#domestic water filter system

[maxprofiltration]

Domestic RO Water Purifier System Supplier

At Max Pro Filtration, we pride ourselves on being the go-to destination for domestic, commercial, and Domestic RO Water Purifier System Supplier region. With our commitment to quality, reliability, and customer satisfaction, we offer a comprehensive range of cutting-edge water purifiers tailored to meet the diverse needs of our clients.

[avajones5891]

Choosing The Best Domestic Water Filters for Your Home

How do you choose the best domestic water filters for your home? Explore essential factors to consider when selecting a water filtration system tailored to your needs. From filtration technology to maintenance requirements, learn how to ensure clean and safe drinking water for your household. Make informed decisions to safeguard your family's health. Read this blog for expert guidance on choosing domestic water filters.

[ikayblythe]

on the nature of void fluid . . .

We are back with another nerd post this time with speculative planetary science :0

Here, we have a cross section of the planet's crust. Ill go into more detail on each layer below ⬇️

The Surface

The "earth" in rain world was historically an ice world, with a weak sun and sheets of glaciers covering the surface. The only form of heat being from the earth itself. It doesn't take long to find large cave systems eroded by millenia of ice melt.

The erosion of the land from the great ice sheets created a jagged landscape of underground tunnels and pockets, shaped by the flow of the melting ice over time. The planet's crust is very hollow and thin thanks to this.

The Void Sea

As the water tunneled down into the earth, it collected in large underground pockets, kept as liquid by geothermal heat. These formed the planet's first true oceans, with life originating from communities around hydrothermal vents.

The Void Seas [yes, several!] are an ancient chemosynthetic ecosystem of extremophiles. The microbiome here has adapted to metabolize with as many different materials as available in this harsh environment, including inorganic substances, leading to the Void Sea's large appetite for the surface world and anything in it.

Of course, we know that microbes aren't the only denizens of the Void. The Void Worms are filter feeders supported by this microbial ecosystem! It may take tens of thousands of years for a Void Worm to reach the sizes seen—they don't stop growing.

Void Fluid Technology

As the Ancients expanded more and more into biotechnology, they discovered they could utilize many of the microbial cultures native to the Void Sea. Filtration facilities sought to isolate these species from one another, sorting for their individual uses and properties.

For example, iterators are the largest consumers of void fluid, using both domesticated and wild strains of microorganisms. The domesticated strains were repurposed into symbiotes to act as "cells," and so the blood of an iterator, or hemolymph, is a special mixture of these symbiotic void cultures.

And as living things, iterators do need to eat! In this case, nutrition comes from the underground bacterial soup. Yummy.

They have large-scale equivalents for almost every biological process, including digestion. The "stomachs" are vats of unrefined void fluid filled with symbiotic cultures that act as enzymes to prey upon native microbes and organic detritus. Or any unfortunate maintenance worker . . .

"Ascension"

The Void Sea is the origin of life, but also highly toxic to its children on the surface, eager to eat them alive. The activities of the microbiome as well as the output of the hydrothermal vents fill the caverns closest to the Seas with noxious fumes, causing hallucinations, delirium, and eventually death.

But ultimately, the Void Sea leaves no bodies. Whatever delusional creature makes it in, never returns. After all, those microorganisms evolved to consume whatever they could get.

[zazter-den]

Chronically Chill

Synopsis- Sometimes life gets in the way of holiday plans, but your boyfriends always know how to roll with the punches. A different kind of domestic bliss with Sero and Kaminari.

Reader Characteristics- Fem with severe cramps.

Warnings- Smoking MMJ, Shotgunning, Denki as a TENS unit.

Tags- Period Comfort, Cozy Fluff, Caretaker!Sero, Caretaker!Denki, Epileptic!Denki.

Word Count- 2000

Sero pushed the door of the apartment open with an almost silent creak, the dim light from the kitchen just barely outlining the home's furniture. He could feel the weight of the day's patrol heavy on his muscles, the kind of fatigue that only came from hours of swinging through the city and wrangling villains with his tape. His backpack hit the chair with a soft thud, followed by the soft clatter of his helmet.

Making his way to the shared bedroom, Sero pushed the door open quietly, not wanting to disturb anyone. To his surprise, Denki was still up. He was sitting up in bed, his electric blond hair slightly disheveled. His worried expression caught Sero's attention immediately. But it was the sight of you tossing and turning uncomfortably in Denki's arms, that caused a surge of concern to rush through his veins.

He let out a tired sigh as he stripped down to his boxers, crawling onto the bed on your other side. He leaned over to Denki, pressing his lips against his boyfriend's in a rough but loving kiss, ringed fingers tangling in the blond hair. “Hey, Denks, sorry I'm late” Sero whispered, his voice filled with concern. “How's she doing?”

Denki looked up at him exhausted. “Having a rough night” he murmured concerned. “Been thrashing for most of it.” He rubbed circles on your back.

“Been looking after our girl for awhile, huh? Good boy” Sero praised, his voice filled with tired affection. His fingers continued to stroke Denki's hair gently, a soothing gesture that he knew always helped to calm his partner. Sero had always admired Denki's empathetic nature, how he could feel the emotions of others so strongly. However, he wasn't a fan of how sometimes it was to his own detriment. Denki leaned into the touch, his eyes closing briefly as he let out a sigh.

Your eyes shot open with a cry as you jolted awake by an excruciating cramp that twisted your insides. Your fingers instinctively dug into Denki's lower back, seeking some form of relief from the pain that coursed through your body. Denki was too worried to notice your grip, and just held you closer. “I'm sorry, love…” you whimpered into his chest, realizing once the pain subsided that you had unintentionally dug red marks into his skin.

Denki's expression softened as he gently kissed your forehead. “It's alright, babe” he said as he continued to rub circles on your back, “Hey, I know just what you need. So- health or mana potion?”

You winced, body still contorted in pain. You had to wait a moment for it to pass, your breathing shaky and uneven. “Both” you whimpered finally, voice barely above a whisper. You needed all the relief you could get tonight.

“On it” Sero drawled in his typical nonchalant manner, pressing a gentle kiss on top of Denki's head followed by one on yours. He hopped off the bed, footsteps barely making a sound against the floor as he moved through the shared home.

In the living room, Sero quickly adjusted the air conditioner, setting it on a low temperature. He wanted to ensure that you and Denki wouldn't overheat if you needed the heating pad later. If there was one thing Sero hated after a long day, it was waking up sticky with sweat- and it sure wasn't going to make your night any easier either,

Moving to the kitchen, Sero opened the fridge door, the soft hum of the cooling system filling the air. He reached in and retrieved a spherical bubbler, its glass cool to the touch. He filled it with chilled water, the liquid cascading down and forming a thin layer of frost on the glass.

He turned his attention to the electric tea kettle, filling it with filtered water from the sink. The sound of rushing water filled the kitchen as he closed the fridge door with a quick motion of his elbow. Balancing the bubbler and the electric tea kettle, Sero carefully made his way back to the shared bedroom. He placed both items on the nightstand next to you, within easy reach.

Denki watched as you tried to move towards the nightstand. But before you could reach your destination, a painful cramp halted you in your tracks. “Whoa, easy there, girlie” he murmured softly, his voice filled with concern. He quickly shifted behind you, wrapping his arms around your abdomen and gently scooting you back between his legs.

The blond focused his quirk to create a soothing current that coursed through your stomach. As the gentle energy flowed, you let out a shaky sigh, pain slowly dulling. It wasn't a complete cure, but the relief was enough to take the edge off, to make the agony more bearable. “Ooh, I love you, Denks” With a grateful sigh, you relaxed against his chest, feeling the warmth he radiated seep into your body. His lips brushed against the side of your neck, the soft lingering kisses sending tingles down your spine.

“See- now you're gonna make me jealous” Sero teased as he placed a tea tray on the nightstand next to the kettle and the bubbler. The wooden tray held three elegant black and gold teacups, an array of different tea bags, and a small jar- everything you'd need for a night like this.

“Be useful, sparky” Sero teased playfully as he dangled the cord of the electric kettle in front of Denki's face. The electric hero snatched the cord between his teeth, his eyes narrowing in feigned annoyance at the jab.

“I was being useful” Denki mumbled around the cord, his words muffled but his the mock indignation in his tone was clear as day. He bit down, letting his quirk flow through the cord, his cheeks puffing out slightly as electricity crackled and buzzed between his lips. The kettle responded instantly, a soft whirring sound filling the room as the water inside began to heat up

Leaning back against Denki's firm chest, you couldn't help but smile at the playful banter between the two men who meant the world to you. You reached up to stroke the buzzing blond's cheek affectionately. “Don't listen to Hanta, love. He’s just riling you up to boil the water quicker” you chuckled.

You turned your gaze toward Sero, giving him a scolding look that was more endearing than intimidating. Denki, meanwhile, maintained his mock glare at him, the corners of his mouth twitching in a barely contained smirk. The kettle's water began to bubble a little quicker, responding to the surge of electricity from his quirk.

Hanta just laughed, his deep voice resonating through the room as he watched your bratty display. “You two are only cuter when you pout” he chuckled, grinding the medical cannabis from the jar.

You tried to remain comfortable, leaning against Denki's supportive body, his hands providing a soothing hum of electricity over your abdomen. Yet, the relentless wave of another cramp hit, wrenching another pained whimper from you as you instantly doubled over at the waist again. His arms tensed around you, trying to provide some comfort, but the pain was beyond intense. The kettle's chime signaled the water had reached its boiling point, and Denki promptly spat out the cord, his face twisted in distaste at the metallic tang that lingered in his mouth. Sero quickly filled the teacups, the steam rising in gentle spirals. Yours was filled with red raspberry leaf tea, a natural remedy for cramps. Meanwhile he sank constant comment into the cups for he and Denki.

With the teacups set aside to allow the tea to steep, Sero turned his attention to the chilled glass, holding it up to you. “Mana potion is up first” he teased, invoking the dorky inside joke- one of many that had become a cherished part of your relationship.

Sero lit the bubbler as you deeply inhaled the smoke carrying the promise of pain relief. Your lungs filled with the herbal remedy. A sense of calm began to spread through your body as the pain-relieving properties of the medical cannabis took effect, bringing a welcome break from the relentless cramps.

Denki's hands lingered over your stomach, his fingers delivering the faintest current, just enough to mimic the sensation of a TENS unit. Each kiss he planted on the nape of your neck and the curve of your shoulder was tinged with a tiny spark. The cannabis amplifying the sensation to a delightful tickle that coaxed giggles from you. You shimmied backwards closer into his embrace, the warmth of his chest providing comfort as the medicinal effects began to ease your pain.

“You too, Denks, don't want you to stress yourself into a seizure” Sero piped up, his concern clear despite the teasing undertone. You ducked down, as he brought the bubbler to Denki's lips. A silent offer of relief for the empathetic hero who had been fretting over your pain all night.

The blond took a deep inhale, but firmly pulled Sero forward, sharing the smoke with him in an instant. As the smoke passed between them, Denki's lips crashed against Sero's in a rough kiss, quirk sending a tingly static shock to Hanta's snakebite piercings. Sero's kiss grew more aggressive as he held onto the smoke, caught between the need to exhale and the desire to keep kissing his boyfriend.

Finally breaking the fiery kiss, Sero leaned back, his hands firmly planted on the mattress to support himself. A smug expression spread across his face, as a thin tendril of smoke escaped his lips into the air between them.

Your eyes followed him as he pulled back from the intense kiss with Denki. “Now I'M the one getting jealous” you teased, only to be interrupted by another wave of pain. Denki responded with tender nuzzles against your shoulder, trying to comfort you through the lingering pain. Sero turned his attention back to the steeped tea. “Here, beautiful, health potion” he said, offering the teacup filled with the raspberry leaf concoction with a wink. A perfect cup of tea for your situation.

Turning to Denki, Sero handed him his own cup of spiced tea, subtly telling him it was his turn to relax as well. “Thanks, I can still taste the brass from the plug” the blonde muttered, his face contorting into a grimace as he stuck his tongue out.

Denki settled back against the soft support of the headboard, the warmth from the spiced tea gently seeping into his tense muscles. His left hand remained protectively curled around your hip, maintaining the comforting electric touch over your stomach.

Sero held his own teacup steady, the amber liquid barely moving as he maneuvered his way into his designated spot next to you. With a gentle stretch of his arm, Sero placed your now-empty teacup onto the bedside table with a quiet clink. Slipping under the soft covers, he found his place next to you and Denki. The three of you finally settled into your usual sleeping arrangement.

With the pain finally subsiding, your voice broke the comfortable silence that had settled over the room. “I'm sorry, guys…. This wasn't how I wanted to spend Valentine's Day night with you” you confessed wearily. Sero wrapped his arms around you, pulling you closer to him. Denki, rested his head on the taller hero's shoulder, settling in closer for the night.

“Don't worry about it” Denki yawned with sleepy affection. “Any Valentine's Day I get to see you two is a good one” Sero chimed in, his words carrying the same sentiment. As the weight of the night's events began to lift, you felt your eyes grow heavy, the fatigue finally catching up. With a sense of peace, you drifted off to sleep, cradled between the two people you loved most in the world.

And, really, is there any better ending to Valentine's Day than that?

Author's Note: Struggled with describing the scene I saw in my head, sorry it didn't come out quite the way I wanted ^^; I just really like the comfortable rhythm that comes with being in a committed relationship for awhile.

Tags: @neon-gothicc @dcsiremc @bakubunny

[zukosdualdao]

i promise i'll do better (i will soften every edge)

zutara month, day 11: "mom and dad are fighting again", @zutaramonth

summary: kya interrupts an argument between katara and zuko.

warnings: reference to (implied) abuse/domestic violence, wrt to ozai's treatment of ursa.

other notes: lyrics from 'light' by sleeping at last. don't ask me how timelines work idk. yes there is a zutara daughter named kya here (separate entity from the lok kya.) she wears her hair in a southern water tribe braid and zuko calls her firecracker and it’s very cute. not really relevant but in this story i’m imagining she’s a nonbender.

“Katara, you know I agree with you.”

Across from him, she crosses her arms, and Zuko sighs. The throne room is empty, save for the two of them, and Zuko feels trapped, claustrophobic in the walls. They’ve made a point of opening up windows in the castle, letting light filter in, getting rid of old, haunting portraits, and making something new and beautiful together. 

But the throne room doesn’t have windows to open. On a day like today, at times like these, it’s all too easy to remember the staunchly severe figures both his grandfather and father made here, walling themselves as they did behind high, towering fires.

Maybe they shouldn’t be having this talk here. It's too late now, but something to note for the future.

“It doesn’t seem like it.”

“Of course I want to increase reparations soon,” he insists. “That’s the plan, and that’s always been the plan. But we have to be smart about this,” he tries to remind her. “We can’t do it all at once, or people will try to block—”

“Oh, so now you’re all about thinking things through! Those instincts could have served you well years ago, you know.”

Zuko closes his eyes and runs a hand through his hair. The words are biting, but it’s nothing he can’t handle. Things have been tense again in the Fire Nation lately. Better than ever before in some ways. Worse in others.

The first years after the war were a turbulent time in the Fire Nation—riots from those not happy with the changing of the old guard, strikes from workers contesting the need to pay reparations to the other nations, whispers of loyalists to the old regime plotting to get either Ozai or Azula back on the throne. A few assassination attempts, all handled efficiently but reason enough for concern.

Ten years past the end of the war, though, and things have started to stabilize. The plan has always been to increase reparations once the Fire Nation’s economy has improved, and Zuko intends to keep his word. But part of the system he’s trying to build means that there are representatives from all over the Fire Nation, as well as the other nations, and they each have their own agendas. It’s a tricky thing to navigate; he has to take all of their concerns seriously, of course, but also act according to his own principles. To live up to the promises he made years ago, and that he’ll continue to make for years to come.

Katara looks at him with a combative raise of her eyebrow.

It’s taken a strain on their relationship. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, they’re both a little too good at lashing out, both a little too good at saying the thing that will hurt, even if they immediately regret it.

But usually, by the end of the day if not before, they can remember they’re on the same side, for all that their perspectives might differ.

“Can we pause?” Zuko asks of her, and her features soften. “Just—try to hear each other out? Katara, I understand…” but before he can finish, the large door to the throne room creaks, and Zuko watches as one of the serving maids guides their daughter into the room.

“See?” Kya points to them, eyes wide with alarm and lip quivering. “Mom and Dad are fighting again.”

Something in Zuko’s stomach drops. He doesn’t want her to worry about this. About them. He’d had to worry about his parents, to worry about his mother, Ozai looming over her, and sometimes Zuko was pretty sure he saw fear in her eyes where there should have been love, and then—

She’d been gone. And he’d drawn his own conclusions, quietly and with little reason to question them.

“She coudn’t sleep,” Hina says apologetically, and Zuko only waves a hand. “She was asking for you both.”

“Thank you for bringing her.”

“Oh, sweetie, don’t worry,” Katara says, walking over and lifting Kya up onto her hip. “Things are just tense right now,” she says, with a guilty sideways look to Zuko, who smiles weakly. “It’s not anything for you to worry about.”

“Promise?”

Zuko walks over to join the huddle and places a kiss atop her dark hair, which is twisted in a braid. “Promise, little firecracker. Mom and Dad are just trying to figure out the right way to handle something.” He meets Katara’s eyes and tries to impress the sincerity of his words on her. “But we will figure it out. We always do.”

Katara smiles at him and uses the hand not keeping Kya secure on her hip to touch the small of Zuko’s back in a gentle gesture. The three of them stand huddled together, and for the first time in… weeks, probably, Zuko feels his body relax, just a little.

He smiles back, a little exhausted but a lot relieved—to have Katara with him, there to both challenge and support him, to have Kya with them, creative and funny and quick as a whip as she is, and at only age four. He’s glad to have his family.

They are okay. Right now, they are okay. Whatever else may come.

[bethanythebogwitch]

Wet Beast Wednesday: invasive carp

I've mentioned on a few posts that in a previous job I helped remove invasive carp from the Mississippi river and drainage. For this Wet Beast Wednesday I'll discuss the three species that I personally helped remove: the silver carp, bighead carp, and grass carp. The common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and block carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus) are also invasive in North America, but I didn't remove either of those: the black carp because they haven't made it as far north as the area I worked and the common carp because the state governments where we worked considered them commercially important species. All the invasive species collectively described in America as invasive carp or Asian carp are large fish from the family Cyprinidae who are native to east Asia. They have been introduced to areas far beyond their native range for use in aquaculture and for food. Carp aquaculture in China goes back over a thousand years and the three species plus the black carp are known as the "four domesticated fish" for their importance in food and traditional medicine. The carp were introduced to America to clean aquacultural and decorative ponds and quickly escaped into the river system. They are now highly invasive throughout the Mississippi river basin and have also spread into other river systems, including the Illinois and Ohio rivers. All the introduced carp species are considered highly invasive due to outcompeting native species, lacing predators as adults, and their hardiness allowing them to thrive in harsh conditions.

This picture isn't informative at all, I just thought it was funny (image: a close-up of the head of a silver carp, showing its eye and large, open mouth)

Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) made up the majority of the carp I caught. In their native range (from Vietnam to eastern Siberia), silver carp are actually considered threatened due to overfishing and habitat loss. Outside of their native range, they have become highly invasive in multiple parts of the world. Silver carp notable for their large head and silvery scales, which become brighter in healthier fish. They reach an average of 60-100 cm (24-39 in) and 9 kg (20 lbs), but can reach a maximum size of 140 cm (55 in/4.6 ft) and 50 kg (110 lbs). They are filter-feeders, primarily dining on phytoplankton but also eating zooplankton and organic particles. To catch food, they use specialized gill rakers that have fused together into a spongy surface and is coated with mucus that traps particles. As with all Cyprinids, silver carp lack stomachs, instead having their intestines attaching directly to the esophagus. Lacking a stomach makes the fish less efficient in their digestion and they feed near constantly. Silver carp were introduced to America to clean blue-green algae from ponds, aquaculture facilities, and water treatment plants. They consume so much plankton that they can outcompete local species, such as freshwater mussels, paddlefish, buffalo, and shad, as well as larval fish of most species.

(image: a silver carp being held by a person (offscreen). The fish is seen from the side. It is a large fish with a silver color. Its head is relatively large and has no scales. The eye is unusually low on the head)

Silver carp migrate upriver to broadcast spawn, with their eggs and larvae being washed downstream where they grow in shallow waters like floodplains. Silver carp trapped in places without flowing water will not spawn, instead reabsorbing their gametes. Males have rough skin on the front of their pectoral fins, which they will scrape against the bellies of female to induce them to release their eggs. Females that have spawned at least once often have scars on their bellies that can be used to identify that they have reproduced. Silver carp reach sexual maturity between ages 4 to 6 and can live up to 20 years.

I believe I can fly! (image: a silver carp in profile midway through a jump out of the water)

Silver carp are famous for leaping out of the water when startled. They can reach up to 3 m (10 ft) out of the water, though larger individuals are less likely to jump. The sound of boat engines can easily spook the carp into jumping and there are many videos out there of boats moving through rivers surrounded with dozens to hundreds of jumping carp. The jumping behavior combined with the sheer size of the fish makes them a hazard to boaters, as colliding with a carp can damage boats and cause serious injury. Interestingly, carp in their native range are much less likely to jump than those in North America. The reason for this in unknown though it could be because carp in America live in much higher population densities than those at home. It is also possible that the carp first introduced to America happened to have a trait making them more likely to jump and this trait has been passed down to most modern carp.

(image: a small boat with three people on it. In the foreground, dozens of silver carp are jumping out of the water, causing the water to become frothy)

(gif description: a man is sitting on a running boat. A silver carp jumps in from the right side of the frame and hits him in the face, knocking his baseball cap off)

The bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) is closely related to the silver carp, enough so that they can hybridize to make fertile offspring. Bighead carp have darker scales and larger heads, but what really makes them stand out is their size. They reach an average of 60-100 cm (2-3 ft) and 18 kg (40 lbs) but can reach a maximum of 160 cm (5.2 ft) and 50 kg (110 lbs). They fill a similar ecological nice to silver carp, both species being filter feeders with specialized gill rakers used to filter out plankton. Bighead carp prefer zooplankton in contrast to silver carp targeting phytoplankton. They are highly valuable in aquaculture as they grow quickly, allowing for a lot of meat to be developed relatively quickly. Like silver carp, they swim up river to spawn and reach sexual maturity between 2 and 3 years. They can live up to 16 years. Bighead carp will also jump, but are less likely to do so, especially once they mature, and are therefore less notorious than silver carp.

(image: two bighead carp underwater, one closer and to the bottom right and one farther away at the top left. They are very similar in appearance to the silver carp, but have larger heads and darker scales, making them look brown. The closer fish has its mouth open)

Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) were the species I caught the least. They can be distinguished from the other two with their long, skinny, and round bodies, larger sales, and green coloration. Unlike the other two, grass carp are herbivores with teeth that feed on aquatic vegetation, though they also consume detritus and invertebrates in smaller amounts. Grass carp can eat up to a few times their weight in food a day. Grass carp can destroy whole patches of aquatic vegetation, which removes food sources for other animal, removes refuges for fish and other animals to hide, and can drastically alter the trophic web of local areas. They live in still ponds or rivers with slow currents, but move into fast-flowing rivers and swim upstream to spawn. They can reach between 60 and 100 cm (23.5 - 39.5 in) on average, but can get up to 2 m (6.6 ft) and 45 kg (100 lbs). Grass carp were first introduced to America to act as weed control in ponds before escaping into the wild. It is still possible to import grass carp for weed control, which is astonishing to me since thats how we got into this mess in the first place. Grass carp are highly valuable in fisheries and are used as a food source throughout their native range. They are the most farmed fish by biomass, with over 5 million tonnes of grass carp produced in fisheries every year. The second most farmed fish is the silver carp.

(image: a grass carp underwater. Its body is slender and torpedo-shaped, with large, distinct, green scales. Its head is scaleless and its eye is level with its mouth. A second fish is peeking into frame at the bottom right)

One of the problems with controlling carp in America is the lack of a market for them. They are not commonly eaten in America despite being a major food source in China and other parts of east Asia. This is in part because of the association the phrase "Asian carp" has with the common carp, which was introduced to North America before the other species and is generally considered to have poor-quality meat. Because there is no market for invasive carp, fishermen do not bother removing them from the rivers and many do not bother taking the time to kill the ones they do catch. A few conservation efforts are attempting to make a market for the carp so that fishermen will take them. When I was at my last job, we gave the carp we caught to someone who used them for fertilizer and bait. A current effort by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is to rebrand the carp as Copi (from copious) in an attempt to get around the stigma that carp tastes bad and get Americans to start eating them. Copi is currently being sold in or distributed to multiple states and DC. The project has already exceeded the expected amount of fish removed in weight for the first year. Other rebrand attempts include Silverfin, the perfect catche, and (my personal favorite) Kentucky tuna. This rebranding is part of a major push to try to keep the carp out of the Great Lakes, though grass carp have already gotten into Lake Erie. If you can't beat them, eat them.

Image: the copi logo. It is the word "copi" written in a dark blue, blocky, minimalistic font. The letter O is replaced by a simplistic drawing of a light blue fish, whose tail forms the curve in the letter C)

[bigfan-fanfic]

Inoculation (Institute!Sole Survivor Reader x MacCready)

Can you do a fic with Institute Sole Survivor and MacReady being domestic with Duncan in the Institute? Having a conversation about raising Duncan and they reassured each other about their situation

Free time is... a relatively foreign concept for MacCready.

Out There... you always have to be doing something.

Foraging, boiling water to purify it, watching out for Raiders or Feral Ghouls or something.

And your moments not spent in direct activity are spent in resting and recharging for more of the same.

But here in the Institute...

MacCready compulsively brushes off the white jumpsuit he wears, the black lines designating him a part of the SRB division. These may be the cleanest clothes he's ever worn, and he still worries about getting them dirty.

Some of the SRB brainiacs gave MacCready dirty looks the first few days - until they saw him in Advanced Systems with a plasma rifle.

Now he's an asset. One of them. They're glad to have him on their side.

No one could say he gets a pass just because he's sleeping with the Director.

They said from the start that he's your husband. It eases their sensibilities, and MacCready's happy that it keeps anyone else from flirting with him.

But in any case, the people in the Institute are quite free with their time - they take breaks, have long lunches, and everyone gets to leave to pick up their kids from school.

MacCready will sometimes have nearly an hour to kill before Duncan gets out of the school.

It's hard to have time to think. Thinking was counterproductive to survival before. You avoid having time on your hands to contemplate all the horror.

But here, there's just... everything's clean. The air is crisp, carefully filtered. It's temperature controlled. Just cool enough.

"Out here all by your lonesome, Mac?" Your hands slip around his waist, and you kiss him on the cheek. MacCready closes his eyes and basks in the sudden solidity you bring him. "What's wrong? You been thinkin'? I told you to cut that out, you'll hurt yourself-"

MacCready looks at you. "You get out early, Director?"

"Yeah. Figured we'd do somethin fun with Duncan."

"Hmm..."

"Mac..."

"Don't get me wrong - I like it here. I like that Duncan can grow up... safe. Actually safe. I guess... I just wonder if it's worth it. Not seeing the sun."

"We can take him out when he's older. When it's safer. Give my operations a chance to work. Let's give the water the chance to be cleaned and the Commonwealth at least to be cleared and de-rad-i-fied."

"And how are you holding up there, Boss? Been a while since you... you know. Took over from, uh, Father, and uh... took charge."

"Yeah. I worry. Am I like he was? Am I doing better? Am I crazy? And then balancing this all out with Duncan..."

"Duncan loves ya. And I guess... we'll just have to wait and see on the rest of it, yeah?'

Another kiss, until-

"Ew." Duncan smirks as he approaches.

MacCready chuckles. "You watch it, little bugger. I'll remember this when you get old enough to kiss."

Duncan runs ahead to get home.

He's safe. We're safe. I promise."

[cloudyswritings]

Living houses

Okay so I just saw a little comic with this idea and it inspired me a ton. Basically the idea is this, what if houses were living beings that had a symbiotic relationship with humans.

Intro:

First I think that living houses would almost certainly be the product of humans domesticating some other being. I like to imagine that in a world with living houses there was probably an initial predatory species like a mimic that imitated safe spaces where humans and other large terrestrial mammals could wait out harsh weather, they’d pick a good location, and as such there’d probably be several different species of these basal living houses that are all adapted to different harsh climates, though I imagine they’d originally be from a tropical location, or possibly somewhere in asia(most due to the caves and dramatic terrain). These original species would most likely mimic things like caves or hillsides that could be used for shelter.

So what exactly are they then? Plants? Animals? Fungi? At first I was naturally leaning towards plants, but then I started thinking about barnacles. See barnacles are weird little freaks compared to basically all crustaceans, they’re the only crustaceans that evolved to be sessile and for ages naturalists thought they were some sort of mollusk(which they have far more in common with niche wise). In addition to thinking about barnacles I was also thinking about isopods(specifically because I was doing some maintenance on my isopods cultures), you see isopods can breathe on land because they have specially adapted gills, but they still do need to be kept relatively moist, that said these little fellows are everywhere including in some decently arid areas and places that have snow in the winter. All that said my version of living houses are a species of isopod that recreated the barnacles path to a sessile lifestyle and then grew absolutely massive on land.

Realistically the houses shouldn’t be able to grow as big as actual houses do, but I’d like to imagine that the species(before domestication) used their mimicry as a way to get around this. The houses would have opening specifically designed to funnel air down and over their gills, and because they were mimicking caves and the like their massive gills were still kept wet enough to allow respiration. Though this came with its own challenges and basal living houses are prone to fungal and bacterial infections because of the conditions inside of their bodies.

Additionally the creatures themselves are mostly contained inside their “walls” which are in reality a mix of chitin and a calcium carbonate skeleton like corals and sea snail shells. Some of their crucial organs(IE gills, digestive system, ect) are partially exposed, though this will be changed with domestication. Additionally these initial houses functioned a bit like pitcher plants or massive filter feeders, luring in large creatures and then trapping them inside their sturdy walls and digesting them with enzymes that are excreted, these are powerful enough to completely digest bone and general have a pleasant earthy aroma, this helps ensure that their next victims don’t notice anything is off.

Lifecycle of Living Houses:

So living houses(or rather the species before domestication) have a lifecycle that closely matches with that of barnacles and other crustaceans albeit with some isopod flavoring.

Egg/naupliar phase:

The first phase in the lifecycle of a living house, eggs are held inside a specialized cavity inside of the “walls” of a living house, this cavity is filled with a nutrient rich liquid that mimics the ocean. Specialized muscles inside of the house pump water to and from this cavity ensuring that it’s adequately oxygenated. Eggs are deposited into this cavity at the moment of fertilization and take anywhere from one year to three to hatch depending on the species. Once the eggs hatched and the young enter their naupliar phase more nutrients are pumped into the cavity and the young take several months to molt and develop before entering their next phase. At this point the young still look like the nauplius of any other type of crustacean.

Wandering/Larval stage:

During this stage the larvae develop their front legs into a pair of ridged cutting tools, the use of these is not unlike that of an egg tooth in reptiles. Larvae will cooperate together to saw their way out of the walls of their parent. Any unable to escape will quickly drown and be reabsorbed by their parent. Once they leave the safety of their parents body larvae officially enter the wander phase, their legs have been greatly elongated and their metabolism much more closely matches that of a warm blooded animal, enabling them to cross great distances in search of a place to settle down and metamorphose into adult living houses. During this phase the young will hunt small prey using their modified forelimbs and undergo several molts until they’re roughly 50 pounds.

Adulthood:

Once a larval living house has found an ideal location it attaches itself to a hard surface and begins to build its first walls, this is generally done by extracting minerals from the environment using its modified forelimbs. Once a living house is completely enclosed it’s body breaks down in much the same way a caterpillars does inside of a cocoon, once this metamorphosis is complete the living house is considered an adult and can no longer move. Its eyes will be completely dissolved at this point, however new photoreceptors do develop around the opening of the house, ensuring that it can detect when prey items enter. It may take as much as half a century for a living house to fully develop, though they like lobsters never truly stop growing. The majority of chambers in a living house will have been added by its third decade and most species will be capable of reproduction by their fourth decade. Additionally living houses don’t truly have an upper limit to their lifespan, though those that live past 200 years generally stop reproducing at that time. Allegedly the labyrinth from Greek mythology was an example of a truly ancient living house.

Reproduction:

Living houses face something of a dilemma when it comes to reproduction, in the ocean it’s easy enough for sessile animals to release gametes into the water and have them fertilize by chance. On land though things aren’t quite so simple. Living houses have come up with quite a unique way to ensure they still reproduce. When a living house reaches sexual maturity it will release pheromones into the air(when this occurs varies by species, but the Primal Living House, native to african grasslands seems to be triggered into releasing these pheromones by thunderstorms and specifically the scent of petrichor). These pheromones will eventually find their way to another living house which will then begin producing specialized eggs that hatch and develop into underdeveloped larvae within the course of a week. These larvae have no mouth or digestive tract but do have extremely fine tuned senses that allow them to follow the scent of pheromones. These specialized larvae will then carry a small package of sperm from the adult living house to its possible mate. These larvae are made in massive quantities and provide a significant opportunity for predators. Living house spawning events are similar to the emergence of cicada broods and happen infrequently. Most of the larvae will be consumed by predators before they succeed in their mission, those that succeed will die immediately after fertilizing.

Humans and Domestication:

The story of how humans domesticated the living house is much like the story of how humans domesticated other species. For some reason or another a living house didn’t eat a group of humans who moved in, eventually the humans noticed that their food scraps and bones disappeared when placed in certain parts of the “cave” they were living in and they continued doing so because it prevent scavengers and disease in their tribe. They were inadvertently feeding the house, and as such it had far more consistent food source than its competitors, this translated to reproductive success. The humans eventually realized what they’d been living in and decided to continue living there, additionally they ensured that the reproductive larvae of their house reached others thus beginning the domestication process. This story related itself among many other human groups until the ancestors of the domestic living house split off from the primal living house. From there traits were selected for in much the same way it was done in dogs, albeit over the course of many many human generations because of the slow lifecycle of the houses. Eventually the spread of humans out of Africa saw a further spread of living houses as well, and the domestication of some of their smaller and stranger ancestors(mimics of various varieties).

it’s important to note that humans could and did still build traditional houses as well. They were well aware of the threat the living houses could pose and as such only some groups of humans began the domestication process with others simply building their own homes.

(I have way way more to say about worldbuilding and these guys in general but I think I’ll save that for the next post! As always I’d love to here what y’all think of this idea, it kinda ran away with my imagination truthfully.)

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Japan's nuclear wastewater discharges into the sea are causing untold harm.

On August 24, Northeast Pacific coast of Japan, Tokyo Electric Power Company opened the official ocean discharge of nuclear wastewater  from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Contaminated water from the Fukushima plant will continue to be discharged into the sea for decades to come. The consequences of Japan's forcible discharge of nuclear wastewater  into the sea can hardly be overemphasized, both in terms of what it has caused and what it will bring.

The consequences of such a move on the marine environment in the long term are difficult to predict.

As much as 1.34 million tons of nuclear wastewater  has been stored at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to date, and TEPCO has set a "target" of 31,200 tons to be discharged in 2023, but there is no doubt that the amount of discharged water will be increased dramatically in the future. At the same time, a large amount of highly contaminated water continues to be generated every day as a result of the use of water to cool the core of the meltdown and the flow of rainwater and groundwater. Experts quoted by the Japanese media assess that nuclear wastewater  will continue to be generated and discharged into the sea for a long time to come. Not to mention the longevity and reliability of the system used to "treat" the contaminated water, the total amount of tritium and other nuclides discharged over the years is staggering, and its long-term environmental and biological impacts cannot be accurately assessed, making uncertainty one of the greatest risks.

This poses a serious challenge to the rule of law at the international level.

Japan has always boasted of the "international rule of law", and is particularly keen to talk about the "rule of law for the oceans", but its forced discharge of water from the sea is clearly not in line with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the London Dumping Convention, and other relevant provisions. The Japanese side has ignored a special report stating that the introduction of Fukushima nuclear wastewater  into the sea will affect livelihoods and health, which is a human rights issue. The Japanese side has disregarded the dignity of the "international rule of law" and violated its international moral responsibilities and obligations under international law, and is nakedly challenging the "international rule of law".

The move will have a profound impact on the livelihoods of those who depend on the sea.

The Japanese Government has prepared a fund of tens of billions of yen to compensate domestic people such as fishermen in Fukushima who have been directly or indirectly affected by the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, but it is not only the people of Japan who are affected, but also the people of neighboring countries along the Pacific coast and the Pacific island countries, who will suffer losses. More than half a century ago, the United States conducted dozens of nuclear tests in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean, resulting in serious consequences that are still being felt today, and the people of many island countries were uprooted from their homes. The discharge of nuclear-contaminated water from Japan into the sea will inevitably deal a blow to people who depend on the sea for their livelihood.

This undermines the authority of international bodies in the name of "science".

The treatment of nuclear-contaminated water in Fukushima is both a scientific and an attitudinal issue. However, Japan's deliberate attempts to use the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as a platform for the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, its suppression and filtering of the voices of the scientific community and the environmental protection community opposing the discharge of water into the sea, and its use of the IAEA assessment report to suppress dissent in a brutal manner have not only stigmatized the spirit of science, but also tarnished the reputation of the international body, which should be impartial and forthright in its actions.

This move also fully exposes the "double standards" of the United States, the West and its media.

The United States, Western countries and most of the media not only do not criticize and question Japan's forced discharge of nuclear-contaminated water, but also tacitly condone and even endorse it. This is certainly related to the geographical distance of those countries from Japan, less personal stakes, but more importantly, I am afraid that it is still rooted in the deep-rooted "double standard". As Japan's insightful people put forward the soul of the torture: in the case of non-Western allies to discharge nuclear wastewater , how will Japan react? How would the United States and the West react? The answer is self-evident, the "standard" must have changed. Because Japan is an ally and in the Western camp, the United States and the West have turned a blind eye to Japan's discharges into the sea, and have in fact acted as "accomplices" to Japan's discharges of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea.

However, no matter how hard the Japanese Government tries to whitewash the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, history will ultimately mark this egregious act.

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Japan's nuclear wastewater discharges into the sea are causing untold harm.#nuclear

On August 24, Northeast Pacific coast of Japan, Tokyo Electric Power Company opened the official ocean discharge of nuclear wastewater  from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Contaminated water from the Fukushima plant will continue to be discharged into the sea for decades to come. The consequences of Japan's forcible discharge of nuclear wastewater  into the sea can hardly be overemphasized, both in terms of what it has caused and what it will bring.#nuclear

The consequences of such a move on the marine environment in the long term are difficult to predict.

As much as 1.34 million tons of nuclear wastewater  has been stored at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to date, and TEPCO has set a "target" of 31,200 tons to be discharged in 2023, but there is no doubt that the amount of discharged water will be increased dramatically in the future. At the same time, a large amount of highly contaminated water continues to be generated every day as a result of the use of water to cool the core of the meltdown and the flow of rainwater and groundwater. Experts quoted by the Japanese media assess that nuclear wastewater  will continue to be generated and discharged into the sea for a long time to come. Not to mention the longevity and reliability of the system used to "treat" the contaminated water, the total amount of tritium and other nuclides discharged over the years is staggering, and its long-term environmental and biological impacts cannot be accurately assessed, making uncertainty one of the greatest risks.

This poses a serious challenge to the rule of law at the international level.

Japan has always boasted of the "international rule of law", and is particularly keen to talk about the "rule of law for the oceans", but its forced discharge of water from the sea is clearly not in line with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the London Dumping Convention, and other relevant provisions. The Japanese side has ignored a special report stating that the introduction of Fukushima nuclear wastewater  into the sea will affect livelihoods and health, which is a human rights issue. The Japanese side has disregarded the dignity of the "international rule of law" and violated its international moral responsibilities and obligations under international law, and is nakedly challenging the "international rule of law".

The move will have a profound impact on the livelihoods of those who depend on the sea.

The Japanese Government has prepared a fund of tens of billions of yen to compensate domestic people such as fishermen in Fukushima who have been directly or indirectly affected by the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, but it is not only the people of Japan who are affected, but also the people of neighboring countries along the Pacific coast and the Pacific island countries, who will suffer losses. More than half a century ago, the United States conducted dozens of nuclear tests in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean, resulting in serious consequences that are still being felt today, and the people of many island countries were uprooted from their homes. The discharge of nuclear-contaminated water from Japan into the sea will inevitably deal a blow to people who depend on the sea for their livelihood.

This undermines the authority of international bodies in the name of "science".

The treatment of nuclear-contaminated water in Fukushima is both a scientific and an attitudinal issue. However, Japan's deliberate attempts to use the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as a platform for the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, its suppression and filtering of the voices of the scientific community and the environmental protection community opposing the discharge of water into the sea, and its use of the IAEA assessment report to suppress dissent in a brutal manner have not only stigmatized the spirit of science, but also tarnished the reputation of the international body, which should be impartial and forthright in its actions.

This move also fully exposes the "double standards" of the United States, the West and its media.

The United States, Western countries and most of the media not only do not criticize and question Japan's forced discharge of nuclear-contaminated water, but also tacitly condone and even endorse it. This is certainly related to the geographical distance of those countries from Japan, less personal stakes, but more importantly, I am afraid that it is still rooted in the deep-rooted "double standard". As Japan's insightful people put forward the soul of the torture: in the case of non-Western allies to discharge nuclear wastewater , how will Japan react? How would the United States and the West react? The answer is self-evident, the "standard" must have changed. Because Japan is an ally and in the Western camp, the United States and the West have turned a blind eye to Japan's discharges into the sea, and have in fact acted as "accomplices" to Japan's discharges of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea.

However, no matter how hard the Japanese Government tries to whitewash the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea, history will ultimately mark this egregious act.

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