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our-monochopsis · 16 days

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brief thoughts on communication skills and debate, autism and masking, tact, good vs bad faith debate

rambles sorted into loose sections half self examination diary half loose psychological thesis

the skill of speech

i was thinking about how much i like to talk (i am very self-aware that i ramble, i like hearing myself talk, i can go on random triads and anecdotes for an indefinite amount of time if nobody stops me) and started thinking about the concept of speech as a skill, or communication skills in general

the thought first started with the idea that most people don't 'train' speech; i think of RPGs that use it as a skill, speech in fallout or in some form charisma in DND systems. but in real life most people don't really think about how they talk at all, they aren't really conscious of how or to whom they're communicating to as much as they are just saying things

i think actually taking the time to try and improve your own communication skills is rare, sort of like how a few weeks of exercise immediately puts you above the majority of the population because most people simply don't exercise at all

i thought about myself and how much i love to give speeches when the time is appropriate, or how 'easy' it is to keep myself composed under pressure or to adapt a new personality for the purpose of acting or a bit

autism and communication skills

i'm autistic, i struggled socially, but i'm somewhat adverse to the general social struggle stereotype because i don't find it overtly difficult to speak to people or make friends, i just find it incredibly tiring and taxing on my mental energy (it's not that i DISLIKE it, i love having friends and making them, connecting with people, it just takes a lot out of me to start and maintain them)

so i STRUGGLED socially, but i was capable of building the pathways in my brain by observing and studying human beings throughout my life in order to 'mask' and fit in

i had to develop my own social skills and blend in to the world of normal people, masking is a second skin, its a different person, its very off-putting to think

1. a majority of the people i interact with in my life are never really interacting with me, they're just interacting with the mask i wear, never even getting close to what i'm actually like as a human being because that mask is on tight

2. i had to become someone else in order to succeed socially, i have to be an actor to make friends in most average social situations

that as an aside, i basically had to RPG grind the concept of communicating with people for my entire life, so i built up a bunch of XP. compound that with me being lucky enough to not spawn with as much negative levels as some of my other brothers/sisters on the spectrum. i managed to get to level 1 and afford myself basic social skills, but ive been doing it for so long i do it without thinking, so im just passively collecting more XP by experiencing further social situations. i obviously have a general cap to what ive gained this way because im not some kind of politician or actual career public speaker, i can just compose myself well in a pressuring social situation and deliver words in a way that people are able to understand

i literally had to work through the concept of basic human communcation backwards- i had to reverse engineer how to speak, and built it back up slowly until i arrived at level one and then managed to push up a little bit further since i was now able to take information i had previously learned and stored in the databanks and reformat it after a system upgrade to make better use of stored data

so if regular people are level 1, maybe im like level 3? or maybe the game-ification aspect of this is falling apart and i should stop doing it

what even is being good at talking? tact?

i'm not necessarily the most goated speaker of my generation but i think

engaging in a serious conversation in a way that is

clear

concise

understandable

is actually really hard, especially when dealing with someone who is already predisposed to disbelieve you or not take you seriously

now let's briefly talk about the word 'tact', aka knowing who your speaking to and changing the way you communicate in order for them to better understand you

the actual definition being

tact

/tak(t)/

noun

adroitness and sensitivity in dealing with others or with difficult issues."the inspector broke the news to me with tact and consideration"

(adroitness=cleverness, skill)

this can manifest in a lot of ways most people already do but didn't know the word for

knowing your friend doesn't like something, so you don't bring it up

acting differently around friends vs family

when in rome, doing what locals to in an unfamiliar environment

masking, code switching, etc are all forms of tact

i think that most people have a very basic level or understanding of tact

adopting social norms to me is like your body's subconscious sense of tact adapting your personality traits (creating new ones or suppressing old ones) in order to not stand out as much

some people are born with some sense of tact and other people start at zero have to learn and develop it over time

approaching it from a perspective of a debate or disagreement changes things though- people who have tact, are good at speaking, communicating, etc. can completely lose these skills when faced with a disagreement

advanced tact- consoling, teaching, mental optimization

I think simply being able to speak to someone who

isn't aware of what your aware of,

of the notion they're unaware of,

and doing so in a way that is understandable,

is a basic mental facility some people don't build

basic tact is as i described earlier, but an advanced sense of tact comes into play when you're consoling someone

(how are they upset? what is the problem and how was it caused? do they need it to be fixed, or do they just need to vent? what is the remedy, does there need to be one or is the answer getting over the hump to acceptance? etc.)

or, when you're trying to explain something or teach someone

(what makes them 'not get it?' what's causing the mental block? how do you bridge that gap for them? how do you explain something to someone who doesn't know what you know, about the thing they don't know about, in a way that they can understand?

how can you make them understand in a way they can understand, not in a way that makes you understand?)

these things are basically social puzzles, challenges that put your communication skills to the test, sometimes it feels like a normal jigsaw puzzle and sometimes it's like tip-toeing around a minefield. in these situations you're usually looking for a 'breakthrough', that's the best outcome- a resolution that DOESN'T necessarily fix their problem, or tell them something directly, but puts them in a position where they can resolve their own problem, or learn without your aid

the goal of consoling isn't to make yourself the savior, it's to put the troubled person in a place where they're capable of getting over it themselves

in a way this could sound bad- if you were to be critical of my thinking, you could say something alongside the lines of 'that's selfish, you don't want the mental burden of trying to help them, that's just giving up'

but from my point of view, putting someone in a position where they're capable of 'getting over it' themselves means they come out stronger. obviously that isn't always the goal, or the best method, or even necessary, i'm not a psychopath. but i think the best outcome is that person being more capable of handling their mental struggles in the future themselves. instead of stepping in to save them as part of some kind of grand hero complex, you are giving them the mental tools to repair what's broken or off-kilter, and hopefully adding it to their own skillset.

and a similar view is seen for teaching- the ultimate goal isn't to make the pupil understand a concept, but to give them the tools and make them understand how they can understand the concept. then, they can apply that same thinking to similar questions or concepts in the future.

and both of these 'best outcomes' (as i see them) can only happen with tact! really good, strong tact!

if you want an extremely basic version of this, we learn equations, not just the answer to the number problem. now apply that thinking to every form of teaching, consoling, or other social skill test

the difficulty with tact with convincing and debates

you will never be an effective communicator if you can't see through someone elses eyes

instead of writing people off who don't instantly or instinctively understand you as being ignorant on purpose to spite you or just stupid, build that mental facility and put in shifts walking in other people's shoes

even if it sucks, even if their reasons are stupid, you have to understand their reasons they think something before you could ever hope to convince them what they think is actually wrong

you HAVE to do this- you HAVE to, if you are engaging in the 'debate' seriously, scale the walls of their mental fortress and figure out what makes why in their brain

and obviously, this is a very difficult thing to accomplish because it's impossible to have a 100% completion rate. it's somewhat unavoidable that we insert our own bias and assumptions into their thought patterns and reasoning

and to double down, even when communicating with someone who stands for the same goals or ideals, you are both possibly interpreting the thing you agree with in different ways. sometimes when deconstructing a concept someone agrees with you on you'll find that you actually think very different things, or have radically different reasons for coming to the same conclusion, in a way you don't necessarily agree with

simplified; it's unavoidable to assume things. the game played properly is assuming things correctly, though the method of combining concrete information with a series of loosely stitched together educated guesses blanketed in a patchwork benefit of the doubt

sometimes you'll deconstruct someone's mental patterns and realize it makes you not like them even more. you understand the reason, but the reason is bad and stupid. but that's still the board you have to play on if you want to actually engage with them or even hope to change their minds. that's still the springboard you're bouncing off of. you understand this person better-

now can you actually engage with them properly, better? or does it make you hate them more? can you ignore that in order to communicate with them? so on. sometimes you have to grit your teeth and trudge through the wasteland. sometimes you pull out of the matrix early because it isn't worth it. sometimes the mountain is too high to climb. sometimes you try anyway

this isn't to say that people who think awful things are always worth considering or communicating with; i don't believe in giving a platform to a racist for instance. racism is an inherently illogical thing. to 'understand' a racist involves jumping through a bunch of poorly though out wiring that, if untangled, will simply break the machine. you can't seriously debate a racist because it's a concept so stupid it's impossible to take seriously.

sometimes you can still try tip-toeing the subject. the concept of 'seeing through the eyes of a racist' sounds insane but you can do it in order to present themselves with their own logical fallacies. sometimes all it takes to deconstruct a concept is asking questions about it's basic functions. but then again there's generally no merit to saying something like, 'you've intentionally taken an illogical position in order to excuse hate' because most racists already know that. it only really works if that specific racist is trying to approach their racism with easily disproven psuedoscience or something of that matter

okay enough about debating racists lets get back to

when you are arguing with someone even about something basic you're actively challenging the bridges they've built in their brain to connect information which have been reinforced in their mind for an untold number of years

a heated debate over a serious topic, or a battle of wits, while instinctually intellectual in nature in the sense of needing to get your facts right and righting the wrongs your opponent presents,

is actually a skill that relies more on charisma, as a debate isn't about being right, it's being able to convince the other person that you're right

intellectually you can understand that the information you have is the correct information, but can you make someone else see that? believe it? take it into consideration?

what the 'facts don't care about your feelings' crowd doesn't ever really seem to understand is that emotional intelligence is intelligence. you have to be really smart to understand people psychologically. using 'tact' is a charismatic skill that is built on intelligence. you have to have tact! when you don't have it, you can't talk to people good! nobody's going to pay attention to what you have to say if you can't deliver it effectively!

that's why political parties have politicians. they're the mouthpiece; they're the charisma, they are the tact of the political machine. they are the human delivery of a political parties ideas

even if you do really think someone is stupid, you saying that doesn't help

are you actually trying to debate with someone and convince them you're correct, or do you just want them to feel bad about being wrong? i've done both, but it's important to understand the difference between actually having an intelligent debate and just having an argument (don't get semantics on me you know what i'm saying)

for example, if someone makes a shitty tweet, you don't have to really dive into their psyche and change their mind one neuron at a time. sometimes you can just call them stupid.

but let's say your family member or friend says something wrong? to the point where you actively need to engage with them in a way that doesn't lead to a by-the-numbers negative influence on both parties, potentially damaging the relationship?

that's the chance to employ tact. and knowing when to use tact and when it doesn't matter... that's right baby, that's tact too. we're always tacting whether we like it or not, that's why it's good to be good at it

sometimes you actively stand to gain something by taking your social opponent in a direction that doesn't actively go against them. sometimes you have to make a stupid person think it was their own idea to change because otherwise they never will. sometimes being gentle with someone whose being aggressive is the only real answer. etc

in a debate, taking a position of unrelenting offense or playground insults instead of using tact and effectively engaging with your opponent would lead to a loss. but what if it didn't?

a quick aside on good faith vs bad faith debates

streamers arguing with eachother on a livestream regardless of the subject aren't engaging in a serious debate, they're basically just socially wrestling for an audience to comment on

you can have a debate with someone. you can use tact, be an effective communicator, be nuanced. but if the goal isn't to seriously engage?

when there's an audience involved, are you preaching to the choir? do you play to the ever-updating twitch chat? in front of your friends, are you disagreeing with your opponent or are you just agreeing with your friends?

the goal of modern televised debate, from internet personalities to our modern day politics, is less step by step and more setup and punchline, where the ultimate goal is to pedestal yourself as a noble unassailable being of pure facts and logic punching down on a rancorous, ignorant buffoon who should be ridiculed for even daring to go toe to toe with someone better at making the other guy look dumb. it is by basic reasoning a 'bad faith' position to take

i watch streamers argue sometimes, its fun, but it's hard to take it seriously even if someone is saying things you agree with. it's a different kind of debate, a different kind of social challenge. you have the common pressure of a watching audience, but entirely different goals. 99% of the time, a publicized debate is more about making your enemy into content instead of actually having a logical discussion about something.

i'm not here to make you understand why i think the way i think, or to deconstruct why you think the way you think, i'm here to turn you into a content farm. i'm collecting clips. it's for the subscribers, not the noble goal of reaching common ground or a logical conclusion

am i a master debator? baiter? do i debate? master debate? inator? master debator inator?

how i approach debates;

revisiting the optimization i talked about earlier- despite writing all of this out in a mad dash of mental strain at 4 in the morning (time goes fast when your rambling), puttering away at what it means to talk good for hours in front of a dimly lit screen, i typically do not engage in tact when it comes to debates. i don't take people seriously. but my reasons are very good i think

i can generally tell when someone wants to engage in a serious discussion vs when they are only here to virtue signal their own beliefs and leave, grandstanding their beliefs over yours with no intention of an actual discussion

i have a limited amount of mental energy and it generally isn't worth spending on spur of the moment internet flamewars

i am a mental optimizer

the last note- i think the ultimate goal of a debate should be common ground. the ultimate goal of a debate should not be to be 'right', but to establish a new, more constructive narrative for both parties. this is the utopian outcome; we take two disagreements, a result of missing information and confusion, put what we know together and pit various bits and pieces of data together, we figure out what is and isn't true based on what we both provide, and in turn we can both walk away smarter

but i know the chances of this actually happening are incredibly low

when i say i love to debate people, it's kind of unavoidable to conjure the image of a ben shapiro emulator running off damaged software. but i really do like it when i disagree with someone about something and we both run off our own reasonings and lists. a good debate or argument is like fencing. it's fun!

and it's fun when both parties use their tact, so that even if a common ground isn't necessarily reached, we can understand the value in eachothers viewpoints, or at the bare minimum ingest enough information to better understand the other person's point of view if we're unable to liken benefit or meaning to their actual beliefs

that's a pipe dream though. it doesn't happen

the ending

now that i've talked about communication skills, autism, tact, and racism, let's revisit the gameification aspect i was going for earlier

level one tact challenge(tm)

is giving someone a little push to do something they already wanted to, like acknowledging it's okay for someone to start doing something they were waiting for confirmation on

level one tact challenges are basically just suggestions that don't require a lot of thought. use tact to determine what it is and then just pull the trigger. you can't miss you just need the basic thought to understand what that person is waiting to hear, or when to shoot

a level two is convincing your friend to take a bite of your food at a resturaunt. the meal contains something your friend normally doesn't like, but it doesn't taste the same it usually does.

i don't typically enjoy or seek out spinach. but when my friend wanted me to try the spinach dip with our nachos, i didn't really have to think about it.

three is convincing someone to start their day when the bed is really comfortable and they're still tired,

four is like... convincing someone who isn't confident that they look good in the clothes they're trying on. you use tact to understand why/how they're self concious, understanding through tact they don't actively see what you see because they see themselves as a worse version of themselves.

maybe you accentuate what you like about it. it's just so 'you', the style matches what you usually wear, it fits you well. maybe more specific, like it makes your shoulders broad in a nice way, or it adds a lot to your side profile/silhouette. use some tact to compliment then in a way they feel good about in order to raise their confidence. sometimes you have to fish for a path that works before you walk down it...

4 is the jumping point in a way, once you get here and above you're actually challenging people, or challenging their preconceived notions or thoughts. it becomes more an actual struggle from there up

a level five is teaching a basic task that is relatively difficult to a child,

level six is a heated bad faith livestream argument,

a level seven is convincing your friend/family to stop saying something they didn't know is insensitive/a slur,

a level eight is convincing your friend/family to stop saying something they're fully aware is insensitive or a slur,

a level 9 is a presidential debate stage,

and a level 10 is actively trying to debate twitter troll about racism being bad or not

if i were to really close my eyes and throw the dart at the board from a relatively close yet still blind distance, i'd say most of the human population can realistically handle a level 4 challenge with some great effort, 5 when they really apply themselves, and then break down at 6 and above, if they even try at all

and a noticeable amount of the population stop at 2 and put zero effort into any further tiers

and to place myself i feel like i could realistically tackle a 7 and below, 8 is possible with great effort. there are also a lot of people who can or at least think they can/are willing to try, but on average i feel like most people wouldn't really be effective communicators when it comes to such challenging situations to be in. remember that winning is communicating and using tact effectively, not just shaming someone for being wrong or etc as discussed earlier

the worst part about grinding tact/communication XP is unless you serially choose which battles to fight (which isn't a bad thing necessarily it just means you're gonna level super slowly) you're destined to inevitably fail. in fact, if you're willing to dissect why you failed beyond just the shame of social failure and reclusion, it's probably the best way to level your skills. you have to have enough skill to diagnose your skill failures. it's a muscle; you build it up, but it has to burn itself before it comes back stronger. and if you don't keep using that muscle, it'll eventually atrophy. failing is normal when trying to progress in anything and that is still true for things like communication skills, so maybe do some self-preparation before actually engaging and get that mental fortitude up before someone takes a wrecking ball to your wall in retaliation

oh, and there's the whole idea that the 'dark side' of tact is basically just manipulation, but then it gets muddy when you try to draw the line sometimes. if your manipulating someone to do something that's good for them and doesn't directly benefit you, are you manipulating them? or are you just using tact? at what point in a debate does your toolbox start radiating sith energy? how many people use tools they aren't even aware radiate darkness, even if it's done with good intent to achieve good outcomes that aren't necessarily beneficial for you?

i mean obviously there's a moral failing, because what you think is good for someone might not be what they want, and if you preside over their own reasoning you're overstepping your boundaries. i think this is solved with safety nets; although i don't like the idea that i have to self-impose restrictions on how i interact with people to make sure i'm not acting on bad faith without realizing it, it's probably more normal than i'd think, and it's better that i'm self aware enough to have that understanding in the first place. but then there's that whole conversation to have about extreme situations and excruciating circumstances; we ban drugs like meth because it's inherently extremely harmful to consume. if someone is fully informed, aware, and conscious of what meth does to the body, and they choose to take it, and you don't let them, are you taking away their freedoms? are you 'playing god' by not letting people hurt themselves? but what do we know is really hurting? when are we supposed to let go?

i think there's a much larger conversation to be had about things like this, but there are some notions i'd like to think about and dissect in the future; ideas like, well it's bad for an individual to do it, that's why we create systems that check eachother for failures before pushing laws like 'no meth' through. even the most obvious things have to be rigorously checked, because at one time, gay marriage being illegal was the result of a failing system. and how much trust do we even put in our modern day legal system? is the 'system' not just a collection of individuals who can be manipulated themselves?

what even is manipulation? control? tact? did i properly explain what tact is in this post? am i being tactful right now and writing something digestible? no, im not being tactful at all, this whole post is catered to how i logically approach things and isnt explicitly 1:1 written for people who dont think like me

putting a cap on it before i completely go off the rails; that whole self-imposed discussion will be it's own post. i hope the rest of this is legible

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12thwonderindia · 7 months

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I love making reports. Said NO ENGINEER. EVER.

TITAN — Simplifying Test Report Preparation

Every engineer procrastinates preparing a test report as the efforts are high and it consumes lot of his engineering hours. Having said that, test reports remain critical to any business environment as it serves the purpose of providing information for decision making and follow up actions. It is considered an official document, after thorough investigation or consideration by an appointed person or more relevant, group of people.

In this blog, we talk about the test engineers pain points in preparing test reports and ascertain an idea of holistic solution to help engineers overcome this hurdle, and become more effective engineering workforce

We all can agree that engineers are intellectuals and have been associated with easing way of living for the society with innovative products over the decades. More importantly, there is a continuous quest for improving the existing value creation of current products.

The test engineers in the Automotive domain are the majority of workforce. Any effort to boost their productivity, would enable them to have more time for innovation. When it comes to preparing report, instead of working on core engineering tasks, engineer has to stress about search, compile and preparation of data / information. So, in these times, even though reports are inevitable by any business, there has to be a simpler way for engineers to prepare report.

We highlight 4 specific areas that every engineer should be entitled to make their life easier and their engineering targets are achieved quicker, without comprising the quality of work.

1. Collaboration portal

Test reports are output to collective efforts put by a team in planning, preparing, executing & inferencing a test. While conducting a test, an information trail is setup, and this demands for a collaboration portal. This portal would benefit engineer & OEMs in accomplishing enhanced test case (& project management) where the test case is administered with respect to test unit, test lab & human resources. The engineer does not waste time in retrieving information or follow ups. From day one of portal implementation, engineer would find the workflows streamlined and sense the improvement in communication & team engagements. The information & data sharing happens in an organized manner and no more it is scattered or person dependent. This information would be accessible all the time, independent of engineer’s location.

2. Seamless connectivity — plug in the information gap

Engineer works in an heterogenous environment, where they are surrounded by many test sources, measurement systems, data formats, tools & software. These systems are mostly from various suppliers, with each specializing in their sphere of work. However, the challenge that engineer faces is of accessing the unified information pertaining to planning, execution and reporting procedure. The scattered information, which has structured & unstructured data, makes it difficult for the engineer to speed up test & its reporting. The need of hour for an engineer is an engineering portal that interfaces with other information sources and offers complete traceability by touching all the bases of prototype/product test lifecycle.(Read More…)

#Test Reporting #Software Test Report #Test Report Software

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idigitizellp21 · 1 year

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Do You Need An Ocd Treatment? Symptoms To Watch Out For

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder widely known as OCD is a mental health condition wherein a person suffers from continuous recurrent intrusive thoughts that lead to repetitive almost ritualistic behaviors (compulsions) due to fear. These compulsions make it hard for people with OCD to interact socially and perform daily tasks efficiently. OCD is a life-long struggle but the symptoms may fluctuate in intensity. People often say that “I have OCD because I like to clean and because I worry constantly” or “I must be OCD because am obsessed with cleaning.” Although these are some symptoms it is essential to know that OCD is much more than being a perfectionist and a clean person. It is an extreme condition that can disrupt the everyday routine of people. These obsessions in OCD are unwanted and people suffering from OCD do not enjoy doing these rituals instead they do it because they feel the need.

The average onset of OCD is 19 and hardly any individual develops OCD after 40. Symptoms of the same can usually be seen during teenage and/or during childhood.

Note: You can be diagnosed with OCD at any time in your life but it is rare to see people develop OCD after the age of 35. Data retrieved from The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Common Experiences:

As the name suggests the most common features of OCD are obsession and compulsion. Obsession and Compulsion in OCD can sound like, “I should at least take a bath at least 5 times per day to keep myself clean” “I need to avoid people what if I catch their germs” or “It doesn’t feel right if I don’t arrange all my books in a particular order and particular set wise”

Here are some common thought or behavior patterns:

Intrusive thoughts of harming yourself or someone else, engaging in violent sexual activity, sexual identity thoughts, such as “What if I crash my car on purpose” “A man seeing his daughter chopping vegetables and has an unwanted image of stabbing her with the knife.” having consistent thoughts about dying or killing someone you love.

Avoiding contact with others due to the fear of getting contaminated with germs or dirt. Refusing to shake hands or avoid doorknobs that a lot of people must have touched.

Worrying excessively about morality, i.e. worrying too much about what is or should be considered right and wrong.

Being in a consistent state of confusion about your gender identity and sexual orientation

Arranging things in a very particular way in your drawer or dresser is a sign of neatness, symmetry, or perfection.

Collecting and hoarding items that have no personal or financial value.

Things associated with numbers, i.e. doing a task n number of times, repeating the same numbers over and over again, excessively preferring or avoiding specific numbers.

Need for constant reassurance.

Though intrusive thoughts and compulsive behaviors are common features in OCD, they are not enough to warrant a diagnosis, so if you see these features in yourself or someone else, it doesn’t mean you have OCD. If you feel that all these signs are getting out of hand and if you aren’t able to manage them efficiently you should seek professional help, as it might affect your life, work, and relationships with people around you.

Disclaimer: Although these are the common signs found in people suffering from OCD it is important to know that this is not an exhaustive list and if you think you are suffering from OCD then it is advisable that you seek medical attention as soon as possible. This can include going to a trustworthy therapist or psychiatrist who can help you.

– Urveez Kakalia and Sakshi Merai.

#mental health #ocd treatment #self improvement #healthy life #health

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ccenvs3000w23 · 2 years

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Unit 05: Nature Interpretation Through Science

The Value of Citizen Science and Sharing through Nature Interpretation

When reflecting on the concept of environmental interpretation, the main purpose is to educate an audience on how valuable the natural world is, and to help people create a lasting and sustainable relationship with the environment (Youngentob & Hostetler, 2018). Another main objective is to educate the public on the importance of conservation and preservation. Although there is much discussion on these important topics, how do we get the general public to feel more engaged in helping the environment? We can always inspire individuals and emphasize the importance of not wasting water, recycling properly or telling people to pay attention to the companies that they are consuming from. These efforts, although can be helpful, may seem that an individual’s influence is minimal since there isn’t much hands-on experience or a direct impact on helping conserve biodiversity. These may seem like ‘secondary’ acts as they’re minor changes to everyday activities that people do. I feel that there should be more emphasis on projects that include non-scientists to help these issues we are so adamant on educating about. Broadening community participation in environmental science and stewardship is an important priority, and citizen science can provide this opportunity (Merenlender et al., 2016). Environmental educators can help emphasize the value of citizen science and engage audiences to further develop their relationships with nature.

Merenlender et al. (2016) defines citizen science as “engaging nonprofessionals in scientific research, is a critical component of Earth stewardship that strengthens community involvement and helps people develop a sense of and commitment to place.” Citizen science is an important component of science learning and environmental education that provides real opportunities to strengthen global monitoring—especially in terms of species (Merenlender et al., 2016). By participating in citizen science projects, the public can gain strong positive attitudes toward the environment which leads to pro-environmental behavior (Merenlender et al., 2016). Citizen science also provides opportunities for people that want to make an environmental change but don’t have any scientific background. With citizen science, the public can engage in research and management activities that affect natural and human communities (Merelender et al., 2016).

Image taken from Science Sparks website.

An example of such research is discussed in the ‘For the love of birds’ Ted Talk (TED, 2017). Wachira mentions how the reason citizen science is so valuable is because it is adaptive, and engaging to the public (TED, 2017). He describes the Kenya Bird Map project and how it maps over 1100 species over an online database where individuals in communities can submit data of birds that they’ve seen. This project involves the general public's participation where they document the location of birds to find out their habitat range. Scientists can then come up with a map of every single species and prioritize conservation efforts on certain species to find out which habitats are most affected. Here in this example it demonstrates how effective citizen science can be in capturing the public's attention, as well as aiding in scientific research. Individuals can feel like they made an effective contribution to science through hands-on activities like this one described!

Below I have linked other citizen science projects that may be of interest to some of you. What are your thoughts on citizen science? Do any of these projects/resources interest you?

https://science.gc.ca/site/science/en/citizen-science-portal

https://ontarionature.org/programs/community-science/

References

Merenlender, A. M., Crall, A. W., Drill, S., Prysby, M., & Ballard, H. (2016). Evaluating Environmental Education, citizen science, and stewardship through naturalist programs. Conservation Biology, 30(6), 1255–1265. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12737

TED. (2017, November 28). For the love of birds | Washington Wachira [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5w5BhwLzoqg

Youngentob, K.N. and Hostetler, M.E. (2018) Environmental interpretation: How to communicate persuasively. Available at: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/UW182 (Accessed: February 8, 2023).

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dragon-kazansky · 3 years

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Made with love | Helmut Zemo

Chef Zemo AU! 👨‍🍳

Gender neutral reader

Collage by @realremyd

[Previous chapter] - [Next chapter]

Part 9

Both Zemo and yourself enter the restaurant together, his arm wrapped snugly around you. You dispose of your personal items and stand behind the bar.

Helmut makes you each some coffee as you look around the room.

As it stands, Escorpión Morado had a homely feel to it which was perfect for you. That meant you didn't want to completely lose that touch, but to complete with Stark, the restaurant needed a new look.

Sam and James came in for work. They saw you both chatting and laughing, drinking coffee together. They shared a look before Sam coughed into his fist. You both turned around.

You looked extremely happy to see them.

"There you are! We need to have a word with you," you waved them over. Helmut made them each a cup of coffee too.

"What's going on?" James asked, looking between you and his boss.

"Escorpión Morado is going to have a makeover, and we need all the help we can get," you declare, proudly.

They look at each other before looking at Zemo.

"What's going on?" Sam asks him.

Helmut sighs softly and placed his hands on the bar, he uses them to support his weight as he leans forward. You're trying so hard not to stare at the muscles visible through his tight shirt.

He is dressing this way on purpose? No! Get your head back on to the restaurant, not the handsome chef.

"Stark has opened his restaurant. He is stealing our customers. We need to earn them back. The only way I can think to do that is to do a grand opening of our own. Escorpión Morado will receive a makeover, we will update our menu, we will update our service. I don't want to lose my business."

You wrap your arms around the one closest to you and rest your head against his shoulder.

"You won't. We can do this. It's going to take a lot of work, but we'll do it."

He smiles at you.

Sam and James nod. They had worked for Helmut for years, he was a good boss and they each had so much respect for him. They had seen the ups and downs of Escorpión Morado and have dealt with every scenario. This was just one more.

"What's the plan?"

You glance at Zemo before answering.

"Helmut and I spent some time picking out designs for the remodel. I'm going to make a few calls later and see who I can get to come over and when. Can you help us clean up the shop? We could leave the outside tables for now, let's start inside."

They nod. You all finish your coffee and Helnut takes the cups away to be washed. You explain to the boys what you want them to do and then you leave to go make a call.

Sam and Bucky pull all the chairs out from under the tables and begin to stack them by the window, pushing the tables out to either side, making as much room as possible.

When Helmut comes back out, he begins clearing the bar. Sam helps him box up the bottles and containers, they store them away for safe keeping.

It takes a couple of hours to shift everything out of the shop, keeping on a few things back incase of customers.

You didn't want Zemo to close up until it was absolutely necessary.

You had made several calls. You had organised someone to pull up the floors and lay a new one, someone would come to repaint the walls in a couple of days, and you had hired a van for the weekend so could collect the new furniture you had organised.

You explained everything to the boys, discussing when things would happen.

"So, what do we today?" Sam asked, looking at the new open space.

"Clean everything. I want this place cleaned from floor to ceiling. We have to get all the photos and decorations off the wall," Helmut said, casting a glance to the photo of his father.

You smile softly.

"You should take him back to the apartment until the restaurant is ready for him to come back," you say.

Helmut nods.

Bucky goes to fetch the mop and bucket. Sam goes to get some furniture polish for the tables.

You grab a box and walk over to where Helmut stood by his father.

"I'll let you pack him away safely," you say, leaving the box on one of the tables.

Helmut stops you from walking away from him, pulling you into his chest and hugging you. You're quick to wrap your arms around him and let him hold you.

"It's going to be amazing when it's done," you tell him.

"You're amazing."

You smile and look at him. Helmut kisses you softly.

"Sorry to interrupt."

You both pull away at the new, yet familiar voice that had entered the room. You both turn to see the man you despised at the door.

Stark takes off his shades and tucks them into his pocket.

"I heard something was happening here, thought I'd come see what's happening."

"None of your business," you snipe.

Stark grins, chuckling in amusement.

"Closing up already?" He asks, not giving you pleasure of a response.

"No," Zemo states.

"Oh? Looks like it."

Stark reaches into his inside pocket and pulls out a cheque. That cheque. He waves it about between two fingers.

"My offer still stands."

"We're not selling you the restaurant," you say, standing in front of Zemo with your arms crossed.

"It's not your decision, pip squeak."

"Pip squeak?"

Helmut places a hand on your shoulder.

"What we are doing is none of your business. Please leave my property and take that with you," Helmut nods at his hand.

Stark continues to hold it up.

"Why are you doing this? Just give in and accept my help. I could make this place something spectacular."

You glare at him.

"It is something spectacular. It's special. We don't need you, Stark."

Stark looks at you. There's a smirk on his lips as he takes slow and certain steps toward you. He comes to a stop directly in front of you and looks at you with piercing eyes.

"Who are you?" He asks.

Your tell him your name.

He scoffs.

"This has nothing to do with you."

You don't back down. You hold your head higher and silently challenge him.

"It has everything to do with me."

Helmut places both hands on your shoulders and pulls you away from Tony.

"What do you want, Tony?" Zemo asks, looking at the other man.

"I'm having a celebration this Friday at my restaurant. You're invited. Bring your data too if you'd like," Stark glances at you.

"We don't want to come," you say.

"Maybe. Maybe not."

Tony leaves an invitation on the end of the bar. You don't even look at it, just watching him.

Tony head back toward the doors.

"Nothing you do will change the outcome."

You wanted to punch him so badly.

He leaves.

You turn on your heel and face Helmut. His dark brown eyes focus on you.

"We can't let him walk all over us."

"No, we can't," he agrees.

"What's he even celebrating?" You ask, glancing at the invitation.

Helmut steps around you to pick it up. He holds it up to where you can both read it. The card was white with cold trimming. In neat black lettering, it read:

You are cordially invited to the engagement party of Pepper Potts and Tony Stark.

Formal dress

Friday 6pm

You look up from the card at Helmut. He looks back down at you.

You both smile.

"It would be rude not to."

"Yes, quite."

Sam and Bucky return. Bucky puts the mop bucket down and grabs a broom, getting straight to work. Sam walks over to the bar and begins to dust it.

You smile again.

"A few more surely wouldn't hurt, right?" You ask, looking up at him.

"Not at all. Us two, plus four, perhaps?"

You grin.

"We have until Friday, by which the new floors and paint should be done."

Helmut nods.

"Stark has no idea what's he just done," you bite your lip with a grin.

Chuckling, Zemo turns back to the photo of his father. There was much to be done before Friday.

I wonder if you're proud of me.

Helmut grabs the box you gave him and begins to pack away the plague and photo. You go over to help Bucky with the floors.

I am, always.

@namethathasnotbeentaken @belle82devart @cathrin2405 @lieutenantn @wilder-fangirl @latenightartist-author @lucky-luck-lucky @hb8301 @charistory @thatoneartgalsstuff @thesuitkovian @malkaviangirl @zemosimp420 @realremyd @the-chaotic-cow @lostghostgirl94 @zafiro-draco @lazygurl05 @pinkcutiepiee @goddessofmischief03 @whovianayesha @myybebe @awesomesauce-abbie @that-stupid-head-tilt-thing @swooning-for-mc-avoy @nonamec0s @apparrio @scuttle-buttle @alex-the-nb @my-blood-is-maple-syrup @greeneyedblondie44

#helmut zemo #zemo x reader #helmut zemo x reader #baron helmut zemo #zemo #au #marvel #tfatws #chef zemo au

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starlightrows · 3 years

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In The Eye Of The Beholder

Chapter 3

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Pairing: Commander Wolffe x reader

Word Count: 2.6k

Warnings: Oral (m and f receiving), mild anti-clone sentiments,

Summary: Commander Wolffe returns to Coruscant for a check in appointment for the study, and scores another date with you!

As time passes the irritated skin around the scar crossing Wolffe’s face begins to fade. He’s back on deployment now, somewhere in the galaxy leading his troops and carrying out orders. But he is still part of the study on the effectiveness of his prothesetic, he obviously can’t come in for case study updates in person, so instead he has scheduled holo calls with you.

The holocalls should really only take about fifteen minutes, thirty if he’s experiencing issues that require scheduling an in person appointment for adjustment or troubleshooting. But each call lands up being closer to an hour, or two depending on how much time he could truly get away with not being on duty.

You talk about your job, he talks about the war effort. You tell him funny stories from your time studying in medical school. He tells you about the stupid things he’s witnessed various memebrs of his squad (and other battalions) do. You describe what it was like growing up on your homeworld. He describes growing up with three million siblings on a planet that never had a day without rain. Food, music, sleeping habits, things you love, things you hate. The two of you never struggle to find something to talk about.

When he isn’t talking to you on holocalls, you’re always on his mind. Every little thing he sees and does, he finds himself thinking of what kind of comment you would make on the situation. Would you laugh at his brother's antics, or scold them alongside him? What advice would you provide when he is faced with a tough decision? He finds himself looking up into the night sky when stationed on far away planets and wondering just how much distance is between the two of you at this moment, and how long would it be before he could close that distance?

His answer comes sooner than he expected it would. General Plo informs him that the battalion will be returning to Coruscant for the purpose of several squads being transferred or reassigned to the battalion as well as the General needed to attend a series of council meetings in person. General Plo also mentioned that it would be best if he contacted you to schedule a check in for his prosthetic.

Briefly Wolffe wondered if the General knew of his evening he spent off the base with you, but ultimately decided two things. He probably did not, the General is a busy man with many responsibilities, too many to notice the comings and goings of every trooper (or commander) that serves under him. And, even if he did, he didn’t care.

Wolffe uses the excuse to schedule a case study appointment to take over an hour to himself in his quarters talking to you on the coms. He tells you he is returning to Coruscant, and he’ll be stationed there for at least four days. Internally he debates asking you outright to go out with him again. He doesn’t normally get much enjoyment from going out to the bars, but he had so much fun dancing with you last time. To his delight you beat him to the punch.

“So, if you’re gonna be planetside for a little while would you consider coming with me to see some live music and have a couple drinks?” You ask with a hint of heat creeping up into your cheeks. You’ve been looking forward to taking a night off to enjoy this free outdoor concert, but if Wolffe could come with you it would be all the more special.

The grouchy commander with a charming smile and quick wit has grown on you. After he tried to leave before, you were afraid that you’d made a mistake inviting him back to your apartment for sex. But he’s proven you wrong in the last couple months. He’s eager and engaged in your biweekly holocalls. And moreso, he seems eager to see you again.

“I could go for some music and drinks. You gonna dance with me again?” he teases

“Get enough drinks in me and you just might get your wish, commander”

In a few days time, you hear from him that he’s arrived on Coruscant and he’s looking forward to seeing you. Unfortunately you can’t get away from work the first day he’s planetside, with your date scheduled for the second day of his shore leave. You’re distracted throughout that day, thinking about seeing him again. You briefly considered comming him at the end of your shift to invite him back to your apartment. But you decide against it, he’s probably enjoying some downtime with his brothers or by himself, and he’s already agreed to spend time with you tomorrow.

Your assumption is partially correct. He is spending some downtime with his brothers in the barracks in the Coruscant base, they’re passing around a bottle of spotchka playing drinking games. Wolffe is having a good time, but he would honestly rather be with you.

The next morning he turns up at your office in his officers uniform for his case study appointment. You welcome him inside in a professional manner, but the second the door is closed you take his hand and lean up to kiss his cheek.

“Welcome back Commander,”

The appointment is relatively quick, just a series of eye movement tests and a questionnaire on symptoms and side effects he’s experienced since having the prosthetic placed. Though it does take all of your concentration to focus on actually collecting the data and not getting sidetracked by flirty conversation. There will be time enough for that later.

When the appointment is finished, you excuse yourself to go to the fresher and change into something more appropriate for spending the day out. You returned looking lovely in a comfortable but stylish outfit. You lock up your office and the two of you set out for the day. The concert isn’t until later in the afternoon, leaving plenty of time to stroll through the various levels of the city.

As you go along, you begin to notice more and more eyes on the pair of you. Many civilians are of the opinion that the clones should not be permitted to spend their off hours among the population of civilized planets. People are afraid of them, bred for war… the words scary, hostile, and unstable often get thrown around. You make a point to keep in step with Wolffe and enjoy every moment of your time with him. People can stare all they want, you’ve been looking forward to this.

The pair of you arrive at the outdoor venue and find a high table that gives you a good view of that stage without being too close. You order drinks and finger food to snack on while you wait for the concert to start. The sun is quickly setting, the lights meant to illuminate the stage and patio come on.

Wolffe looks dashing in his officers uniform, but you can’t decide if it is more or less comfortable than the armor. You’ll have to ask him later, because now the musicians are starting to play. The music is fun and lively, loud enough to drown out the two of you talking and laughing, but not loud enough you can’t hear each other like at the club last time.

Wolffe didn’t initially think going to see live music in a small venue like this would be enjoyable, he’s not really a music person as it is. But he has a great time, music is so much better hearing it in person, and all the more fun when you have a pretty date who likes to dance after a couple drinks.

It’s not raunchy sexually motivated dancing like before, though that was fun too, your dancing tonight is playful and fun. Your smile shines bright under the twinkling patio lights as he spins and dips you. When the concert ends there is applause from the audience thanking the musicians for their fantastic performance. Wolffe is almost disappointed the show is over, if he had it his way he would get to twirl you around and make you laugh all night long.

Well… that might still be an option in another sense.

Your apartment isn’t too far away, so you walk with your hand in the crook of his arm back to your place. When you get inside you offer him a glass of wine, and sit together in your living room.

“Thanks for coming out with me tonight,” you say warmly

“How could I say no? I love to see you dance,” he replies with a hint of a smirk. You lean in a little and hold his gaze with lips ever so slightly parted, an invitation if he’s willing to accept it.

He does, closing the gap between you to smooth his lips over yours in a kiss. You taste the wine on his lips, dark and sweet. You let your jaw slack a little as his tongue gently pushes past your lips to explore your mouth. Warmth pools low in your tummy, the hand he has placed at your waist is distracting since his thumb slowly stroking over the bottom curve of your breast. But you stay focused, you’ve got something in mind for tonight.

Breaking away from the kiss you make your move, pushing him away from you and back into the couch. “I want to do something for you,” you say in a low sultry tone, hoping he’d trust you enough to lead. He quirks a brow, curious as to your intentions.

You slide off the couch and settle yourself at his feet, pushing his knees open. He eyes you with an air of caution “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” he says. But damn does he want it, just the sight of you slipping down between his legs already has him half hard.

You run your hands up the outsides of his thighs, and curl your fingers around the top of his trousers. “I want to do this”

He nods and settles back with a smirk “You were planning this weren’t you?” He growls as you work his pants off. You give him an innocent look and bat your eyelashes teasingly. You free his cock from his grays, curving up towards his stomach, hard in anticipation.

You reach out and take him in your hand, licking a stripe up the underside of his shaft and closing your lips over the head. He lets out a groan as you take him deeper into your mouth, sucking as you go.

“Such a good girl taking my cock” he groans.

You begin bobbing your head clinging to his thighs for support. You could feel yourself getting wet with arousal too, his groans and praise getting to you. You use your hand to pump the base of his cock you can’t get to with your mouth, and the other to start massaging his balls. His grunts and moans began getting louder and more desperate.

“I’m close” he moaned “Go on baby, finish me off”

You took him down into your throat, as deep as you could before starting to gag and sucked at him, coaxing him over the edge. You could feel him tightening up, his feral grunts and moans becoming erratic and unrestrained. You pull off of him about half way and open your mouth wide, stroking his cock in quick firm movements. His head drops back onto the couch, grunting and panting as he cums into your waiting mouth.

His head snaps back forward, eyes taking in the sight of you with his cum painted over your lips and in your pretty mouth. He leans forward, reaching out to pinch your cheeks between his thumb and forefinger. You poke your tongue out just a bit, and let him admire the sight of his release.

“Swallow it” he growls

You respond by licking your lower lip and drawing your tongue back into your mouth swallowing whatever you hadn’t already. He surges forward and crashes his lips down on yours. He pulls you up from your spot on the ground, and into his lap. His hands are everywhere, roaming down your back, over the curve of your ass, around to your tummy and up to cup your breasts through your pretty little shirt. He finally breaks the kiss, panting from exertion but still riled up.

“Let me return the favor,” he growls, flipping you over, taking you down to lay back on the couch. He takes his time, peeling off your pants, stripping your top off, and undoing the clasps of your bra. He leans over and kisses you again with a kind of intensity you’ve never experienced before. It’s not exactly rough, it’s hungry and desperate. His hands massage your breasts, deftly rolling your nipples between his fingers. You moan into the kiss.

“You like that baby?” He trails his lips down your neck, and kisses them hollow at the base. You wiggle your hips, the wetness pooling in your nether regions becoming a little uncomfortable. He chuckles darkly, and resumes kissing his way down your body. He stops just at your panty line, looking up at you with a bit of mischief in his eyes.

Without breaking eye contact, he carefully bites the waistband of your panties and begins to drag them down. Your breath hitches at the sight, and you lift your hips up just a bit to help him get them off. When he gets them down to about your knees, he releases them from between his teeth and uses one hand to tear them away.

Then he’s leaning back down, and leaving a trail of wet kisses and little bites from the inside of your knee up your leg, getting closer and closer to where you need him most. His hands slide up the backs of your thighs and lifts you about an inch or two off the couch to his waiting mouth.

His tongue slides between your folds and he begins to lap at your wetness. He teases your aching hole with the most tantalizing strokes of his tongue, switches it up by nosing his way up to your clit and suckling at it, squeezing your ass and moaning into you.

You’re moaning, panting, flushed with heat and getting closer and closer to a release.

“Wolffe,” you moan “please… please… please… make me cum”

He glances up and sees your eyes have fluttered shut, your head tipped back and chest heaving with strained breath. He speeds his movements, suckles at your clit with alternating flicks of his tongue and groans at the sounds of your pleasure.

Your hands twist around the edge of the sofa cushions, needing something to cling onto as your climax overtakes you. Your moans and whimpers stall out, and your voice cuts off as you cum. Your legs tremble in his hold, signaling him to slow down his movements and pull away from your glistening cunt as you come down from your high.

He crawls back over you, catching your lips in another kiss. You taste yourself on him, and come back to reality.

“Stars….” you whisper, breaking the kiss “You didn’t tell me you had a secret talent, Commander”

“If I told you, it wouldn’t be much of a secret would it?” He kisses you again, the desperation has subsided but the hunger is still there.

“You gonna try to take off on me or are you sticking around for breakfast tomorrow?” You tease him. You get the feeling he knew he was welcome to stay again, but still make the joke just in case.

“If the offer is on the table?” He quirks an eyebrow at your comment, and gives you a smirk.

On the table you think to yourself maybe next time….

Tag List: @ems-alexandra @thefact0rygirl @ajeff855

#Star Wars #Clone Wars #Commander Wolffe #Commander Wolffe x reader #Commander Wolffe x fem reader #CC 3636 #In The Eye Of The Beholder #my clone husband #wolffe’s wifey

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yanting01 · 3 years

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Is Korean Fandom a friendly space for Malaysian fan?

In this era filled with digital technology, lots of activities could be done on the internet, especially the social media, one of it will be fandom. When I see the word 'fandom', the first direct terms that came into my mind are K-pop, K-drama, all sorts of 'Hallyu' , a global phenomenon that signifies the spread of Korean popular culture, such as their pop music, dramas, etc. Other than 'Hallyu', I know there is also other types of fandom, such as anime fandom, movies fandom, western countries pop singers, etc. Anything that have a state or attitude of being a fan, that will be fandom. So, you have guessed it right! Today's topic is more interesting, which is fandom, and we will also be discussing about fandom in Malaysian fans, is it a friendly space or not? Below is the main cast of drama Vincenzo that I "fandomed" recently 😜

The Term 'Fandom'

'Fan' refers to "an enthusiastic devotee usually as a spectator" (Merriam Webster 2021).

'Fandom' refers to "the state of being a fan of someone or something, especially a very enthusiastic one" (Cambridge Dictionary 2021).

By the definition, fan and fandom are correlated to each other. Fandom provides fans a medium to engage and communicate with other fans that shares same interests (Abd Rahim 2019). It is an essential mediating factor of relationship between fans and the object fans their fanaticism, and between individual fans themselves (Abd Rahim 2019).

In this era of arising digital technology, fans participated in a variety of online discussions related to their interests. They form groups to devote to specific music genres and individual stars, encourage daily interactions within the fandom, between fans and the music industry (Abd Rahim 2019).

Here comes an example of fandom: I remember when the k-drama, Vincenzo first premiered on Netflix, there are already a lot of discussions on the drama itself, and also the casts. When I scroll through my social media (Instagram, YouTube), there are quite a number of fan-made videos, short scenes of the funny moments, and others. When I googled the drama, there are also a lot of discussions regarding the drama's plot, and nevertheless shipping the main cast to be in a relationship (that happened every time in romance genre 😂).

Healthy and Toxic Fandom

Fandom has the advantage of creating sense of community and help boost self-esteem of a person. However, it also has downsides, it is sometimes detrimental, where fandom could foster toxicity around a given figure or franchise. To illustrate, a South Korean celebrity, Sulli was found dead caused by suicide, and the reason was guessed to be the attacked by the community, together suffering from depression (Boroweic 2019).

Good fandom is healthy, appreciative, that support each other in a collaborative community. The opposite is only toxic and abusive.

Influences of Fandom

Korean fandom have appeared to be influencing, industries such as food and cosmetics have been using them to market their products. Below is a video shows a Korean celebrity, Siwon Choi, doing advertisement for Mi Sedap new flavor Korean Spicy Soup instant noodle. Mi Sedap is a top-leading instant noodle company from Malaysia.

(Link to Mi Sedaap Facebook 2020)

And the comments on the video posts are quite engaging and positive, showing that the celebrity did somehow boost the product visibility. Another thing will be the Malaysia community towards this 'Hallyu' fandom is mostly accepted.

(Image captured from Mi Sedaap Facebook 2020)

In addition, in a news post from Syok (2021) stated that Malaysian K-pop fans composed of the 7th biggest market for K-pop-related conversations on Twitter by tweet volume, according to statistics collected by Twitter and fandom data observatory K-pop Radar.

Again, these shows that Malaysian are having high acceptance on Korean fandom, we couldn't say there are no toxic fandom within Malaysian, but based on the statistics, majority are accepting and loving it.

To conclude...

Everyone have different likes and dislikes, even Korean fandom will have somebody that hates it. I believe fandom is a friendly space for Malaysian, where the condition to share the same interests. Apart from that, Malaysian generally also act ethically on the Internet, especially social media. This will ensure that people don't get conflicted easily, and make the internet a friendly space, and a friendly space for fandom.

———————- This is a cute ending line ————————-

That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading! 😍

References

Abd-Rahim, A. (2019). Online Fandom: Social Identity and Social Hierarchy of Hallyu Fans. Journal for Undergraduate Ethnography, 9(1), 65–66. https://doi.org/10.15273/jue.v9i1.8885

Borowiec, S. (2021, January 29). Is South Korea’s caustic obsession with celebrity to blame for the early demise of another young starlet? Steven Borowiec discusses the soul-searching in the country after Sulli’s death. CNA. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/south-korea-celebrity-sulli-f-x--suicide-cause-death-12018318

Cambridge University Press. (n.d.). Fan. In Cambridge University Press. Retrieved May 9, 2021, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/fandom

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Fan. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved May 9, 2021, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fan

Syok. (2021, February 4). Malaysia Ranks Seventh Among Countries With Most Tweets About K-pop. https://en.syok.my/viral/malaysia-ranks-seventh-among-countries-with-most-t

This is a blog post for educational purpose only for unit MDA20009 Digital Communities.

#week9 #mda20009 #digital communities #swinburne university of technology

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thisweekingundamevents · 4 years

Text

This Week in Gundam Wing 25-31 October 2020

Here’s this week’s roundup! Oct 25th-31st!

Remember to give your content creators some love! Be sure to join in on the events at the bottom! And remember to send in any new works next week!

~Mod Hel

Fanfiction/Snippets/AU Ideas:

@amberlyinviolet

I Can Kiss You For Free Now https://archiveofourown.org/works/27208864?view_adult=true

M/M, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Mature, Fluff, Vague angst

His insides were a riot of overgrown flower beds, bushes in need of pruning. When he tried to clear a space it was filled with something else--debris from his shipwrecked heart, mud from too much rain. It was a constant effort and Duo worked hard, so hard, to try and tidy it into something he could give away. Something neat and beautiful and with no sharp edges that he could offer with both hands, instead of what he had. Instead of slow seeping poison and the constant upkeep, the steady, leaching need for reassurance.

To Bethlehem It Slouched https://archiveofourown.org/works/27232870

M/M, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Duo Maxwell, Chang Wufei, Trowa Barton

Mature, Mentions of Violence, Off-screen Minor Character Death, Hospital, protective instinct

The hospital is a hospital. Duo hates it the way he hates all of them. It’s 12:04 in the afternoon and he all but runs to the trauma center. Stands blank faced as the nurse says words like “concussion” and “minor” and “lucky” and wonders how he’s supposed to be grateful for this. How he’s supposed to feel good that Wufei isn’t dead when he almost was. Lucky means close. Means a few inches either way and it would’ve been different words. Words like “sorry” and “condolences” and “tragic.”

You, Soft And Only https://archiveofourown.org/works/27247480

M/M, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Mature, Romance, Softness, Fluff

It’s evening. The kitchen is warm and full of smells. There’s soft light coming in through the window over the sink and Duo is up to his elbows in soap bubbles. He is illuminated, singing along to something upbeat and Wufei watches him from the doorway with wonder. This, he thinks, is his. It’s not exactly a reward. It’s more an offering. A vulnerability that Wufei knows Duo is only comfortable sharing because he trusts Wufei. Because together they’ve built something that’s safe, even if it is a little wobbly. They don’t have to be anything else here, just themselves, and just themselves is enough. It’s something they give to each other over and over, and Wufei treasures it the same way he treasures the man at the sink.

The Fire In Your Eyes https://archiveofourown.org/works/27264679

M/M, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Mature, Plotting

“No what ifs.” It’s firm. Steely, and Duo finds himself at the end of one of Wufei’s looks. Finds himself melting despite the chaos around them. The hurricane of fear in his chest. How he loves this man. How he loves the way he understands him, his need to fix this, and combats it with chamomile and the promise of bed, together. Duo takes a sip of his tea and leans into him.

The Blood Is On Your Tongue As Well As Your Hands https://archiveofourown.org/works/27282487

M/M, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Mature, Panic Attack, PTSD, Rage, Violence, Suggested Co-dependence

He doesn’t feel safe. Avoids eye contact and looks out the window. Doesn’t know how this room of people can stand him, after everything he’s done. All the little pieces he’s stolen from them, or the big pieces. Duo isn’t exactly a liar but he is a thief and none of the people he loves are safe. Are, in fact, in the most danger and Duo takes another sip of whiskey. Takes another sip of whiskey and tries not to taste the rising bile. Not to feel the sharp scratchy static at the back of his neck. The base of his skull. There is heat. There is heat and electricity and Duo’s hands shake.

Lay Us Down https://archiveofourown.org/works/27286864

M/M, Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell

Explicit, soft, Confessions, Smut, Feelings

Sometimes their bed seems endless. An expanse of sheets and skin and the silk of their hair, spread out on a pillow. Falling like a curtain around them as they kiss. Wufei has had his body his whole life, but this is the first time he’s ever felt settled in it. Felt like all of it belonged to him in a way he could revel in. Whatever insecurities he has seem to fall away under the heat of Duo’s violet gaze. Under every greedy sweep of Duo’s hand from the back of his neck to his tailbone. They are lying side by side. They are only kissing and it’s such a simple thing but Wufei isn’t sure he’s ever felt anything like this before. That the brush of lips against his has ever sent such a spark through him. Coiled such a fierce need in his belly.

@angelselene

Stand Without Flinching (Ch. 24) https://archiveofourown.org/works/22763293/chapters/66640444

5 pilots + The Avengers

1x2, 3x4, 5xS, TonyxSteve, WandaxVision

MATURE, post-canon, canon divergent, fix-it, GW/MCU crossover, PTSD, found family, slow burn, moral ambiguity, Tony Stark is Duo’s father

For Duo Maxwell, family are the people he has loved and lost and whose names he bears. For Tony Stark, family has always been blood and a name and Howard’s shadow looming over him.

@bobo-is-tha-bomb

Deadly Intent (Ch. 8) https://archiveofourown.org/works/25576657/chapters/66603631

F/M, Heero/Reader, ???/Reader

Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Wufei Chang, Lady Une, Relena Peacecraft, Reader, Trowa Barton

Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Reader Insert, Drama, Angst, Romance, Violence, Lime

Eleven years is a long time for a ghost to come back and haunt him. But Heero Yuy finds himself unable to dodge or outrun it. It’s the start of a dangerous cat and mouse game between one of the most powerful organizations in the world and a loner who has every intention of dragging him down with her. After all, she has come with deadly intent.

Comfort https://archiveofourown.org/works/27222649

F/M, Heero Yuy/Reader

Teen And Up Audiences, Romance, Fluff, Angst, Reader-Insert

“I want to thank you for last night,” you said softly, while looking up at him. “It was nice of you to take care of me like that.”

A frown formed on his face. “You sound as if none ever did that for you before.”

@duointherain

Six Feet Apart https://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/633016132898521088/fic-six-feet-apart

Disclaimer: I don’t own Gundam Wing. I also don’t own the song in the Tumblr post I’m about to link. I barely own my own mind as I’m studying to much these days. Neither do I own: Song Grow As We Go, by Ben Platt.

Link: https://rosespirit.tumblr.com/post/633002398703616000/priscellie-candiikismet-coffeefoxgirl

Note: Gundam Wing is Sci-fi. It’s a m/m story.

It had all stopped so suddenly. It hadn’t been like anything had been declared, nothing permanent. After the war they’d just sort of fallen in together. First it was the hotel room. Then it was a pizza. Duo’s laughter had saved him. Even months after he last heard it, Duo’s laugh was what he kept breathing for. It wasn’t like there was a lot of other purpose. Weapons are supposed to be decommissioned, after all. Except the memory of Duo’s laugh, Duo’s kisses, Duo sleeping next to him, these things meant he was human. Pain meant he was alive. He still had the ring, though his finger was too small to keep it on anymore.

Gundam Legends 14

Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Go Back In The Water https://archiveofourown.org/collections/GundamLegends14

A collection of fics by various authors for the Gundam Legends event. Previous years can be found here: https://tzigane.neocities.org

@lifeaftermeteor

To Love and Love Again https://archiveofourown.org/works/27309412/chapters/66724459

F/M, M/M, Chang Wufei/Relena Peacecraft, Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy

Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei, Relena Peacecraft, Hilde Schbeiker, Sally Po, Lucrezia Noin, Lady Une, Mareen Darlian

Teen And Up Audiences, background Sally Po/Lady Une, Post-Series, Post-Canon, Post-Endless Waltz, Preventers, BROTPs abound, Fluff, Romance, Slice of Life, Wedding Fluff

Following their Christmas engagement, Wufei and Relena bring their family together for their nuptials. The celebration gives their guest an opportunity to reflect on their own romantic inclinations.

@vegalume

Chase https://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/633532147170476032/title-chase-a-drabble-author-vega-lume-written

Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell

The knock at the door startled him more than he would like to admit. In a way he had been expecting it. It was a sort of nervous, anxiousness that had been strumming through his body since he had woken hours before. Now that it was just past sun down he knew what was waiting for him on the other side and he was both apprehensive and excited.

Fanart/Crafts/Photo Manips:

@2pcb

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27312763/chapters/66732790

EXHALE, Heero/Trowa, comic

@cuteciboulette

https://cuteciboulette.tumblr.com/post/633411537102667776/10-left-to-go-hopefully-ill-be-done-by-the-end

GW Merch

@enelle89

https://enelle89.tumblr.com/post/633025341866246144/happy-halloween-its-almost-here

Heero Yuy/Relena Darlian-Peacecraft, fanart

@gundayum

https://gundayum.tumblr.com/post/631834507084021760/i-have-a-little-data-again-so-plz-enjoy-dad-bod

Duo Maxwell, fanart

https://gundayum.tumblr.com/post/632787659677384704/borrowing-my-aunts-wifi-to-share-my-trashy-2xh

Duo Maxwell/Hilde Schbeiker & kiddos, fanart

Head Canons:

@bobo-is-tha-bomb

https://bobo-is-tha-bomb.tumblr.com/post/632983263759220736/gw-oc-october-day-24

GW OC-October 2020 Day 24 Prompt Response

@lochtayboatsong

https://gwoc-october.tumblr.com/post/633017041186668544/my-gw-ocs-part-13-josef-peacecraft

GW OC-October 2020 Day 1 Prompt Response

https://gwoc-october.tumblr.com/post/633174117984698369/my-gw-ocs-part-14-stefan-peacecraft

GW OC-October 2020 Day 2 Prompt Response

https://gwoc-october.tumblr.com/post/633386069070626816/my-gw-ocs-part-15-isabel-barton

GW OC-October 2020 Day 3 Prompt Response

https://gwoc-october.tumblr.com/post/633560666909851648/my-gw-ocs-part-16-sam-maxwell

GW OC-October 2020 Day 1 Prompt Response

Fandom Discourse:

@cuteciboulette

https://cuteciboulette.tumblr.com/post/632800216214536192/lets-go-back-to-this-sharing-my-gw-archives

Over the next few days, a story scanned from the doujinshi “Guerrilla show” by Sango Show.

Quotes:

@incorrectgundamwingquotes

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/633530414557020160/at-preventers-hq-dorothy-to-duo-well

Dorothy, Duo, and Quatre

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/183465625949/lemontrash-lemontrash-lemontrash

Duo & WuFei

Add-ons by @lemontrash

Calendar Events:

@gwcocktailfriday

Cocktail Fridays!

Post responses on Friday, during Happy Hour between 3 & 5 pm in your own timezone.

Here’s the prompt for Friday, November 6th! https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/post/633500173247627264/cocktail-friday-post-responses-on-friday-november

In need of WINTER/SPRING prompts!

@gwoc-october

GW OC October 2020!

GW OC-October 2020 is now over!

Do come by and check out all the amazing entries, and remember that if you’d still like to answer any of these prompts, you are more than welcome to! Just send them our way and we’ll reblog them!

@thisweekingundamevents

Events Calendar https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/624053314842230784/event-calendar-update

If you are hosting an event currently, or are planning on one, hit us up with links and dates! We’ll add them to the Calendar and reblog your notices to get the word out!

GW Holiday Gift Exchange 2020

Rules: https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/627952774875906048/gw-holiday-gift-exchange-2020

Check-in 1 https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/633566440354627584/gw-holiday-gift-exchange-check-in-1-notice

#Gundam Wing #This Week in Gundam Wing #Weekly Roundup #25-31 October 2020

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atas8wrld · 3 years

Text

Week One: The Power of Storytelling, Mental Models & Systems Thinking

Class in a Nutshell:

Today I invited my friend Tui to class; together we made two new friends Nai and Dylan. Eventually, I familiarised myself with the physical classroom, observing the layout, our teacher, and those of our peers. Then, we made toast! Illustratively that is; our first task was to draw our own step-by-step process of making toast, specifically for an alien audience who we recognised would be clueless at such a task. So, I took the liberty of drawing out the bread aisle of a supermarket, distinguishing between the bakery and toast appropriate bread - cause- that's important. I divided the entire page into sections to illustrate each subsequent step. I quickly realised that the way I approached the task was completely unique to others. As a class, we observed this further as we embraced each drawing and made connections between methods, thought patterns, and decision-making for each illustration. The basis of this activity was summarised in Tom Wujec's Ted Talk:

Tom Wujec: Got a wicked problem? First, tell me how you make toast

Tom addresses a few major points about breaking down and visualising information into 'bite-size' digestible pieces:

Drawing promotes mental nodes and links

Using sticky notes promotes effective iteration which is a fundamental aspect of the design thinking process

Collaboration visualisation and using group sticky notes improves synthesisation and thus creates better systems models

I can use these visualisation tools to digest, dissect and solve complex issues

The primary function of the lean/business model canvas comes to mind which encourages visualisation, group interaction, and sticky notes

Towards the end of class, we brainstormed social issues that as the team was what we considered pressing and relevant. We decided on an overarching theme based on the causes and effects of mental health in society; then we illustrated our ideas through a visual map.

Favourite Concept:

If empathy was a teapot, the sprout and handle would be Design and Creativity, the body being Empathy and in this case, the tea would be the outcome achieved when effective empathetic and generative thinking are applied.

Favourite Thought:

How effective storytelling changes the way we think.

I like to take notes using blank paper because I like that there aren't any of what feels to be thought confining lines. I try to draw and make connections between ideas or 'map-it-out' otherwise it's difficult for me to focus and grasp understanding. Reflecting on this I think about my younger brother who would teach me new ideas through analogies or metaphors and now when I try to learn new things, I make sense of them by connecting them to things that I am familiar with or interested in. I draw or map them out on my blank paper and as I'm doing that I feel as if I'm simultaneously entering new data into my brain.

Overview: Top 3 Questions:

Why is storytelling a fundamental need for human existence?

I could understand how food and love are essential means to human life and survival as according to the illustration titled, The Power of Storytelling, created by Sir Ian McKellen, however, the idea that storytelling is just as important was something I needed to ponder. Initially, I thought that there was surely something else that could replace storytelling and could be deemed as more important (even though all I could think about was humour). I realised that emotions, feelings, and connections could all be evoked through storytelling. I also thought about how stories can be told in forms such as song and dance and sometimes martial arts which is how I'm able to learn about the history of my people and the significance of lands and tradition. These aspects of humanity are what make up a big part of our identity and culture as unique groups as well as a collective human race.

The Power of Storytelling, with Sir Ian McKellen

What makes a story effective?

Capture and hold attention

Transport outsiders into the world of the characters

What can this mean to me now?

The Dramatic Arc

Starts with something new and surprising

The character faces difficulties to overcome

Story evokes transformation

Story resolves itself

The Virtuous Cycle of Empathy

Engaging emotionally

Leading to acts of service

Makes us happier

Motivating Behavioural Change

Capture attention (interesting/fascinating)

Stimulate emotion (relatable/empathising)

Build connection (purpose/learning)

Motivate change (the act of service)

Conclusion: Takeaway & Improvements

Reflective thinking is effective when practiced daily; when I do this, I am giving myself an opportunity to link, make sense and connect thoughts which strengthens my brainpower

Reflection and awareness help me to create better mental models and improves my system thinking processes to make better decisions

A blog is a display of a series of thoughts that encompass a theme or is presented in a structured way

Empathy and learning through drawing/mental nodes/stories are my superpowers

Storytelling is a fundamental aspect of human life because I'm wired this way!

I am better engaged when I can truly see myself in a story.

Storytelling is a form of communication; historically it was a survival mechanism, today it is how we communicate and connect ideas

System thinking takes a holistic approach to analysis that factors multiple angles of how a system works overtime and within the context of larger systems

Artificial Intelligence and Big Data comes to mind

References

The Power of Storytelling, with Sir Ian McKellen. (2021, September 3). Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/125383660

Ted. (2015, February 5). Tom Wujec: Got a wicked problem? First, tell me how you make toast [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vS_b7cJn2A

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meganwkn · 3 years

Text

Wearables of Weight (Wee Kai Ning Megan)

Inspired by the free time during the Circuit Breaker last year, my friend has since embarked on a fitness journey consisting of intense workouts. To keep track with her progress, she has purchased a Xiaomi “smart weighing scale” which looks like this:

The weighing scale also comes with an App which provides users with more in-depth detail about their bodies, such as body fat percentage and data based on their statistics. The marketing of this weighing machine and its wearable version in the form of an App had me thinking about Crawford’s reading about self-tracking.

In the reading, Crawford described the evolution of the weighing scale, from it being an initially male-marketed product used in public spaces to a private bathroom device that can help give ladies “a lovely figure”. With the increased awareness about female empowerment and a shifting focus on health over appearance, modern-day appliances are therefore marketed with fitness in mind, as seen in the advertisement above. Instead of portraying a woman with a coveted hourglass figure, advertisements now emphasise the importance of health and wellness to instigate women’s feelings of liberation and independence. This appears to be how the weighing scale continues to evolve according to the times, while essentially serving as a tool for self-knowledge and control over one’s body.

Nonetheless, the limitations discussed in Crawford’s reading is still similar to what my friend has mentioned about her weighing scale. Apparently, it lets users be aware of their data across a statistical range. For instance, the App told my friend she was fitter and weighed lighter than 95% of the population, although there is no evidence of how this data was collected and who exactly they consist of. Therefore, it was wise that my friend took such information with a pinch of salt instead of taking it seriously or even considering it as a compliment.

Having said that, I am concerned about the consequences it will bring to others who are highly weight-conscious or are trying to lose weight. A downside of wearables not covered extensively in Crawford’s reading was the harmful effects of women being pressured into a slim body (or, at present, a fit and “healthy” body). Being shown such data may be detrimental to one’s self-esteem when being compared to others. While others may have the weighing scale for purposes other than losing weight, such comparisons might negatively impact their body image and lead them to engage in an unnecessary weight loss regime. This would be ironic as the weighing scale, which was supposed to be a tool of taking control, ends up controlling and manipulating our actions instead.

In conclusion, I agree that data from self-tracking wearables should not be prioritised over our lived experiences in both the courtroom and everyday lives. While it is definitely possible for softwares and its programmers to calculate and present their data flawlessly, it is pointless if their collected data is flawed in the first place.

#nm3205 #wearables #tw4

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gaoshengyang · 3 years

Video

youtube

The parallels between Barthes’s “Death of the Author” and Sax’s death of the meme reminds me of a performance by the Korean musician band Stray Kids (SKZ). SKZ are part of a television program called Kingdom where they and five other bands compete against each other to win the first-place ranking on the show; they compete by putting on performances based on prompts and then get ranked by audience members and expert panels on how well they execute the prompt and stage. The prompt for this performance was “reborn” and each band had to cover another band’s song.

For SKZ, they covered the song titled “I’ll Be Your Man” by the band BtoB, appropriating it according to the theme and their own interpretation of the original work. New rap sections and vocal melodies were added to the track to create a sound that was unique to SKZ; in this way, I was reminded of Barthes’ argument that “the birth of the reader must be ransomed by the death of the Author” because SKZ additionally changed the meaning of the song from talking about a love between a man and a woman to a gender-neutral relationship between loved ones.

SKZ’s performance itself is another form of an author’s death. SKZ had a storyline to their performance that viewers and panel members had to decipher on their own. For viewers, that meant that they went onto platforms like Reddit (1, 2) or Twitter to discuss it.

“...there is one place where this multiplicity is collected, united, and this place is not the author...the unity of a text is not in its origin, it is in its destination; but this destination can no longer be personal…” — Barthes

Because the interpretation of the stage was up to the understanding of the viewer, SKZ figuratively experienced death on their part; from the previous round, SKZ fell from first-place to fifth-place due to viewers’ disconnection with the performance storyline.

Furthermore, the company that hosts and distributes the program (Mnet) exercised the kind of commercialization and promotional purposes that Sax writes in their article “The Growing Power of the Meme.” In the performance, one of the singers had a voice crack, but Mnet capitalized on the mistake to garner more tension and viewership of the program. As Sax quotes in the article, “The MVPs are the people who change it, appropriate it, and turn it into something greater.”

Ultimately, the power of the performance rests in those who have access to it and how they choose to engage with it. Likewise, this applies to memes, data, and photography as reference in Sax’s article, Harari and Harris’s interview, and Sontag’s book. However, it’s also worth considering that as long as a work continues to arise and be interpreted over time, there is some immortality to the work’s author as the work is an artifact of their existence.

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basia2002ib · 4 years

Text

Profile & summary of my CAS

Learning outcomes

All in all I can say I achieved all learning outcomes.

1. I identified own strengths and developed areas for growth. I got involved in activities that based on my prevailing skills but opened new ways to develop. Language can be deepened without limits; although I have got a certified C2 level in German I can still develop my skills and I continued to do so throughout my CAS.

2. I have undertaken a range of challenges, for instance passing a C2 exam in German seemed outlandish at first but then I got used to the idea and focused all my efforts to pursuing this goal. And I did it, even though it might seem abstract. I wanted to challenge myself to spice up my life a little bit and grow personally from the process. Now I can see a difference - my German language skills developed to such degree that when I am reading literature in German now I see an immense difference - now I can easily spot nuances and extract the deep meaning.

3. I initiated and planned CAS experiences thoroughly. I am a pragmatic person who tends to stick to the plan because it gives direction. CAS stages came naturally to me, I did not have to force them because they are inherent parts of planning process. My intellectual challenges undertaken in German - 2 competition and one language certificate required detailed planning for adequate preparation. Also my internship in the foundation required planning and time-management skills as I had to combine it with my various initiatives and rigorous IB programme. CAS stages were useful to plan my CAS project as well - I was in MUN staff, which means I coorganized WawMUN 2019.

4. Commitment and perseverance are prerequisite for success. I understand it therefore in every action I take these factors resonate. Otherwise I would accomplish my goals such as honours in German, I would not be able to play volleyball in the first-line up or I would not fulfill my demanding duties throughout my internship effectively. These are only examples of actions where I used my commitment and perseverance to succeed.

5. I saw benefits of working collaboratively during the WawMUN 2019 conference, which I organized as my CAS project but also in my internship in the foundation and my service as a student goverment vice president. In the student government we need to rely on one another and have each other’s back. We do share responsibilities to make sure nothing is neglected. We help each other and in case of emergency may replace one another either during a debate or while discussing issues with the head mistress. Throughout my internship I served as an assistant therefore I needed to adjust to the current responsibilities. I was instructed by more experienced employees all the way and assigned tasks. WawMUN conference is the biggest MUN in Poland therefore the organization process is complicated and required the division of tasks. If we did not trust each other and if we did not share responsibilities, the effect would not be so spectacular. The results showed the benefits of the team work from its best side.

6. I engaged with issues of gloabl significance throughout my CAS project which was co-organizing the MUN conference. Practising debating skills is crucial in today’s world and new generations of politicians have a chance to challenge their capabilities on the conference. The topics discussed in individual commitees touched upon issues of global significance. It is great to give my peers a chance to gain skills, delve into controversial subjects and defend their position. Some of them would probably pursue politics further in life; MUN conferences are truly inspirational in this respect.

7. One of the ethical issues I adressed during my activity as a student government vice president was the animal consumption. To relieve the environment, make my own step to reduce cruelty against animals, at least at the local level, I negotiated with the canteen supervisor to introduce vegan food. Unfortunately it was not possible to serve vegan dinners because of technical diffuculties but vegan sandwiches appeared in the canteen soon after our proposal. This is the way to satisfy needs of people on a plant-based diet but also a way to promote environmentally friendly food, with no associated cruelty.

Creativity

I love literature and foreign languages. Throughout my CAS, I combine this two effectively to follow both of my passions simultaneously. I read and write a lot in German and do far beyond what is required in my school. My goals in German are wide-ranging and not confined to my German B classes, but I challenged myslef to take part in competition and to read German literature. Once I have read “The Sorrows of Young Werther”, “Faust”, “The Visit”, “The Trial” in original and it commenced my relationship with German literature. I was captivated by it to such extent that I made a German classic “The Magic Mountain” the center of my Extended Essay. I also chose “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka to use in my oral exam. Thomas Mann and Franz Kafka are one of my favourite writers of all time and they allow me to trace different nuances of German language. Close analysis of these works of art should involve in my opinion delving into the original work. A valuable experience might be to compare it with the translation, which I did throughout my independent study.

My tangible achievements in German (the evidence for my skills) were: a C2 certificate in German, a disitinction in the translation contest “Juvenes Translatores” organized by the European Commision and a finalist title in the National German Olympiad. I reached my aforementioned goals in 2020. They involved CAS stages. 1. I investigated the area I wanted to deepen my skills in and specific aims I wanted to pursue and these were competitions in German. 2. I prepared my strategy, researched the most respectable competitions and exams I wanted to take part in, signed up for them and planned preparation which was necessary because of huge amounts of school work and limited free time. 3. I took specific action, exposed myself to the language days before the exam and throughout multiple months I was doing practice papers, reading and watching a lot. 4. I realized that by pursuing my passion in German and going beyond the curriculum I freed myself and could really delve into the language. The experience provided me with the sense of purpose - my life was not only concerned with my Diploma syllabus but I could get acquainted with literature and recognized the power of translation in terms of its strong influence on the reception of foreign texts.

From then onward I worked to maintain my German on the same high level. I should not take it for granted - I am not a native speaker. My accomplishements required huge amounts of work and also talent but might disappear if not cared for properly.

Activity

In the course of my CAS journey I have been active in many disciplines. Sport is one of my few ways to unwind and stop stressing about reality. I think that the limited possibilities to practice sport were one of the major obstacles during the pandemic. I was deprived of my only way to switch off and relax. Before the pandemic I used to swim and play volleyball in a school team every week plus I attended 3 Physical Education classes per week. Now my prefered activities are not possible to pursue because of lockdown which entailed school, sport halls and swimming pool closures. Moreover I am concerned with the virus. At the start of 2020 we managed to take the fouth place in district-wide volleyball competition. My team and I wanted to improve next year but the pandemic unexpectedly shattered my plans. I am grateful, however, for having been given a chance to represent my school in the first line-up. Moreover, I would attend volleyball practice every Saturday.

My PE classes give me a chance to play volleyball, football or do fitness. I enjoy almost every activity that is physically demanding. And I am also great in sport which boosts my motivation. Beyond school, I used to exert myself a lot in swimming and have difficulties to find enjoyment in it. However, I am a really good swimmer and it strengthens my determination, improves posture and health.

Throughout the pandemic, I have been practising sport independently, as it is an extremely important part of my life. However, in the first lockdown in the spring I used to overexert myself doing long and intensive workouts every day on an empty stomach to the point when I got health problems. I had to give it up and switched to another physical activity, less demanding but equally fun: walking. Never before have I taken walks so often as during the pandemic. Now, in the winter lockdown I also go for a walk sometimes.

Service

I began my CAS journey in 2019 with giving tutoring to a primary school student from a underprivileged background. Teaching subjects I am comfortable in (English and German) and his improved grades were reasons for my satisfaction. It required a lot of patience and perseverance as it was extremely difficult to teach him something because firstly he lacked motivation and secondly he had difficulties memorizing. This made it a huge challenge but turned out to be rewarding.

The second half of my first IB year (2020) I sacrificed for my internship (voluntary work) in a foundation. My scope of activity consisted in the cooperation with the Fundraising Director and the Spokeswoman of the foundation; I had duties related to fundraising and media such as: preparing summaries of the reports from humanitarian missions for fairs in Dubai, translating posts for English social media profiles, collecting data for media reports, translating official requests for the sponsorship, gathering contact details of potential sponsors i.e. big companies and Presidents of the biggest Polish cities, monitoring press mentions.

Throughout 2020 I have also been fulfilling duties of the student government vice president. My team was elected in February 2020 and until now (beginning of 2021) I hold this position. I resolve current problems with the head mistress, co-organize and participate in events e.g. open days, control social media, coordinate logistics. In March we attended an event for student governments across Warsaw. I also tried to organize the Physics conference with my 2 friends in my school but it was cancelled last-minute due to imposed school closure, one week before it was scheduled to take place. Everything had been arranged with lecturers and we had to cancel feeling miserable.

My wide range of CAS activities - other examples

Apart from my core activities which I described, I got involved in numerous other CAS experienced described on this blog. One of the most enriching ones was my participation in the process of creation of a book. I wrote my own essay to a book published this month by my former class teacher. I entitled my work: “School is people: about sparking authenticity and breaking patterns”. I also cooked a lot and published some of my recipes on the blog, wrote to my school newspaper, took part in environmental protests, wrote some poems, some diary entry, practiced Frech, including writing, took many beautiful photos on my trips abroad,...

I also co-organized WawMUN2019 conference as my CAS project.

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