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fatehbaz · 4 years

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aw i swear i reblogged a post of yours with a reading rec and now i can't find it. :( but i was interested in learning more about indigenous vs colonial/imperial relationships with nature (especially in terms of nature as a food source) and was wondering if you had any books (or other resources) you could recommend? thank you for all the resources and information you share!

Thank you for the kind message. :)

Are you thinking about the new book on how the US, despite formally occupying the islands at the time, also simultaneously flexed some so-called “Soft Power” (which is, of course, violent and never actually “soft”) and asserted itself in the Philippines by messing around with food culture and changing food traditions? Taste of Control: Food and the Filipino Colonial Mentality Under American Rule. From 2020, by R. Alexander D. Orquiza. (The book focuses on the period between 1898 and 1940s.)

Maybe you’d be interested in these? These are some posts from me. Each post contains short excerpts. (Like, the juicy bits and short enough to not be overwhelming, y’know? Then, if the subject seems cool, the author names and full citation are included. Some of the posts contain maps, photos of plants/animals, other visual aid, and direct links to read the longer full articles for free.) These are posts about local food sovereignty; differences between worldviews of traditional food systems and settler-colonial food systems; difference between traditional and imperial relationships to plants; Empire’s use of food, plants, botany, and scientific institutions to undermine Indigenous autonomy; and contrasts between imperial and traditional human-plant-animal relationships.

-- Manoomin, the imperial plot to domesticate wild rice, “cottage colonialism” in Canada, imaginative control, the power of names and naming plants, different understanding of food contrasted between Empire and Indigenous knowledge. (Covers 1880s to Present.)

-- Pineapple, domestication of breadfruit, and plantations “doing the work of Empire” in Hawaii. Difference between Indigenous Polynesian respect for plants/food, and imperial/industrial food extraction.

-- Leslie Marmon Silko: Gardens. Food sovereignty and imperialist use of food to gain control. Settler-colonial theft of Indigenous plant knowledge. She says: “It wasn’t too long before I realized how very political gardens are. I had actually stumbled into the most political thing of all – how you grow your food, whether you eat, the fact that the plant collectors followed the Conquistadors.”

-- “We don’t need to know what starfish know”: Aboriginal knowledge-holders of Bawaka Country discuss contrast between traditional and settler-colonial understandings of food harvest and multispecies communities.

-- Anna Boswell’s discussion of endemic longfin eels of Aotearoa as example of contrast between Maori worldviews and settler-colonial understanding of ecology; and the problem with making “land-water” distinctions in Euro-American agriculture and land management.

-- Robin Wall Kimmerer speaking frankly about paying attention to plants, and the differences between kinds of inquiry, difference between settler-colonial institutionalized knowledge compared to Indigenous/land-based “ways of knowing”.

-- Native food and imperial appropriation of food/plants: “The Nineteenth-Century Garden: Imperialism, Subsistence, and Subversion in Leslie Marmon Silko's Gardens in the Dunes.”

-- Mapuche cultural autonomy, Valdivian temperate rainforest, and European plots to dismantle the rainforest to create “Swiss or German pastoral farm landscape” in Chile.

-- The debris and ruins of imperial sugar plantations in the Caribbean, and modern Caribbean art

-- Easy-to-access compilation of audio recordings and oral histories of bioregional foodsheds, from 13 Native food autonomy advocates. (New England maple syrup. New Mexico. Louisiana’s Gulf Coast. Abalone/acorns in California. Salmon in PNW, etc.)

-- “Ghostly non-places; settler-colonial hallucinations and fantasy visions; monstrous plants and animals; hiding, destroying, re-making ecological worlds; permanent cataclysm; the horror of settlement”: Anna Boswell on settler-colonial agriculture and ecology.

-- Some fresh annoying OC from me. Vegetation as a weapon: On soil degradation and the use of non-native plants to change landscapes and sever cultural relationships to land; extinction of megafauna; and on the dramatically under-reported but massive scale of anthropogenic environmental change wrought by early empires and “civilizations” in the Bronze Age, Iron Age, and ancient world (including the Fertile Crescent, Rome, and early China)

-- Indigenous Sami reindeer herding contrasted with colonial/industrial resource extraction; “eternal catastrophe”; power over death; “disaster as a form of governance”; apocalypse. From the great writing of Hugo Reinert.

-- Anna Boswell on stoats; native plants/animals of Aotearoa; and how settler-colonial environmental management targets species (and humans) for persecution or sacrifice.

--- Calcutta Botanic Gardens abduction and use of Chinese slaves; Kew Gardens (successfully) plotting to steal cinchona from people of Bolivia to service their staff in India; botanic gardens’ role in large-scale dispossession to create plantations in Assam and Ooty (1790s - 1870s).

-- The role of grasslands, deforestation, and English grasses in ecological imperialism in Aotearoa, early 20th century.

-- “Forage wars” between Native food harvesters and California legal institutions: Abalone, native foodsheds, and food harvesting in Pomo, Yurok, Coast Yuki, and other Klamath Mountains and coastal Northern California communities.

-- Zoe Todd discussing connection to local place, traditional ecological knowledge, and knowledge appropriation: “Not all knowledge is for your consumption.”

-- The grand tale of breadfruit domestication, the mutiny on the Bounty, and plantation owners plotting with Kew Gardens to domesticate crops to undermine slave gardens in the Caribbean. (Also includes comments on the under-reported central role of media/PR manipulation and slavery in the “mutiny on the Bounty” story.)

-- Conflating women with “bloodthirsty” and “flesh-eating” plants, and the dehumanization of Indigenous cultures through scientific illustrations of imperial scientific agents and artistic depictions of plants from colonized ecosystems (Euro-American art and science of botany in1700s to early 1900s),

-- Robin Wall Kimmerer: Paying attention to plants and her love for strawberries, from Braiding Sweetgrass.

-- “Coyote’s biota”: Comcaac (Seri) and O’Odaham food, plant knowledge, and the ascribing of special names to native plants and Euro-American plants to distinguish between types of food.

-- In the Falkland Islands: Intersections of extinction; the “Antarctic wolf”; colonialism, whiteness, racism, “invasion,” indigeneity; environmental history; decline of penguins; introduction of non-native European sheep, cats, cattle, pigs and ecological reinforcement of settler-colonial culture, etc.

-- Bogong moths and ethics of killing insects in settler-colonial Australian imaginary

-- “The British Museum was built on coral, butterflies, and slavery”: Hans Sloane, Caribbean ecology, museums and curiosity cabinets, and how plantation money and slavery built British scientific institutions

-- Human relationship with bees; use of insects in imperialism

-- Racism in depictions Melanesia; the mapping and naming of Polynesia and Melanesia

-- Records and details of extreme deforestation in ancient Eastern Mediterranean and Mesopotamia around 4500 BC; extreme landscape modification in Asiatic steppes in first millennium AD.

-- Zoe Todd on human-fish relationships in Alberta, prairie, and boreal forest.

-- Dandelions, other non-native plants, and settler gardens changing soil of the Canadian Arctic. (Late 1800s and early 1900s.) From Broken Frontier: Ecological Imperialism in the Canadian North.

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And some of the so-called “classic” authors:

-- Zoe Todd: Might be most famous in popular media for her criticism of the Eurocentrism of the “Anthropocene concept; for writing about racism and anti-Indigenous prejudice in academia; and for her 2014 essay, a retort to Euroamerican anthropologists. But aside from her advocacy, her academic research is often concerned with fish, food, plants, and traditional ecological knowledge of Indigenous communities in Canada (she is Metis, from Alberta). You’d be able to find many of her articles online, though I linked some above.

-- Neel Ahuja: Pretty famous scholar, “leading” author on biopolitics. References foodsheds and contrasts local and imperial food production, but also more broadly addresses interspecies/multispecies relationships; entanglements of race, gender, speciesism; health, medicine, and control of disease; control of food and personal bodies as sites of colonization.

-- Robin Wall Kimmerer: Wonderful. She’s a botanist, she loves moss, and she’s concerned with traditional ecological knowledge. (She is Potawatomi.) She does explicitly contrast imaginaries, like the difference between Settler-colonial/imperial perceptions of plants/ecosystems, and Indigenous/local/”attentive” perceptions of plants/ecosystems.

-- Vandana Shiva: She has many, many lectures and publications available. Her politics aren’t always great, but she might be most famous for advocating food sovereignty and resistance to corporate agriculture and food giants. Often speaks of development, industrialization, and gender hierarchies. But one influential text was Biopiracy: the plunder of nature and knowledge from 1997.

-- Anna Boswell: Perhaps most famous for writing about the plight of the endemic Aotearoa longfin eel, she specifically focuses on the contrast between, on the one hand, Indigenous/local perceptions and Maori knowledge of landscape/living creatures, and, on the other hand, settler-colonial and industrial/extractivist perceptions of land. She uses some certain animals/plants of Aotearoa as case studies to clearly demonstrate different treatment/perception of land, to criticize settler-colonial “world reordering” (landscaping, pasture, plantation, etc.) as a form of “deathwork.”

(1) Aotearoa longfin eel and devaluing species; (2) tuatara and colonial environmental change; (3) non-native stoats and persecution; (4) settler-colonial landscapes, fantasy-visions, and ecological apocalypse.

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Something I mentioned in the tags on that post about food in the Philippines was that an early formative learning experience for Young Me was when I met a teacher who had worked with ecology and horticulture in Southeast Asia, who stressed that, even after Euro-American imperial powers formally end their colonial occupation of a place, we have to ask: What avenues of food sovereignty are available, if plantation monoculture has destroyed the soil microorganism lifeforms and traditional knowledge systems have been deliberately dismantled or subjugated? Soil is dead, local traditional knowledge has been appropriated and undermined (and traditional knowledge is deliberately targeted during campaigns of erasure and overt violence). And so, even “liberated” places might be forced to drink corporate soda products. There might not be a military occupation, but corporate entities and financial institutions can now act as de facto occupiers. Destroy somebody’s food garden, and you force them to shop at your supermarket. Words like “independence” and “post-colonial” are haunted, because Empire continues, reasserts, finds “new” ways to dominate. But are these tactics really “new”? Just like in earlier historical periods of power consolidation, Empire seems to achieve great power by disturbing, changing, or severing connection between people and their local landscape/environment.

And food is at the center of that human-environment relationship.

If soils are damaged and people are dispossessed, no longer with access to a backyard garden; people of a Caribbean island might no longer be able to grow staple tubers, and instead the US-owned grocer franchise becomes the food source, entangling people involuntarily. Instead of eating Louisiana’s gumbo or the Pacific Northwest’s huckleberries, you can instead eat the same standardized meal at a fast food restaurant in New Orleans and in Seattle, at opposite edges of a continent, which has the effect of undermining potential regional cultural practices situated in local landscape, local plants, local food.

You know what I mean? Anyway.

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Hope these are interesting. Sorry for all of this, an overwhelming amount of text. :)

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an-evolved-dinosaur · 7 years

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Alien Design - Munipulpa

So a few weeks ago I was going through some stuff by @titleknown and @bogleech and got inspired to make some good, realistic, reasonably inventive alien designs. So I made some models and wrote up a report on all the stuff I can think off about a made up phylum of aliens I designed.

I wanted yall here to see these designs and I wanted to see what yall thought of them?

Also, since linking to the doc would make tumblr screw with seeing my art then prevent it from showing up in searches and stuf, I’m posting the full document under the cut (warning, this is very long, like 4500 words).

Munipulpa

Munimentum + Pulpa (Protected Flesh)

“Hundreds of millions of years ago, in a nondescript reef filled with millions of unique and wondrous creatures, an unsuspecting organism sifts through the dirt. A predator approaches above and so the small, rounded, hard-shelled creature darts back into hiding with a thrust of its jets. Safe from the danger the creature probes the surrounding water for any further signs of a predator. Thankfully the organism continues its life, completely unaware that this single encounter might of prevented the development of thousands upon thousands of unique and alien organisms that would come to dominate the modern-era world.”

The Munipulpa is a diverse clade of organisms which include some of the dominant megafauna on the planet. Originally a group of reef detritivores the Munipulpa have since diversified into thousands of unique species that cover at least one niche, with species present on every continent in every biome. The Munipulpa are known for their distinctive three-shelled anatomy in addition to their armed tentacles and jet-lungs.

The digestive tract of the Munipulpa, while obviously varying between various sub-groups within the clade, overall possess a similar structure to each other featuring the same basic organs. The true mouths of all Munipulpa (although some groups have developed a jaw-like structure derived from their arms) is a thick muscular tube lined with teeth-like protrusions made from the same hard material as their shells and skeleton. Following this the throat leads directly to the “stomach”. The stomach is a large tube. This tube is highly muscular, and can constrict in order to break down food with the aid of various biles and acids. Following this the mulch is pushed through a collection of intestine-like organs that, with the help of various biles, feed the dissolved food into a spongy organ surrounding the intestines that cleanses this nutritious sludge of toxins before a thick patch of blood vessels transport the nutrients to the rest of the body.

The circulatory system itself is a combination of very familiar and alien attributes and while as stated earlier each creature will have its own variation on this system the Munipulpa all feature this general circulatory/respiratory system layout. The characteristic “jet-lungs” of the Munipulpa functions, in essence, in a similar way to a vertebrate lung. The unique factor is that as the individual jets reach the limit of their contractions/expansions the respiratory system can switch and continue breathing in the opposite direction (bottom jets as intake, top as outtake) means that a Munipulpa is always bringing oxygen into its body.

The lungs, which has a similar branching system to earth vertebrates, connect directly to a thick spongy network of capillaries. This network of blood is oxygenated by a hemoglobin-based O2 carrier and then pumped in by a large undulating pump into a starfish-shaped organ. The blood is then pumped into one of four additional chambers which ungulate the blood throughout the body through arteries. Deoxygenated blood is then carried to a thick liver-like filtering organ which directs the cleaned blood into the capillary-network and the collected toxins into a waste-packet in the form of small “stones”. The main benefit of this circulatory system is that, similar to the Munipulpa lungs, the undulating chambers result in continual blood-pumping throughout the body rather than a stop-start system. This system does result in a slightly weaker push, resulting in several mini-hearts made of thick muscular arteries which further pump the blood.

The muscular system of the Munipulpa is a powerful and durable system of both muscle fibres and fluid-pumps that allow members of the Munipulpa clade to move with extreme speed. In the large majority of aquatic vertebrates the “fluid-pumps” are either atrophied or non-existent, so one paragraph will cover the fibres present in all species, while the second will deal with the fluid pumps which are not present in all subgroups. The fibrous muscles within the muscular system of Munipulpa are similar in structure to that of most Terran animals. However, a unique chemical structure within the cells means that these muscle fibres are much tougher and durable, more like a rubber in terms of stretchiness rather than vertebrate meat. These muscles are most commonly arranged in various thick rings, with a far more durable structure than secondary muscles cells, surrounded by strings of said secondary fibres which allow for fine motor control of the organisms limbs (best seen in the well-known tentacles of the Munipulpa).

The “fluid-pumps” system of muscles are present in many Munipulpa species as a simple buoyancy measure placed underneath the lungs. This pump will remove fluid from the body or add it in order to control buoyancy. In most land lineages and within some sea-faring species (such as the jawed jet-sharks) this simple pump has extended into a collection of significantly more powerful champers and tubes that serve as the main source of power in the movements of members of the Munipulpa clade when the jets aren’t used. These muscles pump fluid from pooling chambers, diverting this fluid to the many ends of these tubes. By employing many valves which can block off flow from one direction (derived from the valve which allowed fluid to fill the original buoyancy chamber) these tubes can become rigid. While these muscles are few and far between even when used by the land-dwelling clades to move their legs they provide huge amounts of power and help to further support the rings of muscle.

The shell is one of the unique characteristics of the Munipulpa clade, so significant it is that the name Munipulpa is from the latins words for Protection and Flesh: representing the protective three-piece shell surrounding these creatures. This shell features three distinctive sections. The back piece and two separate front pieces. Members of the Munipulpa clade grow their shell from the inside, with the shell growing thicker over time until the outside wears down due to deterioration and injury. This ensures that the shell is always tough and resilient from attack. The bones are only present in a few lineages, and are comprised of an internal tubular structure made of the same material as the outer shell.

In the Munipulpa clade the nervous system is remarkably typical of vertebrate life forms on Earth. The Munipulpa nervous system is made up of a large collection of wires comprised of cells that are capable of communicating with one another and sending signals throughout the body much in the same way as vertebrates do. The typical nervous system is comprised of a thin “web” with hundreds of inter-locking nerves that form a net throughout the body as well as a more powerful and tough system of thick strands that act as an “information highway” that distributes more important information throughout the body. The brains of these organisms are typically originating within the back of the shell, with this serving as a safe location for many vital organs, and contains additional “sub-brains” along the front of the head as fine motor control and a data-bank for sensory information.

The Munipulpa clade has a similar array of sensory systems as most terran lifeforms, albeit within different forms of terran life. The senses of these organisms have radiated rapidly so I will describe the basal senses of the ancestral species. Visual information was important, and they developed a ring of simplistic eyes around their arm-bases. These eyes were simplistic even in relation to other species at the time, but they developed a comparatively advanced visual input portion of their brain that game them an almost 360 degree view of the world. While the “arms” of the ancestral species was a sensitive organ that can be used to easily locate vibrations in the water the key sensory organ is the series of indent on the front of the ancestor. These dents connected to a highly sensitive piece of tissue that can register vibrations in the water with a high degree of accuracy as well as sense waterborne chemicals much in the same way as a nose can.

The munipulpa clade has, unlike Terran species, not evolved separate genders. While sexual reproduction has developed the separation of gamete production between genders has not. All members of the Munipulpa clade are capable of producing either the “large” or “small” gametes depending on various hormonal factors within the body. During intercourse one or more of the partners will produce the small gamete, which will inseminate the “large” gamete which will then fertilize to form a zygote. The ancestral species would reproduce in mass-spawnings where all members of the species would produce both “small” gametes and “large” egg-cased gametes. Several lineages have developed a form of morphological difference where one morph will specialise in producing one kind of gamete, but these groups are typically still capable of producing either gamete and this is not the case across all Munipulpa.

The Greater Clawed Torpedo

“The deep ocean, a sea of blue with the occasional haze of red phytoplankton, is a dangerous place to live. A shoal of radially-symmetrical tripedaliens, relics of an age old time of life, swim through the ocean catching plankton in their three-part mouths. Unbeknownst to the shoal a dark shape moves below. The shoal is not the desired prey for this ominous shape though, this blob waits patiently for its target. Slowly a larger creature appears from the shoal, mouth filled with dozens of the tripedaliens. Almost instantly this shape rises upwards in a jet of water, slamming into its prey with it’s arms agape: their teeth digging into the exposed flesh and drawing blood. In a matter of minutes the flesh is torn away and the creature is dead. Right on target, the Greater Clawed Torpedo feasts on its kill.”

Despite its alien appearance, the Torpedos fulfills a similar role to that of Terran sharks: great aquatic predators, and the Greater Clawed Torpedo fills the role taken by the earth’s greatest ocean predator the Great White Shark. Propelled by a series of powerful jets that allow them to move through the water with ease, especially in the open ocean where they’re unlikely to bump into objects.Using their derived arms as powerful jaws the Greater Clawed Torpedo is a fierce predator.

Characteristics

At the start of their life as eggs the GCT hatches among a pod of their brothers and sisters from the back of their parent. In a few moments they must jet away as fast as possible to avoid the waning instincts of their parent causing them to begin hunting the young. From here on it’s a simple matter of hunting food, growing bigger, and hunting bigger food until they grow large enough to eat a Terran sheep whole. When they reach sexual maturity and wish to mate, the mature GCT will spawn eggs and use fine jetting to move them onto the back, where a sticky residue will let them encrust himself onto the shell. This gel also alerts other mature GCT that they are ready to mate, which will result in a mass of GCT excreting “small” gametes over the eggs of other GCT.

There are several defining characteristics of the Greater Clawed Torpedo, although their size and colouration and the only features exclusive to this particular species. The high-functioning jets of the GCT are the main mobility and hunting tool that is characteristic of their larger group of fish-analogues. The three-chambered lung that is used as a movement tool in most species is here adapted for a constant undulating stream of water in addition to the heaving breaths that result in the infamous launching that gives the Torpedo-fish their name. These jets are mobile and allow the creature to change direction and remain buoyant despite the lack of fins (which increase drag). Additionally the arms of the GCT have been adapted into a “jaw” of sorts. While this jaw is not directly connected to the digestive system of the GCT their muscular strength and the shell-derived “teeth” allow the GCT to hunt massive prey which are otherwise unable to be harmed by predators. These jaws are so successful they have evolved no less than 4 separate lineages of Munipulpa.

Role

The Greater Clawed Torpedo is, unsurprisingly, a top oceanic predator and an Iconic representative of the planet’s aquatic life. Living within the upper layers of the open ocean the GCT serves as a predator to the largest inhabitants of the ocean, preying upon all manner of organisms regardless of size but having the more success with the creatures that rely on their sheer size to survive. The GCT helps to manage these large organisms, many of which feed off of the plankton within the ocean, and in turn prevent the oceanic plankton from being hunted into too small numbers.

The behaviour of the greater Clawed Torpedo is very simple and without much subtlety to their thinking. GCT lack specific hunting grounds and instead simply wander the ocean using their intensely refined senses to search for the smell or sight of prey items. Stalking behaviour within the GCT shows the most advancement as they display knowledge of hiding from their prey’s vision as well as the ability to use clouding swarms of plankton to hide their bodies. Social behaviour is limited, with most interaction with adults being either fights over prey or the mass spawnings and parental care reaching only so far as to protect the encrusted eggs until hatching (GCT are known to eat some of their young once they begin hatching and they stop displaying parental care).

Blue-Belled Gnome Honker

“Today the beach is as calm as ever. This small little island far off the coast of the mainland has been isolated for millions of years and contains as wondrous a collection of life as the rest of the world. On this day the sun is shining bright as it has for many weeks and it is an age of plenty for the denizens of the island. On the shore a pile of blooming Sand-Balloons bob peacefully in the wind as a four legged creature wanders over to them, honking quietly. Wading into the water on their long limbs the creature takes a bite out of the balloon, causing the gases inside to rush outwards. Honking happily the creature continues to eat as its family appear from the rest of the water to enjoy this treat with them.”

The Blue-Belled Gnome Honker (also known as the Blue Gnome) is a species of Munipulpa that originates from a small collection of islands largely free of big predators. Free from the dangers of their ancestors mainland home the Blue Gnome has evolved to be a permanently content creature, happily enjoying their days which are largely free from predators, disasters, or even the risk of starvation. Rather than the skittish prey-animal of their mainland relatives which honked as communication the Blue Gnome is known for their constant honking in an almost sing-song pattern.

Characteristics

The Blue Gnome begins its life not inside of an egg, but inside their parent’s specialised false-womb. In Blue Gnome mating not all members of the species will get pregnant, but instead a small few who are the healthiest will be impregnated by the others. The parent will then grow the fertilised shell-less eggs within a faux-womb as they grow protected by the mother and connected to a collection of nutritious veins. After a few weeks the young will be born live and then continue to live with their family group. Sometime during their maturity the young will have the chance of mingling with another family troop: becoming a new member of the group in a prevention of inbreeding. The fully mature Blue Gnome will then likely have to wait a few mating seasons as providers of “small” gametes before eventually becoming the “mother” when at the ideal pregnancy age.

The Blue Gnomes, along with their relatives, are most notable for a few distinct characteristics. Firstly is that they are a member of a rarer group of terrestrial Munipulpa that evolved separately to the second more common lineage. This group developed the ability to walk upon land with their tentacles, and are typically quadrupedal in nature. These tentacle-limbs are not as strong as the jet-derived legs of their sister lineage but are significantly more flexible and allow for more dexterous mobility than the often “stiff” legs of their relatives. By using their tentacles for walking they’ve freed up their jets for adapting to serve as other organs. Notably the Blue Gnomes posses very large and chamber-like lungs which grant them the ability to make very loud honks. While other species can make such honks the Glue Gnomes are noted for their ability to change the tune of these honks at will thanks to various muscles contractions which allow them to “sing”. This singing is used to communicate to their family as well as, quite notably, for “fun” as the Blue Gnomes have been known to sing without any noted purpose.

Role

Thanks to the safety offered by their island location the Blue Gnomes have grown larger than their mainland counterparts who had to be small enough to easily escape and run from predators. Now they serve as one of the largest herbivores on their little island (although Blue Gnomes eating washed up carcasses isn’t unknown). These aliens aid in the reproduction of many native plant species thanks to their wandering nature allowing plants with seeds eaten by the Blue Gnomes to be distributed somewhere potentially far away from their parent plant.

The behaviour of the Blue Gnome is best described as aloof and friendly. Blue Gnomes lives in closely-knit family troops that live together in general peace. The nature of mating, in which many members are impregnated by many others results in almost no conflicts for mating rights to females as their are no “females” so to speak. While living in close family groups the Blue Gnomes don’t show aggression to other troops: with troop meetings often resulting in happy honking and the occasional introduction of a new member. Childcare is highly developed in Blue Gnomes, with the children being raised from birth to maturity and many members of the troop remaining within their home tribe for their entire lives.

Savanna Whippet

“It was as normal a day as one can get on the alien world, and up in the north in the great “savanna” great plains of thin grass-like plants covered the landscape as they soaked up the sun: storing it all for when they retracts their leaves and wait out the permanent night underground. For now, though, the sun still shines for half the day and life continues as normal. Rustling through the plains a small group of curious, waddling beasts walk through the undergrowth. As this small group walked on, occasionally reaching out at the juicy leaves for a quick bite, a pack of vicious tripedal predators walked up from in front. However, their angle of approach meant that they lacked the element of surprise and a rain of strikes came down upon the predators in an instant: ending the small moment of action on this quiet day.”

The Savanna Whippet is a small, dog sized, species of herd-living herbivores that hide among the ocean of grasses that make up what could best be considered the alien equivalent of a savanna. Living on the largest continent on the planet means that competition is fierce and those without the means to defend themselves will quickly end up dead. Filling a role similar to the ungulates of Earth the Savanna Whippets are a testament to the competitive nature of this ancient world.

Characteristics

The life of a Savanna Whippet begins in a similar way to many species: coming out of a leathery egg. Savanna Whippets are born among many of their siblings of all ages from thick leathery eggs. These eggs are typically carried within the mouths of their family adults as they travel, with the teeth aiding in the breaking of the egg. After birth the Savanna Whippet can walk within a few minutes, and despite their small size they are generally able to keep up with the slower pace of their family herd. Over time they will grow and mature until they reach sexual maturity. Savanna Whippets lack a distinct mating period and instead mate whenever the opportunity arises. They each produce a single “large” gamete at regular intervals once they reach sexual maturity: which results in a steady stream of eggs being laid into the herd as each member can produce roughly five eggs a year (as during a third of the year they don't lay).

There are a few defining characteristics of the general Whippet group: although the savanna variety is only defined by colouration and minor morphological tweaks. The most notable characteristic of the Whippet group, by which they are defined, is the thick tendons and powerful vertical-fluid-pumps that reside within their arms that serve as their primary defense and offense. These fluid-pumps provide a powerful hitting force to their arms in shorts bursts while the tendon ensures that this will result in a “whip” action that can be used to hurt predators and protect themselves and their herd.

Role

The Savanna Whippet serves a similar role to many earth ungulates such as deer or zebras. While many of their Whippet cousins are smaller species of a size ranging from a rabbit to a dog the Savanna Whippet is one of the larger species and in their large herds are a large part of the food source for the larger predators in their region. Grasses are the most common variety of food for the Savanna Whippet and they help in curbing the taller grasses (which are almost exactly the adult height) which allows younger grasses to grow higher. Their plentiful numbers also mean they can support the many predators quite effectively, and are considered the “generic” food source for most savanna carnivores.

The behaviour of the Savanna Whippet does not stray too far from the typical Terran expectation of a (relatively) small herding prey animal, however it does posses the unique charm of life on this alien world. The group dynamics of Savanna Whippets are, while still involving a great deal of emotional connection, quite simplistic. Herds of Whippets are made up of various members both related and those who have entered the herd later in life (a method or preventing incest common among Munipulpa) and all share a deep emotional connection. While these social behaviours are simplistic and do not involve complex actions these actions that are done result in an intense bond between herd-mates where in members of the same herd are on occasion willing to risk their lives for each other.

Drum-Skulled Hung Cow

“It’s wet, so very wet, and the four moons have pulled back bringing with them the deep-reaching tides. The forest, its alien plants a sickeningly bloodied red, is silent for the moment as the sun just barely filters through the trees as it sets for the last time until several months from now. Through the trees the sound of crashing can be heard. Just beyond the misty haze that shrouds the forest’s life the footsteps of almost a hundred beasts can be heard carrying with them a great weight. Slowly dozens of figures emerge, their many eyes shining in the dim twilight of their home, along with a continuous droning. Small creatures scatter as the herd emerges from the darkness with their haunting calls: beating the ground with over a tonne of weight until they reach the recently submerged mudflats. The hard reaches towards the ground and, with their powerful lips, tear up the earth to expose the roots of the trees around them. Here begins the final feast of these beasts before they will have to face months of endless dark, and the ever-present risk of starvation.”

Quite similar in looks to the Terran cow, the Drum-Skulled Hung Cow fills a vaguely similar role as one of the larger beasts of burden present on the planet in addition to the role of herd-living massive herbivore. Also known as the Drummer Cow this species resides in the massive mudflats that make up a fairly large portion of the planet thanks to the massive tides of the four moons and use their specialised tentacles to support their massive hulking mouth (which can chew through and grind most foods).

Characteristics

The lifecycle of the Drummer Cow begins when they hatch from one of the hundreds of eggs laid after the end of the dark season on the edges of the mudflats. These eggs are lied after a mass spawning due to the masses of blooming plants creating a plentiful food source for their parents. Receiving no prenatal care these young Drummer cow must survive in creches with their fellow young until they reach sexual maturity. Once mature these Drummer Cows will begin to wander on their own until the come across another herd of Drummer Cow which they will join, if lucky enough, soon before the dark season.

There are a few defining features of the Drummer Cow that separate it from most of their lineage of terrestrial Munipulpa. Notably the large mouth, which allows the Drummer Cow to consume vast quantities of food and digest every possible scrap of nutrition, is supported by four legs instead of the typical two. This is due to the tentacle-arms characteristic of Munipulpa being adapted into a slightly more flexible rendition of their back legs: making this group of herbivores the very few lineages of Munipulpa to walk on four legs. Additionally the “ears” of the Drummer Cow (which are derived noses characteristic of the lung-derived terrestrial lineage) are thick and capable of being beat-down upon a hollowed section of their shell rapidly in order to make a very loud and far-reaching droning noise to communicate with herd-members.

Role

The Drummer Cow, unsurprisingly, serves as a large herbivore that feeds upon the largest tree-analogues on the planet. Living in humungous herds the high-infant mortality rate is the only reason the Drummer Cows haven’t taken down the forests in their entirely: with the young of Drummer Cows being a huge food source for the predators after the dark season ends in these forests. While plants close up and store their energy to wait out the months-long darkness the Drummer Cow feed upon the roots they dig up which exposes the plant material to the smaller herbivores and adds energy to the ecosystem for the carnivores. The large herds also pave away forest area, giving more room for other plants to grow without competing with the “trees” for the precious sunlight.

Drummer Cows are very simplistic in their behaviour thanks in part to their large size and safety in herds. During their youth they are a fast and skittish species, prone to darting away if they sense any possible threat, but as they increase in size and the sheer amount of Drummer Cow a predator has to face if they want to take down a single Cow increases they grow sluggish and stupid. The social behaviours of Drummer Cows are simplistic, with no parental care to speak of their social interactions are limited to communication in regards to food or predators and attempting to find a herd should they be left without one. Their social bonds are weak and aside from their desire to be close together due to the safety it brings they have no connection to fellow members of their herd.

#art #3d #speculative biology #alien #creature design #evolved-art #first art in ages #bogleech #titleknown

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reubscubes · 7 years

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Horizon Zero Dawn: ReubsCubes Review

Mankind has a few standout achievements. The Wheel, Fire, Internet, cheesecake. Sadly however, the list does not include robot dinosaurs. And until such time as the scientists of the world rectify this grievous error, videogames will have to make it up to us. I can only assume that was the opening of the design document for Horizon Zero Dawn, because this the best thing since Cheesecake.

The following contains spoilers for Horizon Zero Dawn. I will attempt to keep overall plot points and character moments vague, but if you’ve not played the game then proceed at your own risk.

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I love dinosaurs. Love is a strong word and it is exactly the one I want to use. I was obsessed with them as a child, dragged my long suffering parents to the Museum of Natural History at every opportunity and Jurassic Park remains one of my favourite movies. As a consequence I am incapable of being objective about anything involving dinosaurs, large aquatic or avian reptiles and almost all megafauna in general.

But my predilections for animatronic extinct reptiles aside, HZD is already a contender for my favourite game of this year. Please note that I haven’t played Neir Automata, Resident Evil 7, Persona 5, Mass Effect Andromeda, Breath of the Wild, Torment: Tides of Numenera or any other fantastic games that came out in 2017.

Horizon (and i’m choosing to shorten the name because the whole thing is a really awful mouthful) tells the story of Aloy, a young woman born under mysterious circumstances into a primitive world that humans share with gigantic highly advanced machines, in a world that is clearly our own, an unknown time after some kind of apocalypse. As Aloy attempts to understand more about her own origins she is drawn into conflict with a evil cult known as The Eclipse and must battle for the fate of the world. Along the way she discovers more about the long gone old ones and the secrets of her origin.

Nothing particularly out of the ordinary there, naive but intelligent hayseed sets out to find their place in the world and finds evil deathcult. Friends are made, difficulties overcome and we all learn a few precious lessons about friendship, family and how entitled tech sector dickheads will be the downfall of us all.

The world itself is more interesting than either the bog standard medieval fantasy or nuke blasted post apocalypse might be. Rather than the immediate aftermath of the calamity, where people are trying to rebuild their societies and loves with the shattered remains of the world they’ve lost, the time and distance between the old world and the societies that have followed after are much more pronounced. There’s a lot of sun and nature worship and even the most basic and obvious facts about our world have been lost in time. Case in point, the scholar in the city of Meridian who’s convinced coffee cups were ceremonious vessels used in holy rituals, as opposed to cheap tat mass produced to drink instant coffee from. The issue of instant coffee itself never comes up as presumably nescafe did not survive the downfall of humanity.

Women are at the forefront in Horizon Zero dawn. Aloy’s belongs, ostensibly, to a tribe called the Nora. They have a tribal society where led by a group of venerable women called the Matriarchs and worship a goddess they call the All-Mother. There doesn’t seem to be much in the way of proscribed gender roles for men and women, they all share in hunting and fighting and childrearing. Members of the tribe are of various different ethnic backgrounds, although again in a post apocalypse racial origin become a little vague. It’s a pretty equal society for all genders and races and a society that respects and elevates women is pretty rare, especially in the overly macho world of videogames. Diversity is dealt with pretty well, gay and trans characters are given plot lines and backstories that don’t hide their identities, but also don’t get caught up pointing out how inclusive they’re being. The interaction with the character of Jeneva, the warden of Sunstone Rock prison, is a particular standout. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbow in the valley of the Nora.

The Nora are a fair and equal society true but they’re also intensely superstitious and insular. They see themselves as one of the chosen people and anyone who leaves their blessed homelands is not allowed to return. Aloy was raised s one of the outcast, the members of the tribe exiles for various crimes. The Nora only ever treat her with disdain or fear and as a result she has even less respect for their customs and traditions as you might expect. Aloy cares about people and wants to do what she can to help them but has absolutely no patience for their restrictive belief systems.

The characters are noble but flawed in all too believable ways. This kind of excellent writing defines the world of horizon. The world is a mix of ancient cultures mixed with hyper advanced technology. The world is full of machines, technology so far beyond the imagination of the people in the world around it regard it as the magic of the gods. Which bring me to the most impressive part of Horizon’s incredibly detailed and designed world. The machines.

Holy mechanical t-rex they’re amazing! Most open worlds populate themselves with flora and fauna to hunt and be hunted by. Whether it’s the more grounded animals from the Far Cry series or the creatures of european myth that haunt the fields and forests of the Witcher, worlds are defined in a very significant way by the creatures that roam them. And the machines of of Horizon are spectacular, in design and execution. Based at least partly on real life animals mixed with the stylized technology, they’re the apex predators of Aloy’s world. Many of the designs, like the Behemoths and Watchers, recall prehistoric animals, but even the more recognisable critters like Grazers and Lancehorns straddle the line between beautiful and practical.

If the machines themselves are spectacular then the places they’re built are even moreso. The cauldrons are secret caves deep within mountains at the edges of the world where the machines are built. Once it has been located and the outer perimeter breached, either by solving a puzzle or overcoming the powerful machines guarding the gates, then Aloy can descend into a puzzle dungeon that would not seem out of place in Legend of Zelda. These environments are absolutely beautiful and more than a little eerie. And once you realise what they are and how they work you’ll want to run through them all again.

Where Horizon differentiates itself from a lot of other games in the genre is how it expects you to hunt its wildlife. You don’t have the firepower or defense to go in guns blazing so instead you have to use stealth and manipulate the environment to bring down the beasts. Aloy is armed with only a bow and arrow and a few gadgets like trip wires to take down sentient robots capable of crushing her underfoot. You can’t go up against a herd of Tramplers and expect to melee them to death. Much more likely they’ll trample you. Hence the name.

Instead you have to pick your moment, analyse the weaknesses of each type of machine, (a process which becomes easier and more natural as the game progresses) choose the type of ammo then set your traps. Then, when halfway through your perfectly constructed ambush a lone Ravager suddenly dives into the melee and ruins your painstaking set up you have to improvise feverishly to try to salvage the situation or at the very least not die. There are shades of Witcher and Monster Hunter to the combat, even some Shadow of the Colossus. Like the titular Colosi, the machines feel like part of the world, and feeling the more majestic creatures is almost tragic.

Once the beasts have been felled they can be scavenged for parts, although this whole system does feel underdeveloped. There two types of collectables that you can harvest from enemies but most of them only really need to be used once or twice. You can sell them for money but that leads to you having far more than you can possibly spend. After a little while it becomes a little tedious to hunt machines for its own sake. Although the combat is reminiscent of monster hunter it has a very long way to go before it matches that franchise as far as rewarding players goes.

That a slightly unfulfilling crafting system is the worst thing horizon has going for it is indicative of how excellent a game it is. The world manages to be familiar and brand new all at once, and the same applies to the mechanics of its open world. Guerilla games have created something very special in horizon and I hope that we’ve got lots more of it to look forward to.

Thanks for reading!

#horizon zero dawn #horizonzerodawn #hzd #hzd spoilers #guerrilla games #guerillagames #playstation #video games #videogames #review

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kyliafanfiction-archive · 7 years

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Daniel Ortega, Amy Kostas, Charkatus Victorae, and Gregory Elliot.

(the Orion Team stories - which center around these four plus Lung Jiao - start in July 2817 C.E.)

Full Name: Major Daniel Fransisco Ortega, Earth Federation Marine Corps. Also codenamed “Orion-6.” Gender and Sexuality: Cisgender, Heterosexual Pronouns: He/His/Him Ethnicity/Species: Black African and Hispantic Extraction, Human Birthplace and Birthdate: Hanno Station, the 3rd Oldest Orbital Habitat/City over Mars. Population - 400,000, some 478 years old. Date of Birth, June 17th, 2750 C.E. Guilty Pleasures: Coffee, Romnivirian (another alien species) Opera Phobias: No real stand out phobias. What They Would Be Famous For: Probably one of his heroic acts in the EFMC, such as his conduct during the Defense of Fortress Gamma-3-Omega from the invading Hyplontians (an alien species). During the 3-week battle, all his superior officers were killed and he ended up leading the Battalion. His work for the Office of Extrafederation Security is far too classified. What They Would Get Arrested For: Murder, Espionage, Destruction of Property, Arson… the OES gets up to a lot of stuff on the worlds of other Stellar Nations OC You Ship Them With: His wife, Natasha Richter OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Mark Farrell (different than the Mark Farrel from the Heartpoint Chronicles. This one is a mass-murdering psychopath/terrorist who works for a rogue megacorp) Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Historical Fiction, especially stuff set in the 23rd and 24th centuries. Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: Simplifying the ‘bad guys’ of history into cliché moustache-twirly villains. Talents and/or Powers: Expert at small-unit tactics, top-tier marksman. Card Shark. Why Someone Might Love Them: Fiercely dedicated to what he believes in, loyal, Very fair-minded and expansive. Radiates quiet confidence, a lot. Why Someone Might Hate Them: He can be a scary hard-ass even to his men sometimes. Strict. How They Change: He does have a bit of a crisis of conscience after he kills the terrorist leader their hunting in the first Book and realizes just how much visceral enjoyment he got out of it, that the bastard was finally dead. Its one thing to do your duty as a soldier, but to enjoy killing someone? Even someone evil? Why You Love Them: I like the idea of this guy keeping Orion Team together - he’s def the 'sane man’ of the team, to play the tropes.

Full Name: Lt. Commander Amy Xelcavia Kostas, Earth Federation Navy. Also Codenamed “Orion-9." As a practicing Novarian, her middle name is that of her spirit patron - in this case, Xelcavia, the Spider of Striving Ambition, whom she took as a patron when she was 19, as per normal for a Novarian. Gender and Sexuality: Cisgender, Lesbian Pronouns: She/Her/Hers Ethnicity/Species: Greek and Irish Extraction, Human Birthplace and Birthdate: The city of Crestwall on New Horizon, the 3rd planet of the Washington System; DOB August 7th, 2764 Guilty Pleasures: High-Intensity Sports, Old Hyperspace Engines, Virtual Reality Multiplayer games Phobias: Violating the strictures of her Faith and then not getting a chance to make recompense to the Spirits before her death. What They Would Be Famous For: In another life, where she didn’t join the EFN, Amy could have become famous across known space for her advances in Hyperspace Physics and her pioneering hand development of an affordable (for the larger market) version of the Navy’s Zeus-Class Hyperdrive. With three Doctorates. Of course, she still has time to make a name for herself in the realm of Hyperspace Theory What They Would Get Arrested For: Whatever the law, she’d be arrested for trying to break it in the most elaborate way possible while (trying) to avoid being caught. She’d go for those laws that no one has broken and gotten away with it. That, or OES work OC You Ship Them With: Her wife, Sara Townsend. OC Most Likely To Murder Them: None really come to mind from the Orion Team verse, but Amy Kostas and Alicia Lehane (Aliciaverse) could either get on great or want to kill eachother. Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Romance Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: The Meet Cute Talents and/or Powers: Masters Degree in Hyperspace Theory, could have easily gotten a Doctorate had she not joined the Navy. A lot of practical experience in Hyperspace in general. Unbroken record of success as a Tactical Officer, in both ship to ship combat and Boarding Actions. Why Someone Might Love Them: Smart, witty, dedicated, her constant quest to better herself and meet and rise to overcome new challenges. Why Someone Might Hate Them: Her apparent detachment from the fact that she kills lots of people for her job and doesn’t really care - she’s not as detached as that, but her manner (especially her highly competitive-challenge focused approach to fighting) gives that impression. Her need to be the smartest woman in the room. Her competitive Streak. If they don’t like Novarianism, her uncompromising devotion to the tenants of her Faith (though Novarianism manages to be a generally unobjectionable Faith… most of the time). How They Change: I’m sure she does, but I don’t know how she would offhand yet Why You Love Them: Oh my god, I love Amy Kostas. Her unique style (informed by her syncretic faith) and approach, the fact that she studied Hyperspace Theory in College because it was the hardest subject she could find. She changed disciplines in the Navy because she felt like she’d made Hyerspace Navigation her bitch and decided being a Tactical Officer was her next challenge. I love Lt. Commander Kostas.

Full Name: Charkatus Victorae xaen Velcar Delorus. His name is partially Anglicized to be more easily pronounced by human tongues and written in English. Also Codenamed "Orion-12” Gender and Sexuality: Heterosexual, Xenophiliac (he finds human women far more attractive than Romivirian Women). Romnivirians don’t approach or conceive of the concept of 'gender identity’ the way humans do. His biological sex is Male, however. Pronouns: Vos/Vorcs/Vorbs (sort of/basically He/His/Him) Ethnicity/Species: Of Viran Extraction, Romnivirian Birthplace and Birthdate: April 17th, 2746, by Human reckoning. Born in the small agricultural town of Hurolxinekur, on Velcar Prime/Velcar IV, Velcar System, Nephros Cluster, Haeron Administratum, Romnivirian Empire Guilty Pleasures: Human women. Technically not really a guilty pleasure since he’s stopped being bothered by his attraction. Rictelzo, a kind of Romnivirian Alcohol (he, like many Romnivirians, is allergic to the chemical compounds in the stuff that intoxicates humans, and no Romnivirian who isn’t metabolizes such substances in a way that lets the get intoxicated). Old Human Movies. (like, even Pre-space ones) Phobias: Vorra Beasts (native Megafauna on Velcar Secundus/Velcar III), his Cybernetic implants being overloaded What They Would Be Famous For: I can’t really think of anything. His service in both the Romniviran Imperial Army and then the EF Romnivirian Auxilliary Corps (think French Foreign Legion) What They Would Get Arrested For: Public Intoxication, Solicitation, on worlds where Prostitution is illegal but still exists (though that’s not common in Human space anymore) OC You Ship Them With: If Amy Kostas was straight, or Bi, and you know, not married I could see them being compatible (this was not intentional when they were created). Amanda Zhao, from The Heartpoint Chronicles-Verse OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Honestly? Rebecca Fernandez from THC-Verse Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Dramedies or Comedies with Adventure story aspects Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: Humanity Saves The Primitive Aliens (especially common in Pre-First contact Sci-fi). Romnivirians were in hyperspace before humans developed Gunpowder, damnit! Talents and/or Powers: Expert Sniper, Occular implants that greatly improve his accuracy, Overload Gaunlet implant in his hand that lets him overcharge electronic devices in the field. Why Someone Might Love Them: He’s surprisingly insightful about people and good at cheering them up. Clever. Curious. He’s also very chill. Why Someone Might Hate Them: He’s got a body count in the Thousands: humans, Romnivirians, members of the Centai races, and he just… doesn't really care. He also has no other career or skills than soldiering (which broke up his second marriage - he mustered out of the Auxilliaries to be with his wife all the time and just… couldn’t stick with Civilian life) How They Change: Not sure offhand. He hasn’t really yet. Why You Love Them: He’s a fascinating external look on the weirdness and idiosyncrasies of both humanity in general and the Earth Federation in particular.

Full Name: Gregory Julius Elliot Gender and Sexuality: Cisgender, Bisexual, has dated or had sexual relations with Sytala (an alien species that looks fairly human… except where they don’t) of both genders and had a sexual encounter with a Romnivirian male, although he found he didn’t particularly enjoy that experience. He largely prefers his own species though. Pronouns: He/His/Him Ethnicity/Species: Of Anglo/British Extraction, Human Birthplace and Birthdate: December 19th, 2767 Guilty Pleasures: Exotic Hallucinogens, though by practicality, he hasn’t had any in years. Phobias: Suffocation, Drowning, What They Would Be Famous For: Under the pseudonym, "The Hollow Man", he was responsible for a lot of Hacktivist Exposes of corruption, hypocrisy and the like in government on all levels and private enterprises, before the Office of Extrafederation Security recruited him when the Law finally started to close in on him. What They Would Get Arrested For: Hackivism OC You Ship Them With: None in Orion Team, yet, but the characters of Daniel Chase-Harris and Jack Rosado, probably even Talia McDermott (all from the AliciaVerse), would be compatible with him. OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Once in a while, Lung Jiao has half-seriously contemplated it. Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Sci-fi. Of course, Sci-fi in 2817 looks very different than it does today. Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: When the Authority Figures were right all along. Talents and/or Powers: Really good with computers/hacking Why Someone Might Love Them: He's endearingly excitable when he’s really into something. Really imaginative. Strong principles re: transparency and the spirit of the law. Idealistic. Why Someone Might Hate Them: His excitability, Idealism and occasional naiveté can rub off badly on people. How They Change: Despite being part of a front-line black ops unit, Gregory hasn’t actually killed anyone. He does in Book 1. Why You Love Them: He’s a nice counterpoint to the cynical pragmatism of the EF’s government (OES especially) and the lighter side of the occasional 'manifest destiny’ attitude the EF has towards its mission to be the government of all humankind.

Send me the name of one of my OCS and I’ll tell you (names w/ Post)

#Orion Team #Charkatus Victorae #Gregory Elliot #Daniel Ortega #Amy Kostas

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nyklifsondiviiportfolio-blog · 7 years

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Division II Retrospective

Nyk Lifson

Hampshire College 2017

Taking Invertebrate Zoology was a great class. We spent a week studying cephalopods and then I got to dissect two sepia officinalis, common cuttlefish. This was a fantastic learning experience where my interest in my own personal gender exploration is realized in marine life. Dwarf male cuttlefish in many species participate in mating rituals where they flash “female” patterns to appear female to pass by large male cuttlefish to deliver their sperm packets to impressed females. Queering of gender happens more often in invertebrates, which is something that binary science does not teach. In school systems we still label parts of plants as having female and male reproductive organs which makes no sense. There are not even two genders within humans, intersex people exist. But, we are taught that this is unnatural? Slipper-shell snails of New England are hermaphroditic and often both reproduce and send off sperm. This is a very common endemic mollusc, yet these are not common facts that are taught? Instead charismatic megafauna is what conservation focuses on. But, what about transgender organisms?

Homosexuality and the blurring of gender lines are extremely common even within mammals. I was able to continue looking into these studies. I feel like this is important work, not that anyone is going to trust studies anyways because radicals will not even believe in climate change. But I am not studying why people stay willfully ignorant, I am lucky enough to be studying parrotfish with supermales and land snails that change their organs to reproduce whenever a mate crosses their path. Humans are the ones lacking in evolution, stuck in a binary. That is why my Div II is still called getting weird underwater. I leave division two needing two more class requirements and a project to complete The Five College Marine and Coastal Science Certificate.

I did not study enough film in these past two years, and that is one of my bigger regrets. I had tried to get into the claymation class being offered this past spring, but messed up my scheduling. I am imperfect. I am not the most organized person. I also am not the best when it comes to due dates. I work on these skills every day, but can only achieve so much when working a job, playing rugby, being a signer, and a full time student. I took Video 1 with Lucretia Knapp, it was a Queer film class where I learned to make a rotoscope. I filmed in interesting abandoned locations and made a music video for my non-binary friend and invited other trans* friends to come into the woods and make art with me. I got to break some bottles, splatters some queers with blood, and had a great time. The editing process went not as well as I planned due to an unforeseen concussion I got playing rugby my 1st spring semester of Div II. I finished my classes that semester and then went abroad over the summer, so everything worked out. Both videos I made in this class I will have links to in my portfolio.

The more important skills I learned in my time at Hampshire are that I am a survivalist. I can and will flourish. I am capable to continuing on. I have to do more work than others to grow and I try hard every day. I will not let my past or who others think I am stop me from living. I will not let people, places, or unknown languages be barriers to my discovery and thirst for knowledge.

One important part of my growth was that I realized I am an alcoholic. This really stunted me at Hampshire. Many professors told me to take a semester off. I know myself. If I went on medical leave I would not have come back. I would not finish school for years. I wonder what would have happened if I had transferred or left, but I did not. I stuck with my education. I want a degree because no matter what happens to me in this world, no one can take my education from me. I am privileged to have family who can pay for part of my schooling and to have access to a liberal arts college like hampshire. Many of my friends in Kentucky went to state schools and then fell through the cracks. I am grateful to Hampshire. That being said I became the jaded older student I knew I would be. Hampshire is still an institution, so it is inherently racist/sexist/ableist/homophobic/and transphobic. That can be seen in my mostly white professors and being misgendered in evaluations. That is felt on campus. This is all relevant because I withdrew from classes each semester because I had too high of expectations for someone in recovery. I always want to learn more than my workload can truly handle.

Around 4am the night before my Prose Poetry final portfolio was due I realized how little I have done in the last two years. This was startling. It washed over me. But now in the light of day I see that is not true. I can argue why this should not matter due to being a Hampshire student. I have had a job this year while working, being in recovery, taking classes at three colleges, and living in a trump era. It is difficult to write job applications when all I really am interested in academically is queer fish and dragons. Oddly enough, I just want to be a firefighter or first responder, which is not what I am taking classes for.; I want to someday have enough money to house multiple foster kids. I will most likely not have a legal gender in my home state. And my average life span to beat is 26. I know this is supposed to be about my academics, but I don’t want to go to graduate school.

After reading A Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway and Embracing true monstrosity, I gave my character, Iphis wings to fly. I wrote in a dragon myth after learning about Queer dragon-based creation stories from Ancient Ghana. I have inspected my everyday colonialism. Sitting in a mostly white class in Massachusetts. Every cryptid is dragged through the dirt. Looking at geographical mountain ranges and local reptiles in the area. Dragons are a powerful myth in mosts cultures around the world. Dragons live among humans. Some humans are dragons. We are constantly trying to build from trauma and hurt others. I took took risks and did research for my upcoming DIV III. I am planning on taking an oceanography class next summer. I also am taking two marine science classes next year. I have to live in the science world to have a say in it. But I have a proposal for my research project. I want to draw a coloring book of queer sea creatures. Ones that science talks circles around to make sense of a gender that does not matter. I could title it “Nemo was a lie” but I won’t. Clownfish always have one that is the largest that can lay eggs. They change systems for this rule. The rest are at a certain age changing to what binary-biased-science deems, female.

A degree is one of the few things in life no one can take away from me once I obtain. I could lose a house, car, children, pets, the clothes off my back, but never the knowledge I cultivate. My life may be taken away but never my schooling. I owe it to those who are not fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to go to a liberal arts school, or college in general. That is the argument I have used to stop myself from dropping out. The animosity I have experienced from students and administrators on this campus has made me want to leave on a multitude of occasions. I live off campus and no matter how many times I am offered to drop out I march on towards an oval diploma. Because learning never ends. Neither does my passion.

I took many classes in preperation for Division III and have been seeking literature for reference in my free time. I have continued to study androgyny in fiction and how race intersects with feminine and masculine imagery.

In my Prose poetry class I did my presentation on Audre Lorde; a black lesbian, poet, and activist. I read speeches and her compilations of poems late at night in the Mount Holyoke Library. My other presentation was on Yusef Komuntakaa and two of his works. He mainly deals with the vietnam war and experiencing cross-generational diaspora.

In Professor Susan Loza’s class I learned about marginalized monstrosity. I read Octavia Butler, Ursula Leguin, and this fantastic article called Punks Bulldaggers and Queers. I wrote about the consumption of bodies and queer people of color. Constructed bodies through diaspora and trauma. I think this needs to be a requirement. Being open minded and respectful of historical oppression that is the elephant in the room in everyday life.

In Dragon Myths--Global Symbols of of Power at University of Massachusetts, Amherst. I gave a presentation on Both South African cryptids and Eastern European myths. In addition I researched in my free time each week background information at every myth would read. I strengthened my research skills by looking through an anthropological lense. We asked questions about how the victors of colonization might have changed these stories? How do local religions and systems of power influence oral story-keeping? How can typography and endemic species influence these mythological creatures? How do bias’ come into play? How could translations have changed from the primary source?

Learning for learning’s sake is rewarding but hard to explain why my education isn’t a waste of time. I have hated school passionately since I was in middle school. I went to both private and public learning institutions and both seemed full of bull shit. But maybe that is just life? It is not that I do not want to gain knowledge, but the way that normalized education systems go about it makes me want to rip my hair out. That is why I am so grateful to Hampshire. I have been able to follow my interests with very little push-back and a whole lot of understanding. I am not planning on going to graduate school and I sure as hell did not think I would make it this far at any institutional learning facility. The fact I am finishing my third year of college alive, with my head held high, is a goddamn miracle. I was thinking of how to change my Division two contract to seem professional and like I know what I am doing. But, in the last three years the glimmer of truth has show through to the surface; no one at this damn school knows what is going on. So, instead of lying through my teeth, here is a full account of what I have fought tooth and nail to learn.

Invertebrate Zoology with Stan Rachootin was incredible. I missed plenty of class due to it being at 8:35am at Mount Holyoke twice a week and then 9am on Fridays, but I only missed one lab. We studied molluscs for two weeks and one those consisted of cephalopods. Considering in depth interest in cuttlefish, I was overjoyed. I dove into my studies and made it out with an A- in the class. I got to dissect not one, but two sepia officinalis and a multitude of other inverts including a lugworm and a scallop. Stan lent me reading materials on cephalopods including an anatomical guide for sepias. I gained insight into sequential hermaphroditism and how common it is among marine invertebrates and fish. This has sparked a personal study of mine compiling a list of queer marine organisms. There are so many clear instances in science where the gender binary is a hindrance upon data collection. I hope to unpack and then rearrange that data in my own research on creatures such as parrotfish and moray eels.

I was in over my head in my Conservation Biology class at Amherst College. I made that decision, though. I wanted to be in a 300 level class where I was the only 2nd year compared to the seniors and juniors. My writing was not that great. I was battling my addictions and myself that semester. I missed a presentation and turned in a paper with horribly done citations. I did give two well thought out and researched presentations, one in a group and one by myself. My teacher was not quite impressed with how I presented my work. My final research project was on cuttlefish conservation. No shock there. That class required a post a week on our readings and to read many wordy articles to be discussed in class. I held my own in a room with more experienced Amherst students. Most importantly we all learned how to look for bias and statistical flaws in scientific articles. Which, in turn, helped me in my research.

I am studying video, yes I am including this even though I only took one film class. I still am passionate about film. I have been doing projects on the side and tried to take multiple classes but either they clashed with my schedule or I was unable to get into them. Independently I have made vlog pieces and an animation. I continue to study film outside of class. In Myth’s of America I did a final project based on Emily Dickinson. I went out into the woods in the pioneer valley for my own work and then experimented with found footage. This piece was a discovery in collaborative work and got me through the grieving process over my past self and my grandfather passing away that semester.

I took a Queer Film class with Lucretia Napp. It was a positive experience. I learned how to make a rotoscope animation, which was very exciting. Then I made a music video for my friend with all non-binary representation in the footage. There was a lot of fake blood and a lot of queers, which is the epitome of a fun film shoot. I was recovering from a concussion I received while playing rugby, so my editing was not my best work. But, I overall am happy with the way it turned out and Cass Hoke, the musician and a dear friend, loved the outcome. In addition, I was exposed to a lot of queer documentary and short film work that I had never seen before. Those influences benefitted my end project.

Creative writing, the book that is a little bird trapped in the cage of my soul and has been begging to fly out. I just needed the key, and that key was Nell Arnold. Being in a room with her I felt like a fraud. I am no artist, and as you can see I have no understanding of grammar rules. Yet, I found myself lucky enough to be one of the 16 people chosen to be in her group. I got to explore characters that I would be friends with. But mostly, I got to listen to Nell. I had never been in a room with someone who made me feel like a better writer by sharing the same oxygen. Her diction is on point and she is ever-so-eloquent. I worked my butt off in that room, editing peer work and trying to not be afraid to write from perspectives that I struggled imagining.

Both of my classes with Thom Haxo were for my mental health. He is the same flavor crazy that I am, so we got along smashingly. I found a niche where I produced upcycled artwork based on my creative writing. I was able to create performance pieces where I would read out loud and interact with the art physically while bringing viewers into the story. This helped me with figuring out my process in designing characters. I am not in school for my art because that is more of a coping skill than something I want to study, but I plan on having illustrations as a final part of my DIV III. Thom’s class boosted me in my confidence with my work and to not be afraid to go with what feels right.

In Susanna Loza’s class I kickstarted my research for my division three. I read Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway, Wild Seed by Octavia Butler, and The Left Hand of Darkness, and many other valuable works. My final paper looks into depictions of androgyny in science fiction and fantasy. The saddening part was how little representation I found in both research and actual literature I could read. I was hindered by emotional setbacks, rendering me unable to fulfill the amount of time I needed for research and actually writing my paper. I am not pleased with my end work, but I am so glad I was able to spend time in a theory class looking into what I am most interested in. This was a valuable class that opened my awareness and I worked more on my multicultural perspective. Cyborgs are androgynous, aliens can be, scifi full of asexually reproducing being is trans*.

Why did I withdraw from so many classes? First you must know what add drop looks like for me. I start out being enrolled in as many classes as possible, show up to the first class for all of them, and then withdraw from the ones I do not need/like/or can not make it to. After that I often will stay in a larger class load than I can handle because I am optimistic in my goals at the beginning of the semester. I am paying enough money that I try to get my money’s worth from school. This goes south about midway and I will realize that I have either not gone to a class or am unable to keep up with the demands. I withdrew from RAD because it is a gendered self defense program that is partially taught by a cisgendered male. I never went to a single class because of those two reasons. I withdrew from Oceanography because my seasonal depression made it difficult to get out of bed at the ungodly hour of 7am to catch a bus in the morning. I am disappointed in myself because I needed to take Oceanography to for credit in the Five College Marine and Coastal Science Certificate I am working towards, but hopefully I will take the needed class over the summer.

I regret not being a Teacher’s Assistant for Pat, because she is doing great work at Hampshire. Lemelson is a cis-male dominated space that tries to be inclusive, but like most shops, falls short. She is being payed not enough to do so much. I took glass blowing from her and realized that my hands are amazing tools. Pat has been fighting the patriarchy in shops for years by teaching and creating like a badass. I had wish I had had enough spoons to TA that class, but I really needed to take care of myself. The bond we could have explored is a loss I still am saddened by. This is one of my bigger disappointments.

I am proud of myself for:

Being a Signer of the QCA

Asking for help (writing center/talking to teachers)

Taking classes at all five colleges

(mostly) Navigating the PVTA

I realized that my goals from DIV II were actually just me knowing what I wanted to do during my DIV III. The road to my final projects was confusing and a journey, but I do feel like I cam out the other end with skills for my future. These past two years I have acquired so much self-wisdom, but that is hard to put into an academic context, even though it happened within an academic bubble. So what did I do? I wrote, read, and remained undead. I dreamed and hung out with starfish. I am my biggest critic. But, I have accomplished so much in spite of all of my pitfalls. I am prepared to write a book and make a coloring book my last year. I gained some maturity and learned some valuable life lessons. I figured out my work ethic and found my voice.

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