation Jutsu, eventually succeeding.

In battle, Sakura has demonstrated to be one of the most intelligent genin as well.

As a ninja devoid of any shinobi background, Sakura lacked many battle abilities, such as special jutsu or taijutsu. However, she is able to put to use any of the simple techniques that she was taught in the Academy when she requires it.

Her strategies consist of fooling her enemies with simple jutsu such as Body Replacement and Clone Technique. She tricks the Sound Ninja and Ino Yamanaka with both jutsu and delivers a hit on both of them, taking them by surprise.

Later in the series, this strategy will become one of Sakura’s most used battle styles.

After the experience in the Chūnin Exams, Sakura’s intelligence stat rises to 4 points out of 5 according to the second databook, authored by Masashi Kishimoto, which covers from chapter 120 to 244 approximately. That is 0.5 points more than the first databook.

During the 2 and a half year gap, Sakura decides to train under the Fifth Hokage and Sannin, Tsunade. She learns the way of medicine, medical ninjutsu, which is a branch of ninjutsu that is quite hard to master due to the extensive knowledge the user must possess.

Although it has been confirmed that mastering medical ninjutsu requires more chakra control than knowledge, and that there are different types of medics depending on their level of knowledge and skills.

Not all medic-ninjas have the same amount of knowledge, the best example of that are the Medic Corps, who work in the hospital with real patients and develop techniques and medicines; and field medic-ninja, who heal injuries in battle and do not work like professionals.

As a genin, Sakura had the level of knowledge and skill necessary to be introduced in the field of medical ninjutsu.

Tsunade mentions that there is a “special something” required in those ninja that want to become a first-rate medic. She is quick to notice that Sakura has that “special something”, her wish to protect his teammates, and accepts her.

Tsunade follows Kakashi’s advice about Sakura, saying that she is an intelligent and strong-spirited kunoichi.

The Japanese uses the word 頭脳明晰, which means being clear-headed or having a sharp, brilliant mind. Here are two translations for that same scene:

These aptitudes allow her to master the basics of medical ninjutsu in record time, becoming a talent unseen since Shizune.

Sakura becomes one of the best medics in Konoha according to the third databook, authored by Masashi Kishimoto, which covers chapters 246 to 400 approximately.

Now promoted to chūnin rank, the databook still dates Sakura’s intelligence with 4 points, similar to the third databook. However, she has incredible feats that demonstrate her outstanding knowledge and strategic prowess still prevail.

In her first mission together with the reunited Team 7, Sakura is sent to Sunagakure to investigate the Akatsuki and the kidnapping of the Kazekage. In an attempt to rescue him, Kankuro is poisoned by Sasori’s most lethal venom.

Chiyo, Sasori’s grandmother and a poison expert, is unable to help Kankuro due to the improvements made with his own toxins. She mentions that Tsunade was the only one to make little of her efforts, and that the Hokage would be the only one able to save Kankuro.

Sakura’s expertise with herbs allowed her to create antidotes against potent toxins and this ability is compared to Tsunade’s feats during the Second Shinobi World War. Sakura is able to save Kankuro and create different antidotes, something the village’s poison expert, Chiyo, could not achieve.

However, Sakura did not actually make 3 different antidotes, she made 3 doses and took them to the battle. This is explained during her fight against Sasori.

Sakura had the idea to take the antidotes with her to the battle knowing that the enemy used poisons. Her’s antidote was not only useful to save Kankuro’s life, it also saved her own life and Chiyo’s during their battle against Sasori.

Sasori is impressed by the fact that Sakura was able to create an antidote for his most lethal venom. He explains that he must measure every ingredient for his own creation, and that the antidote would be extremely difficult to mix.

In regards to strategy, Chiyo acknowledges that Sakura is able to read her target's moves, and that she would not need the puppet master’s help to continue. This ability to read the offensive pattern is linked to her ability to dodge attacks learnt during her training with Tsunade.

Just like she used to do as a genin, Sakura keeps fooling her enemies with tricks that make her moves too simple or even look defeated. She feigned being poisoned and collapsed, tricking Sasori into using the Third Kazekage to finihs her off but breaking it in one blow.

Sasori recognizes this aspect about Sakura a few times: when she uses the antidote and when she reads his moves.

Chiyo and Sasori were more intelligent than Sakura.

However, Sakura surpassed Chiyo’s knowledge in the medical branch of antidotes, and was superior to Sasori’s poison mixing skills, which, in turn, surpassed those of Chiyo.

One more example of Sakura fooling fellow ninja for her own success include the mission to kill Sasuke Uchiha.

Sakura puts together a team to speak with Naruto about Konoha 12′s plans about Sasuke. In that team are Rock Lee, Kiba Inuzuka and Sai, who was suspicious of Sakura due to him being the reason she is feeling down and self-conscious. In a failed attempt to poison her teamates with sleeping gas, Sai exposes Sakura’s plan to dispose of Sasuke alone.

Sakura turns the situation to her favor by raising suspicions among her teammates and pretending to fight Sai along with Kiba and Lee, ultimately poisoning all of them.

Even after years under her supervision, Tsunade still thinks that Sakura is as sharp a ninja as ever. After Team 10 leaves to avenge their master, Tsunade thinks about sending a back-up team for Shikamaru and Sakura says that Team 7 is the perfect aid for them.

Later on, on another mission to track Itachi Uchiha and take him down, Team 7 and Team 8 face Tobi and his strange space-time ninjutsu.

After analysing the enemy’s jutsu using the team’s attacks and sensory abilities, Sakura is able to decipher the secrets of the Kamui, in which the target is not using genjutsu or teleportation, but making part of his body disappear at will.

Sakura’s analytical abilities are not only reserved for the battlefield.

When Shiho, Kakashi, Naruto and Shikamaru deciphered Jiraiya’s message after being defeated by Pain, Sakura was later part of the Cryptanalysis Team (暗号解読班, Angōkaidoku-Han) tasked with deciphering codes and messages, also known as Cipher Corps (暗号部, Angō-bu).

The Cryptanalysis Team is a branch of Konoha’s Intelligence Division (情報部, Jōhō-bu), headed by Ibiki Morino, with Shiho being one of its most prominent members. Their base is located in a library, a facility separate from the main building of the Intelligence Division.

Shikamaru and Sakura, known to be the most intelligent ninja of their generation, join Shiho to discover the relation between the message and Pain’s abilities.

During the Fourth World Shinobi War, Sakura was also essential in intelligence gathering for the Alliance’s success. It was her the one that discovered that White Zetsu was behind the iniltration, figured out their jutsu and told the Alliance about it.

Upon being told that the enemy has infiltrated their ranks targeting jōnin medics, Sakura stays alert thinking somebody is being controlled.

Sakura does not realize that telling Neji about Tonton would result in the enemy’s demise.

Because Neji addresses Tonton as a ninja, Sakura starts suspecting. Once again, she uses deception to unmask the enemy using Tonton as bait. Upon discovery, she strikes White Zetsu with a single hand. She deciphered this trick with information she learnt in Yamato’s reports, impressing the enemy with her ingenuity.

The Sensory Division started getting messages from other divisions about infiltrations. After discovering the secret, it is actually Sakura the person that contacts Inoichi and tells him the secret of the White Zetsu jutsu, later spread around the Alliance.

Almost at the end of the war and when everybody is trapped in the Infinite Tsukuyomi, Sasuke was the only one able to see outside the genjutsu with his Rinnegan, prompting him to take command.

However, Naruto mentions that Sakura and Kakashi are better at strategies than Sasuke, despite him having more experience with leading Team Taka.

Having achieved the Strength of a Hundred Seal and with all the knowledge passed down to her from Tsunade and Shizune, Sakura becomes the best medic-ninja in Konoha and the world at only 17 years old, according to the fourth databook (Jin no Sho) authored by Masashi Kishimoto, which covers from chapter 403 to the end approximately.

She surpassed her master, a Sannin and a Kage, with a higher intelligence than her, although there are not further databooks to compare Sakura and Tsunade’s power in the present.

Two years after the war, during the events of The Last: Naruto the Movie, the guidebook’s character description also refers to her as the best in Konoha at 19 years old.

The novelization also confirms Sakura as the best medic-ninja of Konoha (in Portuguese: The best medic-ninja of Konoha) in the character description.

Also the Konoha Hiden: The Perfect Day for a Wedding, written by Shō Hinata, repeats the same pattern. In this case, it is described that Sakura uses high-rated medical ninjutsu that cannot be copied. She also surpassed her rival, Ino Yamanaka, in everything, especially ninjutsu.

During this time period, Sakura discovered the disappearance of Konoha ninja due to the Ketsuryugan during Sasuke Shinden: Book of Sunrise and also came up with the treatment for their genjutsu.

She also came up with the conclusion that Kido Tsumiki and Magire had used hair and blood samples for the Sharingan and Tailed Beast drugs. In the Ino-Saku-Sai battle against them, she suggested separating both ANBU because Magire was a medic-ninja, leading to Sakura defeating Kido and the success of the mission.

Years later, as Hokage, Naruto opened a division dedicated to the study of ancient civilizations and hieroglyphics called Analytical Study Department, different from the Cryptanalysis Team, which focuses on decoding texts that the Rinnegan is unable to.

This new division debuts in Boruto: Naruto the Movie. Shikamaru and Sakura also collaborate with this department when required according to Kakashi in Kakashi Retsuden: The Sixth Hokage and the Failure Boy.

This is a new division separate from the Cryptanalysis Team and is located in the Hokage Residence. In Kakashi Retsuden, the Sixth discovers an ancient book about Hagoromo written in an ancient language. He sends it to the Analytical Study, thinking that if they collaborate with Shikamaru and Sakura, they would be able to decipher its contents.

It is also common for Sakura and Shikamaru to work together to solve mysteries or form hypotheses. During the Retsuden series, Naruto suffers a disease similar to the Sage of Six Paths, which hindered him from using his chakra.

Sakura studies Naruto’s case and comes up with the diagnosis of his disease. Other books suggest Shikamaru and Sakura discovered it together, both of them theorizing that his illness might be connected with Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki and Sakura coming up with the final result focusing on the medical view.

In her infiltration in Redaku’s Astronomy Institute, Sakura and Sasuke need access to the basement to check an astronomical map, but the keeper would not give it away easily. Sakura challenges Penjira in a card game called Hoshinarabe and she beats him by memorizing his cards, because memorization is one of her abilities.

Hoshinarabe is a card game based on luck unique to Redaku and neither Sasuke or Sakura had heard of it before, but she quickly memorizes the rules after Penjira explains, surprising him. What she does is drag the game and exhaust her opponent with ties, until he admits defeat.

Once in the basement, both of them searched for the astronomical map.

In fact, the map they were looking for was a series of constellations drawn by Hagoromo to locate the celestial body. Sakura quickly discovered that the map was related to the zodiac signs.

Sasuke left in Sakura’s charge of the classification of the constellations in order to decipher the map, for which she asked for 2 days, trusting that she could decipher it. Actually, Sakura took one night to order the constellations, reducing the mission length by 1 day.

In the end, it is Sakura who discovers that the 12 drawings of the constellation map were representing the 12 hand seals. In order to access the polar particles, Sasuke and Sakura needed to go to the lake in which Hagoromo hid the particles, done by performing the seals.

Although I am personally not a fan of the manga statistics, they offer a number for every ability instead of a 1 to five scale. According to Ukyo Kodachi, Sakura has a rank of 174 in intelligence, right after Shikamaru and before ninja considered geniuses, like Katasuke.

Overall, Sakura is a kunoichi known mainly for her intelligence (and chakra control), a feat that is a basis for the kind of ninja she became. She has good memory, which helps her education and her allies, analytical skills that allow her to solve problems and study the enemy’s moves, and is also considered to be the best in her team to form strategies and plans. Her intellect is taken into account to decipher messages, solve an ally’s problem or study ancient civilizations, and her abilities are increased when she joins Shikamaru.

#sakura uchiha #sakura haruno #naruto #naruto meta #meta #naruto analysis #analysis #sakura meta #sakura analysis #sakura haruno meta #sakura uchiha meta #sakura uchiha analysis #sakura haruno analysis

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softprincesso · 5 years ago

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✨HOW TO BECOME A WEALTHY MIDDLE-AGED MAN✨

PT.2: Overview to understanding different saving/retirement methods, investments, and forms of income

2.1 Savings and Retirement

Welcome lovelies to (what I hope will be) a helpful series on gaining wealth and becoming financially literate and independent!

*disclaimer: while this advice can generally apply to many it will not apply to all. Everyone is in a different situation and should do their own research before they take what ANYONE says as fact or law. This is also coming from the perspective of a young, biracial, first generation female business student following a hypergamous lifestyle and who does sw so some advice may be specific to my like-minded ladies, but for the most part I just love money and want to help others find joy in their wallets as well. I am also operating in the US so things regarding accounts, stocks, and certain laws will vary by your country. Also, this is just a fun thing I wanted to do because talking about leveling up and learning and growing and money are my favorite past times. None of these pictures are mine, however I am using some links which may compensate me in some way, but I only used links which were mutually beneficial and would help you gain something as well, they are still just actual sources I use for myself.

✨THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND✨

Financial independence is different than financial confidence.

Financial Independence: “The most common sense of the term is that someone has enough wealth to live as they wish for the rest of their life without having to work.” -Investopedia https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0611/declare-your-own-financial-independence-day.aspx

Financial Confidence: “We define financial confidence as having three aspects,” says Miler. “The first is awareness of how money can be a tool for helping you reach your goals and dreams. The second is financial literacy and understanding economic factors. The third is trust and knowing where to turn for financial advice.” -Forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/shelleyzalis/2018/06/16/women-money-8-steps-for-growing-your-financial-confidence/?sh=2175b65e2468

While the ultimate goal is financial independence, financial confidence should be the main focus. I’ll give an example why. Imagine there are two people: Rhonda and Jill. Both of them like nice things, love to shop, and participate in the occasional splurge. Rhonda works a regular 9-5 and has a decent salary. She doesn’t have much financial knowledge (translation: financial confidence), but she has a savings account at her local bank and puts a couple hundred into retirement each year and she thinks that's enough. Suddenly, Rhonda wins the lottery. Overnight she has become a millionaire, so she quits her job, moves to LA, and goes on to live life to the fullest. She would now be considered financially independent. However, Rhonda has no idea how to manage all that money. She puts a small amount into that bank savings account and takes the rest to do what she will. One day she tries her luck at a casino, in less than five hours she has lost all of her money and has to start back at square one with no job, only a few thousand to get her through, and no-good way to explain to employers that she just wasted the last 5 years spending money on handbags she now has to sell at a depreciated value. (BTW you would not last not working with only a million dollars in LA for that long)

Now, let’s look at Jill. Jill is an independent contractor and has a relatively steady income. She knows very little about finances, but she actively learns how to manage what she has and keeps up to date on the latest money news. The day that Rhonda won the lottery was just another Thursday for Jill, the only unique point for her was that she opened a savings accounts with a high APY (we’ll say 1%) and put in $5000.00. A little later she also opened a Roth IRA and puts in the maximum yearly allowance of $6000.00. Along the way she opened a brokerage account of her own and started trading in the stock market along with investing in real estate which has given her some extra income to play with each year. Unfortunately, another housing crash occurs, and all of the money Jill invested into real estate is gone. However, since Jill learned the skills behind her choices early on, she is knowledgeable and understands the ups and downs of the market and how to invest her money in other places in the meantime. And, that High yield savings account accrued around $50 more without her doing anything and she has that to fall back on, or worst case she can take out part of her principal Roth IRA contribution. 10 years from now Jill should start to see a steady increase in her Roth IRA that by retirement will be a little over 1 million and she should be comfortable and invested enough into stocks that she gains around $200-1000 extra each month.

I think you understand why you want to be Jill.

✨HAVING ADEQUATE SAVINGS = BEING YOUR OWN LIFEGUARD✨

As discussed in Pt.1 the first goal you should achieve is securing an emergency fund that could sustain you for a couple of months if things were to ever hit the fan, and starting a retirement fund should be in your top 5 goals to complete. The saying, “the rich get richer” is popular for a reason. Wealthy people know how to make their money work for them instead of them having to work for money. An easy way anyone can do the same is by opening the right accounts for your savings and retirement.

Savings:

All of your savings should be in a high yield saving account or split between different high yield accounts. This is an account which will reward you some interest every period for having money in your account with them. This is incredibly easy to do. You can either research/ask your bank about their high yield accounts or do some googling to find some other bank. Then transfer your money and there you go! When looking at banks understand that the highest Annual Percent Yields (APY), or the interest they will reward you, are going to be from online banks because they have less operational costs than a brick and mortar, but they will also come with their own disadvantages, like less ATMs to access or the inability to use when outside of your country so make sure to look into that. IMPORTANT: Make sure that whatever bank you choose is FDIC-insured so if the bank were to ever collapse or lose your money you have insurance up to $250,000.This won't generate a lot of extra cash, but an extra $20 every year is better than $0.

Retirement:

These accounts usually go by your current situation and what you see for your future.

401K: Probably the most known (I believe it’s only in the States but there might be something close to it in other countries) and that’s just because this is what employers usually offer if they offer anything. It is a retirement fund that your employer will set up and you can predefine how much of your paycheck you want to automatically go into it every time. Sometimes, the employers will also have a match program, and if they do you better max out the money they will contribute because that is FREE money! Most advice that I have seen has said to really only focus on this fund if your employer has that match program, otherwise I would focus on one of the accounts below. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/retirement/08/401k-info.asp

IRA: An IRA stands for Individual Retirement Account. There are three kinds…

Traditional: This IRA lets you put in pre-tax money and lets it grow tax-free until you make a withdrawal. Once you make the withdrawal that money is taxed at the current rate of your income at the time. Your contributions are tax deductible so you can write them off of your taxable income of that year. There are limits to how much you can contribute depending on your income, status, and whether you have another retirement fund as well.

Roth: With this IRA your contributions are taxed, but when you withdrawal money later on it is tax free. For those of you in a lower tax bracket than you believe you will be in the future, this IRA makes the most sense as you will pay less taxes now than you will when you are 59 ½ (The official age of retirement in the States). There are limits to how much you can contribute depending on your income, status, and whether you have another retirement fund as well.

SEP: Simplified Employee Pension. This is also an employer-based plan and may also work better for my self-employed gals out there. I don’t really know a lot on this one so I’ll just leave a link you can look into if it interests you: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/102714/how-does-simplified-employee-pension-sep-ira-work.asp

You can have both a traditional and Roth IRA as long as you are eligible for both. Anyone with earned income (with a job or can prove a steady income) can contribute to a Traditional IRA, however with a Roth IRA, as a single you can earn up to $139,000 and contribute. Personally, if you are just getting started with all of this just set up one IRA and as you learn more you can take steps to get another or switch accounts.

https://www.investopedia.com/retirement/roth-vs-traditional-ira-which-is-right-for-you/

There are a plethora of other accounts, but they are more specialized and the top four should get you started on the right path to saving for retirement. I’m guessing that the majority of the audience reading these are women between the ages of 20-30. Trust me when I say that I love to spend money as much as the next girl, but I also would like to be completely comfortable should anything happen in my older years that screws up my marriage or job, and no one is going to secure that for you.

Also, I’m sorry this is so US-based, but once again it is all I know. I believe IRAs are more widespread than a 401K, but all that takes to find out is a Google search on your part.

Either way, make sure you have a plan going into 2021 for your savings and retirement because this economic whirlwind is far from over and there is always a chance for another recession, depression, or disaster. (Wow O, way to keep the mood light)

This was getting way too long with the investments added so look out for Pt.2.2 on the overview for investments (where the actual fun begins and I can stop being such a stick in the mud)…

VOCAB TO KNOW/RESEARCH:

Financial independence

Financial Confidence

APY

Roth IRA

brokerage account

High yield savings account

principal

401K

Traditional IRA

Once again… if in these posts I ever give bad advice, F- something up, or am just generally ignorant PLEASE call me out! Remember that just like you I am a young woman figuring everything out and while I am confident when talking about money, I am by no means a genius (only in spurts) so any chance to learn I appreciate. I hope you all learned something new today and as always…

With Love,

#how to become a wealthy middle aged man #wealth #money #money management #wealth management #finances #hypergamy #affluence #heauxlife #heaux advice #heaux tips #spoiled girlfriend #spoiled gf #spoiled heaux #black woman in luxury #luxury #sugar tips #oadvice #softprincesso

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worth-more-than-productivity · 4 years ago

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A Yale professor's guide to paper style and formatting -- some of my favorite advice

Excerpts from "Bill's quick guide to paper optics" by historian Bill Rankin

I prefer to use the word "optics" as a catch-all category rather than separating "formatting" and "style." The impression that your writing makes on your reader depends on many things at once, and I think it's important to treat your ideas, your words, and your page with equal care.

Headings. You don't need a heading for your introduction, and try to avoid a bland heading like "Conclusion" alone. Ideally, your headings will do analytic work and announce not just the topic of the section, but the major themes or arguments as well.

Images. You should embed images throughout your paper rather than collecting them all at the end. (This can be a pain in Word or LibreOffice, so I recommend keeping text and images in separate files until the very last step.) All images should have engaging analytic captions, but be sure to provide a full citation for the image in the caption as well. You should always make your images as large as possible without breaking your margins; enlarged details may also be necessary. (The reader shouldn't have to zoom in to the PDF to read your images.) If in doubt, err on the side of using more images rather than fewer.

Footnotes. Footnotes can be more than just bare citations; you can also provide context, additional details, or explain how you combined information from multiple sources. You can also cite more than one source in the same footnote, and footnotes do not need to come immediately after a quotation as long as the connection between quote and source is still clear. Many students use too many footnotes, each with only one citation, inserted somewhat haphazardly throughout the text. Instead, treat a footnote as a kind of punctuation mark; it slows the reader down slightly, and you can be intentional about where you insert them.

Passive Voice. Through the unrelenting tyranny of grammarians drunk on the prescriptivism of Strunk and White's Elements of Style, entire generations of students have been contorting their prose to avoid things like the passive voice and split infinitives at all costs. This is nonsense, and great writers (from Shakespeare to Dickens to Pynchon) use these constructions whenever they're needed. Often they're not the best choice, but sometimes they are.

(click "Keep reading" for more)

Numbers. Be mindful of when to use numerals and when to spell out numbers; most students use too many numerals. This is unfriendly: "There are 5 such maps from the 19th century; each is about 11.5" square." This is nicer: "There are five such maps from the nineteenth century; each is about 11.5 inches square." Always use four-digit dates, don't use apostrophes after dates, and don't use a dash between numerals in prose. Again, this is unfriendly: "Life was easy in the 1960's and '70s, since she earned $100–200 per day." This is nicer: "Life was easy in the 1960s and 1970s, since she earned between $100 and $200 per day."

First Person Voice. In high school most of us learn to avoid the first-person voice in formal writing. This is wrong. Prominent and accomplished writers commonly use the first-person voice to explain their goals and argument in clear terms. Don't go overboard, but phrases like "My goal in this essay is...," "My main argument is...," or "I want to make it clear, however, that..." can be very helpful. It's likewise fine to use "we" or "our," but use them carefully. Don't use them as rhetorical synonyms for "I" or "you the reader," in phrases like "we will begin by analyzing...," or "our main question is...." This comes off as stilted. Instead, "we" or "our" should only be used to refer to the group of people that includes you, me, and other interested readers (that is, as synonymous with "historians" or "the interested public"), in phrases like "how should we understand these documents?" or "the ubiquity of GPS in our daily lives."

Direct Quotations. Don't directly quote other scholars (that is, secondary sources) unless you want to critique or engage with the specifics of their vocabulary. Instead, you should use your own words and provide a citation. For example, there's no need for something like this: "According to the historian Mary Burton, 'There were five such museums on the island, and they attracted a large and enthusiastic audience.' " Instead you could simply say that all five museums were very popular, with a citation to Burton in a footnote. But there might be a reason to say something like this: "I disagree with Burton's claim that the audience was, in her words, 'large and enthusiastic.' "

Referring To Your Own Writing. When describing the content of your own paper, use the literary present tense, not the future tense. So you'd say "This paper explores" (not "This paper will explore") or "The second section describes" (not "will describe"). And don't foreshadow future analysis with phrases like "as will be discussed below" or "as I describe later." These mostly just direct the reader's attention away from the immediate point; they're also a bit stuffy. These phrases can almost always be omitted; if not, it's a sign that your logical flow isn't quite right. The same is true for reminders ("as discussed above"). Usually you can just briefly repeat the same information with no problem, perhaps using "again" as a simple acknowledgment: "Their goal, again, was total world domination."

Elegant Sentences and Punchy Prose. My favorite rule of thumb for writing engaging and pleasant prose is variation. Vary the length of your sentences, and vary the size of your paragraphs. If all of your sentences are four lines long, your prose will read like molasses. After several substantial paragraphs, a short paragraph that zooms out and highlights your main point can be really powerful. Inserting questions (with question marks!) can also be a nice way to add some punch. History prose isn’t casual, but you should leave the really formal writing to lawyers. Have some fun with your writing; err on the side of the conversational without becoming colloquial. Can you read your prose out loud without getting tongue-tied and running out of breath? Elegant prose is simple and clear, not complex and clever.

#studyblr #phdblr #gradblr #writing tips #yale #humanities #histblr #academic writing

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hilli98215 · 3 years ago

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I posted 6,980 times in 2022

485 posts created (7%)

6,495 posts reblogged (93%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@queen-with-the-quill

@storyweaverofgondor

@roxycake

@tending-the-hearth

@skywalkerangst

I tagged 948 of my posts in 2022

#disney - 110 posts

#personal - 63 posts

#kingdom hearts - 54 posts

#thanks for the ask - 32 posts

#teacher things - 26 posts

#tagged post - 25 posts

#youtube - 24 posts

#fandom - 24 posts

#random - 22 posts

#disney parks - 22 posts

Longest Tag: 105 characters

#but i really only know jason alexander from his performance in seinfeld (comedy) and cinderella (musical)

My Top Posts in 2022:

As he should....

Go see tick, tick... BOOM! if not for the musical aspect, just for Andrew Garfield's performance. He is wonderful and yes. He did learn to sing and play the piano for this role.

37 notes - Posted January 10, 2022

...that 'We Don't Talk About Bruno' performance was bad. Very very bad. They could have made it so good but nope

42 notes - Posted March 27, 2022

What do you think about Disney’s gargoyles, the tv show? I think it’s much better and mature and has some Batman the animated series vibes.

Hello Anon!

I was in the generation where I watched reruns of Gargoyles with my older siblings in the early/mid 2000's. We loved this show for the fact that it was much different than the animated shows Disney had at the time which were based on their IPs (Hercules, The Little Mermaid, and Goof Troop for example).

As for it was a better show, that depends on what you like to watch. It was diffidently influenced by BTAS (which ran from 1992-1995 but kept going on due to reruns) since that series took its audience seriously and knew it could still give its lessons but in a mature way.

The same could be said about Gargoyles. The creators took their audience seriously while also creating a show that was appropriate for kids and something parents could watch with them. It still had lessons but also characters who were more than comedic relief.

The villain is great, the cast of characters is memorable, and it's a series that may forget was a thing and is part of Disney Animation and storytelling.

Getting off track for a bit, but here is a video from NerdWire where they discuss the show and why it was so good and why people should watch it.

youtube

56 notes - Posted February 20, 2022

This. This is a great example why people want to become teachers.

That scene on KLAUS (2019) made me smile because that's what we want to see in our students. The simple joy and wonderment of learning. Even as simple as writing your name.

(Also you need to turn your phone if you want to watch the clip. Sorry desktop users....)

95 notes - Posted November 11, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I've been sick for a few days so I can finally put my thoughts into words. I was in the middle of watching Infinity Train. Actually, I was on season 1 episode 3 and was going to continue watching the show when I had a chance.

But now I can't. I had to watch the news unfold by watching various TikTok users and reading Twitter threads. Then to realize that it was not only various animated shows that were taken off the HBO Max platform but also 200 episodes of Sesame Street.

And for what? A freaking tax credit? That's not how this works.

You see what Warner Brothers is doing is atrocious. Not only are they alienating an entire medium of entertainment, but they are also telling the animators, voice actors, editors, directors, and others that they don't matter.

Animation matters. The people who put their blood, sweat, and tears, and took time away from their families matter. The fans of these shows matter.

Warner Brothers is not going to save money, they are going to lose it in the worse way possible.

196 notes - Posted August 20, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #some of these are very unexpected #epecially that last one #Youtube

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wangxianficrecs · 4 years ago

Photo

Follower Recs

Stories I haven’t read yet, but clearly need to put on my ever-expanding List.

~*~

Welcome back queen [Thank you, it’s so lovely to be back!] if ur still doing follower recs I gotta recommend I would wait for a thousand years by bleuett it’s soooooooo good

[This one was actually recced to me by two different people, the other of whom said, “ Maybe I'm crying a little so I feel like a should recommend ‘I would wait for a thousand years’ by bleuett on ao3.”]... it’s def. on my List!

I would wait for a thousand years

by bleuett (T, 10k, wangxian)

Summary: During the worst of winter, a traveler comes to stay at Lan Wangji's inn. He wears a red ribbon in his hair.

“Do you see the rabbit?” Wei Ying asks and points at the moon. “That’s the moon rabbit, he helps make Chang’e more immortality elixir. He keeps Chang’e company.”

“I do not wish the rabbit for company,” Lan Wangji says tightly. “You are the one I want by my side.”

“And I’m here, Lan Zhan. If you go to the moon, I’ll follow you, I’ll always be here now.”

~*~

I just read a great fic by aisthuu "every love story is a ghost story", didn't see it in your recs so wanted to recommend it! LWJ is a guqin composer and teacher, buys a cheap guqin off eBay which ends up being attached to WWX's spirit from canon era. It's bittersweet, LWJ deals with Lan's homophobia (implicit in a Lan way) and his feelings towards the ghost. This is author's only ao3 fic and honestly I don't remember how I stumbled upon it, but I'm happy I did and hope you will enjoy it too! [I’ve recently read this one, and loved it!]

every love story is a ghost story

by aisthuu (M, 59k, wangxian, my bookmark)

Summary: The man is in Lan Zhan’s bed. Did they—he begins to wonder, eyes trailing to where the man’s body lies under the blanket. Had Lan Zhan—?

Then the sleep-fog clears and Lan Zhan realizes that the young man isn’t quite opaque around the edges.

“You’re a spirit.”

The spirit narrows its eyes. “I’m so much more than that.”

(Lan Zhan buys a guqin off eBay for a suspiciously low price, only to find that it’s haunted. And now there’s a ghost in his bed.)

~*~

Ok so I absolutely have to rec "see you yesterday" by glyphic. It's a wip, but it's currently at 101k so there's a whole lot there, and it's terrible and wonderful and beautiful all at once. The way the backstory of canon events is adapted to the modern-with-cultivation setting is brilliant, and then there's the amnesia, and then there's the time loop. This fic lives permanently rent-free in my brain.

see you yesterday

by glyphic (M, 101k, wangxian, WIP)

Summary:

Wei Ying 21:09 hey lan zhan what’s the weirdest way youve died

Lan Zhan 21:11 Falling encyclopedias.

Wei Ying 21:12 omg no way that’s so rude turning books against you???

Lan Zhan 21:13 A betrayal I will never forget.

On Halloween night, an exiled demonic cultivator and a Lan disciple get stuck in a time-loop, find each other, and try to figure it all out.

~*~

If you are looking for recs for yourself I absolutely love (the complete!) story Just as the Snow Melts by draechali on AO3. It's a canon divergence where everyone lives, even WWX! ~ @airmidcelt

Just as the Snow Melts

by draechaeli (T, 67k, wangxian)

Summary: Like a snowy mountain top in spring the residents of the Burial Mounds trickled down the mountain and joined the flow of society.

“I went to the Burial Mounds,” Lan WangJi said.

“Ah, yeah… I’m sorry Lan Zhan,” replied Wei WuXian, “I hadn’t thought anyone would come to visit. I am still not sure how it happened; I brought A-Yuan to Yiling to play by the river and then ended up somehow teaching a bunch of children swimming and writing along with him.”

~*~

Hello! It's come to my attention that you have not as yet read Grandmaster of Meme-onic Cultivation! Please do! It's the only thing that gave me joy during 2020 😆 like proper belly laughs and disney villain style cackling. It is a wip, and it is long but so so worth it!! The author has reworked the entire canon through these message crystals and still conveys complex characters despite the tricky format. It's just so good!! Highly highly recommend it! ❤ ~ @theladypeartree [Oh! I’ve been subscribed to this one, and know that @swaglexander-the-great is a reliable provider of Hilarity, so I’m excited for it to be finished!]

Grandmaster of Meme-onic Cultivation

by Hades_the_Blingking (T, 49k, wangxian, WIP)

Summary: The Untamed universe is exactly the same, except everybody has magical crystals that have a suspiciously familiar messaging system. The story is pretty much the same as the show, except everyone lives!! (so minor changes).

or in which Wei WuXian tries his darndest to date Lan Zhan, Jiang Cheng possibly has a aneurysm, Jin ZiXuan is still the most awkward human alive, and Xue Yang makes me write some VERY cursed things. Written in chatfic format! :3

~*~

Chomrafy on AO3 deserves love and encouragement; she’s written a body of compact, poetic, and eloquent shortfics each of which can stand alone, but that comprise an intricately cross-referential and mostly internally-consistent universe. They’re grouped as chapters in works according to theme; for example, “in cupped hands” focuses upon Jin Ling and his second-generation baggage; “Departure in Autumn” portrays the last years of WWX’s first life. Follow the tag “Chomrafy’s MDZS shortfics.” [I don’t see this tag?]

in cupped hands

by chomrafy (G, 2k, wangxian)

Summary: Of secrets, of futures, of love. A Jin Ling-centric collection of 200-word fics.

Ch.1: Jin Ling repays a debt (JL, JC, & WWX). Ch.2: Jin Ling and a ghost in the mirror. (JL & JYL) Ch.3: A matter of friends (JL & the other kids) Ch.4: In this house we don't keep dogs (JC & WWX) Ch.5: In the end, he remains silent (JL & uncles) Ch.6: A first night hunt, of sorts (JL & the other kids) Ch.7: Jin Ling, forgiving, forgetting (JL & LXC & JGY) Ch.8: Jiang Cheng and Jin Ling argue (JL, JC, & WWX) Ch.9: Jin Ling and his father (JL & JC) Ch.10: Jin Ling speaks up (JL, JC, & WWX) Ch.11: Jin Ling and a piece of home (JL, JC, & WWX)

Departure in Autumn

by chomrafy (not rated, 6k)

Summary: Four perspectives. A steady march to the end.

Ch.1: Because if anything happens to them, Wen Qing would never be able to heal with these hands again. Ch.2: As long as this is still home, Jiang Yanli will wait as long as she needs to. Ch.3: Five times Jiang Cheng reaches for Wei Wuxian, one time he turns away. Ch.4: Whether the road is broad or narrow, bright or dark, they would have to keep walking. Wei Wuxian digs Wen Qing's grave.

~*~

Hello, hope all is going well. I don't have an ask, by I do have a recommendation. I read this fic a while ago and found it again. I just wanted to recommend this for everyone. Let me know what you think please. Thank you. [Oh! This one’s in my To Read list, but I’d forgotten about it. Mmmm, fox!wwx and dragon!lwj.]

Ten miles of Lotus Flowers

by Yukirin_Snow

M, 274k, wangxian

Summary: He was a mischievous fox spirit, wreaking havoc where he went, about to depart on a journey that would span centuries.

He was a heavenly prince, a proud dragon destined to ascend the throne to become emperor.

Neither expected their paths to collide over the span of three lives.

~*~

I forgot if it was your blog 😥 that recommended “Bestseller” (when Wei Wuxian writes the Xianxia cut-sleeve equivalent of Fifty Shades of Grey, based entirely on his experiences with Lan Wangji, he doesn’t expect it to become the next big hit) (https://archiveofourown.org/works/21528316/chapters/51318766)

But OMG IT WAS HILARIOUS!!! I LOVED IT!! And if it wasn’t your blog, I’m so sorry for how weird this sounds 😭😭😭😭 I just loved this fic so much that I have to tell it to someone 😢 [It’s on my List, but I haven’t read it yet!]

Bestseller

by pupeez4eva

M, 8k, wangxian

Summary: He had written the book to prove a point. It was never supposed to be a big thing, and he certainly never intended for everyone — Jiang Cheng, Zewu-Jun, the Juniors, literally everyone— to be reading about his sex life.

Oh God, he definitely needed to make sure Lan Zhan didn’t find out about this.

(Or, when Wei Wuxian writes the Xianxia cut-sleeve equivalent of Fifty Shades of Grey, based entirely on his experiences with Lan Wangji, he doesn’t expect it to become the next big hit).

~*~

I’d like to rec On Your Marks, Get Set, Bake! by @blackwiresgrowonherhead

It’s one of my absolute favorites and I laughed out loud so many times when reading it

on your marks, get set, bake!

by BlackWiresOnHerHead

G, 41k, wei wuxian & juniors

Summary: Jin Ling resumes thumping on the door to room 721, and the small collection of freshmen starts chanting “Senior Wei! Senior Wei! Senior Wei!” with increasing volume until finally Wei Wuxian opens the door.

“Yes?” he says with his widest, most innocent eyes.

“Senior Wei!” demands Lan Jingyi, shoving himself to the front of the group. “Why didn’t you tell us you’re a contestant on this year’s season of The Great Gusu Bake Off?!?”

Several months ago, college student Wei Wuxian secretly competed in the most popular reality show in the country. The show starts airing in the fall. The freshmen in his dorm collectively lose their minds.

~*~

If you're in the mood for v. short ridiculous fun fic, may I suggest My chain hits my chest/When I'm bangin' on the radio by x_los It's 2k modern cultivators AU, featuring WWX calling LWJ's sword Bitchin' [omg I’m laughing so hard] and I think it's more fun going in blind?

My chain hits my chest/When I'm bangin' on the radio

by x_los

T, 2k, wangxian

Summary: Lan Wangji finds he doesn't even need to call for help for Wei Wuxian to come running.

#follower rec #wangxian fic rec #I HAVEN'T READ THESE YET #wangxian #mdzs

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whatdoesshedotothem · 4 years ago

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Thursday 28 November 1839

8 ¾

2 ¼

fine morning F66° at 9 55/.. on my bedroom table – breakfast over at 11 at which hour R +1° = F34° - then reading Russian grammar 20 minutes out at 11, and walked (4 turns) 1 ½ hour and home about 1 5/.. – dressed – Mr. Fischer came at 1 20/.. nearly 10 minutes before I was ready, so that A- and he were tête-à-tête – he civilly (before he himself had read them) brought us the catalogue, Reports and proceedings he had just received from the zoological society of London – and staid till after 2 (about 2 10/.. or 2 ¼) – promised to dine with them on Sunday next at 4pm – very civil – asked him about Kasan, etc. – the greatest cold is generally the end of December and beginning of January but this year is so extraordinary one cannot calculate how it will be – i.e. it is so mild now – the ‘’Reports of the council and auditors of the zoological society of London read the annual general meeting, April 29, 1839. London printed by Richard and John E. Taylor Red Lion court, Fleet street, 1839’ – at pp. 6 and 7 mentions the total no. [numero] of corresponding members = 126 – mentions the Death of Frederic Cuvier born at Montbelliard [Montbéliard] in Alsace in 1773 – always when applied to, gave valuable information ‘and his last and one of his most valuable contributions to Mammology graces the pages of our Transactions’ – Imperishable evidences of his depth of [observation] and acuteness of discrimination in forming new species – are found in the great ‘Histoire des mammifères’ and in several monographies of which the ‘memoir on the Jerboas and Gerbilles’ merits especial notice. His elaborate and comprehensive work. ‘Sur les Dentes de

mammifères considérées comme caractères Zoologiques’ – is less characterized by the novelty and originality of the views and observations which it contains than by the vast no. and useful arrangement of the facts, and their accurate iconographical illustrations : it is essential to the student of mammology, and has already taken its station as a classical work in Zoological Literature’........... ‘But the most original and pleasing productions’ of his pen are the ‘memoires on the Instincts and Habits of animal published in the ‘Annales du muséum d’Histoire naturelle’ they are replete with facts and reflections of great novelty and interest, and are highly characteristic of the peculiar modes of thought and tone of mind of their accomplished author’............. p. 8 It was in the course of one of his tours of inspection, that he was attacked at Strasburg with paralysis; and he died of the same malady and at the same age as his illustrious brother’ p. 12 collection in the museum of mammalian = 1288 specimens;

of which 760 an examples of specimens of these a classified catalogue is printed

total no. of birds exhibited = 5230: 3,000 specimens are named

ditto ditto reptiles = 1000 specimens

ditto ditto fished 1070 are exhibited there are also 83 skeletons mounted

p. 14 the mumagerie at present contains

Quadrupeds 3030

Birds 592

Reptiles 38

933

no books bought in 1839 but those already in course of publication

p. 15 Mm Cuvier and Valenciennes’ Fisher

p. 16 Guerins’ magazine

annales des sciences naturelles

Suites à Buffon

Journal of the Asiatic society of Bengal 1829-1838.

magazine of zoology and botany

Philosophical magazine.

p. 16 Since the last anniversary, has been published Part 3, vol. ii. of the Transactions the Proceedings for 1837 have been completed and issued; and it is hoped that the proceedings for 1838 will be ready for delivery in a fortnight from this time.

p. 22 Funded capital = £11,291.12.7 exclusive of £200 exchequer bills they have petitioned government to reduce the garden-rent = £740 per annum paid to the crown – the expense (see the balance sheets) seem about £14,000 + per annum

vid. ‘A list of the fellows and honorary, foreign, and corresponding members..........’ at the beginning ‘subscription and all other communications are received at no. 28 Leicester square’ admission £5 + £3 per annum payable in advance 1 January if elected after 30 September not liable to pay subscription for that year –

Annual subscription may be compounded for on the usual terms of 10 years purchase or including admission fee £25.

gardens open from 8am to sunset and museum from 10, to 6.

SH:7/ML/E/23/0137

had just written so far and looked over the pamphlets cited now at 3 55/.. hardly light to see to read, except close to the window – dressed – dinner at 5 20/.. to 6 – spare moments before dinner and during dressing read Russian grammar – Foreign members of the London Zoological society = 23

Audoin Victor, Paris.

Blumenbach, J.F. Göttingen.

Cooper, William New York.

De Blainville, Professor Zoology Paris.

De Humboldt., Baron. Berlin.

Desmarest, Anselmo G. Paris

Drapiez. Brussles

Dumeril. Paris

Ehrenberg, Christian Gottfred. Berlin.

Fischer, Gotthelf. Moscow.

Lesson, R.P. Paris.

Lichtenstein, Henry. Berlin.

Majendie, F. Paris.

Musignano, Prince of. Rome.

Ord, George. Philadelphia

Reinwardt, C.G.C. Leyden

Rüppell, Dr. Edward Frankfort on the Maine.

St. Hilarie, Geoffroy. Paris

Savi, P. Pisa

Savigny. Paris

Temminck. C.G. Leyden.

Tiedemann, Frederick Heidelberg

Valenciennes, A. Paris

i.e. 9 Paris

3 Berlin

2 Leyden

1 Brussels

1 Göttingen

1 Heidelberg

1 Frankfort on the Maine

1 Moscow

1 New York

1 Philadelphia

1 Pisa

1 Rome

then reading over the different continuations of the Transactions etc. till now 6 35/.. – then dawdling – expecting count Panin to go with us to the theatre – had given him up, and we were just setting off to the Ourousoffs’ when he arrived at 7 20/.. – the piece began at 7 – arrived at the grand theatre about 7 ¾ - the 1st act over – the nymphe of the Danube – large, very handsome house and pretty full – the orchestra good – 3 double rows of performers = I should guess about 24x3 = 72 – the pit divided as in Paris the part under the front boxes being not quite so large as the other – 5 tiers of seats exclusive of the bottom rez de chaussée tier – no private boxes as in London and Paris, but

went to the grand theatre

divided off as in common theatres .:. all equally exposed to view – scenery very good – and very fair dancing – a Mademoiselle Sancouski or San...... something a pretty enough little person of 20+ danced graciously and well, and the [?] of the principal male performer good – the principal male dancer very fair – the ballet very well got up – our friend the husband of our opponent at whist last night came and sat with us perhaps 10 minutes very civil – Mr.............. I did not catch his name – perceiving at 9 50/.. that the piece was just over, we came away – home at 10 – Rather rainy night going and returning – count P- is 2 verschoks taller than the emperor (16 verschoks = 1 archine) and Pierre le grand was 1 ½ verschoks taller than count P- then had Grotza – then tea till 11 ¼ - then till 12 20/.. reading the St. James’s chronichle of Thursday 19 to Saturday 21 September and then read the 1st page of the same from 21 to 24 September vid. p. bottom of col. 5 – Mr. Ceely surgeon, of Aylesbury, has demonstrated that small pox and cow-pox have the same origin, the latter being small pox communicated to the cow – Mr. Ceely innoculated [inoculated] cows with small pox matter – the vesicle produced was the vaccine pock – children were innoculated [inoculated] with the matter thus produced ‘the result was, a fine, genuine vaccine vesicle – the children were afterwards innoculated [inoculated] with small pox matter, and found to be protected from the disease – this new matter, truly variola vaccine, has been employed with perfect success at Bristol – It is now only necessary to innoculate [inoculate] cows with small pox matter – vid. Bristol Journal

now at 1 5/.. had just read thro’ the paper from Saturday 21 to Tuesday 22 September 1839. fine day, but damp and rainy evening (vid. line 7 of this p.) F68° on my table in the salon now at 1 5/.. and R +2 ½° = about F37° outside – then till 1 25/.. read thro’ the paper from Tuesday 24 to Thursday 28 September 1839. this being the last of the 3 papers sent to us by Mr. Camidge yesterday – Fischer (speaking of diamonds this morning) said good of 1 carat = 60/. which [?] on increased in value four-fold per carat .:. of one carat = 60/. of two carats = 60x4 = 240, of three carats = 240x4=960 and so on – when F- wants precious stone he buys them of............... a German bijoutier, near the great theatre – one should always buy diamonds by weight -

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translations-by-aiimee · 4 years ago

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Dig a Grave to Dig Out a Ghost - Chapter 17

Original Title: 挖坟挖出鬼

Genres: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 17 - Provocative

All the lights in the auditorium dimmed, and the large powerpoint projection on the screen let out a bright glow. If audience had been excited about Tang Yin's painting, then they were ecstatic with the next item, or maybe they were just in shock. The image on the screen was a Song Dynasty Ge-ware bamboo incense burner. The whole piece was coated in a light green glaze. The iconic Ge-ware-style sharp cracks and dark lines stretched over the body of the burner. Its slim shape was truly elegant.

PSP guy's eyes subconsciously lit up, and his slumped posture suddenly straightened. This was a very pricey item. If it was genuine, a seven-figure auction price would be a generous estimate.

Lin Yan couldn't help getting excited, but Xiao Yu seemed completely uninterested. He put his fingers on the top of his back and snuck them underneath his collar. He stroked his collarbone with cold fingertips and leaned over and hugged him. He kissed the side of his face unscrupulously. Lin Yan couldn't pull his hand away. He felt so anxious and angry, quietly thinking about what the two thousand people in the audience would think. He begged that no one in the audience could see the ghost behind him. If anyone could see him. . . even jumping into the Yellow River couldn't wash off his shame.

He wasn't sure why, but the intimacy of this clingy ghost happening now wasn't as disgusting as it was when the events started. Lin Yan blushed. He knew that this ghost’s temper, and that whenever he resisted, the torment would never end. However, the constant comfort could always calm him down. As the saying goes, "Whosoever understands current events is a great man." Lin Yan grabbed Xiao Yu's hand and tugged gently.

The cold hand touched his face, then dropped back to his shoulder and squeezed it lightly.

Professor File Folder pushed up his glasses. He took out a safe from under the desk, twisted the combination lock, and took out the bamboo incense burner that was in the photo with both hands and placed it on the mahogany desk frame. A white spotlight shone down on it, and you could hear a pin drop in the auditorium. The silence audience cast their gaze onto the piece on the desk. The fine light green porcelain was covered in sharp cracks, and the shape of it was simple but not amateur. The white light covered all corners of the burner, giving the eye-catching piece a frosty aura.

This was the charm of antiques. Life goes on. Time passes. The people have long since died but the artifacts will forever remain. They are passed down through generations of people with money holding strong and unmoved throughout the years.

This was definitely the final piece, Lin Yan thought. The professor motioned him and the PSP guy to come up and take a closer look. Lin Yan tilted the incense burner and looked closely at the bottom. Experts look at porcelain and examine the exposed portions before estimating its age. If there wasn't any issues, then the authenticity of the piece could be determined almost immediately. However, when the precious incense burner was turned over, Lin Yan couldn't help but let out a gasp. PSP guy was also taken aback. After pondering, his expression eventually revealed what he was thinking.

PSP guy's reaction convinced Lin Yan that today was definitely going to be a tie. Just as he was about to put the incense burner back, the glazed pattern suddenly caught his attention. Something seemed off, Lin Yan hesitated. He picked up the incense burner to check it again and frowned.

"Why are you so slow every time? Do you need someone to do it for you?" After the PSP man finished writing the answer, he took out a stick of gum and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing indifferently while looking at Lin Yan.

Lin Yan didn't bother paying attention to him. He was able to determine the age at a glance, and there was no problem with the glaze color and the crack patterns. This thing was almost a perfect fake of Song Dynasty Ge-ware. . . But it was being handled by the professor personally. . . It was almost impossible to make a guess.

"... What do you think?" Lin Yan asked for Xiao Yu's opinion softly. Xiao Yu didn't say anything, but the expression in his eyes seemed encouraging. He wasn't sure why, but being watched by those eyes, Lin Yan suddenly had a little bit of confidence in his guess and even changed what he was originally going to answer. Xiao Yu held his wrist and nodded very lightly.

So be it, Lin Yan thought.

"Students, please reveal your answers." The red jacket skirt girl announced.

The two whiteboards turned around at the same time. Each had the same answer again: fake.

Professor File Folder nodded approvingly, and said: "It looks like we have a playoff today. Both are correct. This is indeed a fake." He turned to face the PSP guy. "I won't explain it this time. Instead, this classmate will explain."

The PSP man took the mic, and the sound of chewing gum echoed through the loudspeaker. Lin Yan cringed. PSP guy didn't care at all, and said casually, "In the Ming Dynasty Chenghua period, there were lots of imitations of Song Dynasty kiln porcelains. It's in good condition and valued at 3 to 5 million yuan."

Lin Yan's brow furrowed even more.

Professor Folder was very satisfied. He doesn't even care about the bs that the PSP guy just spewed. He nodded and smiled: "That's right, these students can make these conclusions in such a short amount of time. They have good eyes. They both have a future in this field."

After speaking, he clapped his hands together, turned to the audience and said with vigour: "This is indeed not a Song Ge-ware incense burner, but a Ming imitation. There are very few imitations of Ge-ware works made during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty left. This is only a representation of the Palace Museum, which has extremely high historical value. It's said that this school has excellent students. I didn't believe it before I saw it today. It was worth the trip, haha, definitely worth it."

"I have decided to make a special case for these two, and give each of them a prize."

Lin Yan looked at Xiao Yu hesitantly. The latter pushed his shoulders forward, as if urging him on. Lin Yan gritted his teeth, turned his head and said to the PSP man: "No, you're wrong."

The sound of chewing gum suddenly stopped, and the PSP guy stared at him. "Excuse me?"

Lin Yan took mic from the host and stuttered: "This-this is indeed an imitation, no one is arguing that, but it's modern. Even with the exquisite craftsmanship, it probably wouldn't sell for more than a 200 yuan decoration piece."

As soon as he fell silent, the audience was in an uproar, and some even leaned on the back of the chairs in front of them as if they were ashamed. The PSP guy snorted to express his disdain, and squinted at Lin Yan. "You're kidding, right? You can't see the obvious Ming Chenghua Ge-ware piece. I've been studying this for so many years." After that, he switched off his PSP and curled his lips: "It's time to go back class and educate yourself."

If it weren’t for Lin Yan’s calm composure, he would've rushed over and punched him. His anger of being humiliated in public made him clench his fists, but Xiao Yu must've known what he was thinking and held his shoulders with both hands to prevent him from acting on it.

There was a sneer across the auditorium. Someone called out for him to get off the stage. Lin Yan's heartbeat quickened. The building energy of the audience made him a little panicked. He looked at Professor File Folder like he wanted confirmation.

File Folder was embarrassed. To be honest, he personally identified this bamboo incense burner before it went into the Palace Museum exhibit. There was no debate about its authenticity. The purpose of bringing it to these events was not to re-appraise it, but only to serve as a typical example to teach students about the identification and collection of Ming imitations.

"It seems that this classmate is not very good at porcelain appreciation. Let me explain. When judging the age of porcelain artifacts, we must first look at the appearance of its base. This one has obvious characteristics of Ming Ge-ware, but it's an imitation of Song porcelain. Such things are called antiques in modern times, but at the time they were made, they were fakes. . ." File Folder gestured at Lin Yan that he could leave the stage. The corner of his mouth lifted, showing why young people should really take care of their skin.

Lin Yan was at a loss. He squeezed the armrest of the chair. He was so overwhelmed by File Folder's reputation as a leading porcelain expert that he didn't dare speak up. In all fairness, he didn't belong with a group of talented professionals. This time, he just happened to see a small contradiction and blatantly tried to argue with an expert. Lin Yan glanced at the darkened audience under the stage, and his stomach rolled.

A chill covered the back of his hand, another hand wrapping around his own. Xiao Yu stood beside him and tilted his head to look at him. There was no aggression, his eyes calm and serious. As if there was a steady stream of energy coming from the cold palms, Lin Yan felt funny. There were more than 2,000 pairs of eyes, yet only one ghost could see the truth. There were more than 2,000 living people, yet only one ghost was willing to listen to what he had to say. Xiao Yu's lips touched Lin Yan's cheek very lightly, motioning him to look at the incense burner in the center of the stage, and gently shook his head.

Under the dazzling spotlight, the fine porcelain's green glaze sparkled, and the cracked patterns were delicate and elegant. It was really beautiful. Lin Yan thought: The imitation was preserved because of its beauty, but the reality was left in the dark because of its cruel truth, turning into a coffin with decomposing bones.

"Go." Xiao Yu pressed his knees and said with great effort, ". . . Trust me."

Lin Yan took a deep breath, looked at Xiao Yu and nodded.

There was really only one way he could prove that this was really a modern fake. He walked around behind the square table and strode towards the piece on the stage. Before anyone had a chance to react, Lin Yan picked up the incense burner and smashed it on the ground without a second thought. There was a crisp sound. The million-dollar-priced treasure was broken into dozens of pieces and scattered on the ground. The PSP guy was stunned. The professor couldn't form a coherent sentence. The jeers from the audience stopped and the whole auditorium was silent.

Youth could be wild and energetic, but also incredibly stupid. Lin Yan stood stubbornly amidst the broken porcelain. Professor File Folder suddenly lost his composure. He leapt over and shoved Lin Yan's shoulder, his mouth opening and closing, unsure of what words to even say. The commotion from the audience grew louder and louder, as if being fueled by a storm.

Lin Yan broke away from the professor. He squatted down and picked up one of the shards off the floor, selecting a piece of the base of the incense burner. He pointed out the incline of the fracture, stuffed the shard into the professor's hands, and said softly but clearly: "It's a modern fake. It's a shame to put it in the Palace Museum."

File Folder let out a distressed noise, his face flushed. Anyone who really loves antiques knows that compared to the high price of an antique, the historical value it carries was a truly priceless treasure. Everyone was waiting to see the professor lose his mind. However, even though he was furious, he suddenly raised his head and looked at Lin Yan in disbelief, and then stared at the broken porcelain piece. His stubby fingers rubbed the porcelain piece back and forth. He trembled: " How. . . how could you tell?"

The professor spoke very quietly, but the mic on his collar picked it up, and the sentence echoed across the auditorium.

Hearing this question, PSP guy also picked up a piece of debris from the ground and looked at it over. When he raised his head again, the expression on his face looked like he had just eaten shit.

"Uh. . ." There were several things he wanted to say but they were all caught in his throat. Lin Yan has this problem. No matter what the situation, he never has any trouble when he speaks to a friend, but when he is alone in a large group arguing with others, he often freezes up because he lacked self-confidence.

Xiao Yu held Lin Yan, fingers tightly interlocked with his, standing side by side. His whole body was also cold like a piece of porcelain. After a while, he slowly calmed down, and cold lips gently tapped the side of Lin Yan's mouth.

He. . . was on his side. This thought made Lin Yan relax a little. After taking a few deep breaths to straighten out his thoughts, he explained: "Because of the temperature of the kiln, no matter how accurate the imitation of Ming Ge-ware porcelain is, there is still a slight difference in the direction of the cracks in the glaze of Ge-ware porcelain. The glazed surface of this incense burner has the characteristics of the Song Dynasty, but the exposed base has the characteristics of the Ming Dynasty. There is only one possibility for two eras of craftsmanship to appear on one piece; that is, contemporary counterfeit.” After finishing speaking, he added: “These kinds of frauds only started appearing within the past two years. I. . . I also took a gamble. I didn't think I'd be right."

The professor stared at him blankly, and hissed through his teeth: "You. . . you took a gamble? What if you were wrong? What if you made a mistake!" He tapped his feet twice, and finally gave up. He slapped the surface of the desk and said in a deep voice to the audience: "The students here are truly amazing."

After thirty seconds of silence, the audience burst into thunderous applause.

Lin Yan scratched his hair. He looked at Xiao Yu embarrassedly, and said softly, "We won."

He swore that this was the first time in his life that he has seen this ghost showing the expression of an ordinary person, looking very proud. Xiao Yu gently hugged him from behind, his long hair rubbing against his face. Lin Yan didn't avoid it. He was a little grateful for this ghost, even a little dependent on him. His palms were soaked in a cold sweat. Lin Yan gave Xiao Yu a sideways glance and rubbed his wet palms on his clothes.

Professor File Folder took a sip of water. He took out a pen and memo from his book bag, and looked at Lin Yan with interest: "Classmate, what's your name? Come to me when the lecture is over and I'll engrave it for you."

Lin Yan took two steps towards the professor and decided on what he wanted engraved.

"Xiao Yu. "Xiao" written as the character for "dejected", "Yu" written as the character for "sweet smelling"." Lin Yan explained. . .

The professor's smile dropped immediately, and his face changed in an instant.

#dig a grave to dig out a ghost #dig a grave to dig out a ghost translation #chinese bl #chinese novel #danmei #danmei novel #yaoi novel #yaoi #english translation

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jcmarchi · 2 years ago

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When it comes to training AI models, bigger datasets may not always be better - Technology Org

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/when-it-comes-to-training-ai-models-bigger-datasets-may-not-always-be-better-technology-org/

When it comes to training AI models, bigger datasets may not always be better - Technology Org

Their findings, recently published in Nature Communications, stemmed from efforts to navigate a key challenge in the field: the enormous potential search space. For example, the Open Catalyst Project contains more than 200 million data points for potential catalyst materials – which still only covers a tiny portion of the vast chemical space that could, for example, yield the right catalyst to help us address climate change.

“AI models can help us efficiently search this space and narrow our choices down to those families of materials that will be most promising,” says Hattrick-Simpers.

“Imagine if you wanted to build a model to predict students’ final grades based on previous test scores,” says Kangming Li, a postdoctoral researcher in Hattrick-Simpers’ lab.

One possible solution is to identify subsets of data from within very large datasets that are easier to process, but which nevertheless retain the full range of information and diversity present in the original.

“Conversely, when trying to predict the properties of a material that was outside the domain of the dataset, both of them did similarly poorly.”

“Our results also reveal a concerning degree of redundancy hidden within these highly sought-after large datasets,” Li adds.

The study underscores what AI experts from many fields are now discovering: that even models trained on relatively small datasets can perform well if the data is of high enough quality.

“All this grew out of the fact that in terms of using AI to speed up materials discovery, we’re just getting started,” says Hattrick-Simpers.

“We need to pay attention to the information richness, rather than just gathering as much data as we can.”

Source: University of Toronto

You can offer your link to a page which is relevant to the topic of this post.

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orlissa · 5 years ago

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Since @agenthaywood and I talked about this the other day, and since apparently I’m a bit of an insomniac, here it comes: a little intro to the Hungarian educational system. Because it’s a mess.

First of all, we need to talk about two things: classes and the matura.

Unlike (as far as I understand) the US, where you have kinship with the people you were in the same year with, in Hungary, you have kinship with the people you belonged to the same class with. Classes are teams, closed entities. It’s 20-odd (elementary school) to thirty-odd (high school) people, who have most of their classes together, except for specializations. So everyone in the class has basically the same schedule for the whole duration of elementary/high school. They take school trips together. They often compete as a team against other classes in their year.

And then the matura--the matura is the national, centralized exam that marks the end of high school. Each student has to take it in at least five subjects: Hungarian Literature & Grammar, Math, History, one foreign language, and one freely chosen subject (back when I did this, it could be anything. Now I think it must be some science subject). You can take each of those on two levels: “middle” or “advanced.” The middle levels happen in your own school, overssen by your own teachers. The advanced levels happen in unfamiliar schools (one appointed for each subject in each district), and you’re never examined by your own teachers. Advanced levels are of course harder, but the percentages for each grade are also lower. As far as I know, you have to take at least one advanced level matura. They happen in two rounds: the written round starting in early May (Lit & Grammar on Monday, Math on Tuesday, History on Wednesday, English/German on Thursday of the first week, with all the other subjects following in the next two weeks or so), and then the oral round in mid-late June (the middle level orals happen throughout a 2-3 days period, a person doing all of their oral exams in one go). The outcome of your maturas, given in points, determine your college admissions (but, like, for example if you wanna go to med school, your elective subject needs to be Chemistry or Biology. If you wanna get into an English as a foreign language program, you have to take an advanced level English matura. Every year, there’s a huge book listing all the programs in all the universities in the country, where you can check what are the exact requirements for each program).

Personally, I took advanced level Lit & Grammar and English, middle level Math and History, and middle level Art/Art History. All the programs I applied for were in the field of humanities, all asking for Lit/English/History/whatever, so I really only did Art for “fun.” I got 98% on English, 95 or 96% on Art, 90-something% on History, 90% on Math, and 84% on Lit (for middle levels, A starts at 80%; for advanced levels, it starts at 60%), which meant that after some complicated math, my overall score was, I think, 468 out of 500. That year you had to have 422 points to get into my first choice

Okay, so, yeah XD I told you it was complicated XD

Anyway, the actual educational ladder: kids go to elementary school at 6/7 (back when I was in school, if you were born during the summer, so you didn’t turn six by the time the school year ended, your parents could decided to keep you in kindergarden for one more year. Now I think if the kid turns 6 by the time the school year starts in september, he or she is required to start school), and it consists of grades 1-8, which is divided into two parts: junior (grades 1-4), where all the classes are held in the same classroom, taught by the same teacher, and senior (grades 5-8) part, where the students migrate between classrooms, and each subject is taught by a different teacher. BUT the class itself remains an entitiy--you attend grade 4 and grade 5 classes with the same people.

Then comes high school. High school application works pretty much like college application: 8 graders take a centralized, national-wide test on Math and Literature in January, and their scores there, plus their previous grades determine which high school they have applied to will take them. But, like... even this system is not as clear cut as it might seem at the first glance :D for example, I didn’t take the centralized test. My first choice of high school (where I eventually went) was out of town/district, and it was a special program that required its own entrance exams. My other choices were withing my district, but the december before I started high school I came second out of 200+ at an IT studies competition, which meant that I had “admission exam amnesty” or whatever. Basically all the high schools within the district were obliged to accept me on merit if I applied to them.

Okay, so elementary school finished, you go to high school--but not necesarrily the one that is the closest to your home. Instead, as stated above, you apply to different high schools, based on which one is the best/strongest/closest to your personal level. So, basically, C students will mostly end up in one class with other C students, B students with other B students, A students with other A students... You get the picture.

High school generally lasts 4 years, however, there are other programs as well. There are 8 and 6 year long programs--they have their own admission exams, and they start after grade 4 or 6. These are usually good schools, often require tuition fees and focus on foreign languages. Meanwhile, 5 years long programs start after grade 8, and have a “0th” grade which focuses on a foreign language (I went to a program like that--I had 9 English classes a week in the first year).

For example, my high school had 4 class in each year: Class A and B were 6 years long programs, A focusing on languages and B on Math, class C was a 4 years long program (general curriculum), and Class D was 5 years long (special government-funded program for gifted kids from difficult backgrounds.)

Also, there are different kinds of high schools. What I wrote above applies to what we call “gimnázium”--gimnázium teaches no vocation, and instead focuses on readying people for university. You are basically expected to go to university if you go to a gimnázium. Then, as per as current terminology, there are szakgimnáziums: they also ready you for university, and they end with the matura exams, but they also focus on a specific (usually white collar, such as accounting, healthcare, electric engineering, etc.) vocation. People who go to a szakgimnázium have to take a matura in their chosen vocation. And then there are szakközépiskolas: in a szakközépiskola, students study a specific (usually blue collar) vocation, and take an exam on that vocation after three years of study. Szakközépiskola do not end with the matura exams--if you wanna take the maturas, you have to stay for two extra years.

So, yeah... I told you it’s complicated :D

#hungary #personal #education

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lightoftruth · 4 years ago

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FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. — Late last month, Suparna Dutta’s son, a student at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, started sending his mother distressing videos from a mandatory lesson straight out of controversial critical race theory — all in the name of “socio-emotional learning.”

The lesson centered a Netflix film, “13th,” with controversial activist and Communist Party member Angela Davis and a biased narrative about policing in the United States. While all discrimination must be eliminated in policing, the film has this odd takeaway: “Criminals are constitutionally deprived of freedom.”

Also unsettling, the PowerPoint slides had the distinct bright yellow three stripes that are the official brand of Black Lives Matter, the multimillion-dollar global enterprise. The slides included a key BLM mantra, “Racism as a structure,” with the menacing oversized finger of a white man over a cowering young black man.

For about 36 minutes, teachers lectured the students—who are about 70 percent Asian, 10 percent black, Hispanic, and multiracial, and 20 percent white—about the critical race theory concept of “intersectionality” and called out the mostly minority students of color for their alleged “racism,” stating without any evidence: “At T.J., the lack of diversity and informed students has perpetuated microaggressions and casual racism.”

In a videotaped message accompanying the lesson, Anant Das, an alumnus from the local activist TJ Alumni Action Group, scolded the students for salsa dancing at an international night celebration, which he called cultural “appropriation.” Teachers also led a bizarre discussion on “what stereotypes might you have about your own culture.” They pushed activism, stating: “Ways to address racism can include being upfront and vocal or pushing for social change through your own actions.”

The “Extra Resources” included a reference to “Black Lives Matter,” with a link to the official website for the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation.

The “Black Lives Matter” link in the slide takes students straight to BlackLivesMatter.com, with snappy invitations: “Join the Global Movement” and a sign up for “periodic text messages from Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation.” With just one click, T.J. students were directed to the political ambitions of the Black Lives Matter PAC, with its list of 2020 election endorsements, including specific politicians, including a specific school board member, Shayla Adams-Stafford, in nearby Prince George’s County, Md.

Enraged, parents, including me, questioned the school’s activist principal, Ann Bonitatibus. She wrote to the T.J. Parent Teacher Student Association president claiming, “There is no critical race theory training with students.” She deflected responsibility for the teaching, calling it “a project initiated and created by students for students.”

But 200-plus pages of internal school emails, disclosed in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, reveal that on Aug. 19, 2020, Bonitatibus sent the T.J. “Equity Team,” including two assistant principals, a message that she had met with student government leaders about a plan to show the “13th” documentary in summer 2021, along with a conversation on “anti-racism.” She wrote, “I shared with them that their idea doesn’t necessarily need to wait until next school year. There could be a way to think about their proposal or a variation of it for this year.”

Over the next seven months, the T.J. principal, two assistant principals, the director of student services, at least three teachers, several counselors, and a Fairfax County Public Schools “equity” officer directly edited, wrote, and reviewed all of the content for the lesson, masked as “socio-emotional learning.”

One set of stakeholders never consulted: parents. That’s why I helped start a new organization, Parents Defending Education, fighting indoctrination in K-12 schools, so we could file FOIA requests like the one I sent Fairfax County Public Schools, revealing the complicity of the principal, teachers, and staff in creating the ideological lesson that our students got.

Meanwhile, over the past school year, we faced a superintendent, school board, and principal leading a crusade to racially alter the school’s demographics, with the school district abandoning the school’s merit-based, race-blind test in December to gerrymander the admissions process so fewer Asians and more black and Hispanic students would make the cut to attend the advanced math and science school.

The stealth lesson underscores several serious issues vexing schools today and the future of America. It reveals how school officials circumvent parents as they move aggressively to indoctrinate students in K-12 schools from neighboring Loudoun County, Va., to California.

It also serves as a cautionary tale on how how important it is that parents assert three rights most districts promise to secure: the right to inspect curriculum, spelled out in Fairfax County, for example, under “Policies and Regulations 3002-3011,”; the right to opt-out students from certain teachings, including on topics “sensitive in nature”; and the right to have “controversial issues” discussed “impartially and objectively,” a point spelled out in Fairfax County under Regulation 3280.4.

Contradicting these promises, the “Extra Resources” in the lesson also included a link to the organization Showing Up for Racial Justice, which believes “none of us can be free until we end white supremacy.” It featured on the homepage a very problematic and reductionist page, “The Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture.”

This displayed “a list of characteristics of white supremacy culture,” including “perfectionism,” a “sense of urgency,” “defensiveness,” “worship of the written word” like memos, “either/or thinking,” “power hoarding,” “individualism,” “objectivity” and—finally, a very disturbing notion to present to K-12 students—“right to comfort.”

The final bullet point led to a shocking video, “On Solidarity with the Black Lives Matter Movement” by a first-generation Korean-American, Kaiti Yoo. She flashed the image of a Time magazine cover with smiling young students beside the headline, “Those Asian-American Whiz Kids,” as she waxed on about learning to “justify our existence through our work, our grades, our accomplishments.”

Yoo’s video laid out a central narrative of critical race theory ideologues like Ibram Kendi and 1619 Project lead Nikole Hannah-Jones, who argue blacks and Asians “don’t experience this country in the same way” because Asians didn’t come to the United States as slaves. It laid out the guilt trip thrust on Asians from critical race theory activists to support radical black goals as the only way to support “justice.” The same theme was present in T.J. lesson materials such as the slide below.

At 30 seconds, the film featured an image of the American flag with a sign in front of it that reads, “The American Dream is Over.” It’s a biased, problematic, and shame-based video for anyone pursuing the “American Dream” without blind support for the BLM movement. It’s wildly inappropriate, unhealthy, and potentially emotionally damaging to thrust on students at a mostly Asian school caught in a race war of the principal’s making.

The next “socio-emotional learning” blocks will be April 21, May 5, May 21, and June 2, according to staff. Back home, Dutta sent a dispatch to the principal. She had one remedy for the indoctrination: the principal’s immediate resignation. Her subject line: “Dereliction of duty.”

#stem

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365text · 5 years ago

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Hello! I’m a long time follower and I’ve recently been accepted to UC Berkeley as a transfer! I wanted to ask, what do you love about Berkeley? I’m trying to separate the prestige of going to THE UC from my personal feelings about the school. Getting the opinion of someone who has actually attended might be helpful. I appreciate anything you have to say!

hello !! omg “long time follower” what a CONCEPT that means you were probably here at least 4 years ago, considering i haven’t used this blog in the past 3 haha.

also, CONGRATULATIONS !! i’m so excited + happy for you ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ (and i’m laughing at “THE UC” because i forget that we are also called Cal for that reason haha). v understandable to try to get a vibe about the school to separate prestige from the actual experience — i’ll try my best to share what i love about berkeley, though ofc (obligatory disclaimer) every person ultimately has different experiences at the same college, so YMMV :’)

i’m actually making/editing a video about what i’ll miss about berkeley [updated!] that im aiming to post by the end of the week heh so i’ll share it here / update this ask perhaps with a link when im done!

but in the meantime! what do i love about berkeley under the cut heh

berkeley is in general known for their academics / research opportunities! depending on what you intend to major on, it can be a really great resource to strengthen your foundations in your intended field :’) i study computer science, and imo berkeley’s CS program is pretty good — we have some particularly amazing lower division teaching faculty, and also pretty solid access to some innovative / Big Things™ research labs + professors in the field as well. i think in general their STEM is p strong, and i think various majors within the humanities as well. i would just say do your research for your respective interest in that regard, since i think some majors (ie. cognitive science) are probably “better done” at other schools? example UCSD has an actual dept. dedicated to cogsci, whereas berkeley’s cogsci program is just kind of like a program rip

i’m also in the college of Letters & Science (L&S), and what i love about that is the flexibility you have for your major of choice! transferring to EECS is now impossible (?) iirc given I started in L&S, but i was still able to major in CS (after meeting the GPA cap) which is honestly virtually the same degree — you have the same CS requirements, just without some of the COE requirements (like physics or multivariable calculus, which is fine by me LOL). being in L&S also means you’re able to double/minor in L&S majors more easily (anywhere from history to art to english to stats to data science, etc.) without needing to worry about overlapping individual college requirements!

and one more thing about academics is that it’d probably be ideal if you could talk to someone who majors in the same thing you’re interested in, as i can only really speak to my personal experience as a CS major. the school is honestly really big, and experiences vary greatly within department to department! CS department is HUGE and our class sizes pretty much never dip below like 200-300, mostly averaging around 600-700 even in the upper division. but with smaller discussions, it usually doesn’t feel that bad. but i know that experience is v different for some other majors, where their upper division classes are like 20-30 people!

there’s also a bunch of student orgs / clubs, like a lot of schools i’m sure, that you can take part in! berkeley feels like a very self-driven school, in the sense that you can really feel students’ personal motivations, which drives the vibe that student orgs typically take on (in my experience).

i personally really like the city + campus! i like how berkeley feels like a ~ community ~ and almost a combination of a suburb / metropolitan area. you can find residential areas just by walking 20 minutes north of campus; you can go downtown / into oakland with similar travel time either on foot or by bus; you’re next to BART which gives you access to a bunch of bay area cities; and even tho the campus is an “open campus” which means anyone can come onto campus, it’s not integrated into the city as a school like NYU is — which means you still do get the campus vibe/feeling! also some areas of campus are absolutely beautiful, esp. during golden hour *chefs kiss* hehe.

we have a pretty decent selection of libraries to study in too HAHA.

i think food in berkeley is def not bad either! near campus won’t be like Top Notch food and it’s not super cheap, but you get a lot more options that a lot of colleges don’t have within like 5-10 min. proximity i believe. but i am not 100% certain about that ¯\ _(ツ)_/¯ but it’s p easy to find good grocery stores if you prefer to cook @ cal, and p easy to find some quick food options that aren’t bad if you’re busy either!

like all schools tho, there are plenty of pros and cons depending on what you prefer / are interested in / what kind of person you are! there are lot of things i could talk about, but i’m not sure what you’d like to hear / what would be relevant for you heh. if you have anything you’d like me to elaborate on / clarify, please do lmk!

at the end of the day, i think my personal belief is that a person’s college experience is largely shaped by their chosen community (re: people they choose to spend their time with), and if you find people that have the vibe you’re looking for in a college setting, i think it helps the overall experience a lot! sorry this is kinda rambling heh but congrats once again and GO BEARS LOL

#reply #uc berkeley #berkeley

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