#transient robotics

[scienceswitch]

Self-Destructing Military Robots Can Carry Out Recon And Then Dissolve Into Nothing

Engineers have developed soft, rubbery robots that carry out functions as usual but then liquefy on demand when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light. This new technology enables flexible machines with programmable lifespans and could lead to self-destructing robots that protect sensitive data. The researchers, as per the paper published in the journal Science Advances, fabricated stretchable robots…

[lettucedloophole]

TFW WHEN YOU SLAY THAT MOTHERFUCKING SPIRE

[crownedhades]

why is this being posted? bc i can. have fun reading if you do.

☁️ SCHIZOID PHENOMENA, OBJECT RELATIONS, AND THE SELF by Harry Guntrip

(“The Picture of the Shut-In Individual,” starting at page.17)

The psychotherapist must be greatly concerned with those states of mind in which patients become inaccessible emotionally, when the patient seems to be bodily present but mentally absent. One patient said, “I don’t seem to come here”, as if she came in body but did not bring herself with her. She found herself in the same state of mind when she asked the young man next door to go on a walk with her. He did and she became tired, dull, unable to talk; she commented: “It was the same as when I come here: I don’t seem to be present.” Her reactions to food were similar. She would long for a nice meal and sit down to it and find her appetite gone, as if she had nothing to do with eating.

Complaints of feeling cut off, shut off, out of touch, feeling apart or strange, of things being out of focus or unreal, of not feeling one with people, or of the point having gone out of (page.17) life, interest flagging, things seeming futile and meaningless, all describe various ways this state of mind. Patients usually call it ‘depression’, but it lacks the heavy, black, inner sense of brooding, of anger and guilt, which are not difficult to discover in classic depression. Depression is really a more extraverted state of mind, which, while the patient is turning his aggression inwards against himself, is a part of a struggle not to break out into overt angry or aggressive behavior. The states described above are ‘schizoid states’. They are definitely introverted. Depression is object-relational. The schizoid person had renounced objects, even though he still needs them. (page.18)

External relationships seem to have been emptied by a massive withdrawal of the real libidinal self. Effective mental activity has disappeared into a hidden inner world; the patient’s conscious ego is emptied of vital feeling and action, and seems to have become unreal. You may catch glimpses of intense activity going on in the inner world through dreams and fantasies, but the patient’s conscious ego merely reports these as if it were a neutral observer not personally involved in the inner drama of which it is a detached spectator. The attitude of the outer world is the same: non-involvement and observation at a distance without any feeling, like that of a press reporter describing a social gathering of which he is not a part, in which he has no personal interest, and by which he is bored. (page.18)

These schizoid states may alternate between depression, and at times be confusedly mixed with it so that both schizoid and depressive signs appear. They are all degrees of intensity ranging from transient moods that come and go during a session, to states that persist over a long period, when they show very distinctively the specific schizoid traits. (page.18)

An example of a patient describing herself as depressed when she was really schizoid may be useful at this point. She opened the session by saying: “I’m very depressed. I’ve been just sitting and couldn’t get out of the chair. There seemed no purpose anywhere, the future blank. I’m very bored and want a big change. I feel hopeless, resigned, no way out, stuck. I’m wondering how I can manage somehow just to get around and (page.18) put up with it.” (Analyst: “Your solution is to damp everything down, don’t feel anything, give up all real relationship to people on an emotional level, and just “do things” in a mechanical way, be a robot.”) Her reaction brought out clearly the schizoid trait: “Yes, I felt this was dangerous. If I hadn’t made myself do something I’d have just sat, not bothered, not interested.” (Analyst: “That’s your reaction in analysis to me: don’t be influenced, don’t be moved, don’t be lured into reacting to me.”) Her reply was: “If I were moved at all, I’d feel very annoyed with you. I hate and detest you for making me like this. The more I’m inclined to be drawn towards you, the more I feel a fool, undermined.” (page.19)

The mere fact of the analyst’s presence as another human being with whom she needed to be emotionally real, i.e. express what she was actually feeling, created an emotional crisis in her with which she could only deal by abolishing the relationship. So her major defense against her anxieties was to keep herself emotionally out of reach, inaccessible, and keep everyone at arm’s length. (page.19)

(Living in an Internal World starting at page.19)

(a) Need of the Object and of internal Object Relations

He [schizoid] is driven by anxiety to cut himself off from all object-relations. Our needs, fears, frustrations, resentments and anxieties in our inevitable quest for good objects are the substance of psychopathology, because they are the real problem in life itself. When difficulties achieving and maintaining good object-relations are too pronounced, and human relations are attended with too great anxiety and conflict,, desperate efforts are often made to deny and eliminate this basic need. People go into their shell, bury themselves in work of an impersonal nature, abolish relations with actual people so far as they can, devote themselves to abstractions, ideals, theories, organizations, and so on. In the nature of the case these maneuvers cannot succeed and always end disastrously, since they are an attempt to deny our very nature itself. Clearly we cannot do that and remain healthy. (page.20)

The more people cut themselves off from human relations in the outer world, the more they are driven back on emotionally charged fantasied object-relations in their inner mental world, till the psychotic lives only in his inner world. (page.20)

[littlestpersimmon]

The posts that are really popular rn where it's like how much your mothers life would have been if you were not born is extremely difficult PERSONALLY for me to be seeing all the time. I know it has a target audience, I know it's not about me, that there are social implications and whatnot.. but I've always craved for my mom to love me, to want me to be here, I always felt like the little robot boy in A.I or Danielle in ever after, etc etc. I feel very transient in the lives of other people, I've been physically abandoned by my parents for almost 7 years and I know I've always been the person to walk behind a group of three.. I always try to do everything with sincerity, I spend long hours just trying to figure out how people work, how do you be a person right, or just helplessly dream of being reborn and being a cat. I don't know. Maybe I am just pathologically annoying or I talk weird or something but I jst can not believe that any of those things meant I am unworthy of being here or having a family. I feel I am moving mountains just to deserve to be here. I just don't know what to make of the idea that the first pair of arms in this world that held me did not even want me there.

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Wednesday SpaceTime 20250611 Series 28 Episode 70

Biggest boom since Big Bang

Astronomers have discovered the most powerful cosmic explosions since the big bang – blasts so enormous they’ve been categorised as a new class of events called extreme nuclear transients or ENTs.

Perseverance takes a bite out of one of the oldest rocks on Mars

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover has taken a bite out of one of the oldest rocks on the red planet.

First light for Europe’s new killer asteroid hunter

The European Space Agency’s newest planetary defender has opened its ‘eye��� to the cosmos for the first time.

The Science Report

Global drought severity has increased by an average of 40% since 1981.

Men who carry a common genetic variant are twice as likely to develop dementia compared to women.

Study shows chimpanzees can catch yawns from humanoid robots.

Alex on Tech: Nintendo Switch 2 release

SpaceTime covers the latest news in astronomy & space sciences.

The show is available every Monday, Wednesday and Friday through your favourite podcast download provider or from www.spacetimewithstuartgary.com

SpaceTime is also broadcast through the National Science Foundation on Science Zone Radio and on both i-heart Radio and Tune-In Radio.

SpaceTime daily news blog: http://spacetimewithstuartgary.tumblr.com/

SpaceTime facebook: www.facebook.com/spacetimewithstuartgary

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SpaceTime twitter feed @stuartgary

SpaceTime YouTube: @SpaceTimewithStuartGary

SpaceTime -- A brief history

SpaceTime is Australia’s most popular and respected astronomy and space science news program – averaging over two million downloads every year. We’re also number five in the United States.  The show reports on the latest stories and discoveries making news in astronomy, space flight, and science.  SpaceTime features weekly interviews with leading Australian scientists about their research.  The show began life in 1995 as ‘StarStuff’ on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) NewsRadio network.  Award winning investigative reporter Stuart Gary created the program during more than fifteen years as NewsRadio’s evening anchor and Science Editor.  Gary’s always loved science. He was the dorky school kid who spent his weekends at the Australian Museum. Gary studied astronomy at university and was invited to undertake a PHD in astrophysics, but instead focused on a career in journalism and radio broadcasting. His radio career stretches back some 34 years including 26 at the ABC. Gary’s first gigs were spent as an announcer and music DJ in commercial radio, before becoming a journalist, and eventually joining ABC News and Current Affairs. He was part of the team that set up ABC NewsRadio and became one of its first on air presenters. When asked to put his science background to use, Gary was appointed Science Editor and quickly developed the StarStuff Astronomy shgw, which he wrote, produced, and hosted. The program proved extremely popular, consistently achieving 9 per cent of the national Australian radio audience -- based on the ABC’s Nielsen ratings survey figures for the five major Australian metro markets: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth. That compares to the ABC’s overall radio listenership of 5.6 per cent. The StarStuff podcast was published on line by ABC Science -- achieving over 1.3 million downloads annually.  However, after some 20 years, the show finally wrapped up in December 2015 following ABC funding cuts, and a redirection of available finances to increase sports and horse racing coverage.  Rather than continue with the ABC, Gary resigned so that he could keep the show going independently.  StarStuff was rebranded as “SpaceTime”, with the first episode broadcast in February 2016.  Over the years, SpaceTime has grown, more than doubling its former ABC audience numbers and expanding to include new segments such as the Science Report -- which provides a wrap of general science news, weekly skeptical science features, special reports looking at the latest computer and technology news, and Skywatch – which provides a monthly guide to the night skies. The show is published three times a week (every Monday, Wednesday and Friday) and it’s available from the United States National Science Foundation on Science Zone Radio, and through both i-heart Radio and Tune-In Radio.

[pearsandrust]

Who is your favourite Stellaron hunter and why?

I love your blog and your posts so much. Every post you make is brilliant and I am delighted to have found your blog. Eating all your HSR analysis. Brilliant. Especially Yaoqing trio but they're all good I'm just biased towards them. Mine is Firefly

wahhh thank you!! i honestly can't believe that there are really people out there who enjoy my silly little posts :')

i'm glad you like my yaoqing trio stuff!! they're honestly so important to me. if i could pick a group of hsr characters to post about forever, it would be them. i have so many more yaoqing trio thoughts to put out into the world, but i've got to unscramble them first. my brain is soup when it comes to them.

my favourite stellaron hunter ... it's hard to choose between silver wolf and firefly, but i think firefly wins out. i'll put my explanation for why under the cut -- just in case i ramble on for too long.

i like silver wolf because she represents one of my favourite things about hsr -- the scale of its story. she starts off playing video games in a basement and ends up travelling the universe as a stellaron hunter. she used to have no name and no ID, and now she has intergalactic bounties placed on her. her stories do a great job of how she "expanded" her world, so to speak; she conquered the aforementioned basement, and then her city, and then her planet, and wow !! look at her now!!! (i also have a soft spot for characters whose stories have repeating lines/motifs, so there's that.)

but! regardless of my love for silver wolf, firefly wins. which is crazy, because i had so many doubts about her when she was first teased. not sure if you're a genshin player, but i was scared of her being an ayaka-type character -- that is, a character who has very little conflict outside of liking the protagonist (sorry ayaka. sorry)

and yet!!!! firefly's lore really blew me away. one of the big questions of the penacony arc is "if we are all fated to die, what meaning do our actions have?", and firefly answers that question so beautifully. i'm not explaining this very well, but she is really the living embodiment of fire -- a transient light that can only be produced from an act of destruction. and yet, everyone looks at the fire instead of the wood. firefly has managed to become so much more than the "act of destruction" that created her. she is always trying to create a life that has greater value than her fate. and that alone answers the question of "do our actions mean anything". the fact that they used so many different types of light in her character stories is also really great. live laugh love firefly i can't believe i ever thought she was gonna have no personality

Also, SAM is just fucking cool. +2 robot points. I love robots.

[red-steampunk]

MC- Has abandonment issues for some reason and constantly needs to be in the presence of a good friend. The only person who is aware of this is Zao, as he learned the hard way.

Claude- Is the only Berserker besides Ikutoshi that can't drive. It's not because of Snow driving him all the time. It's because Claude is really near sighted and refuses to wear glasses.

Maria- Is somehow just as physically strong as Bohemio and Kurogane for some reason. She hard carries her Guild after all.

Licht- He's a lot closer to the Creators and Summoners Guild since they're more respectful towards him, compared to his Guildmates.

Arc- Is the only human outside of the Summoners who becomes extremely over protective of MC being around certain people who see them as an exile.

Duo- Like Oniwaka, has a huge soft spot for dog transients, mainly Garmr.

Kurogane- Has created a remote to power everything in his house out of boredom and laziness.

Ellie- Refuses to drink blood from a Blood Bank, it made her and Kresnik ill once.

Yuma- Has a strong fear of Furry Conventions despite being a furry, getting attacked by a bunch of people wanting to turn into a werewolf. Yuma isn't a werewolf.

Sanzo- Has commissioned a pillow case with Bohemio and MC's faces also he can practice kissing.

Bohemio- Refuses to use a shovel in Lethal Company, he only uses Stop and Yeild Signs as weapons when playing.

Tuaring- Is in cahoots with Hekate to push Enigma and Tindalos to be a couple. They love the "Enemies to Lovers" trope.

Oscar- Goes into a huge depressive episode if he messes up a live performance himself. Locking himself in his room for half of the week.

Berto- Actually hates the Crafters Guildmaster, because he stole his robotic dog to study once.

Issac- Will hack Gacha games to always get what he wants.

Curren- Is an even bigger hermit than Furufumi is, to a concerning degree. Ame,Nobumuchi, and Hippolytus are the only ones checking up on her and making sure she remembers to eat.

Hoover- Is close friends with Belphegor, who gets to hang out with him during any weddings he's attending.

[lutewife]

Imagine dancing with fem! Alastor.... Especially in the rain

-⚱️

"Strangers in the Night"

gn!reader, platonic, lonely reader, sinner reader, no y/n written, reader is NOT a minor, only in retrospective

Warnings: Murder, existential crisis, really bad angst (im so sorry), overall freaky

Notes: Good to see you here with us Prochy anon 🫶 Finally somebody with style graced us with their presence, of course I can write it, darling! (I will make you cry with this, because I just knoooow how you love angst 🥰). I didn't write it in the rain cause Idk how rain works in hell so yeah haha

Summary: Reader comes back from a party, depressed and runs into The Radio Demon. Alas tries to make the reader smile, so she invites them to dance. But there is a twist...

Crossposted on Ao3: @domaiscool

You were coming back from a party. In your right hand there were scissors. You were playing with them trying to distract yourself.

Your head was hurting from the transient noise when you passed by the clubs and bars. Well, at least you thought it was by the noise. In reality, you just caught yourself on thinking too much again.

Was it the alcohol that did it for you? Probably.

You just wanted to get out of this loud district. You have had enough of drunk people and bad music for the night.

Yeah... The drunk people. Making out with eachother and whispering those sweet nothings into their ears constantly. Giggling and squeling.

It made you cringe, at least you wanted to think that. In reality, you were just too lonely to think "good for them". While being in hell, it was usually really hard to find a partner who actually loved you and wasn't just coming for your body. But at this point you just wanted what they had. You just wanted someone to rely on, to prey on. Actually even a friend, even family member, would be good. Your standards lowered when the loneliness got to you. Afterlife is sometimes like that and you just pretended you didn't care. It worked somewhat, at least it made you feel less depressed.

When you were drifting into your thoughts again, something, or maybe someone, interrupted you. In a spur of a moment you staggered, before finding yourself spread over on the ground, your butt hurting mercilessly, since you landed on the scissors.

- Hey! - you growled, massaging the sore spot, then got up quickly and looked before you.

It seemed like you arrived at the nearby park. Everything would be nice, amazing even, if you didn't have company. In front of you at the bench, was seated an elegant looking lady with some kind of walking stick, which probably was the reason of your hurting butt. Or maybe it was a cane? You couldn't make it out in such low light. What you knew for sure though, is that she was smiling from ear to ear.

- Oh, I'm sorry darling, did I startle you? That's what you get by walking with your head in the clouds! - said the woman, before robotically laughing. She didn't make any effort of giving you a helping hand. Whatever. It's not like helping people up was a common thing to do in hell.

You scoffed, trying to get the dirt off your clothes. Just as you were going to insult her in every possible way and language it hit you.

Red colour palette, cane, everlasting smile and the strangely familiar voice that was accompanied by the sound of the radio static...

You suddenly sober up.

- The Radio Demon...? - it slipped out. Terrified expression on your face didn't go unnoticed. The Overlord herself looked unbothered by the reaction.

- I'm sorry miss, I mean ma'am, I mean miss-misstress...? Uh... Lady? - you stuttered, the words seeming to fail you. She just grinned wider.

- Oh, how sweet! Now you're trying! - The woman seemed to make fun of your miserable attempts.

You just frowned even more, cringing. Nice. You were making a fool of yourself before The Radio Demon, who is more dangerous than fucking nitric acid. She could kill you here and there if she wished to. Fortunely, the woman didn't seem to want to. How reassuring.

Not knowing what to do with yourself, you sat down next to her, keeping your distance. It was too late to run away now.

The woman raised her eyebrow, noticing your movement, but she was rather pleased at your decision. At least you didn't fuck up that badly.

After some time she asked, as if casually:

- Why the long face, dear?

- Do I know you? - you responded with another question, wondering if you fucked up in the past and now she was coming for you.

- Oh, judging by your face, you know me very well - her smile almost extended beyond her face.

You felt absolutely terrified, but just as you were to stutter something out again, she closed her eyes and opened her mouth:

- Worry not, I don't want to hurt you.

You breathed out loudly. The woman seemed amused again (but with her expression it was hard to tell).

- Although I might change my mind if you won't brighten up that face of yours - her voice felt almost threatening, although her tone remained the same.

Intimidated, you tried to smile a little, but failed miserably. A loud groan escapes your lips.

- I can't. There's nothing to smile about in my life.

You could almost swear that The Radio Demon fought the urge to roll her eyes.

- No wonder you are so depressed, if you think like that - the woman stated dryly - Smile is a valuable tool, my dear. Even if you don't feel like it, you should use it - she lectured you, but you didn't feel like hearing her out. This was all a bunch of nonsense to you.

- No thanks, I'm not good at lying. Besides I don't like to - you said, dissmisingly, surprising the overlord. She didn't think of it that way before. Well, to be more precise, she has never had such a difficult audience.

The woman leaned on the cane slightly and stroked her neck, in thought.

- Do you enjoy dancing? - she finally spoke, her voice raised in question.

- Excuse me? - you felt perplexed at the sudden inquiry.

- I said, do you like dancing, my dear? - she repeated herself, expecting your baffled expression.

- I-I don't know? I've never danced before... - you just felt even more crestfallen and re-adjusted a strand of your hair that was getting into your eye. Was she planning something?The Radio Demon smiled even wider, knowingly.

- Well then... It is never too late to try! - she got up suddenly and gave you her hand.

In the moonlight, or should I say, in the deep red of the sky, she looked especially beautiful. Maybe even a little bit creepy, since her wide grin seemed really out of place in the low light. But the curly hair and wavy dress moving in the wind gave her a disturbing charm you couldn't really place a finger on. Either way, you took her hand warily.

Before you knew it, the woman pulled you along and snapped her fingers with the free hand.

It was strange. You were in hell, but the music which played that time was divine. Little lively melody, but oh goddess, how melancholic and real it felt. You didn't feel like you were a soul right now, even more so a demon; you felt like you were a child. Although a step away from innocence and step further into darkness. The woman really did sway you into a familiar rhythm. An unnaturally young soul, who wasn't suited for all the pain they felt. Finally: you smiled. But it wasn't a smile full of joy. It was a smile of regret.

Lost in the depths of hell, without a mother, or a father, or a sister, or a brother... Lost in the eyes of others, they simply forgot how to function themselves. Pulled into a tango with a much more powerful being, condemned to perdition in it's irises. A man who escaped from cruelty - that's who you were.

A younger version of you spoke, holding a pair of scissors. They were standing behind the woman you danced with and repeating it over and over again, but you didn't want to hear. You knew. And you didn't want to be reminded.

The music coming from the cane was starting to be even more hectic, not so divine as before. Now it was surely a music suited for hell.

Her dress was twirling. It reminded you of turquoise waves you've seen in the living world once. You wondered if the woman once was a human too, not some gruesome monster she was perceived as. Two strangers in the night, you seemingly didn't know anything about eachother, but danced nevertheless.

You were also amazed that you haven't stepped on her toes. It was a miracle, because you weren't thinking at all about your moves now. Too stuck in the past to be thinking rationally, you were yet to discover inevitable.

She twirled you and closing your eyes, you blacked out.

It went by like a flash.

Core memory of life. Playing in the night. Escaping from the courtyard. The smell of grass and trees. The scissors starring as a plane.

A deer. But was it?

Sneaking.

Closing eyes.

The tension.

And the release.

Scissors stuck in the flesh.

Happiness.

Momentarily.

It wasn't.

It wasn't a deer.

You were just depending on your mother. She told you to bring the dinner. Even your father was teaching you how to shoot animals. So you killed, because you weren't so keen on being hungry the whole week again. You liked your scissors more, although the animals fleed before you could stab them with it.

It was normal for you.

But what wasn't normal, was that you actually managed to kill it with your sharp scissors.

And that this time... It was a woman.

You groggily opened your eyes and winced. Your back was hurting.

- Fuck... - you groaned, getting up. You were seated on a bench. The same one The Radio Demon...

Oh.

Yes. The woman.

Where was she right now?

You could still almost feel her delicate hand on yours. Shuddering, you massaged it.

And then you felt something on your cheek. It was cold. A tear...?

And another. And another. Great. Now you were crying. Why? You knew exactly why. But you didn't even want to think about it. You wanted to erase it from your memory. Even if she probably killed more people than you ever did, even if she was now a monster, you just couldn't manage to stop your saddness.

Because you remember how she danced. Her twirling dress, the waves. Long, long time ago, she was human.

You'll block it out soon, surely. But before you do that, you decided to say one, important word:

- Sorry.

Proofread by: @koonczi

Fem!Alastor doodles on the header: @m00ndia

I still don't feel like it's good enough, but I hope you liked this lil' one shot :)

[mtb-tv]

The Perfect Sleeper

It's been a minute since I made an esoteric CS lore theory/rant. I thought of this one while tweaking off of a headache and loud music on headphones that hurt to wear.

Anyway, so I've already established that I believe Essen-Arp (creator of Sleepers) to be a secret transhumanist cult under the guise of a megacorp, as discussed in this post

TL:DR, Sleepers as we see them in CS1 and CS2 are but mere prototypes, and not actually meant for labor. They're meant to be a testing group for the advancement of Sleeper technology.

What exactly is that advancement? What is Essen-Arp working toward?

Obviously (in my eyes), they're working toward creating the perfect synthetic-robotic frame that which they can use to escape the Entropy of Flesh.

I've already established that Sleeper frames, even in their prototype stage, are objectively superior to human bodies. In some ways more than others. Sure, they have their issues, but these issues are mainly as a means of control forced by Essen-Arp. The theoretical "Perfect Frames" won't be limited by Stabilizer, and would be fully capable of self-maintenance. Effective immortality, transcendent of flesh.

Sleepers can work in extreme, hazardous environments, but even they have a breaking point. The Perfect Frame would be totally unconstrained as to where it could go, bar the surface of a star. They would be fully immune to radiation, toxicity, chill, and heat. Even in the vacuum of space or deep below an ocean's surface.

CS2 established that the synthetic fibers making up a Sleeper frame are transient, and capable of change given the right stimuli. Perfect Frames would be capable of doing this at will. An infinitely-adaptable body that which can not decay, can not become obsolete, and can not be damaged easily.

Also I'd like to touch on emulation. The copy-paste of a human brain into a Sleeper frame wouldn't be present in the Perfect Frame. Rather, a total transfer of thought, memory, and personality would be uploaded from a human body into the Perfect Frame. Effectively making the Frame a new vehicle for the human soul, leaving a fleshy husk in its wake.

Anyway, rant over.

[obscgen]

⎔ ∙ 𝐏𝐀𝐔𝐋 [APERTURE/APOLLO]

he/2/222/&/it

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── I am an artist and character designer, I just post whatever I happen to finish in a given day. I love robots A LOT. i am working on a variety of projects all the time, so feel free to check out what I finish in a given day :) ─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

⎔ ∙ Massive fan of:

◘ Miracle Musical ◘ Yume Nikki ◘ Yume Nikki fangames (.flow, 2kki, etc) ◘ the Lisa series ◘ Fatum Betula ◘ 9 ◘ Ultrakill (talk abt any of these with me and i'll lose my shit)

⎔ ∙ My current projects:

∙ “Crimson-Tide” (filler name till proper announcement), comic, working alongside @voiidhearter! Currently at the highest priority ⋆ ── ∙ Transient Tempest - Comic [INACTIVE] ⋆ ── ∙ Sanguine Sundown/Sunset/Sanctum - Mixed Media ⋆ ── ∙ Spacetalk & High - Mixed Media [INACTIVE]

KEEP IN MIND MY PAGE IS 16+.

[morguezsz]

"I say out loud "I'm lucky to feel" and then I feel glad Humans cannot choose how they feel in the end All of life is transient and that helps me to comprehend that."

these lines help me a lot through trying times. i really dont know how to tell you that this is from a song about a robot with dick envy

[gooeykit]

What's your favorite thing about drawing? What part do you like most about it? Sketching, lining, coloring? Clothes? Backgrounds? Expressions? Like if there was one part you could just do forever, what would it be? Would it be multiple parts? What's your least favorite part? Do you avoid the parts you don't like doing, or do you work on those too?

i will just ramble my answer

transient as fuck answer short and simple is i enjoy all of it as much as i hate it at the same time.

i spend a lot of time thinking about body gestures and interaction more than anything so a lot of the reward of my art since maybe late highschool has been a so called breath of life that i work towards fulfilling more and more not out of any ambition but just because i derive joy from flow of motion and pragmatic interaction. my last comic i was really proud of artistically but felt like the dialog was too 'these are just characters' with no fleshed out multidimensionality, what was spoken in it made me feel like i did nothing because it was just some sentences you would hear on a show. that really killed my enjoyment of that piece. alternatively a comic i did like a lot was this one, theres a lot of motion, interaction, body language. things are alluded to instead of being directly called upon. so i guess yeah i really really like expressions. these ones were fun.

backgrounds are something im newer to and i enjoy getting to know them though they serve a challenge 2 me but thats fine

lately ive been playing with airbrush tool

if u let me i will just draw faces for a while . sometimes clothes are fun, i like to play with shape so those are a good opportunity. i used to not like rendering but i just didnt know how i prefered 2 do it until recently and now its more fulfilling like with here x x i like rendering things when theres gon b chance for like a shiny finish which is why some of my more recent rendering looks like clip art [intentional] x x for that same reason, robots are fun because i enjoy doing metalic sheen x x using ummmm screen tone for highlights is also something i like to do a lot

i like def do avoid the shit i dont like doing but what i dont like is in constant shift and eventually i willjust do it anyways and learn how to do it my way. my lineart is completely manual for one. i use a 1.5 sized brush with no pressure sensitivity for digital and a 005 micron for traditional and thin just make the lines as thick as i want them to be cuz i dont like relying on brush dithering basically.

[tgrailwar-zero]

Morning everyone, ready for the big day?

The sun rose on the Transient Megalopolis, and you prepared yourselves for the Flaming Bout.

After a good night's rest and a decent morning that quickly became a bit more frantic once you realized how the time was slipping by, you made your way to where the bout was supposed to be held.

Today was the day. And it was a 'big day' indeed!

Even on a decent time-frame- and you all thought you were getting there pretty early- the streets were crowded as they amassed around a huge arena.

Just wave after wave of people. Compared to your past memory, where each individual was more of a 'vaguely colored mechanical thing'- and even your recollection of the Nameless City which had primarily human-like citizens, you saw all types here. Humans, robots, beast-men… the works.

You supposed that in a virtual world where you could look like anyone, these kinds of disparate appearances wasn't exactly odd, but it was surreal in a way. It was hard to tell who was a competitor, and who just looked incredibly intense.

The good news was, you really didn't stand out that much. In a vacuum, a 'shadow person' was rather ominous and actively strange. in this situation? Well, if you ever wanted to assert that you looked 'relatively normal', now would be the time to do so. Nobody could really argue.

Still, there wasn't much time to admire the diversity of the Solar Cell, as you were being actively squished between your Servants as they tried to push through the waves of people.

CONSTANTINE: "Just… stay close to the Masters! If they got lost in this wave of people, I don't think we could find them easily!"

NERO: "It's not like we have a choice but to stay close, Rider! I barely have room to wiggle my fingers! I forgot what massive crowds came here for the Bout!"

SABER: "Still… it's pretty exciting, isn't it? This is a major event! Ah-- hey, Rider! That's my foot!"

CONSTANTINE: "That wasn't me! Wait, there's a break in the crowd Push! Onward!"

You shoved your way through the crowd, as you heard various bits and pieces of excited chatter.

"Hey, did you hear? Keeper Ptolemaios is here!" "Seriously? I don't think I've seen him anywhere but the Archives or the Library…" "I wonder... do you think something happened?"

"So many strong fighters… maybe this is a good year to get into betting…" "Dude, you still owe me 50 PPT, what the hell are you gonna bet with?"

"Mm? Where's Protector Quetzalcoatl? She's always here, right?" "I thought I saw her… I think she changed her hair?" "Ah, that was her?!"

"I've got a good feeling on the Man-Slayer this year... I just know it!" "No way! Tri-Star's got this in the bag!" "You're kidding, right? I heard that the Jaguar Boss brought in a last-minute fighter that's supposed to be a total killer!"

The constant noise was only tempered briefly by the sound of a heavy object slamming into the ground. Eyes whipped towards the source, as you saw DURYODHANA and IZOU proudly standing before the crowd.

DURYODHANA: "Make way, citizens! The ruler of the Transient Megalopolis is coming through! Move it! Shoo!"

IZOU: "Y'hear that punks!? Queen Cleopatra's comin', so back off and start gettin' respectful!"

They parted to the side, as a stately, beautiful woman stepped between them. Your eardrums practically burst from the amount of yelling that emerged from the crowd, which basically confirmed the identity of this person.

CLEOPATRA VII THEA PHILOPATOR. The final Pharaoh of the Greco-Egyptian Ptolemaic Dynasty.

And… the Lair Servant of the Transient Megalopolis. The 'Pharaoh'.

You saw her briefly shoot a look at her two guards, sharing a hushed conversation.

CLEOPATRA: "You boneheads. We really need to work on your introductions…"

IZOU: "Really? I think I nailed it. What, you think I should'a asked 'em to bow?"

DURYODHANA: "They moved, didn't they? I say mission accomplished. No need to coddle them, they adore you after all."

CLEOPATRA: "…You're both lucky you're strong and handsome, you know that?"

She sighed, before smiling and waving to the crowd of people, that-- despite the brusque announcement from the two guards-- were absolutely ecstatic to see the Pharaoh of the Megalopolis in person. And considering that DURYODHANA and IZOU were fighters as well, you could assume some of that excitement was shared for them as well. She made her way through the crowd, before vanishing, and the normal bustle returned… unfortunately.

MUSASHI: "Gaaah! My foot!"

CONSTANTINE: "That time was me, sorry! Are you okay? Ah- wait, we're losing the little one!"

'LITTLE GUY': "We're going awayawaaaaaay-!"

NERO: "I've got you! Oh, look! There's that damned Jaguar! Ahead! Ahead! No, we're drifting left! No, no, noooo--!"

Eventually-- EVENTUALLY-- you managed to reach JAGUAR MAN who was waiting by the entrance. She smirked, folding her arms.

JAGUAR MAN: "The crowd got you, huh? That's the city for ya. You're lucky you're newbies- at least you don't have to worry about paparazzi or superfans hounding you. Welcome to the Flaming Bout. Glad y'could make it. Anyways, let's get down to brass tacks. Twin-blade and Shady here--"

You're assuming that she's talking to MUSASHI and you.

JAGUAR MAN: "--Head down to the locker rooms as soon as possible and get checked in. Your friends better find seats quick, this place fills up fast for people not in VIP sections."

CONSTANTINE: "We're not allowed down?"

JAGUAR MAN: "Sorry, handsome. Don't worry, the fighters are allowed up to mingle when they're off call, so you'll have plenty of chances to waste time together. Just make sure you don't miss your bout. Here you go."

You received: [ Flaming Bout Tickets (1 Fighter Ticket, 1 Manager Ticket, and 3 Guest Tickets) ]!

[ You lost 400 PPT for your Entry Fee! You currently have 770 PTT! ]

JAGUAR MAN handed you the ticket marked 'Manager', while MUSASHI took the ticket marked 'Fighter' and the other three took the remaining. MUSASHI's ticket was bright red with a golden border. Your ticket had a sleek black design with a golden border- it looked important. Best to make sure you didn't lose it. The guest tickets had simple flame patterns.

With a petulant look, NERO stared down at her ticket.

NERO: "…I want a VIP ticket."

JAGUAR MAN: "Tough luck. If you had your War Monitor status, it'd be a cinch, but now you've gotta run with everyone else... Still, knowing you, you'll probably find a way into the Lounge somehow."

JAGUAR MAN: "Anyways, I'll see ya down below. I've got high hopes for you, 'Null Zero Samurai'."

She winked, before heading inside the building, leaving you and your group.

[dorokora]

Chapter 15 Episode 2 Part 2

We start with narration about Sanzo from Motosumi. Sanzo is the weakest in the guild. A long time ago, the Asakusa area was in a state of disrepair. The locals bring out their sacred treasures and the fights escalate into conflicts. The guild wasn’t as unified back then. It was around that time that Sanzo. He always gets caught up in fights. For some reason, he's always the one in the middle of all the criminal cases that attracts the attention of dangerous people. No matter how cruel they were, he never used his Sacred artifact on people. Before they knew it, he and Motosumi started hanging out. People from neighboring districts started to respect him. Well, that's how things happened, and the current Asakusa Guild was created. It wasn't until much later that he realized that Sanzo was just really weak. The truth is, he's stupid, perverted, a snob, trouble-prone, and pathetic. Sanzo’s sacred artifact can't really be used in a fight, he can't do anything with it. Either he gets into trouble without thinking, or he gets caught up in trouble unfortunately (He’s just like MC).

We cut back to the disturbing surgery, Sanzo begs them not to make it hurt. But Baphomet assured him that they’re not going to cut up his natural body. The true goal is to inject memories directly to the sacred artifact. At that moment, Sanzo felt his consciousness speeding up and heading somewhere. After that Baphomet used her ability to follow him. Sanzo’s mind ends up in the same hellscape Tokyo from CH14. Baphomet later shows up as well and tells Sanzo she’s here to provide mental care. She tells Sanzo what he is seeing is the future of Tokyo. There was no trace of human life. There were many robots lying around that had probably been abandoned and left out in the open. Sanzo ask how can future like this even happen. Baphomet says that it’s the app people are using. The number of users is becoming more and more widespread. New transients are coming to Tokyo one after another. As you all know, once the number of transients and App users becomes the majority, the closed areas will be replaced. The minority becomes the majority. In Tokyo, where the rule exists, becomes the reality side. And in this Tokyo, there are various rules. New things that can be done are increasing rapidly. The Rule to grow gold, Rule to control the weather, Rule to rejuvenate, and Rule to switch genders. "Rule" to manipulate minds, "Rule" to blend with others, "Rule" to control virtual realms, and "Rule" to rewind time. By multiplying these, the ``things you can do'' will continue to increase exponentially. The peaks of beliefs from all kinds of other worlds are combined to exceed the limits of human imagination. Eventually, even beings that are smarter than themselves will be born, and then the Role of humans will end. Because human specs will no longer be able to keep up with even imagination.

We cut to the Warmongers and Invaders. Yoritomo says things will change at a speed that will leave politics that regulate rules behind and other the world reps had no choice but to accept that not only politics but also other forces could not keep up with this acceleration. Apps and new Rules will continue to spread throughout Tokyo. Back to Sanzo, he asked if Tokyo will become this way because of the spread of "apps"? Baphomet says no, the proliferation of "apps" will only speed things up a bit. Humans want to increase what they can do. They leave behind even thinking about who they were. However, humans do not know how to use this accelerated technology. Baphomet says she loves humans. But for them, they have no idea who they are. They have no idea if they are male or female, what their actual physical appearance is, whether they are human, demonic, or a god. The only thing they found out is that they were once called "God" somewhere.

We cut to the Rule Makers, Michael spout some stuff about only those chosen can remain in gods paradise or something. He next appoints Masashi to watch over the progress of the surgeries. Since Masanori went through a similar god making progress in his world. Michael secretly regrets this political decision. The great selection of this child also serves as a way to appease Koropokkuru. Due to his alliance with the Yurakucho Guild and his treatment of Babe Bunyan, he was currently in a cold war with Koropokkuru. As a political response to the boy who wishes for a "paradise for young children," he believe that selecting the Masashi right in front of him is the right move. Bael in the background is not too happy about this.

We cut to MC and the Missionaries fighting the Rule Maker angels. Back to Sanzo, who tells Baphomet not to say awful things about themselves like that. Baphomet was genuinely surprised by those words. Back to missionaries, Maria was about to be captured but an unexpected helper showed up. It was Nyarl in his Entertainer outfit. Nyarl multiples and battle ensues.

[entropy-game-dev]

Random robot animation tips

(specifically for looping animations)

The following tips have been gained The Hard Way™️ over the course of several weeks. They won't really teach someone how to animate, though practice absolutely will! Also, I am not an artist, have never trained to draw, nor do I do any drawing outside of pixel art, so take these with a grain of salt.

Before animating

Have a concrete vision for your animation - REALLY visualise it in your head before you even start animating

Draft a nice neutral pose and then completely get the core design exactly how you want it

Simpler parts with less details (specifically on the scale of single pixels) may look worse when static but will look a lot better animated

General

Animate one part at a time - start with the "core" part of the animation and build around it

Sometimes this will be the part with the longest loop, other times it will be the most complex part of the animation, and sometimes it may even be the part of the robot to which everything else is anchored

Sliding entire layers around is noticeably cheap without some window-dressing - this can be easily hidden either by retouching the outline to alter the object's shape or by animating the surrounding parts

Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and completely redraw parts across multiple frames. The effort is well worth it, though!

Loose parts should lag behind the main motion by a frame or two, where possible. Sometimes if something is bobbing up and down rapidly, this isn't feasible, so have it lag at the start and ends of the animation instead.

Layers

It's OK to draft your initial design in a single layer, but the sooner you split it up into different layers, the less headaches you will have later down the line

Make a new layer whenever something needs to move independently from something else. Legs and arms are obvious but if a sensor lens inside a socket is going to rotate, keep the lens on a separate layer

Have a blank layer for "fx" - particles, swooshes, anything transient

Frames

Ensure your frame count is an even number. This is key for smooth loops.

If you absolutely, positively, cannot have an even number, at the very least don't use a prime number of frames!!!

Play with duplicating frames in key places to see if they make motions and pauses look more impactful. Likewise, deleting frames can make things feel snappier

Polish

Always have your little preview window open and animating at the correct animation speed and resolution, and check it often

Related to this - have a problem with how something moves? Fix it NOW before it becomes a problem later. It's like building a house on a shaky foundation, as each frame of the animation is predicated on the previous!

Run the animation at high speeds every once in a while - your eyes will be good at catching weirdness or inconsistencies across frames by detecting flickers

When pixels jitter back and forth over multiple frames, or a reversal in motion is too sharp, I find this generally looks bad and should be corrected

Get someone or multiple someones to have a look over your animations throughout the process. Having friends who can actually draw are invaluable beyond words

I'm sure some of these tips are applicable to animation in general too! Hope you found them helpful (or at least, interesting)!

[lazyyogi]

What is peace?

Many people mistakenly criticize the notion of meditation and the peace spoken of in traditions such as Buddhism. The only way they can imagine being free from emotions and thoughts is by imagining their absence. Thus they arrive at the conclusion that this is something robot-like and therefore undesirable. However, peace is not the absence of emotion or thought, just as the sky is not the absence of weather. Rather, the sky is the place where the weather happens. 

This is why peace is different than all other transient emotions. Peace is the space in which all other emotions play, coming and going. In other words, peace is the mood or flavor of awareness. Awareness and Peace are one thing, like the wetness and fluidity of liquid water. 

But if this is so, if we are awareness always then why don’t we know endless peace always in our moment-to-moment experience? The best answer is that peace is something very subtle. This makes it easily forgotten in the tumultuous noise of our mental/emotional experiences.

It is like the illusion of this��cup. 

We are used to treating a white background like empty space and the black object as something solid. So on first glance, it appears like a simple cup. But if you shift your focus, you will see that it is also another way. The black coloring making up the cup is empty space and the white space is actually two faces gazing upon one another. 

The subtlety of peace is like that. It’s always there but in a way we have been unaccustomed to noticing. Now contemplate the ramifications of this confusion. 

If the objects seem solid and the space seems empty or non-existent, then you will inevitably fixate on the objects. This is how we unconsciously wind up identifying with transient thoughts, emotions, and images that aren’t actually our ever-present and eternal Being. That is also how the ego comes into play.

When we can’t feel who we are, the peaceful Being of awareness from the inside out, then we look to the objects of our perception to tell us who we are. Such is the foundation of the ego, the falsely derived sense of self.  

By practicing meditation, you aren’t trying to get rid of the objects; you aren’t trying to get rid of the thoughts and emotions. Because while that can be a peaceful experience, it doesn’t free you from the confusion associated with their presence.

As you become more aware of yourself as the space of peace in which emotions and thoughts appear and disappear, then it is like the shift occurring with the optical illusion. Suddenly the objects appear less real, less solid, while your own existence is known to be more substantial.

When you know through experience that you are more real than anything you experience, this creates a tremendous amount of freedom and liberates much energy once wasted by our confused way of relating to the mind-body. 

This is how one can begin to live the true meaning of peace.

LY