Velask!
Sarsion here. It's been a minute.
Some of you may recall my efforts to transcribe and translate the Eliksni language.
Some of you may have no idea what rabbit hole I'm about to introduce you to.

Let's recap

Whether you've been on this ride with me from the start, or are just now picking up the trail, here's a quick recap of all the major events:
May 21 2015

Sarsion via /DestinyTheGame:
HoW gives us our first chance to translate Fallen language into English.

August 14 2015

Sarsion via /DestinyTheGame:
Fallen-English Translations - Mobs, Skolas, Taniks and Silent Fang's "Insult"!

July 18 2017

Sarsion via /DestinyTheGame:
Learn to Speak 87 Fallen Words!
[Reddit]
[YouTube]
[Ishtar Collective]

September 4 2018

Forsaken is released along with our first-ever Eliksni script.
Misraaks
Lord of Wolves
The Queenbreaker
Revolution

May 15 2019

Season of the Drifter
Outbreak Perfected

June 4 2019

Season of Opulence
Truth

October 8 2019

Destiny Grimoire Anthology, Volume II: Fallen Kingdoms
As transcribed by aflyingwelshman via /DestinyLore
Onslaught

December 10 2019

Season of Dawn
Burden Part III

February 16 2020

Sarsion via /DestinyTheGame:
We can now directly translate Eliksni (The Fallen Language) by translating lore entries in Traditional Simplified Chinese.
The Cryptarchy Discord community is launched.
@mallozee (game dev. writer. narrative @bungie) via Twitter X:
"the eliksni that appears in the written lore does not have much relation to the combat SFX that fallen units use. and though i don’t want to spoil anyone’s fun in looking for patterns in the combat SFX, they are, to my knowledge, nongrammatical syllables (just like the cabal)"
"everyone who has contributed to the effort of investigating the combat SFX deserves a medal for their valiant efforts. i really don’t mean to spoil it! and it’s not for nothing, because it made me realize how cool it would be to work on a game where that foley WAS meaningful"
"other people have realized that, too, and so if any of us have the opportunity to pitch that kind of feature in the future, we will try!"
"my hat is off to all of you!! i hope i have the pleasure of meeting some of y’all in the future so i can applaud you personally"
"mm, well — the eliksni that appears in the written lore from forsaken onward IS a constructed language"
"with syntax and everything!"

February 26 2020

Planet Destiny Podcast #229 (ft. Sarsion)

November 10 2020

Beyond Light
I. The Prisoner

May 11 2021

Season of the Splicer
I: Eggcloth

August 30 2022

Season of Plunder
I - The Long Drift
III - Chosen

December 27 2022

Season of the Seraph
Revision Zero is released, along with its catalyst.
This quest lifts words I created as part of my July 2017 effort. More than half of the words in this dictionary of 87 words are never heard in Eliksni combat Foley; I made them up based on patterns I recognised within prefix and suffixes.
They have henceforth been made part of canon.
Should You Choose to Accept It, Part I
'"Bar'den" is an Eliksni phrase. It means "forever unable to find the way."'
Should You Choose to Accept It, Part II
'"Di'dras" is an Eliksni phrase. It means "the end of all life."'
Should You Choose to Accept It, Part III
'"Ge'fres" is an Eliksni phrase. It means "to be hatched."'
Should You Choose to Accept It, Part IV
'"Shas'ki" is an Eliksni phrase. It means "to defy fear of a powerful being."'

February 16 2024

The Cryptarchy website is launched to celebrate 4 years since its founding.
https://cryptarchy.net/
https://engra.ms/

May 23 2024

Bungie announces the Dread will speak a translatable language.
They are extremely careful not to directly state the language's origin.

June 4 2024

Final Shape

All that, and there's every chance I missed one or two milestones.

Rumination

The localisation revelation in 2020 was something that, in retrospect, I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, it led to a reignited sense of excitement in the translation effort, culminating in the explosive creation of my Discord community, The Cryptarchy, which I feel may have been one of the most important events to happen in my life. But on the other hand, I worry sometimes that I may have stumbled onto, what Riven might call, the Anathematic Arc. We were not meant to learn any of this.
As mallozee said, "it’s not for nothing, because it made me realize how cool it would be to work on a game where that foley WAS meaningful".
I have been ruminating on this language since before Destiny began, since 2010. I mention in my first thread here on the matter that Bungie created a language for the Covenant for Halo Reach, which largely went unnoticed at the time, so I entered Destiny with a sense of wonder and apprehension; could this be done? Did they repeat the process?
We may know now they did not directly do so with the Fallen combat Foley, but looking back, perhaps retroactively, did Bungie redirect the course, and succeed? But if so, why was Eliksni never highlighted as such? A conlang is a huge undertaking, why do all that work for the Eliksni only to focus on the Dread?
As the years with the Cryptarchy went on, and I learned that the Eliksni language I had been translating was entirely of my own pattern-recognition-go-brrrr manifestation, I kept wondering why Bungie was never officially commenting on the language, beyond mallozee's tweets the same day I uncovered the localisation mishap. Was there a deeper meaning they could not comment on? Did I spoil something? Did I inspire something? I've been wracked with self-doubt and confusion. I want more than anything else to enhance this world for others.
I've been working with some of the most intensely bright Cryptarchs, helping their own projects to shine, casting light on otherwise forgotten and niche interests. I've been told about how many people have loved the work I did for translating the Eliksni language, despite its rough state. Fan-fiction, fan-art, role-play, entire worlds of imagination and creativity, all because I sat in my room for 2 years, tightly pressing my headphones against my ears, listening to barks of an alien species that turned out to be speaking gibberish, and making something of it.
So the day arrived when my work was surprisingly implemented into the Revision Zero quest in 2022, officially in the game, and something clicked for me.
In short?

Guardians make their own fate.

It doesn't matter whether any of this was intended originally. It matters that we gave it meaning, and it matters that Bungie has honoured all of us in doing so, with Final Shape. They called it a love letter, it absolutely got delivered. I heard the call.
Quite literally too, as a key for Final Shape appeared in my email inbox, from Bungie, highlighting me as a Bungie Creator officially. Now, whether this was because I applied to the Bungie Creator program on behalf of my community, or if they had predetermined this, I can't be sure. This was the first I had heard back from Bungie from any of my direct interactions with them, so either way the gambit coin landed, I was ready.
In the final days between the Final Shape ViDoc and Final Shape's release, I realised I had some work to do. I took 2 weeks off of work, dedicated every hour of every single day to translating Eliksni. My partner was of undying support during this time, and she even took a photo of me mid-process, which I didn't see until a couple weeks later. It captures the past 9 years for me perfectly. Sarsion, staring at the ceiling, full ADHD locked-in, stimming with his thinking cap, muttering randomly in cryptic tones, wearing his House of Judgment t-shirt.
My 87 words had grown by this point to somewhere far over 500 individual words and phrases. I am still nowhere near fully comprehending the language, but the plot thickened.

The Dread

As I worked, and tried desperately to ignore the Dread revelation, my fellow Cryptarchs investigated the Tormentors. They sent me through recordings. One of these recordings, taken during a Tormentor grabbing a Guardian and draining their energy, made me sit straight up with a shock.

Voskidraka

Now, I'm jumpy at the best of times. But these are all Eliksni words.

Vos. Ki. Dra. Ka.
Known[?]. Strong. Life. Burn.

This was midway through my process, so it was extremely raw, but those last three words were from my 2017 effort.
Maybe it was in my imagination.
I pushed it to the side.
As I played Final Shape, solo, Legendary, feeling nostalgically reminiscent of my days of pioneering TUE, Trigates, and LASO in Halo 2 and 3, almost 20 years ago, I had one of the most bizarre experiences I've ever had with any game. I kept catching snippets of the Dread's speech, and understanding them.
You know that feeling when you sometimes hear someone speaking, say French, and you don't quite know what they're saying, but you sure as hell know what they mean?
Yeah, that.
I kept trying to ignore it. Let's be fair, I was just off the back of an intense two weeks of translating Eliksni; I was surely just hearing what I was used to hearing, or perhaps rather, wanting to hear.
I get to the final campaign mission, desperately fighting for my life against the Witness and its Subjugators. I pick up the Aegis, I rush to the Traveler's fissure, as the Dread goad me on.

"[...] sovek."

I was so shocked that I actually wiped, despite it being the furthest I had gotten thus far.
Sovek? When Sjur had Misraaks bound, and performed her "perfect ireliis bow". Misraaks felt betrayed and enraged, believing this to be a trick, and proclaimed "iirsoveks!" to which Sjur simply said "nama".
Again, I was convinced I was hearing things. In the same instance, I heard a Subjugator say "Kapsok". Another Eliksni term used in Burden III, meaning something akin to "you will".
I began a thread on Twitter X to keep my thoughts rolling.
This thread rapidly turned into a series of revelation after revelation.
I discovered "irrealis" grammatical moods.

Is this a clear reference and hint to the Eliksni "ireliis"?
"ir" is benedictive. it's a polite honorific question.

• "ireliis" - {respectful formal address}
• I would later determine that "ir" directly means "court"

"iir" is interrogative. it's a question.

• "iirsoveks - "is this a trick?"
• If "ir" is "court", is "iir" antonymous to "ir"; [trialaccusecharge]?

I considered that if the Dread's language shared etymological roots with the Eliksni language, might the Hive?

"Al Eck Ruk Nam, Shu Nam Eck Ur"

• "She said, "That's your star, Sean Rigby. Follow it each night, when it's the last star hanging low, and sing to it. You sing, 'Al Eck Ruk Nam, Shu Nam Eck Ur,' until you call that star down to Earth. You do that, and your family will endure."

Cryptarch Adonna believes the Hive language is:

"protological patterns underlying quantum field theory, relativity, and paracausal phenomena."

I thought back to "ir" meaning court. Where have we seen that before?
The Hive.
Ir Yût. Ir Halak. Ir Anûk.
What does Crota refer to Ir Yût as? His courtier.

a person who attends a royal court as a companion or adviser to the king or queen.

Surely this is no coincidence.
How far does this stretch. Is the Ahamkara "Anthem Anatheme" part of this? "O [Subject] mine?". Is the "O" significant in that Auryx became Oryx after speaking to the Deep? Is there power in that single phoneme?
What of the Vex?
In my translation process, I focused extensively on iirsoveks, and pondered on how Mithrax became Misraaks. That quirk of "ks" and "x" made me wonder. Veks. Vex.
Let's break it down:
iirsoveks
i

{indefinite article}

ii

{indefinite article} {indefinite article}
{definite article}

iir

ii,r
{definite article} {description}
[proclamation accusation trial charge]

so

s,o
{action event state} {copula: to be}
is to be

ve

v,e
{imperative} {declarative}
how/what interrogation

vek

v,e
interrogation {subject agent}
suspect (noun) conjecture (noun)

veks

vek,s
suspect (noun) {action event state}
suspect (verb) inclining to think (verb) conjecture (verb)

iir, so, veks

proclamation is to be conjecture
Accuse of being suspect.
I don't believe it.

Sjur responds?

"Nama."
n,a
{manner} {mass: less}
empty
m,a
{noun: collective} {mass: less}
instance
na,ma
empty instance
"No."

Veks...Vex?
"Sus" "Suspect"?
"Inclined to Think"?
"Conjecture"?
Are the Vex quite literally named after the "Judgment" term for "an opinion or conclusion formed on the basis of incomplete information"?
If the Dread were shouting "[..] sovek", what were they saying?
"is to be conjecture (noun)"? Were they goading me? Saying I had no idea what I was doing? Flailing hopelessly. I had incomplete information. I was without a full grasp of what to do with the encounter? That I was an idiot?
Well, they were absolutely right.
I didn't have any idea what I was doing.
I didn't have any idea what was going on.
I never have, and I never will.
It's my greatest tool of the trade.

So, Veks

In Season of Undying, there were many weapons that were quite literally grammatical terms.
Each weapon has flavour text that exemplifies their meaning.
Optative

Expressing a wish or a choice.

• An irrealis mood.
• Event is hoped, expected, or awaited.
• "May I be loved!"

Flavour text refers to the Traveler.

• 'If only you could see yourself. But you have no eyes. Not the dimmest sense survives…'

Adhortative

Relating to the giving of advice; tending to adhort.

• "Hortative"
  • An irrealis mood.
  • Event is exhorted, implored, insisted or encouraged by speaker.
  • "Let us love!"

Flavour text refers to our Ghost.

• '"So... you think you can kill a god?" —Ghost'

Imperative

Expressing a command; authoritatively or absolutely directive.

• An irrealis mood.
• Event is directly ordered or requested by the speaker.
• "Love me!"

Flavour text refers to Ikora.

• '"We must stop the weavers before they seal the Garden and begin to summon back its heart." —Ikora Rey'

Subjunctive

Inflected to indicate that an act or state of being is possible, contingent or hypothetical, and not a fact.

• An irrealis mood.
• Event is considered unlikely (mainly used in dependent clauses).
• "If I were to love you..."

Flavour text refers to Vex, directly quoting Ghost Fragment: Pantheon

• 'Stop 'em? Pretty sure our deaths are just meant to be the early warning system.'

Pluperfect

Pertaining to action completed before another action or event in the past, past perfect.

• A verb form relating to an action that occurred prior to an aforementioned time in the past.
• "They Had Built"

Flavour text refers to how the Vex build and define their actions in the past.

• 'builds builds builds builds the past'

Temporal Clause

An adverbial clause of time; informing the reader about the time when the action of main verb of the sentence occurred.

• "After I had said this, he went out"
• "Let The Future Narrow"

Flavour text refers to how the Vex predict and define timelines in the future, and find the successful timelines which suit their directives.

• 'the future narrows narrows narrows narrows'

Could these have been our first hint to go looking for "irrealis" and make the connection to "ireliis"? Coincidence though it may be, there are many connections here. But what are they narrowing towards?

Judgment

It's like a game of battleship; knowing I am hitting something but have no idea the scale nor direction it takes.
I couldn't shake it:
The Dread kept saying Eliksni words.
The Vex think along the same lines as the Eliksni speak.
The Hive share morphemes with Eliksni, and their words grant them arcane paracausal abilities.
Ahamkara, similarly, gain power from the words of others and can twist them into paracausal outcomes.
Psions understand Ahamkara better than anyone in the Cabal, and many of them are now one with the Dread.
All of the Dread know the same language; countless beings reshaped and combined from countless eons of existence, newly formed and created within the Traveler, yet all in harmony, able to communicate.
Is this language a gift of the Witness?
A gift of the Traveler?
A fundamental principle of the universe?
Here's my hypothesis:

What if it was all cut from the same tapestry?

Eliksni, Dread, Hive... How deep could this go?
What if these languages share philological and etymological roots. Like Latin-derivatives; Italian, French, Spanish...
Since House of Wolves, I've thought I was translating "Standard Eliksni" but...what if the "High Speak of Judgment" Variks refers to is derived from some ancient "Judgment" language; their "old ways".
The Witness's precursors uncovered the Traveler on their homeworld, offended it with their attempt to begin their Final Shape, and thereafter it left unto other worlds. In its wake, the Witness reshaped, recruited, and repurposed. Punishing those the Traveler visited, and "saving" those it did not.
In Books of Sorrow and Entelechy, entirely separate aliens seem to understand one another.
The Ecumene, for example, was an interstellar group of individual alien species, who also knew of the Fundament system. Of note, is that the Dakaua were immediately able to understand Taox upon finding her after drifting in stasis for 24,000 years.
In Entelechy: it's incredibly apt, is it not, that the communications recovered of the Witness's precursors in both the tetrahedral ship and the Vex Minotaur were translated by Eliksni.
How could scribes like Eido translate these messages, so eloquently, from the Witness's precursors, if they were not capable of recognising and interpreting the morphemes that construct their terminology? The answer is given in Eido's notes: with the help of Servitors. The Eliksni were gifted by the Traveler, as were we, but Variks once asked us if the Traveler spoke to us, as it spoke to him. Did Servitors speak for the Traveler?
In stark intriguing contrast, also in Entelechy, we learn of the Noesis. Eido was able to transcribe overlapping concepts via "self-reinforcing group of informational units, which subsumes lesser concepts", rather than strictly semantical phrases; the Noesis spoke thought in a language akin to a moodboard; perhaps like birdsong.
The Noesis seemingly never encountered the Traveler, but are still comprehensible to Eido. Is it a result of the Noesis language also sharing etymological roots, or did the Witness intercept, supplanting their cries with a language of its own?
Eido muses on the theatrics of it all. Did it orchestrate this? Grant them some universal language millennia ago, knowing they would scream out to the wider universe? A harbinger of its own making?
Is "Judgment" a gift of the Traveler before it was silenced? Is it a psionic inception from the Witness's precursor days, with its abiogenetic Crèches? Both?
Are the Vex that language given form and function?
Non-artificial intelligent lifeforms created in the shape of natural language; pure sapience itself.
I know this sounds frankly Toland-esque, but, hear me out.
Could this "Judgment" be the underlying fundamental law of the Destiny universe? The language, and thus meaning, of life itself?
I aim to find out.

The Cryptarchy needs you

If you wish to assist us with this process, to see if there is more to this unified language theory, please join us in The Cryptarchy Discord server, and stay tuned to our website. I also hope to begin livestreaming my process of translation.
In the meantime, here is a WIP read-only access to what I have been referring to as "Eliksni 3.0". This is my live spreadsheet, so you may find that at any given time, it is being actively worked on and filtered. This is not the ideal way I intend to present this information down the line as the goal is to create a fully fledged dictionary, complete with etymological and philological roots.
I share this in the hope that others can see my process and build upon it. I have been doing this for 9 years, I would love if by the 10th for it to have been with an overflowing union of Cryptarchs.
For now, I will continue this process within the Discord server, and begin to migrate the results to our website as soon as I am able. I hope to begin streaming my process of translation as well. I have spent the last 4 years learning how to code, and have found my way into a career as a web-developer, so my hope is to utilise all of my skills to finally solve this mystery.
My only caveat is that I point-blank refuse to use generative AI in this process. In my eyes, language is a much more delicate process that requires pattern-recognition, context, variety, extrapolation, etymology, philology, human intuition, and the indomitable human spirit. AI can only ever give you pattern-recognition and extrapolation. The rest are key ingredients to constructed languages. I urge anyone interested in this to please respect that process.
Machine-learning, generally speaking, is great at understanding and executing explicit rules, but it operates like any other machine: garbage in, garbage out. It feels to me antithetical to translate what may be the essence of life in the Destiny universe with something that cannot comprehend it.
Thank you for reading, everyone, and thank you for your support over the years.
To close my thoughts, of which I know there were many, I would like to leave you with two quotes that have been circling my mind these past years. It has been a mantra that has kept me going.

It's so simple. Elegant like a knife point. It explains - this is not hyperbole, this is the farthest thing from exaggeration - EVERYTHING.
Why does anything exist?

My answer?

Aiat: let it be thus because it must.

Every week we are calling our state senators offices and ask to speak with them or their Director of Constituent Services and ask what is being done to address and most importantly RESOLVE this serious situation.

Particularly with phone calls, quantity is critical. Leaders pay attention to an issue when they believe that many people care about that issue.

Here a phone call guide on how to handle this phone call for the first time you call and then below this is an example of a follow up call

​
Ask to speak with state senator and if you cannot get them, leave a voicemail with this message below
And then ask to speak with the Director of Constituent Services or ask simply who can you speak with to leave a message with your concerns.
Hello [Senator's Name],
My name is [Your Name], and I am a constituent from [Your City, State]. I am reaching out to you today to discuss an urgent time sensitive matter of dire importance to me and many others in our community and our country.
The DEA's recent and consistent cuts to opiates have had a significant and harmful life altering impact on chronically ill and disabled chronic pain patients like myself. Despite the DEA's claims to prioritize patient safety and access to medications, we are unable to fill our legitimate prescriptions each month and as a result we are now unable to maintain a decent quality of life.
The DEA's focus on reducing access to prescription opioids is misguided, as statistics indicate that legitimate chronic pain patients are not the primary cause of the overdose crisis. Instead, it is the illicit and street drugs that pose the real threat to public health. The DEA claims to protect chronic pain patients, yet the reality is that their actions are exacerbating an already extremely dire situation. The false narrative surrounding the opioid epidemic is causing undue hardship and, in some cases, jeopardizing lives. Compounding this issue, our doctors are struggling to find pharmacies that are able to fill legitimately required and much needed prescriptions. The impact on doctors, nurses, physician assistants, pharmacies and distributors is severe, making it increasingly difficult for patients to obtain essential medications for managing chronic pain.
I kindly request your assistance in reaching out to the DEA and advocating for a more balanced approach that considers the needs of chronic pain patients while addressing the issues related to illicit drugs. It is crucial that we work together to ensure that the DEA's policies do not further harm those who rely on these medications for their well-being.
Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I would greatly appreciate any support or guidance you can provide.
​
Here is another example
Introduction: Hello [Senator's Name or their Director of Constituent Services],
I hope you're doing well. My name is [Your Name], and I'm a constituent from [Your City/Town]. I'm reaching out today because I'm facing a critical issue that requires urgent attention.
Explanation of the Issue:
On January 3rd of this year the DEA has implemented even more significant cuts to chronic pain medications, and it's affecting individuals like me who are legitimate patients that require these medications to manage our severe chronic pain. Part of the issue is that pharmacies are struggling to order and stock these essential medications. As a result, my medical care is being greatly impacted and my doctor is finding it challenging to treat my chronic pain adequately.
Request for Assistance:
I and so many other chronically ill and disabled chronic pain citizens are in dire need of your attention to this situation and your help in getting this extremely dire situation resolve by brining it to the federal level to the DEA. So please understand that I am reaching out because I know that with your support we can make a difference in making necessary changes to stop this discrimination against chronically ill and disabled patients that require chronic pain management medication. I kindly ask for your assistance in addressing this matter to ensure that individuals like myself can continue to access the vital medication we need for our health so that we can return to having our quality of life.
Another example phone call dialog guide is below
How to address the Director of Constituent Services
Introduction: Hello [Director of Constituent Services],
My name is [Your Name], a concerned constituent seeking your assistance on a critical matter. As the Director of Constituent Services, I believe your involvement could make a significant difference in addressing an extremely dire situation that is greatly affecting many individuals, including myself.
Explanation of the Issue: I'm reaching out due to the profound challenges faced by legitimate chronic pain patients, like myself, following the recent increased DEA cuts on opioid medications. The impact on pharmacies and distributors is severe, making it increasingly difficult for patients to obtain essential medications for managing chronic pain.
Pharmacy Struggles and DEA Narrative: Compounding this issue, our doctors are struggling to find pharmacies that are able to fill our prescriptions. The DEA claims to protect chronic pain patients, yet the reality is that their actions are exacerbating an already extremely dire situation. The false narrative surrounding the opioid epidemic is causing undue hardship and, in some cases, jeopardizing lives.
Request for Assistance: I am seeking your assistance in facilitating communication with the DEA. It is crucial to convey the struggles patients, doctors, and pharmacies are facing due to these cuts. The DEA's claims of protecting patients seem disconnected from the harsh reality many of us are experiencing.
Closing: I appreciate your time and consideration in addressing this matter. Your advocacy on behalf of legitimate chronic pain patients in navigating these challenges is invaluable. If there are specific avenues or information you require from me to move forward, please let me know.
Thank you for your attention, help and support.

HERE IS AN EXAMPLE WHAT TO SAY ON THE PHONE WHEN YOU CALL AGAIN LATER THIS WEEK OR NEXT WEEK TO FOLLOW UP

SEE BELOW FOR THE GUIDED PHONE CALL SCRIPT

Introduction: Hello [Director's Name],
I hope this message finds you well. Following up on our previous communication, I wanted to check in with you to reiterate the urgency of the matter I discussed regarding the DEA's impact on legitimate chronic pain patients, including myself. Patients are chronically ill and disabled with chronic pain that is unable to be managed. Patients with terminal illness are also suffering needlessly. We are all unable to manage our chronic pain due to being unable to obtain our much needed legitimate prescriptions because pharmacies are struggling to fill even a partial prescription.
Brief Recap: As we discussed earlier, the recent DEA cuts on opioid medications have created significant challenges in accessing essential medications. Doctors are finding it increasingly difficult to locate pharmacies that are able to fill prescriptions, adding to the burdens faced by legitimate chronic pain patients.
Pharmacy Struggles and DEA Narrative: I want to emphasize the difficulties patients and doctors are encountering in finding pharmacies that can fill prescriptions. Despite the DEA's claim to protect chronic pain patients, the current situation reflects a stark contradiction. The false narrative surrounding the opioid epidemic is compounding the challenges we face.
Follow-up Request: I appreciate your understanding of this complex issue and the potential impact your involvement can have. I am hopeful that, with your assistance, we can continue to advocate for a more balanced approach that considers the needs of chronic pain patients so that we no longer are suffering needlessly. This DEA is discriminating against the chronic pain community. We are chronically ill and terminally ill patients with disabilities and chronic pain. I hope that together we can stop the harm that is being done.
Closing: Thank you for your continued attention to this matter. If there are any updates or additional information required from my end, please let me know. Your support in navigating these challenges is crucial, and I'm grateful for your efforts on behalf of chronic pain patients like myself.
Looking forward to your guidance,
[Your Name]
​
So you want to follow up and ask each week the following from them
WHAT has been done since you last reached out (i.e. ask how they have progressed with reaching out to the DEA regarding our inability to procure our medications.)
HOW are they helping their chronically ill and terminally ill and disabled chronic pain patient citizens
WHEN and WHAT exactly are the efforts they have made thus far and are working on
And do they need any other information from you and how are they making efforts to get this matter resolved by the DEA asap
Also ask who else can help us.
Thank you for making this a regular consistent part of your week. We need these calls to be frequent and consistent and in DROVES so that we CANNOT BE IGNORED and we RESOLVE THIS ISSUE ASAP
​
CALLS WORK
EMAILS WORK
LETTERS WORK
​
so today please call and either follow up on your emails and see what they have been doing to help OR get started and make this the day you start your advocacy to help us all.
​
Thanks so much for your help everyone
​
Mel and the Mods

Hey everyone, I wanted to share my story from being a below-mediocre golfer last July to significantly improving my game over the past few months or so. Although I still consider myself a mediocre player, I’ve managed to shave over 20 strokes off my game. I don’t have an official handicap yet but I’m certainly getting one soon. I wanted to share my experience with SwingTweaks and GolfTec to improve. I hope my story can help those in a similar position who want to create a passable golf game.
I was at a breaking point with golf when I saw an ad for SwingTweaks on Instagram or I heard about it on here. Around that same time, I signed up for GolfTec since there was a sale. In hindsight, it was silly to sign up for both at the same time (although I still have some SwingTweaks) but they both contributed to my progress. I went from struggling to play golf to having a reliable swing, sometimes controlling the shape of my shots, and having way more confidence.
Hopefully, this recap helps newbs in a similar position I was in.
Background on My Golf Game (skip this section if you just want to get the meat of how I improved)
For about a decade, I played golf once or twice a year with my Dad or with pals. My Dad is an excellent golf player but wasn’t the best teacher for irons and driver. I never learned the proper mechanics of a golf swing besides “keep your head down and your arms straight.” As a result, I’d “play” golf but not keep an honest score, probably shooting around 120 or more. My swing was one-dimensional, ripping my arms and hips on a straight plane back which often resulted in short, chunked, or topped shots. I later realized I was swinging over the top, but didn’t know it at the time.
Fortunately, even though my Dad couldn’t help me much with my irons and driver, he is an excellent golf coach with pitching, chipping, putting, and general strategy. So, I was able to still develop a good course strategy, understand how to aim, develop a near-green strategy, and have a strong set-up, even though my iron and driver swings were terrible. Played like that for a while and didn’t care too much for golf but then the golf bug hit me when I was playing last July and then I entered the wormhole.
I started with YouTube, a lot of range time, playing with friends, reading Ben Hogan’s 5 Fundamentals, Harvey Penick’s book, and some other less useful books, and listening to podcasts. I don’t know the quantitative amount of time I spent but it would take me ages to figure out concepts like “over-the-top, or how to hit a “low draw.” I spent a lot of time figuring out what something was, and then more time trying to implement a solution. Implementing the concepts was challenging because even if I was trying to shallow I didn’t understand how to do that without pushing the club down which affected other parts of my shot. I would record myself, and try to self-diagnose but that had varying results because of the aforementioned. In short, diagnosing issues was challenging and time-consuming. However, it helped me to learn a more general understanding of the mechanics of a golf swing and did help me at times develop a “feel.”
I did this method for a couple of months, culminating in not breaking 100 (target goal) or making my way down the fairway consistently. Golf was still fun, but I knew I wasn’t playing the game with any strategy. I was just praying to hit the ball in a generally straight direction without fatting, topping, chunking, shanking, or going completely left or right. I hit a breaking point when I spent like $40 on a round with friends to lose a good handful of balls. I thought about the money I was spending on the range/playing. I realized investing in lessons was just more economical and efficient in the long run.
Everyone suggests lessons. I did some research about instructors in my area and thought I picked a decent one. I got one for $50 at one of my local track. I felt like it was useless for me but to be fair the instructor and I may have not vibed. He just kept asking “What do I feel?” That didn’t help me much, because I already knew my club, and my hands “vibrate” or get a weird feeling whenever I mishit the club. I had a sense of what part of the face I hit when I had a bad miss off-center. That’s the only thing he focused on. The only physical thing he showed me was a minor grip change.
He did list himself as a beginner coach, but his style of coaching just wasn’t working for me. I also went to a golf “beginners clinic” that showed up some pitching/chipping and watched us strike irons for like 10-15 minutes. I didn’t learn much there either. That wasn’t much help and didn’t have the pace or individualized coaching I wanted.
I also got a more expensive lesson for $150. That was slightly more helpful and focused on the mechanics of the swing, but in hindsight, I think he was trying to give me a style to break a 100 and not a swing for a lifetime. It felt like he wanted to just help me hit the ball and keep me on a horizontal plane/over the top and not make major changes. Respectable, but not what I was looking for.
What I Did:
SwingTweaks: I think I saw a post on here or saw an ad on Instagram so I decided to try it out. For those of y’all who haven’t heard of it, SwingTweaks is an app where you send in your swing and a PGA pro sends back a short video (2-4 minutes) with 1-3 things to work on along with relevant YouTube videos if needed. The first few tweaks were pretty helpful and I was able to diagnose my backswing pretty quickly and make a minor change in my setup. I worked on that for about a week. I either got a promotion email or saw they were doing a big sale, so I pulled the trigger to buy 10 tweaks. I don’t remember exactly how much it was but I think it was around $170ish.
Golftec: A week or so later, I realized a Golftec was within 5 minutes of my apartment. For the uninitiated, GolfTec is a chain brick-and-mortar golf coaching spot. They have simulators and you hit on that. After some research, I found some people have beef with Golftec because they force you into a swing pattern focused only on draws and matching up with a PGA player’s swing. Also that it's very expensive. I sat on my research for a bit and then saw a big sale was going on. I Googled a referral code for a free “swing analysis.” Accordingly, the first lesson was a swing analysis where they matched up my swing to a PGA pro and told me everything right/wrong with my swing. I thought it was pretty useful, but I can see how people with physical inhibitions or who already developed a good swing wouldn’t find that appealing. I found it appealing because I figured if I could get a mastery of doing it the “right way” I could tweak that and make it my own.
GolfTec is going to give you a hard sales pitch. Originally they pitched 30ish lessons that included everything from playing lessons, putting, chipping, and everything else. I already knew GolfTec was a bit of a sales thing so I planned to commit to 5 lessons before I walked in, so long as it felt helpful. It was like a shitload of money for 30ish lessons even with the sale—I think what he recommended was over $2000. As I mentioned, I wanted to do 5 lessons but he suggested away from that and he seemed like after I initially told him I was not interested in the 30ish lessons, he told me he thought 5 lessons were probably not enough for me after the swing analysis. Probably a sales thing—but I bought into it.
In hindsight, I should have also bought their "practice sessions" package, which allows you unlimited use of the simulator. However, I didn’t want to spend that much. The combined cost for 10 lessons and practice sessions was around $1000. So ultimately, I got 10 lessons without practice sessions for around 700ish dollars. I did manage to negotiate a bit; he gave me a $100 discount. My coach has thrown in a couple of free practice sessions. He also goes over time all the time with the lessons, unless someone else has to use the simulator. From my research, it seems like a lot of GolfTecs don’t do this.
My biggest issue with GolfTec is the tight schedule and high cost. They have you complete the 10 lessons within 3 months, which means I was practically doing lessons week to week or now and then bi-weekly. As forementioned I was going to the range 1-2 times some weeks, so it was difficult to nail down a concept before the next lesson arrived. If you haven’t mastered the last concept, then they just go over the concept again. In retrospect, I would have benefited from purchasing the practice sessions so I could work on my swing more frequently, especially since GolfTec is much closer to me than my nearest practice range.
For context, I could have gotten 5 lessons from a well-respected PGA pro in my area for about $200-$300 more. But I didn’t want to commit to that because I had beef with the last time I got a lesson and I was at my wit's end. I also felt like considering where I was in my golf game (almost non-existent) I could get all my fundamentals down and then seek a golf coach later down the road and get more value out of that instead of being asked “What I’m feeling” like my previous session or get charged $100 something dollars to make a minor change in my set-up.
Improvement:
So, both helped in different ways. With the first few SwingTweaks, I was able to diagnose my backswing quickly and the GolfTec instructor agreed as far as their metrics were concerned that my backswing didn’t need any changes, or at least didn’t want to focus on that for now. After my swing analysis, we concentrated on correcting my over-the-top swing. I ran that through SwingTweaks and I got the same feedback, so I focused on that for a while.
During my second lesson, the GolfTec coach was pleased with my progress, so we started working on rotating my forearms (though I'm still unsure if this is the same as wrist supination). Unfortunately, this adjustment caused my over-the-top swing to return because I hadn’t nailed that down yet, so I had to revisit that issue. Meanwhile, I was still fatting the ball, which was extremely frustrating—particularly when I played with friends or went to the range. I turned to SwingTweaks for help, and they suggested a hip bump to address the fat shots. This change quickly resolved the fatting issue and, alongside fixing the over-the-top swing, was the most significant improvement I made in my swing.
I was focused on both of those concepts for a while. I returned for what I believe was my 4th lesson and the GolfTec coach diagnosed the over-the-top swing again and threw in a free practice right after the lesson (probably felt bad for me LOL). In the meantime, I also had the hip bump mostly down, so I ran another SwingTweak and that led to the same conclusion from GolfTec about the forearm rotation, albeit a bit cheaper. The wrist flip improved quite dramatically, although its still very slightly there now. I did have a couple of tweaks left and I ran another one which said I had a lot of good things going on with my swing but the Coach suggested implementing LAG along with a potential minor grip change, but I haven’t committed myself to practicing that intentionally yet since I’m pretty pleased with how I’m hitting the ball for now and just want to focus on playing. I have 3 more tweaks left (I used one for driver).
But the main point—I was trying to address too many aspects of my swing too quickly. With weekly lessons and incorporating feedback from SwingTweaks, I had a lot of swing thoughts which made it challenging to make consistent progress.
Ultimately, after about 5 lessons in both programs, I was naturally shallowing my swing, hip bumping effectively, and using my hips instead of my arms to drive the club. I mostly eliminated fat shots and felt more consistent overall. Significantly, and I think important to note for someone like me, is that SwingTweaks did identify the issues GolfTec identified, but the weekly diagnostics at GolfTec were helpful because the coach would catch any bad habits creeping back and ensure I was implementing changes correctly (according to their metrics). As mentioned, I had 10 lessons at GolfTec, so we did another range session mixed with driver so that was 2 lessons (30 min + 30 min), and then we did one on woods and hit irons again to work on throwing the club away from the body. Last, lesson we just worked a little bit on the flip with the hands.
GolfTec was pretty useful to get a diagnostic on anything else I worked on. For example at GolfTec, he shared the tour percentage for hip bumping. It provided me with a useful indicator to know that I was bumping too aggressively. I was bumping way too much when the tour average is 3%. That helped me soften my hips. As I mentioned, he didn’t tell me about this in any of our lessons, but when I started incorporating it he gave me some recommendations.
As time progressed, I found myself narrowing my focus during my own range sessions and focused only on hitting targets within 100 yards. I was pretty much hitting mostly draws with most of my clubs, including woods. I’d occasionally duff one, but I think that’s just apart of getting better. SwingTweaks and GolfTec diverged in their analysis with the driver, so I ended up using GolfTec’s swing recommendation because that let me find more fairways. I did have the GolfTec coach look at my woods, but we didn’t focus on that all that much. I admittedly have somewhat of an arm swing for woods because it seems to help me keep the angle of attack flat, but it's working for me for now.
After my driver lesson, I still had 3 lessons left. I believe one of the final techniques I learned at GolfTec was not to move my chest back during my backswing, because that could change my low point. But, we mostly focused on consolidating what I had already learned and making it second nature. I’d occasionally swing slightly less shallow or not quite as outside as whichever PGA Pro the Coach would pull up at GolfTec so we’d return to that to ensure it was 100%. He still did show me at least one thing new every time even if we didn’t focus on that and I could work on that on my own time. I journaled whatever he mentioned after the lesson, so even if it was an off-hand comment or not our focus of the day I could return to it at a future range session. But, overall it was a minor error to commit to 10 lessons. It was excessive and I spent more money than I needed to. The program moved too swiftly, and even though some of the later recommendations were helpful, my primary aim was to establish solid fundamentals so I could progress to the playing level I wanted and potentially revisit lessons later on. 5 and then maybe reloading on 5 later would’ve been fine.
The way I see it, GolfTec provided insights into how fundamental concepts could be tweaked to achieve specific shot shapes like draws, and using that information helped me understand how I can also use those same concepts to hit other shots. This coach was obsessed with hitting draws and that's the only thing they were going to diagnose around, but that information honestly was helpful in how to command fades as well.
SwingTweaks was cool because it was hella convenient for me to implement changes at my own pace. Almost every tweak I received directly addressed the specific problem I was facing, except one. Now, I may have backslid when I didn’t focus on that one change for a bit, but as long as I was focused on fixing it with the solution they gave me, I would generally have it fixed within a week or two. Moreover, it was way more cost-effective than GolfTec. On the other hand, it had some limitations, because they only work with the information provided and since they aren’t observing a series of shots, they might miss a bigger problem pattern if you have one. And of course, since they aren’t seeing you week to week if that issue creeps back up and you don’t realize it, they are going to mention it in the tweak but if it’s not exhibited in that tweak video, they naturally aren’t going to diagnose it. I did like they were able to diagnose issues quickly. I just included the relevant write-up with my video and the feedback was almost always helpful. I’d be interested to see how it assists me now that I am more advanced and how it might help better players than me in achieving more narrow goals like increasing distance or how to shoot particular shapes.
I think SwingTweaks was slightly more helpful than GolfTec. On the other hand, it may have been a combination of both programs and diving balls deep into golf through lessons, personal research, and practice. In particular, there was one moment where it all clicked when I was watching a movie, and in my head, I was like “Gravity… is the key!” I started just letting gravity put my club down after the backswing and everything else I’ve been trying to do just came together—less swing thoughts. I still have to refresh myself here and there and occasionally take a step backward when I learn a new movement, but I know it’s on its way.
In my opinion, SwingTweaks was solid for a player like me. I got a good diagnostic on the cheap and I could do my fix at my speed. On the other hand, GolfTec was good because it put pressure on me to practice because of the time limit. When I was doing GolfTec, I had to ramp up my practice because I didn’t want to waste my money or feel embarrassed for not implementing suggested swing changes. It’s expensive as hell, but the motivational push and weekly diagnostics were good. I felt like with SwingTweaks I got the same level of diagnostic—if not better—but I wasn’t as compelled to make those changes as rapidly. If I could go back and do it differently, I’d probably just do SwingTweaks for 10 lessons, but commit myself to a different target and limit myself on time. Instead of saying, “ok I want to break 100” I would change my thinking to “ok, I want to stop swinging over the top.” I’d refocus on only having a workable swing, rather than a score target. If I could’ve found somewhere I could go crazy on a simulator for a couple of months, that would’ve been great.
In saying that, I still wouldn’t recommend going to any lesson whether that's a PGA pro, SwingTweaks, GolfTec, or whatever right off the bat if you are a beginner. I’d develop some “feel” over a few months. Even if the swing looks terrible you start getting a sense of how things feel when it goes right and you gain a sense of the mind-club-body connection. GolfTec nor SwingTweaks is going to be able to help you with that, so their advice will be more helpful if you have some “feel.” I can’t quite describe what “feel” is so maybe someone in the comments can describe it better than me.
So my golf game now. I’ve improved significantly. I have confidence from before my swing to after. I examine the potential shots and targets. Pick one and commit. I have a solid set-up before the ball with the proper aim. My swing thoughts aren’t consumed by swing mechanics and I can trust my muscle memory to deliver a swing. I can swing consistently. I drive the ball forward, even if my shot dispersion isn’t as narrow as I’d like. I am not afraid of water hazards whether with a long iron or wood, because I am confident in my skill to hit over them without embarrassing myself. My GIR has improved dramatically. I might lose a ball or two per round, but I can shoot in the low 90s without any gimmies. I don’t swing over the top anymore and I feel like I’m playing golf instead of just chunking across the landscape and praying for a good shot. I would like more swing speed, but I think that will come later. Even after the shot, if it doesn’t go exactly how I planned my misses aren’t as dramatic and I know I can hit a good shot and recover. I see myself realistically breaking 90 pretty soon. I have no idea what my ceiling is but it feels like the sky is the limit! Haha.
I can’t vouch for how either SwingTweaks or GolfTec might benefit intermediate or lower handicaps, but it was effective for me. I’m happier on the course and more fulfilled when I play. I’d recommend giving it a shot if you are in the same position I was in.
Other Things That I Did:
Read a lot of books that weren’t helpful with my issues, but were pretty enjoyable:
Shortlist:

• The Four Foundations of Golf — Jon Sherman
• Ben Hogan’s 5 Lessons (probably the most helpful)
• Harvey Pennick’s Little Red Book
• Golf is Not A Game of Perfect
• Also, not for your game but I also read The Greatest Game Ever Played and Paper Tiger which were just straight-up enjoyable for anyone and let me be in the nexus of golf, but not thinking as much about my swing or my game.

YouTube:
YouTube didn’t help me much. It’s difficult for me to diagnose my issues, so with YouTube instructions, I’m hoping I have the issue identified correctly and that the video is a particular solution for that issue. I know some people have had a lot of success with this, but it just wasn’t for me unless it was specifically relevant to something someone had already told me was an issue.
Practice:
I probably was at the range 3-4 times at my peak, and then that went down to 1-2 times a week just because I was busy with life stuff. I probably played 9 holes once a week, but that dipped to 0 times a week for about a month, and then went back to 9 holes once a week.
I rarely get the time to play 18 so I might do that once a month. I also got my Dad to help me. In the aforementioned background section, I mentioned he is a killer when he is near the green, so he was able to help me with my putting/pitching/chipping. Even with the irons and other clubs, he was able to help me understand proper aiming and some other non-physical mechanics-related skills.
Recording:
I recorded my swing periodically, not every session. I felt like I didn’t want to see my swing that often because I wanted to see what crept back (over the top, hip bump, no hip movement, or anything else that had already been pointed out to me). I also feel like it is a waste of time to record, adjust, record, adust. You can’t see your swing on the course, so I didn’t feel like this was a good solution for me. I liked to see it a few times, and then feel it, and then try to replicate that feel after.
After I was told what was exactly wrong, I usually was able to get a good “feel” of when it was going right and when it wasn’t, because the first couple of times I’d exaggerate it. The times I was backsliding a periodic recording would let me see it if I already knew what the issue was.
I wasted time on Instagram’s Explore page watching golf influencers and “fun” golf channels on YouTube. If I wanted to put a positive spin on it, that type of play helped me keep going and inspired me to keep playing. I do think watching some of the older golfers highlights helped with tempo.
I’m certain some people may have achieved greater improvement with the resources & money available, but I’m content with where my game stands. I am aware there are probably areas that could be refined, but my focus was to enjoy the game and that’s where I’m at. I can play any public course with anyone and do just fine. I still get frustrated here and there, but nowadays it’s not because I completely shot a ball off into the woods, its more like “how the hell was that a fade” or “why was I lined up away from the green” or “stupid decision to club down” instead of being frustrated with my swing. I feel like I’m playing golf now. I’ll probably seek lessons again at a later point, but right now I’m good.
There is a light at the end of the tunnel no matter what you do but these programs helped me put that on an accelerator. If you use either of the programs, I’d be grateful if you use my referral code. I don’t get anything if you sign up for SwingTweaks, except entries into periodic drawings, but I believe you get 20% off. If you sign up for GolfTec we both get $100 off if you sign up.
TLDR: Sucked at everything except putting/chipping/pitching, used GolfTec and SwingTweaks to get better at irons, woods, & driver, use my code.
GOLFTEC: https://gt.golf/HP52sZ (PS my dude said referrals only work if you sign up for lessons or else you have to pay for your swing analysis).
SWINGTWEAKS: referral code - GoatTrackDhimar

print("Hello, Python Hangman Game!") 

import random # List of potential secret words word_list = ["python", "hangman", "programming", "challenge"] # Randomly select a secret word from the list secret_word = random.choice(word_list) # Initialize variables to track guesses and attempts correct_guesses = set() incorrect_guesses = set() attempts_left = 6 # Function to display the current game state def display_game_state(): # Display the secret word with guessed letters revealed displayed_word = "".join([letter if letter in correct_guesses else "_" for letter in secret_word]) print(f"Word: {displayed_word}") print(f"Incorrect Guesses: {' '.join(incorrect_guesses)}") print(f"Attempts Left: {attempts_left}") # Main game loop while True: display_game_state() guess = input("Enter your guess: ").lower() # Check if the guess is in the secret word if guess in secret_word: correct_guesses.add(guess) # Check for win condition if set(secret_word).issubset(correct_guesses): print("Congratulations! You've guessed the word!") break else: incorrect_guesses.add(guess) attempts_left -= 1 # Check for lose condition if attempts_left == 0: print("Game Over! You've run out of attempts.") print(f"The secret word was: {secret_word}") break 

python -m tkinter 

import tkinter as tk class HangmanGame: def __init__(self, master): self.master = master self.master.title("Hangman Game") self.master.geometry("900x600") # Further GUI setup and game logic will be added here def main(): root = tk.Tk() game = HangmanGame(root) root.mainloop() if __name__ == "__main__": main() 

def initialize_gui(self): self.hangman_canvas = tk.Canvas(self.master, width=300, height=300, bg="white") self.hangman_canvas.pack(pady=20) # Additional GUI setup continues here... 

def initialize_gui(self): # Previous GUI setup code... self.word_display = tk.Label(self.master, text="_ " * len(self.secret_word), font=("Helvetica", 30)) self.word_display.pack(pady=(40, 20)) 

def initialize_gui(self): # Previous GUI setup code... self.buttons_frame = tk.Frame(self.master) self.buttons_frame.pack(pady=20) self.setup_alphabet_buttons() 

import random class HangmanGame: def __init__(self, master): self.master = master self.master.title("Hangman Game") self.master.geometry("900x600") self.word_list = ["PYTHON", "JAVASCRIPT", "KOTLIN", "JAVA", "RUBY", "SWIFT"] self.secret_word = self.choose_secret_word() self.correct_guesses = set() self.incorrect_guesses = set() self.attempts_left = 7 self.initialize_gui() def choose_secret_word(self): return random.choice(self.word_list) 

def update_hangman_canvas(self): self.hangman_canvas.delete("all") # Clear the canvas for redrawing incorrect_guesses_count = len(self.incorrect_guesses) if incorrect_guesses_count >= 1: self.hangman_canvas.create_line(50, 180, 150, 180) # Base # Additional drawing logic here for each part of the hangman 

def guess_letter(self, letter): if letter in self.secret_word and letter not in self.correct_guesses: self.correct_guesses.add(letter) elif letter not in self.incorrect_guesses: self.incorrect_guesses.add(letter) self.attempts_left -= 1 self.update_hangman_canvas() self.update_word_display() self.check_game_over() def update_word_display(self): displayed_word = " ".join([letter if letter in self.correct_guesses else "_" for letter in self.secret_word]) self.word_display.config(text=displayed_word) def check_game_over(self): if set(self.secret_word).issubset(self.correct_guesses): self.display_game_over_message("Congratulations, you've won!") elif self.attempts_left == 0: self.display_game_over_message(f"Game over! The word was: {self.secret_word}") 

def setup_alphabet_buttons(self): alphabet = "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ" upper_row = alphabet[:13] # First half of the alphabet lower_row = alphabet[13:] # Second half of the alphabet upper_frame = tk.Frame(self.buttons_frame) upper_frame.pack() lower_frame = tk.Frame(self.buttons_frame) lower_frame.pack() for letter in upper_row: button = tk.Button(upper_frame, text=letter, command=lambda l=letter: self.guess_letter(l), width=4, height=2) button.pack(side="left", padx=2, pady=2) for letter in lower_row: button = tk.Button(lower_frame, text=letter, command=lambda l=letter: self.guess_letter(l), width=4, height=2) button.pack(side="left", padx=2, pady=2) 

def display_game_over_message(self, message): # Hide the alphabet buttons by hiding the entire buttons_frame self.buttons_frame.pack_forget() # Display the game over message in the now-empty area self.game_over_label = tk.Label(self.master, text=message, font=("Helvetica", 18), fg="red") self.game_over_label.pack(pady=(10, 20)) 

def update_hangman_canvas(self): self.hangman_canvas.delete("all") # Clear the canvas before redrawing stages = [self.draw_head, self.draw_body, self.draw_left_arm, self.draw_right_arm, self.draw_left_leg, self.draw_right_leg, self.draw_face] for i in range(len(self.incorrect_guesses)): if i < len(stages): stages[i]() # Call the drawing method for each incorrect guess 

def draw_head(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_oval(125, 50, 185, 110, outline="black") def draw_body(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_line(155, 110, 155, 170, fill="black") def draw_left_arm(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_line(155, 130, 125, 150, fill="black") def draw_right_arm(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_line(155, 130, 185, 150, fill="black") def draw_left_leg(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_line(155, 170, 125, 200, fill="black") def draw_right_leg(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_line(155, 170, 185, 200, fill="black") def draw_face(self): self.hangman_canvas.create_line(140, 70, 150, 80, fill="black") # Left eye self.hangman_canvas.create_line(160, 70, 170, 80, fill="black") # Right eye # Draw a sad mouth self.hangman_canvas.create_arc(140, 85, 170, 105, start=0, extent=-180, fill="black") 

def reset_game(self): self.secret_word = self.choose_secret_word() self.correct_guesses = set() self.incorrect_guesses = set() self.attempts_left = 7 self.hangman_canvas.delete("all") self.update_word_display() for frame in self.buttons_frame.winfo_children(): for button in frame.winfo_children(): button.configure(state=tk.NORMAL) if hasattr(self, 'game_over_label'): self.game_over_label.destroy() 

def initialize_gui(self): # Existing GUI setup code... # Add reset game button self.reset_button = tk.Button(self.master, text="Reset Game", command=self.reset_game) self.reset_button.pack(pady=(10, 0)) 

def __init__(self, master): self.master = master self.master.title("Hangman Game") self.master.geometry("900x650") # Rest of code… 

def display_game_over_message(self, message): # Hide the reset button self.reset_button.pack_forget() # Hide the alphabet buttons and display the game over message self.buttons_frame.pack_forget() self.game_over_label = tk.Label(self.master, text=message, font=("Helvetica", 18), fg="red") self.game_over_label.pack(pady=(10, 20)) # Display the Restart button self.restart_button = tk.Button(self.master, text="Restart Game", command=self.reset_game, width=20, height=2) self.restart_button.pack(pady=(10, 20)) 

def reset_game(self): # Re-show the reset button self.reset_button.pack(pady=(10, 0)) # Reset game state and GUI elements as previously outlined # Hide the game over label and the Restart button when the game is reset if hasattr(self, 'game_over_label') and self.game_over_label.winfo_exists(): self.game_over_label.pack_forget() if hasattr(self, 'restart_button') and self.restart_button.winfo_exists(): self.restart_button.pack_forget() # Ensure the alphabet buttons frame and other interactive elements are visible again self.buttons_frame.pack() 

def __init__(self, master): self.master = master self.master.title("Hangman Game") self.master.geometry("900x650") self.master.configure(bg='light blue') # Set the background color # Remaining initialization code... 

def initialize_gui(self): # Existing code... self.word_display = tk.Label(self.master, text="_ " * len(self.secret_word), font=("Helvetica", 30), bg='light blue') self.word_display.pack(pady=(40, 20)) 

def display_game_over_message(self, message): # Existing code... self.game_over_label = tk.Label(self.master, text=message, font=stylish_font, fg="red", bg='light blue') self.game_over_label.pack(pady=(10, 20)) 

def setup_alphabet_buttons(self): # Custom button appearance button_bg = "#4a7a8c" # Example: a nice shade of blue button_fg = "white" # Text color button_font = ("Helvetica", 12, "bold") # Example: bold Helvetica font # Setup code for upper and lower rows... for letter in upper_row: button = tk.Button(upper_frame, text=letter, command=lambda l=letter: self.guess_letter(l), width=4, height=2, bg=button_bg, fg=button_fg, font=button_font) button.pack(side="left", padx=2, pady=2) # Repeat for lower_row buttons... 

def initialize_gui(self): # Existing code... button_bg = "#4a7a8c" button_fg = "white" button_font = ("Helvetica", 12, "bold") self.reset_button = tk.Button(self.master, text="Reset Game", command=self.reset_game, width=20, height=2, bg=button_bg, fg=button_fg, font=button_font) self.reset_button.pack(pady=(10, 0)) def display_game_over_message(self, message): # Existing code... button_bg = "#4a7a8c" button_fg = "white" button_font = ("Helvetica", 12, "bold") if not hasattr(self, 'restart_button'): self.restart_button = tk.Button(self.master, text="Restart Game", command=self.reset_game, width=20, height=2, bg=button_bg, fg=button_fg, font=button_font) self.restart_button.pack(pady=(10, 20)) 

def display_game_over_message(self, message): # Existing code... stylish_font = ("Arial", 18, "italic") self.game_over_label = tk.Label(self.master, text=message, font=stylish_font, fg="red", bg='light blue') self.game_over_label.pack(pady=(10, 20)) 

International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is a globally recognized English proficiency test that assesses the language skills of individuals aiming to study, work, or migrate to English-speaking countries. The test evaluates four key language skills: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking.

But when it comes to taking the IELTS exam, choosing the right path between the IELTS General and IELTS Academic tests is crucial for achieving your specific goals. Both versions of the test serve different purposes and have distinct formats.
Let’s explore what IELTS General and IELTS Academic entail, their purposes, the differences in their test formats.

IELTS General vs. Academic: An Overview

IELTS Academic

· Purpose: The IELTS Academic test is designed for individuals applying for higher education or professional registration in an English-speaking environment. It is suitable for students seeking undergraduate or postgraduate admissions and for professionals such as doctors and nurses who need to demonstrate their English proficiency for licensing purposes.

· Test Format:
Listening: 30 minutes. Four recordings of native English speakers are played, and candidates answer questions.

Reading: 60 minutes. Three long reading passages with tasks, primarily sourced from books, journals, magazines, and newspapers.

Writing: 60 minutes. Two tasks:
· Task 1: Describing visual information (graph, chart, diagram).
· Task 2: Writing an essay in response to an argument or problem.
Speaking: 11-14 minutes. A face-to-face interview with an examiner, including short questions, speaking at length about a familiar topic, and a structured discussion.

IELTS General Training

· Purpose: The IELTS General Training test is aimed at individuals migrating to English-speaking countries such as Canada, Australia, or the UK, or those applying for secondary education, training programs, or work experience in an English-speaking environment.

· Test Format:
Listening: 30 minutes. Similar to the Academic test with four recordings of native English speakers.
Reading: 60 minutes. Includes extracts from books, magazines, newspapers, notices, advertisements, and company handbooks.
Writing: 60 minutes. Two tasks:
· Task 1: Writing a letter (formal, semi-formal, or informal).
· Task 2: Writing an essay in response to a point of view, argument, or problem.

Speaking: 11-14 minutes. Same format as the Academic test.

Differences in IELTS Test Formats

While both versions of the IELTS test share the same Listening and Speaking components, the Reading and Writing sections differ significantly:
Reading:
· Academic: Focuses on long, complex texts suitable for academic study.
· General: Includes a variety of texts relevant to everyday life, work, and social contexts.
Writing:
· Academic: Requires description of visual data and formal essay writing.
· General: Includes letter writing (which may be less formal) and essay writing on general topics.

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GCI Language helps you to choose the right IELTS path and offers tailored coaching to help you achieve your specific goals.

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Choosing between IELTS General and IELTS Academic is a critical decision that depends on your specific objectives, whether they are academic or professional. Understanding the differences in their formats and purposes can guide you in making the right choice. At GCI Language, we are dedicated to providing the best IELTS coaching and resources to help you excel in your chosen path. With our expert instructors, comprehensive curriculum, and flexible learning options, you’ll be well-prepared to achieve your goals.

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Source: Choosing the Right Path – IELTS General vs Academic

Hi all,
I hope this doesn’t come off insensitive or ignorant as that isn’t my intent. My son is almost 2.5 and in the 2/3 year old class at school. The school counselor, whose background is strictly aba, told us a few weeks ago that our son needed OT because he hit another boy in the face (she said it seemed playful not aggressive) and was playing with leaves. This happened between 2 days while our son was coming down with an ear infection. It didn’t happen anymore after that and our pediatrician says the counselor was definitely wrong. However, now as a first time mom, I’m just anxious and hyper aware of any little thing he does.
I guess since I follow so many toddler accounts on my Instagram, on the explore page a lot of things come up and one reel that I saw was a mom showing how her autistic 2 year old daughter plays and some traits about her. One of the things she mentioned was running in circles which my son was just so happening to be doing when I read that. I should clarify, he wasn’t running in small circles, he was just running around the family room through the kitchen and back into the family room which happened to be in a circle. He hasn’t been outside in a few days due to rain so I figured he was just stir crazy from that. But I started thinking about some things he does and was wondering if these were typical toddler behavior or other signs? When you Google there is a lot of overlap.

• he hit all language milestones but on the lower end. Now at 29 months he has about 200 words and is putting together 2 word phrases.
• He can communicate to us what he wants, but if he doesn’t know the word he’ll take us to what he wants, point, and say “that” (is this considered hand leading?)
• His teachers speak Spanish and use the suffix “tito” for things which means little so for example “gatito” is little cat. His only repetitive thing in speech is that, he’ll say “tito” a lot for nouns.
• He can count from 1-20 and knows his abcs and their phonetic sounds (not in order, he can’t sing the abcs he just knows the letters). He also knows his colors. This is 100% from Ms Rachel, we started having him watch an episode a day to help with his speech and he picked up on that. I read if toddlers know these things but aren’t speaking in sentences, it’s linked to autism?
• he loves other kids. Sometimes he parallel plays, other times he plays with them. He’ll hold hands with his friends and run with them and play at centers with them. He LOVES to share.
• He likes to run a lot. Sometimes just to run around. He doesn’t typically run repetitively like in circles but he does just run a lot at the school playground. We figured it was because he has a lot of energy. He does well inside with all the routines and stuff.
• He can sit and do an activity for a while, sometimes independently and other times with us. When he gets bored he moves on.
• He loves trucks, balls (specifically basketball), and all kinds of animals. He knows alot of animal names. I wouldn’t say he’s fixated on any of these though.
• He’s never banged toys together until yesterday that I bought him a little wind up turtle and wind up duck. My husband showed him that they wind and the fins swirl and after that he started banging them together randomly. I’m not sure why.
• He has toddler tantrums when he doesn’t get his way but I would say he’s over it within a couple minutes. I can’t recall him ever having something that lasts longer.
• He doesn’t really line things up? Sometimes he will with animals or cars but then he’ll set the cars off or makes the animals walk or do something else. His dad showed him how to stack things so he likes doing that once in a while but then he’ll knock it down and laugh and do something else.
• he’s into playdoh now and sometimes he’ll break it into small pieces and just leave it all over the place. I know they break it into little pieces at school to practice fine motor skills but I’m not sure about the leaving it spread around random places?

I guess the things that stood out when I saw the reel and googled were the running around, the language things, and the repetitive use of Tito. Any perspective would be appreciated. Thank you in advance!

Reconstruction
First Prev
The two that Amara had introduced, Merana and Teleya, were a researcher and a team leader respectively. They were to take Carbon from the impromptu surgical suite over to where the Xenotechnology teams worked on analysis and replication, and then assist her with anything that she needed.
“It was very unexpected, but I am glad that the Empress requested the Integration project be moved onto the Sword of the Morning Light. The accommodations are much nicer, and the equipment is newer. Some of the things we requisitioned years ago were actually brought in!” Merana was in his forties, gray fur starting to turn silver, and he was extremely talkative. He had started perhaps two steps from where they were introduced and did not let up, speaking at a breakneck pace, hands gesturing with every word, eyes never staying put even when in a corridor that had nothing of note to look at. “Deep layer scanners that were made in the decade. Actual new printers! I do not know if it is too much to ask, but if you were to mention to the Empress that we appreciate these new laboratories...”
“Merana.” There was just a hint of reproach in Teleya’s voice. She was the exact opposite, so far. The definition of reserved, which fit with the crown of silver fur encroaching between her antennae. After a very brief introduction, she had remained silent until Merana had started asking favors of Carbon.
“Do not mistake my intent.” He shushed Teleya with a wave of his hand, but he seemed to pick up what she was driving at with that single word and deflected to a slightly different tack. “I have always enjoyed this assignment, it is fascinating to see what the other species in the universe are up to. But the previous labs were... Those fields were poorly tilled. The integration of the Human ship into the station’s systems was unorthodox but understandable, given how much material we acquire from them. A Proximax cargo hauler. Room for thousands of their standardized containers. Yes, it was quite old, but there were some phenomenal systems on board. The engines were astonishing. Not as efficient as the systems we put on our haulers, of course, but the configuration allowed for an utterly unreasonable energy throughput for sublight acceleration.”
‘Utterly unreasonable’ described about 75% of Human ship design, by her estimation. “I am sorry, did you say thousands of containers?” Carbon inquired as they passed back into the common area, the seating all cleared out now. She had seen plenty of the ships the Confederation had now, including one of the truly massive Pathfinders which also held thousands of their standardized containers.
“Five thousand, if my memory serves. It was an ugly ship, a great brick of protective panels. While the storage area was not pressurized, it did have several inspection gantries that allowed us to access individual containers. We put it to use as a very orderly warehouse. I do miss that.” He added far more than he had to, and he was very pleased to do so. “Doubled the habitable space on the station, as well.”
That was strange. While she was previously aware of the existence of the Xenotechnology Research unit, the fact they had a space station, with a massive Human made cargo ship integrated into it was news to her. It hadn’t really ever been a high visibility sort of thing, of course. The idea the Tsla’o Empire was scrabbling around looking to see what they could abscond with from the other races was not in line with how they viewed themselves. “That is impressive, you must have had much to store if a warehouse that large was called for. Where was it all coming from?”
Teleya took the lead, directing them back into a warren of hallways.
“Oh, we only had about a thousand containers in it, and they were not particularly full. We have a crew using a Human ship, the Serenity, to visit the edges of Human space to trade for scrap or salvage. Humans will part with a surprising array of things when they are operating out at the very edges of their frontiers. That is how I first came to work here, counterfeiting Human manufactured colloids for their construction printers as a trade item. It was an interesting little job - if you presented a product that was too good, it was suspicious to them. They thought it was either recently stolen and ‘hot’ or it was a police operation to catch thieves, and they’d dump it and leave without finishing the transaction. So we roughed the bags up a little bit, tossed them around the floor and kicked them down stairs. Drained a few as though they’d been used briefly - that was my idea - and damaged the cryptoseal enough to render it useless on about two-thirds of the units.” He laughed as they turned down another hallway. “Made them all actually look stolen. They were fully functional, of course. We had a reputation to make.”
“Fascinating.” A little worrisome, too. That was a lot of interacting with Humans, and not the ones that were supported by the Confederation, apparently. That idea in and of itself did not bother her, but... where had they gotten those ships? Had the Empire been doing business with Human pirates? Or just pioneers out past their own borders who didn’t have much interest in exactly who they were doing business with? “These dealings have been equitable?”
“I assume as much. The terms had to be agreed upon by both parties, and the Serenity was a light freighter, no offensive capability to speak of. That’s why it was shadowed by a cloaked frigate.” He stopped speaking for a moment, pointing at the door Teleya was unlocking. “Ah, here we are.”
Teleya opened the door and stepped back to allow them inside. Carbon found the work area to be a bit sparse. Lots of workstations, some obviously claimed by the amount of personalization present. Jackets hung over the backs of chairs, small plants, holos and printed pictures alike. Two conference rooms with big holographic tables in the back wall, and a couple of matter printers - looked like Ke-330 variants, based on the printhead. Not exactly the newest gear, but well maintained.
“I will show you to an available workstation. If you would get the Princess the documentation regarding the PINs, Merana?” She delegated, pointing Carbon to an obviously unused desk.
“Of course.” Merana bowed out of the conversation, literally, and bustled off to retrieve the data.
“Everything is held off network?” Carbon inquired while inspecting the clean white desktop. She had started to reach for the sensor pad to log in when she realized she was still holding Alex’s shirt. Hadn’t even thought to put it down, just absently rolled it up in her hands while Merana had talked. Carbon crammed it into one of the big tool pockets in her work pants, secure in the knowledge that would be the exact thing Alex would do. Several embedded holographic displays hummed to life as she pressed her now free hand to the sensor, logging herself in at that particular site.
“Most of our data is available upon the lab’s internal network, which is classified at Stone level access. Anything at Silver security clearance or above is available from the Index workstation, and is borrowed on station-locked, time-limited codex.” She paused, glancing over at Carbon. “Forgive me - I saw that you had Obsidian clearance and have just assumed you’re familiar with these protocols.”
“As luck would have it, I am familiar.” Carbon hadn’t used them often, though it had come up a few times when performing maintenance on some of the more cutting edge systems on the Kshanev. The codex was a physical storage device, usually fairly large to make them difficult to steal. Station-locked just meant the codex could only be decrypted at a pre-specified workstation, and time-limited was simply a countdown to when the codex would automatically delete its contents.
She didn’t even notice she had slipped a Human idiom into the conversation.
“Ah, of course.” Teleya gave her a stilted little bow, very subtly standing up a bit straighter as Merana returned bearing the codex.
He held it out to Carbon in both hands. Each codex was a specialized computer, and one of the long-standing traditions around their use was that those computers would be contained in something that made it hard to physically access or to steal. Initially they had just made rectangular cases that were too large to conceal, but as matter printing had become more prevalent, so had customized cases. The Military Academy had units shaped like the spear and star from their sigil. The Kshanev used a model of its Macron gun, which had been particularly ironic when trying to troubleshoot that very same system.
This one appeared to be a dark stone obelisk, about the length of her forearm, and heavy like it was actual stone. The edges and letters carved into it were crisp, as though it had just been hewn. She recognized it right off the bat, of course, it was a miniature version of the obelisk that had stood at the river port in old Ama’o - the first city. She ran her thumb down one of the inscriptions, the letters on this side filled with gold. May the winds favor your sails, traveler.
All of that was gone, now.
Carbon set it down on the desk and took a seat. The clean white desktop bowed and shifted, the obelisk sinking partway into it. She fiddled with the left screen, relegating the index of the files within to a narrow strip out of the way. Not that there was very much in there, literally seven files. “All right. Get me up to speed, what should I be looking at first?”
“All but the last of these are items we had not been able to identify until the scans from the Prince came in. They obviously went together, but we were unsure of the use case. They were all found on a single salvage ship. The first four files pertain to the PIN fragments we found on board. Scans kept throwing traces of metamaterials until one of the sweepers located those fragments stuck in the gap between a wall panel and the floor in the head.” Teleya had taken over as the verbose one, pointing out several files on the screen as she spoke.
Carbon opened the first file, the very first picture was piece of metal no longer than a fingertip, caked in dried blood and hair. Notation on the edge of the image informed her that it had been taken on the Serenity, about three years ago. “This is not the same Serenity Merana was talking about, is it? And is that... Human?”
“No. Serenity is their most common ship name. Something like ten percent of privately owned Human craft are named that. Understandable, in a way. There is so much space where there is nothing.” She was lost in thought before she cleared her throat and continued. “That is Human, yes. All the samples found onboard were from the same person. If I recall, there were only genetic traces from one Human on board, and only one appeared on the internal logs. We were concerned that it was evidence of a crime until it became clear from those logs that the previous owner seemed to have some neurological problems and was doing quite a bit of surgical work on himself.”
“That sounds horrible.” The PIN had been thoroughly documented as it was cleaned and run through multiple scanners, the entire thing mapped down to the atom, which was good because the rotating keyways seemed to depend on microns-thick wafers of high lubricity insulator to facilitate movement while isolating electrical impulses. Likely printed in place, given how delicate the entire thing was despite the use of exotic materials. A simple design, made with the most advanced tools and material.
She did not dare dwell on the fact that some lone Human sailor at the edge of their space had equipment to access the same sort of implant Alex had, and certainly not the more immediate worry that the implant could have had a role in pushing him to such extremes as performing surgery upon himself.
“Yes, it gets... We need not discuss the finer details of it.” She shivered and exhaled softly. “The next three are more pieces of other, similar PINs. The first and fourth appear to have been broken, while the second and third are clearly cut. The fifth file is a piece of the adapter between the PIN and driver unit, and the sixth is what we believe to be a portion of the driver unit. The final file is the scan of the Prince’s hardware.”
Carbon skipped directly to the driver unit. The needle seemed straightforward at the moment. They had large portions of it. The driver, on the other hand, was still a few loose design ideas for her. The first pictures of it really made her want to discuss the finer details of what they had found on that ship - it had been cylindrical at one point, but only a partially melted wedge remained, bearing distinct plasma cutter marks. It appeared it was the end that held the PIN, as well, which was good - that could be directly copied with no conjecture.
The chunk reminded her of an old milling machine spindle surrounded by multiple layers made of paired stators and rotors. The scans proved her supposition out, and it was a bit of a relief - most of it should be very easy to reverse engineer as well. The wiring might need a little guess work, but computer rendering should allow her to get that sussed out without having to run a print. “All right, I think we should be able to get this done quickly. Which one of you would be best working on recreating the PIN and adapter unit? I will take the driver.”
Merana piped up. “I have specialized in reconstruction for nearly a decade. Unless Teleya would prefer that task?”
“No, your work is excellent.” She deferred, gesturing towards the Index workstation to indicate he should get to it.
They watched him go, Carbon swiveling her chair around to face Teleya. “I do not think the hardware side of this will be particularly difficult. That said, do we have any of the software that was used with this?”
“Ah. Yes, but no.” Her ears lowered, an annoyed hiss escaping her teeth. “There was data related to the operation of the machine, and possibly the programs used to run it still installed on the Serenity. As it was a very new ship at the time the entire thing and all files on board were seized by Imperial Intelligence.”
“I know a few people who work in the Intelligence community.” Carbon did not specify how she knew them, because historically people did not want to know details about anything to do with Intel.
“As do I. Sadly, the most I have been able to get from them is that all the data onboard was shipped out to Electronic Warfare. I do not know anyone within that division, and having a mere Gold clearance does not sway much over there.” It sounded like she was inclined to continue not knowing anyone within Electronic Warfare, a hint of venom in her tone as she talked about them. “I put in the appeal two days ago, it has still not even been reviewed.”
“I suspect they will be more accommodating to my requests. If that fails, they will kneel at the throne when the Empress calls.” Carbon didn’t really have the ability to toss the Empress’ authority around like that, but Alex had been convincing with his fears about potentially compromising the security of the ship. The Empress would take that seriously, and having one part of the military building fortifications around their domains would just delay confirmation one way or the other.
“I suspect that will expedite things.” She bowed again, deeper this time. While Teleya did not specifically ask for this data as a favor, she clearly considered Carbon using her influence to get it as fulfillment of one.
“If you will excuse me... I will make some calls. Are the conference rooms available?” She was sure they would be. It was just the three of them in the workshop at the moment, but Carbon would prefer a little bit of privacy given what was lingering at the forefront of her mind right now.
“They are yours as long as you desire.”
Carbon stood and offered Teleya the seat. “If you could get started on extrapolating the build on this, I would appreciate the help.”
“Of course, Princess.” She bowed, again.
Carbon took her leave, walking back to the closer conference room. She stole a glance at Merana’s workspace, already deep into pulling the fragments together into a whole. Excellent work ethic on him.
She closed the door behind her and turned the windows into the work area opaque before walking down to the end of the conference table with the holo emitter. Carbon slumped into a chair and sighed, leaning in to rest her elbows on the table and cradle her head in her hands. She allowed herself to feel miserable for a moment.
Was any of this worth it? What even was it, at this point? She enjoyed Alex’s company, certainly, and would absolutely call the feelings she had for him ‘love’ without hesitation. But the idea of being entwined hadn’t truly crossed her mind since she’d put aside that unreasonable fantasy back on the Kshlav’o. Now that was just an offering to get her to let The Empress back in. She hadn’t settled on if that had tainted the entire concept or not.
Even if it had, Alex’s earnest intent might be enough to purify that for her.
Worse was that Alex, her beloved, was forced into this untenable position. What if he was being used as a conduit for some sort of spy program by his own government? She wasn’t familiar with the fine print, but it would violate their treaties. It was a violation of the Confederation’s own citizen, as well. All while being the Empress’ leverage to make their people more accepting of the help. To prove they were trustworthy. Not the sort that would do things like... this.
Her mind raced, working over a thousand threads of what she would do to be free of these constraints. To have a life that was just hers, and perhaps just his. Every one of them felt like an unreasonable fantasy now.
Carbon sighed again and shut it all off. Crammed it back in the hole. The turn of phrase from Alex brought a brief, sad smile to her face. It had initially felt improper, not serious enough for the workings of the mind. It had grown on her, more and more it felt entirely accurate.
She smoothed her fur out a bit and pulled the sleeves of her jacket down to appear a little more professional. Carbon stood and patted Alex’s shirt for moral support before slotting her communicator into the holo display, and set it up for an encrypted call before dialing Admiral Olan. His direct number.
It took a few minutes for each end of the call to negotiate and set up encryption that reached the minimum for Obsidian clearance. While it was the second highest level of security, the real reason she turned it all the way up was that those calls had a tendency to get answered in short order. She waited. The connection was live, but his end was locked down until he was in an appropriately secure area.
“Princess Sorenson.” Olan’s head appeared on the holo, looking both wizened and perpetually aggrieved. He was actually pleasant, his face was just like that while relaxed.
“Admiral. I am here with the Xenotechnology team, and I have a request for data from the Electronic Warfare division of Imperial Intelligence that needs to be expedited.” He had the authority over several divisions, Electronic Warfare included. “Team Leader Teleya put in a request two days ago. It concerns files from a Human ship they acquired about three years ago, the Serenity, which was taken by Intel. We need that immediately, as it now pertains to an investigation into potential security breaches on The Sword of the Morning Light.”
There was absolutely no reaction to this information save for a single, brief nod. “Consider it done, an Index will be brought over as soon as it is filled. Is there anything else?”
“Yes. This is a personal request, and why I have chosen Obsidian.” She inhaled, lifting her chin a little like the Empress did when she wanted to appear a bit more impressive. Difficult to do through a hologram, but she wanted it imparted that this in particular was to be kept at Obsidian levels. “I require a copy of the interior security logs for the same ship. This is related to the investigation, but more sensitive. Gene-locked, with a time limit of ten hours of review should be enough.”
That got his attention, antennae shifting up slightly. While that was subtle, it was there, and that was notable for Olan. “Of course. Do you need them delivered at the same time?”
Did she? “No, but I would appreciate it being done within the day. Have it delivered to my quarters, my Zeshen can take possession of it there. That is all, Admiral.” Carbon would take one potentially horrifying discovery at time right now.
“Your will be done, Princess.” He closed his eyes and bowed, and ended the call.
The fears she had crammed into the hole scrabbled against the door that she imagined held them in place. If the machines - those abominations that Alex had allowed his government to saddle him with - were going to destroy him, she had to know. She had to be ahead of it, whatever psychosis had been inflicted upon that lone sailor would not befall him.
She would see to it.
 
First Prev
Royal Road
*****
Carbon learns some stuff this time! Oh boy. Oh dear.
Unreasonably happy that I was able to find a name that continues the practice of naming classes of cargo ships something-max as well as Panama did.
Art pile: Carbon reference sheet. Art by Tyo_Dem

I met a girl a while back, she was really beautiful, she was in college because she wanted to go to nursing school and she was a single mother. We started dating but slowly I started seeing red flags, but they were over a few months.
Firstly she was very materialistic, she had to have the more expensive things because she knew she wasn't paying for them. She didn't want the $50 dollar item she wanted the $100 just because it was more expensive that's it. An example she was raised in Monterrey Mexico, she loved the Futbol team Tigres de Monterrey, so I bought her a customized jersey with her last name. She didn't want it because it wasn't an official jersey. She said it was a China knockoff, honestly if you had put them side by side you couldn't tell the difference. Also, her phone broke and I got her a cheap one to use in the meantime and she got mad, because she wanted a brand new one out of the box, then a few days later it mysteriously broke.
Second, she had a lot of insecurities, she refuse to go outside or even to get the mail unless she had makeup on, a month after I met her she got implants plus she was looking to get butt implants, and despite she was probably 135 pounds she's "Soy muy gorda" (I'm very fat) and she wanted liposuction. When it came to me, she wanted to see pictures of who I was with and where I was at. I caught her more than once trying to go through my phone because she wanted to see who I was texting also she wanted to see screenshots if a female coworker texted me. Plus I couldn't do something as simple as buying deodorant without getting questioned about why was I buying that brand because apparently women love men who buy it.
Lastly, this was more like she was waving the red flag in my face. She told me if we were ever move in into together or get married, she has no intentions to work. Because the way she was raised was the man has to pay the bills get her everthing she wants, in other words she wants to be taken care of. She gave me a idiotic passionate speech about that's the way it's been in her family since her grandparents and she "honestly feel it has to be that way" for her. Of course my response to that was "this is America not Mexico" and "you're just too damn lazy to work" after that told bye because I had gotten fed up with her and ways.
What are some Red Flags for you?

What options does someone have who suffered depression and suicidal notions over grief at one point along with a laundry list of other things, hiding inside not living life, watching their eCommerce business fall each year 100Ks, website shutdown and, running off fumes on marketplace listings that kept staying up, throwing the order via email to a company to ship, borrowing lots of money at high interest, but having no record of it at this point, no record of deductions, no record of sales, no bank statements, a few unreadable carbon copies of checks in a box all crumbled up that was only for rent and one supplier. no ability to get bank statement, marketplace data, website data, loan interest as its all 100% gone gone gone due to the time years, 15, 16, 17. It's a miracle this person is alive, me, yes me, not a friend. I suffered for so long and only recently in the past year got help with medications(which are barely working) and therapy and grew a new business, cpa, payroll, and doing everything right, but still I'm not living life unfortunately as I hide inside refusing to live from the weight of the past and .t anxiety and fear of people is still very high. i may never break free of it, . weighing so heavily, just waiting for one moment to break down, one push into a corner where the frustration and pressure is too much and finally feeling free to click the trigger because I refuse to suffer any further. I know me enough to know I'll let it come crashing down in my face if they come for me eventually.
Everytime I tried to sit down and get the information, I got 10 mins in to having basically nothing.I went through hard drives, emails, everything and came up with a few invoices, but sales data. no cogs, nothing. I accidentally cleared an entire drive of bank statments reformatting it to send to a supplier to get pictures because I only have 4G LTE out here. Because I talked with a CPA who was gonna help me who manages my new business account now, and when I went to get him what I had, I was literally freaking out as it wasnt there. I called bank and they don't have records back that far. And there's no way I'm paying tax plus penalties and interest on around probably like 1.4 million in gross sales over that time, based on my memory. They have the 1099 copies from marketplaces which don't even include refunds for returns! We're talking maybe, 6% take after deductions, cogs, etc if based on prior years. so maybe like $84K divided by 3, most being in year 2015, 2016 falling and 2017 tanking hard to a few hundred thousand in sales. I borrowed money from friends just to make it through and maxed every credit card I had. They have never contacted me, sent any letters. if I get a notice that I owe taxes on millions in sales, instead of the 6% or so I truly made, I'll do exactly what said above. I'm not going to have the will power to deal with it as I can't even recall much from those years as I suffered so much, it's mostly a blank.
Every program I've read requires filing and I can't file what I don't have. I will never paymore than what I made, plus penalities/interest. They will have to rip it from my cold dead hands. wellz there won't be much as I don't own much. I just finally got a car after 3 yrs without one and business has been good over past year and half. I want to expand and get a warehouse and employees, but I can't do it. I just can't knowing how fragile I am and everything is. Just a volcano of pain waiting to explode. Therapy only does so much when fear overrides it. And I'm not even scared of them. I'm scared of myself and my reaction.
In my head I thought, maybe they will be kind and just move on and let me keep living and pay taxes now and into future, but reality kicks in. No filing, no compromise! This is the USA where they tax the crap out of us to fund thier greedy hands to fund wars. It's never about us. Don't pay, fck you. Just a number and when that number is faulty or expired so be it. But why can't they just look at current and prior years, come up with a reasonable number and go from there? ohh that's right, again USA! Would rather turn me into a slave in prison working for pennies and watch me suffer more.
Anyways, input? And leave me alone on the crazy stuff, I don't need to hear it. Just the options that may be available to the situation. Maybe I hire an attorney to negotiate with them? idk. And I'm sorry, the isolation has made me hate people. I don't even have any friends anymore as I brcame very toxic and negative and developed anger issue from the pain. The only people who talk to me are my parents really and health folk. So yeah, hard for me to even ask for help. just airing it all out. Nothing was intentionally done. I used to be one of those people who got mad at folks making money under table. I think that's why it has ruined me so much as it goes against my own morals. I just have mental issues and I feel like that won't be good enough reason.Best part, because I isolated myself so much, I have no records of doctors, etc as I never went back than. I suffered seizures in my home by myself, dizzy spells passing out, delusions, paranoia and to top it off my neighbor would yell things outside like crazy! freak! come out come out you nutjob! Led me to have all blinds curtains closed and live in darkness for a year and half

Honestly sad about the outcome. Program: Master of public health Background: BPharm School: University of Adelaide Country: Nigeria
Reason: The applicant has indicated after the course they will return to their home country and will resume employment with a prospective employer as a Public Health Officer at ———. I have considered whether there is strong evidence, and it is plausible that in the current local environment an employer would hold an appropriate position available for a future employee for a period of two years. I find that improbable. As such, I am not satisfied the applicant’s employment situation provides strong incentive for them to return home on completion of their proposed studies in Australia. I have given regard to the applicant’s immigration history. I have had regard to the applicant’s previous immigration history. I have considered all information the applicant has provided regarding their immigration history and find that no adverse information has been presented in relation to this criterion. I have had regard to the applicant’s acknowledgement in their application that if granted a Student visa, they are required to understand and abide by its visa conditions. I place some weight on that in favour of the applicant. I have given regard to whether there is any other matter that is relevant to the assessment of the applicant’s genuine intention to temporarily stay in Australia, and I find that there are no other relevant matters for consideration. Based on the information before me and my assessment detailed above, I am not satisfied that the applicant meets clause 500.212.
University has cancelled my COE already and I have no right to appeal.
What could I have done differently?. I don’t think they read my length SOP (letter of explanation). Spent a lot of money on visa fee and felt so sure of the outcome
Also found out my Agent made grammatical errors in naming the files , I don’t know if that negatively affected my approval.

DAY: JUNE 9 2024
6-9-2024

MOURNERS CAN NOW SPEAK TO AN AI VERSION OF THE DEAD. BUT WILL THAT HELP WITH GRIEF?

Anett Bommer holds the arm of her husband Michael Bommer, who is terminally ill with colon cancer, during a meeting with The Associated Press at his home in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, May 22, 2024. Bommer, who has only a few more weeks to live, teamed up with friend who runs the AI-powered legacy platform Eternos to “create a comprehensive, interactive AI version of himself, allowing relatives to engage with his life experiences and insights,” after he has passed away.
6-9-2024

CAN ALZHEIMER’S REALLY BE REVERSED, AS A NEW DOCUMENTARY CLAIMS?

Two people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s claim to have conquered the disease through simple lifestyle changes. Dementia and Alzheimer’s have been the leading killers in the UK for the last ten years, accounting for 11.4% of deaths in 2022. Although new drugs can reduce the disease’s progression, more evidence is emerging that something as simple as integrating a healthy lifestyle can “reverse” symptoms of Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s disease can be split in two subgroups, familial and sporadic. Only 5% of patients with Alzheimer’s are familial, inherited, and 95% of Alzheimer’s patients are
6-9-2024

AI SEARCH ANSWERS ARE NO SUBSTITUTE FOR GOOD SOURCES

If you have used Google lately and been lucky—or unlucky—enough to encounter an answer to your query rather than a bunch of links, you have been subjected to something called AI Overviews. This is a new core feature that Google has been rolling out, a move widely anticipated since the company’s experiments with its LaMDA large language model in 2021, and since OpenAI’s ChatGPT artificial intelligence chatbot rocketed to prominence in 2023. This feature is yet another addition to the increasing number of add-ons and tools being integrated into search
6-9-2024

WHAT ARE COMPOUND EXERCISES AND WHY ARE THEY GOOD FOR YOU?

So you’ve got yourself a gym membership or bought a set of home weights. Now what? With the sheer amount of confusing exercise advice out there, it can be hard to decide what to include in a weights routine. It can help to know there are broadly two types of movements in resistance training (lifting weights): compound exercises and isolation exercises. So what’s the difference? And what’s all this got to do with strength, speed and healthy aging? What’s the difference? Compound exercises involve multiple joints and muscle groups working
6-9-2024

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY TESTS SHOW AIS ARE IRRATIONAL—JUST NOT IN THE SAME WAY THAT HUMANS ARE

Large language models behind popular generative AI platforms like ChatGPT gave different answers when asked to respond to the same reasoning test and didn’t improve when given additional context, finds a new study by researchers at University College London. The study tested the most advanced large language models (LLMs) using cognitive psychology tests to gauge their capacity for reasoning. The results highlight the importance of understanding how these AIs “think” before entrusting them with tasks, particularly those involving decision-making. In recent years, the LLMs
6-9-2024

GOING AFTER AI’S DARK SIDE

New Hampshire voters received a barrage of robocalls in which a computer-generated imitation of President Biden discouraged them from voting in the January primary. While the admitted mastermind was slapped with felony charges and a proposed FCC fine, his deed is just one wound left by the cutting-edge technology law enforcement is struggling to catch up with: artificial intelligence. Computer-generated “deepfakes” can impersonate not only the voice and face of anyone but can contribute to the manipulation of and the sexual and reputational harm to individuals and the public at
6-9-2024

AI ‘GOLD RUSH’ FOR CHATBOT TRAINING DATA COULD RUN OUT OF HUMAN-WRITTEN TEXT

Digital Embed Artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT could soon run out of what keeps making them smarter—the tens of trillions of words people have written and shared online. A new study released Thursday by research group Epoch AI projects that tech companies will exhaust the supply of publicly available training data for AI language models by roughly the turn of the decade—sometime between 2026 and 2032. Comparing it to a “literal
6-9-2024

CAN AI-GENERATED CONTENT BE A THREAT TO DEMOCRACY?

In the not-too-distant future, most of the information people consume on the internet will be influenced by artificial intelligence, a Northeastern expert says. And while it is impossible to slow the use of AI, it is crucial to understand AI’s limits—both what it cannot and should not do—and to adopt ethical norms for its development and deployment, says
6-9-2024

USING AI TO DECODE DOG VOCALIZATIONS

Have you ever wished you could understand what your dog is trying to say to you? University of Michigan researchers are exploring the possibilities of AI, developing tools that can identify whether a dog’s bark conveys playfulness or aggression. The same models can also glean other information from animal vocalizations, such as the animal’s age, breed and sex. A collaboration with
6-9-2024

HOW NAPSTER CREATED A MONSTER THAT BECAME BIGGER THAN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY

Musicians are furious that new tech has gutted their income. Record labels are wary, yet eager to cut deals with ascendant platforms. Fans are delighted to access songs for a pittance, even as they’re screwing over beloved artists. The fears about today’s streaming economy echo the existential panic when Napster debuted in 1999. The peer-to-peer service—where fans swapped catalogs of MP3 song files—walloped the record business. It helped demolish billions in label revenue, forcing a sclerotic industry to reassess its entire model. It scrambled loyalties among fans, artists, tech companies
6-9-2024

MENOPAUSE TREATMENTS CAN HELP WITH HOT FLASHES AND OTHER SYMPTOMS—BUT MANY PEOPLE AREN’T AWARE OF THE LATEST ADVANCES

Menopause used to be a taboo topic in many quarters. Now, it’s frequently in the news. In March 2024, the White House announced an initiative to “Galvanize New Research on Women’s Midlife Health.” In May, Sen. Patty Murray introduced bipartisan legislation that would spend US$275 million to improve menopause care and midlife health. The actor Halle Berry went to Capitol Hill to help draw attention to the measure. While she was there, she shouted: “I’m in menopause.” This new focus on menopause and the greater openness to talking about it
6-9-2024

FUTURE-SELF CHATBOT GIVES USERS A GLIMPSE OF THE LIFE AHEAD OF THEM

“Future You” is an interactive chat platform that allows users to chat with a relatable yet virtual version of their future selves in real time via a large language model that has been personalized based on a pre-intervention survey centered on user future goals and personal qualities. To make the conversation realistic, the system generates an individualized synthetic memory for the user’s future self that contains a backstory for the user at age 60. To increase the believability of the future-self character, the system applies age progress to the user’s
6-9-2024

SINGLE EPISODE OF INTENSE EXERCISE REDUCES PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND BODY TEMPERATURE, CONTRIBUTING TO WEIGHT GAIN

Exercise is often recommended as an effective strategy for weight loss. However, a recent animal study at University of Tsukuba revealed that intense exercise sessions can decrease subsequent physical activity levels and body temperature, ultimately contributing to weight gain. This observation may be linked to disruptions in the circadian rhythm of the stress hormone corticosterone and may disturb the synchronous effects of physical activity and body temperature. Exercise provides numerous health benefits, but its effects on weight loss are sometimes less than expected. This phenomenon may be secondary to reduced
6-9-2024

RESEARCHERS DEVELOP AI THAT RECOGNIZES ATHLETES’ EMOTIONS

Using computer-assisted neural networks, researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the University of Duisburg-Essen have been able to accurately identify affective states from the body language of tennis players during games. For the first time, they trained a model based on artificial intelligence (AI) with data from actual games. Their study demonstrates that AI can assess body language and emotions with accuracy similar to that of humans. However, it also points to ethical concerns. For their study, “Recognizing affective states from
6-9-2024

AI TOOL CREATES DECEPTIVE BIDEN, TRUMP IMAGES, TESTS SHOW

Midjourney’s guardrails failed in forty percent of test cases, according to the nonprofit CCDH. Tests on a leading AI tool allowed the creation of deceptive and incriminating images of President Joe Biden and Donald Trump, a watchdog said Wednesday, despite pledges to block fake photos of the presidential contenders ahead of elections in November. Disinformation researchers fear rampant misuse of AI-powered applications in a year of major elections around the world, thanks to proliferating online tools that are cheap and easy to use and lack sufficient guardrails. The non-profit Center
6-9-2024

GLOWING DYE MAY HELP SURGEONS ERADICATE PROSTATE CANCER

A glowing marker dye that sticks to prostate cancer cells could help surgeons to remove them in real-time Scientists used a fluorescent dye attached to a special marker molecule to give medics a
6-9-2024

RESEARCHERS DETERMINE TIMING IS KEY FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES DRUG PERFORMANCE

Researchers could be closer to discovering a better way to use metformin, a common type 2 diabetes medication. Metformin, which has been a cornerstone in diabetes treatment since the 1960s, is typically taken with meals to reduce gastrointestinal side effects, but new research is suggesting patients could see improved results if it’s taken before meals. Dr. Cong Xie postdoctoral research fellow in the Centre of Research Excellence in Translating Nutritional Science to Good Health, at Adelaide Medical School,
6-9-2024

ARE DATA BREACHES THE NEW NORMAL? SHOULD WE JUST ASSUME OUR DATA ISN’T SAFE?

In recent days, both Ticketek Australia and Ticketmaster have experienced breaches which have exposed customer details to hackers. They join a growing list of high-profile data breaches that have put the privacy of millions at risk. For example, in 2022, Optus disclosed a breach of 9.8 million records. In 2023, Latitude, the Australian financial services firm, experienced a data breach of more than 14 million records. My own university, the Australian National University, experienced a data breach of 200,000 records in 2018. Dan Murphy’s, Football Australia, Microsoft,
6-9-2024

WE ASKED CHATGPT FOR LEGAL ADVICE—HERE ARE FIVE REASONS WHY YOU SHOULDN’T

At some point in your life, you are likely to need legal advice. A survey carried out in 2023 by the Law Society, the Legal Services Board and YouGov found that two-thirds of respondents had experienced a legal issue in the past four years. The most common problems were employment, finance, welfare and benefits and consumer issues. But not everyone can afford to pay for legal advice. Of those survey respondents with legal problems, only 52% received professional help, 11% had assistance from other people such as family and friends
6-9-2024

NVIDIA AND AMD SQUARE OFF IN FIGHT TO TAKE CONTROL OF AI

Nvidia Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.’s chiefs showcased new generations of the chips powering the global boom in AI development, deepening a rivalry that may decide the direction of artificial intelligence design and adoption. Jensen Huang and Lisa Su—both born in Taiwan and now local celebrities for leading U.S. tech powerhouses—employed different tacks in conveying their expertise during back-to-back shows at the world’s largest computing conference this week in Taipei. Nvidia’s CEO repeatedly voiced his $2.7 trillion company’s dominance in the accelerators that OpenAI and Microsoft Corp. rely on
6-9-2024

CUTTING-EDGE VISION CHIP BRINGS HUMAN EYE-LIKE PERCEPTION TO MACHINES

With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, unmanned systems such as autonomous driving and embodied intelligence are continuously being promoted and applied in real-world scenarios, leading to a new wave of technological revolution and industrial transformation. Visual perception, a core means of information acquisition, plays a crucial role in these intelligent systems. However, achieving efficient, precise, and robust visual perception in dynamic, diverse, and unpredictable environments remains an open challenge. In open-world scenarios, intelligent systems must not only process vast
6-9-2024

RESEARCHERS INVESTIGATING HOW AI CATEGORIZES IMAGES FIND SIMILARITIES TO VISUAL SYSTEMS IN NATURE

Researchers have investigated how an artificial intelligence categorizes images. The results show astonishing similarities to visual systems in nature. How do you teach a machine to recognize objects in images? Huge progress has been made in this area in recent years. With the help of neural networks, for example, images of animals can be assigned to the respective species with a very high success rate. This is achieved by training a neural network
6-9-2024

THE RISING INFLUENCE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES ON GLOBAL MARKETS

In the ever-evolving landscape of automotive technology, electric vehicles (EVs) have emerged as front-runners in the global push towards sustainability. A study delves deep into the motivators and barriers influencing consumer adoption of electric vehicles worldwide, providing a comprehensive review that highlights significant insights for both policymakers and potential EV consumers. The allure of electric vehicles primarily stems from
6-9-2024

MODEL USES MATHEMATICAL PSYCHOLOGY TO HELP COMPUTERS UNDERSTAND HUMAN EMOTIONS

Researchers have developed a model that enables computers to interpret and understand human emotions, utilizing principles of mathematical psychology. This advancement could significantly improve the interface between humans and smart technologies, including artificial intelligence systems, making them more intuitive and responsive to user feelings.
6-9-2024

STUDY CLAIMING ANTIDEPRESSANT WITHDRAWAL IS LESS COMMON THAN THOUGHT FAILS TO ACCOUNT FOR RISKS IN LONG-TERM USERS

A new review of research about antidepressant withdrawal has confirmed it does exist, but also reports that it’s less common and severe than previously found. These findings feed into a growing debate about how common and severe withdrawal effects are. But we argue the researchers probably underestimate the incidence in long-term users who are most at risk of withdrawal effects. One of the main limitations of this review is that it involved mostly short-term antidepressant users and therefore underestimates how common these symptoms are in people who take the drugs
6-9-2024

INTEGRATING ACTUATION AND SENSING FOR SMARTER SOFT ROBOTS

The world of robotics is witnessing a transformative shift with the rise of soft robotics, which offers unparalleled flexibility and adaptability in various applications, from medical interventions to intricate rescue operations.

• 6-9-2024NEW RANSOMWARE ATTACK BASED ON AN EVOLUTIONAL GENERATIVE ADVERSARIAL NETWORK CAN EVADE SECURITY MEASURES
• 6-9-2024RESEARCHERS DEVELOP NOVEL METHOD FOR COMPACTLY IMPLEMENTING IMAGE-RECOGNIZING AI
• 6-9-2024CHINESE ROBOT DEVELOPERS HOPE FOR ROAD OUT OF ‘UNCANNY VALLEY’
• 6-9-2024TIKTOK SAYS CYBERATTACK TARGETED CNN AND OTHER ‘HIGH-PROFILE ACCOUNTS’
• 6-9-2024RAGE TOOL UNVEILS CHATGPT’S SOURCES
• 6-9-2024STUDY CLAIMING ANTIDEPRESSANT WITHDRAWAL IS LESS COMMON THAN THOUGHT FAILS TO ACCOUNT FOR RISKS IN LONG-TERM USERS
• 6-9-2024PEOPLE WITH AUTISM TURN TO CHATGPT FOR ADVICE ON WORKPLACE ISSUES
• 6-9-2024RESISTING THE BACKLASH AGAINST EQUITY IN MEDICINE WILL IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR ALL
• 6-9-2024NOVEL ANALYSIS METHODS USED FOR HUNTINGTON’S DISEASE
• 6-9-2024AIRLINES EYE ‘NEW FRONTIER’ OF AI AHEAD OF GLOBAL SUMMIT
• 6-9-2024INTEGRATING ACTUATION AND SENSING FOR SMARTER SOFT ROBOTS
• 6-9-2024SURVEILLANCE ROBOT COULD IMPROVE REHABILITATION FOR PATIENTS WITH LOWER LIMB WEAKNESS
• 6-9-2024INTEL UNVEILS NEW AI CHIPS AT COMPUTEX AMID RIVALRY WITH NVIDIA, AMD, QUALCOMM
• 6-9-2024NVIDIA AND AMD SQUARE OFF IN FIGHT TO TAKE CONTROL OF AI
• 6-9-2024NEW ELECTRONIC SKIN MIMICS HUMAN TOUCH WITH 3D ARCHITECTURE
• 6-9-2024NEW OPEN-SOURCE PLATFORM ALLOWS USERS TO EVALUATE PERFORMANCE OF AI-POWERED CHATBOTS
• 6-9-2024MODEL USES MATHEMATICAL PSYCHOLOGY TO HELP COMPUTERS UNDERSTAND HUMAN EMOTIONS
• 6-9-2024WHERE ‘NEXTDOOR’ COMMUNITIES EXIST AND WHAT THESE COMMUNITIES TALK ABOUT
• 6-9-2024META’S AI CAN TRANSLATE DOZENS OF UNDER-RESOURCED LANGUAGES
• 6-9-2024NETFLIX’S RECIPE FOR SUCCESS INCLUDES ‘SECRET SAUCE’ SPICED WITH SILICON VALLEY SAVVY
• 6-9-2024CRYPTOCURRENCIES USE MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF POWER, BUT ECO-FRIENDLY ALTERNATIVES COME WITH THEIR OWN RISKS
• 6-9-2024WHAT MAKES ROADS SAFER? NEW STUDY USES AI TO FIND OUT
• 6-9-2024AI AND ROBOTICS ENHANCE DESIGN OF SUSTAINABLE AEROGELS FOR WEARABLE TECH
• 6-9-2024STUDY SHOWS PREGNANT WOMEN ADMITTED TO INTENSIVE CARE IN SCOTLAND ARE 12 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE A STILLBIRTH
• 6-9-2024BETTER CARE INTEGRATION NEEDED FOR MOTHERS IN SUBSTANCE USE SERVICES
• 6-9-2024PATTERN OF BLOOD PLASMA PROTEIN LEVELS REVEALS DEVELOPMENT OF SEPSIS IN PATIENTS
• 6-9-2024WITH BIRD FLU A THREAT, FDA ASKS SOME STATES TO CURB SALES OF RAW MILK
• 6-9-2024INHIBITION OF EPIGENETIC CONTROL ENZYMES IN IMMUNE CELLS AS A POTENTIAL NEW STARTING POINT IN CANCER IMMUNOTHERAPY
• 6-9-2024WITH PROGRAMMABLE PIXELS, NOVEL SENSOR IMPROVES IMAGING OF NEURAL ACTIVITY
• 6-9-2024REVIEWING SYSTEMIC PROBLEMS FOR AUTISTIC ADULTS IN STEMM: Q&A
• 6-9-2024STUDY FINDS SOCIAL INTERACTIONS AND OLFACTORY CUES PROMPT CONTAGIOUS ITCH IN MICE
• 6-9-2024A PROGRAM FUNDED BY SODA TAX HELPS LOW-INCOME RESIDENTS BUY FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
• 6-9-2024UNDERSTANDING INEQUITIES IN NURSES’ MORAL DISTRESS DURING COVID-19
• 6-9-2024SUPPRESSING GRAFT-VERSUS-HOST DISEASE USING IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE IPS CELL-DERIVED REGULATORY T CELLS
• 6-9-2024HOW $4 BILLION FUNDED THE UNPRECEDENTED COVID-19 PANDEMIC RESPONSE
• 6-9-2024EXCESS NUTRIENT SIGNALS IN CELLS LEAD TO PREMATURE AGING IN ANIMALS, STUDY SHOWS
• 6-9-2024SECURE ACCESS TO FOOD AND WATER IS DECREASING FOR US CHILDREN, RESEARCH FINDS
• 6-9-2024NEW STUDY SHEDS LIGHT ON THE RATE, NATURE AND TRANSMISSION OF MITOCHONDRIAL DNA MUTATIONS IN HUMANS
• 6-9-2024SCIENTISTS DEVELOP NEW CRISPR GENE EDITING PLATFORM FOR PRECISION MEDICINE AND CANCER TREATMENT
• 6-9-2024RESEARCHERS SAY THAT PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS AND ADDICTION SHOULD NOT BE EXCLUDED FROM EXERCISE INTERVENTIONS
• 6-9-2024ADVANCEMENTS IN PROTEIN ENGINEERING OFFER HOPE FOR CANCER THERAPIES
• 6-9-2024NEW THERAPEUTIC APPROACH FOR FRONTOTEMPORAL DEMENTIA USES MODIFIED VIRUSES TO REPLACE A MISSING PROTEIN IN THE BRAIN
• 6-9-2024VISUALIZING HIV VIRAL DYNAMICS IN CELLS WITH DUAL FLUORESCENCE
• 6-9-2024DANGEROUS WORK, UNMET HEALTH CARE NEEDS ADD UP TO MORE DEATHS, NEGATIVE HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR TEXAS SHRIMPERS
• 6-9-2024CLINICAL TRIAL SHOWS 15-DAY PAXLOVID REGIMEN SAFE BUT ADDS NO CLEAR BENEFIT FOR LONG COVID
• 6-9-2024NEW DANISH REPORT CLAIMS IMPROVEMENTS IN COUNSELING FOR YOUNG PEOPLE MAY DISPEL MYTH THAT OPIOIDS ARE HARMLESS
• 6-9-2024STUDY SHOWS LINK BETWEEN PHOTO FILTER USE AND MUSCLE DYSMORPHIA AMONG TEENS, YOUNG ADULTS
• 6-9-2024DIFC DETECTS RARE CELLS NONINVASIVELY
• 6-9-2024STUDY FINDS NO ASSOCIATION BETWEEN COVID-19 VACCINES AND STILLBIRTHS
• 6-9-2024BARTONELLA DNA FOUND IN BLOOD OF PATIENTS WITH PSYCHOSIS
• 6-9-2024ONLY 1.6% OF US DOCTORS WERE BLACK IN 1906—THE LEGACY OF INEQUALITY IN MEDICAL EDUCATION HAS NOT YET BEEN ERASED
• 6-9-2024ISOTRETINOIN EFFECTIVE FOR ACNE IN THOSE RECEIVING GENDER-AFFIRMING THERAPY, STUDY SHOWS
• 6-9-2024NEW GENE THERAPY OFFERS HOPE FOR DEAF KIDS
• 6-9-2024RESEARCH IDENTIFIES ISSUES WITH BOOKING NEW APPOINTMENTS AT CLINICS FOR CANCER TREATMENT
• 6-9-2024SOCIALLY CONNECTED OLDER ADULTS HIT HARDER BY PANDEMIC THAN ISOLATED PEERS
• 6-9-2024LYMPHEDEMA—A LESSER-KNOWN BREAST CANCER TREATMENT SIDE EFFECT WITH LIFELONG IMPACTS
• 6-9-2024INCREASING COVID-19 VACCINATIONS THROUGH COMMUNITY-BASED SOLUTIONS
• 6-9-2024STUDY FINDS PRIMARY CILIA RESTRICT AUTOINFLAMMATION BY MEDIATING PD-L1 EXPRESSION
• 6-9-2024A STEP TOWARD GLOBAL HEALTH RESILIENCE
• 6-9-2024STUDY REPORTS NORMAL VALUES OF 3D ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC RIGHT VENTRICULAR VOLUME ESTABLISHED IN CHINESE ADULTS
• 6-9-2024PERTUSSIS OUTBREAK IN NEONATES AND YOUNG INFANTS ACROSS ITALY: IMPLICATIONS FOR VACCINATION STRATEGIES
• 6-9-2024STUDY SHOWS MAGNESIUM SULFATE REDUCES RISK OF CEREBRAL PALSY AND DEATH FOR VERY PRETERM BABIES
• 6-9-2024MORE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS REGULAR CONSUMPTION OF MELATONIN CAN REDUCE CHANCES OF AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION
• 6-9-2024STUDY FINDS HONG KONG ACQUIRED HEMOPHILIA A PATIENTS ARE DOUBLE THAT OF CAUCASIAN POPULATIONS
• 6-9-2024INCREASED LIFESPAN OF INDIVIDUALS LIVING WITH CEREBRAL PALSY NECESSITATES A BROADER PERSPECTIVE ON CARE, RESEARCHERS SAY
• 6-9-2024RESEARCHERS SAY RESISTANCE EXERCISE BOOSTS OUTCOMES AFTER EARLY-STAGE BREAST CANCER SURGERY

Hey guys,
I'm back with some of the best longform profiles I've found this week. You can also subscribe here if you want to get the weekly newsletter in your inbox. Any feedback or suggestions, please let me know!
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🚔 The Border Patrol Is an Engine of Crisis—and Has Been Since the Beginning
Tim Murphy Mother Jones
The agency, and the landmark immigration-reform bill that nudged it into existence in May 1924, were backed by eugenicist politicians who feared a Great Replacement by “undesirable” immigrants. The story of the Border Patrol’s founding offers a lesson for the century that followed, and a rejoinder to the agency’s modern myth: Chaos is not just the absence of a border; it is also the consequence of trying to maintain one.
🍕 How Food Critic Keith Lee Went From MMA Fighter to TikTok Star
CT Jones Rolling Stone
His reviews have helped stop businesses from closing, jump-started their online presence, and, in one case, spun a city’s food scene into complete turmoil in less than two videos. Lee’s fans span from teenagers to their parents, uncles, and aunts, a generational divide that other influencers couldn’t even pay to win over. Lee has become the Everyman voice of food TikTok. He’s a bona fide star — just don’t let him hear you say it.
📝 “Curb Your Enthusiasm” Was Larry David’s Book of Manners (🔒 paywall link)
Wesley Morris The New York Times
Even people who don’t watch the show (and that’s most of the country) seem to know the gist, that Larry, as performed by Larry David, is a monstrously entitled crank, the Godzilla of western Los Angeles. But “Curb Your Enthusiasm” is about more than Larry’s probable narcissism. It’s a supreme comedy of manners. How, it asks, do we share a meal, a drive, a party, a meeting, a bathroom, an office pantry, a city — how do we courteously enforce norms and, with modesty, uphold standards?
📰 How to Publish a Magazine in a Maximum-Security Prison
John J. Lennon The New Yorker
I hate to look at it this way, but the fact is, if I had not gone to prison, I would have been dead a long, long time ago. I didn’t care what happened to me. I didn’t have the kind of knowledge and education I have today, where we can discuss this. Back then, I was angry. I just had emotions and feelings. They drive you. You’re too stupid to know anything else.
🧬 This Woman Will Decide Which Babies Are Born
Jason Kehe WIRED
There will still be disease and suffering. We are not that much of an optimistic fantasy. We are taking risk off of the table. For the whole category of cancer, for example, about 10 percent to 15 percent has a genetic component. So 90 percent of people will still get cancer. And the same with neurodevelopmental disorders and birth defects. It’s just going to make it so that more parents can feel more confident and have more information going into the most important decision of their life, which is to have a child.
🎬 Robert Downey Jr. Doesn’t See Things the Way You Do
Ryan D'Agostino Esquire
“It’s so funny, too, because you either constantly remind yourself when things aren’t going your way, or you’re constantly reminded externally when things are going your way,” he says, unwrapping a nugget of Nicorette. “Clearly, the latter is preferable.” He smiles, the bright, boyish smile—rubbery lips and eyes like a sad clown’s and not a care on God’s green earth—that has broken your heart or made you laugh in a thousand scenes.
🎨 It’s Not What the World Needs Right Now
Andrew Norman Wilson The Baffler
But Trump is in office, and my work is deemed less “urgent”—“irresponsible,” even. A curator who selected me for an Art Basel commission ghosts me. A gallerist who wants to work with me says she can’t add a white man to her roster. An esteemed curator from the Middle East tells me I should probably get a day job for a while because my career outlook in the art world is bleak. It becomes trendy to believe that images within contemporary art contexts can directly achieve the goals of political struggle.
🎤 Erick the Architect of Flatbush Zombies constructs his own sound
Brian Braiker Brooklyn Magazine
You either fuck with my music or you don’t. If you don’t, that’s cool with me. I wanted to make a project that I love. I’ve heard reviewers write, “This is like a mess.” I’m like, What are you listening to? If this is a mess, what the fuck is good in hip-hop music? How the hell is this a mess? Or, “This is awkward to listen to.” I’m being so honest. If my honesty makes you uncomfortable, then I’m not the artist for you.
🏀 Ladies and Gentlemen, Ian Eagle
Bryan Curtis The Ringer
To understand how Eagle calls a basketball game, you have to visit him and Jack and Monica in the swinging show-business past. You have to travel to Catskills resorts and $10-a-night hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, where you can hear the sting of the drummer in the house band. That’s where Ian Eagle, the no. 1 announcer, was created.
👔 How Marni Designer Francesco Risso Built the Ultimate Fashion Playground
Samuel Hine GQ
In a way, the cave also served as a metaphor for Risso’s own eight-year journey to becoming one of the most captivating and irreverent creative voices in fashion. Italian menswear is heavy with tradition, but since Risso joined Marni in 2016 he has built his own distinct—and highly unpredictable—universe. He has defied the commercial imperative of the modern luxury business, which increasingly dictates that the fantasy of fashion should take a backseat to the business of it.
🤖 OpenAI Made Sam Altman Famous. His Investments Made Him A Billionaire.(🔒 paywall link)
Alex Konrad, Phoebe Liu Forbes
A founder turned partner and president at Y Combinator who has invested out of a number of funds over his career, Altman maintains a maze of holdings that are not well understood. Forbes sifted through more than a dozen regulatory filings and spoke to more than a dozen people familiar with Altman’s investments to reach the most thorough estimate of his net worth so far: $1 billion, enough to make Altman a new billionaire.
🕵️‍♂️ The Family Who Vanished Into the Bush
Dan Kois Slate
Soon photos of the missing father and his three smiling children were in every newspaper and on every TV channel in New Zealand. Police and volunteer searchers fanned out over the area, knocking on doors. Helicopters, planes, and heat-detecting drones flew over the deep bush surrounding the beach. Rescue boats and jet skis buzzed through the roaring waves, looking for bodies. On days the sea was calm, swimmers from surf rescue teams explored caves along the shoreline.
🍾 How Jay-Z and the 40/40 Club Ruled NYC Nightlife (🔒 paywall link)
Abe Beame Rolling Stone
The allure of proximity to Carter and his circle was the main draw. Once you got through the heavy, fortress-like, wood-panel doors with silver baseball-bat handles off of 25th Street, you might see J. Cole performing on the stairs or Alonzo Mourning hanging out alongside Dame Dash, sharing plates from the menu of greasy, salty, beer-friendly sports-bar standards. Any random day over two decades, Carter and his friends might be in a visible roped-off area, or lingering somewhere in the far recesses of the club.
✈️ The Boeing Nosedive
Jeff Wise New York Magazine
Contemporary air travel is the safest mode of transport human beings have ever devised. That’s because when things go wrong, a robust procedure has been developed to learn from what happened and make changes to reduce the odds that they will happen again. Almost always, aviation accidents happen after a chain of mistakes, any one of which would have prevented the accident from occurring. The challenge for Boeing is to apply that analysis to its own slowly unfolding corporate disaster and find a way to fix its chain of management failures.
🔫 Confessions of a Moll: A Boston Gangster’s Long-Time Girlfriend Speaks
Dave Wedge Boston Magazine
To Grispi, though, Flemmi was something else entirely. She threw her arms around the gangster’s neck and planted a kiss on his lips. For the past nine years, she had been Flemmi’s moll, as gangsters’ girlfriends are known. Throughout the 1960s, a decade known in Boston for its deadly and terrifying gang wars, Grispi had an intimate view of a notorious criminal operating in the city’s underworld and his interactions with his mentors, who would also become his targets.
💸 How A Texas Oil Billionaire Hit A Gusher In Hotels (🔒 paywall link)
Christopher Helman Forbes
Deep in the early 1980s oil bust, the Rowlings and their Tana Oil & Gas couldn’t find any partners to back a particularly promising prospect in Live Oak County. With their lease set to expire, they bet it all on drilling one well. It was 100% risk but they found an oil field prolific enough to support 17 more wells. Only a few years later, in 1989, Texaco bought nearly all of Tana’s assets for $480 million worth of preferred stock paying 9%. “We got paid, and continued to get paid,” says Rowling, who was tasked with diversifying the fortune.
🧠 She had a severe brain injury—so her husband turned to an unprecedented therapy(🔒 paywall link)
Jonathan Moens National Geographic
Every day, for more than 550 days, David has been meticulously noting Sarah’s condition and the impact of treatments: stimulants, sleeping pills, ADHD medications, supplements, cognitive enhancers known as “nootropics," and techniques to arouse the brain, including transcranial direct-current stimulation. He’s also tried various recommended nutrients administered through a feeding tube: shots of espresso, scoops of matcha, mushroom-based powders, liquid turmeric, lemon juice, and Chinese acupuncture tea.
🏡 One Couple's Quest to Ditch Natural Gas
Tik Root WIRED
What unfolded was more than a year of cascading decisions and obstacles that strained our wallets and tested our notions of comfort and sacrifice. While the late nights buried to my knuckles in spreadsheets calculating the payback periods on heat pumps and solar panels were, dare I say, fun, my nerves began to fray when the solar company we wanted to hire abruptly went out of business. They nearly broke when I saw what all of this would cost, and they shattered when I thought we’d have to upgrade the electrical panel. My wife found her limit when we were forced to choose between cutting emissions or cutting trees.
🗑️ The Ex-N.Y.P.D. Official Trying to Tame New York’s Trash
Eric Lach The New Yorker
Tisch believes that she and her aides have developed a plan that will clean up New York City. It’s a program they refer to, grandly, as the Trash Revolution. Bags off the sidewalks. Clean highways. Citywide organic-waste pickup. Beefed-up enforcement of sanitary laws. Tisch has committed her department to implementing these changes, along with other improvements that have eluded previous sanitation commissioners.
🌵 One Man's Quest to Transform the West Texas Desert
Wes Ferguson Texas Highways
He grew up in the Fort Worth suburbs and still lives there with his wife, Neidy Overton, and their three kids. Entering middle age, he’d grown financially comfortable from his career as a software programmer and small-business owner, but he also felt burned out. Overton enjoyed watching online videos about permaculture, a farming movement that preaches harmony with nature. Like many urban dwellers, he fantasized of returning to the land, of building something with his own hands.
🎾 Zendaya Talks Challengers, Talks to Serena Williams, and Considers Her Future
Marley Marius Vogue
Zendaya wrestles with how to exist in public—what to share, what to show up to, how to avoid it all becoming too overwhelming. At one point none of it felt like a choice: “I think growing up, I always felt like when someone asks for a picture, I have to do it, all the time. You have to say yes, because you need to be grateful that you’re here,” she says. “And while I still feel that way, I also have learned that I can say no, and I can say kindly that I’m having a day off, or I’m just trying to be to myself today, and I don’t actually have to perform all the time.”
⚖️ How a Case Against Fox News Tore Apart a Media-Fighting Law Firm (🔒 paywall link)
David Enrich The New York Times
Litigation, however, tended to be a last resort. More frequently, Mr. Clare, Ms. Locke and their colleagues sought to derail or shape stories before publication. To do this, they cranked out warning letters to reporters, editors, publishers and their lawyers trying to poke holes in planned articles and accusing journalists of bias, unethical behavior and getting facts wrong. Citing the possibility of litigation, the letters often instructed news organizations to preserve all documents, notes and other materials associated with their reporting.
♟️ Chess Brat
Jen Wieczner New York Magazine
Long before the scandal, he was notorious for his volatile demeanor and widely disliked. He plays with the face of a bull preparing to charge: raw rage in his scowl, bug-eyed glare, nostrils flaring. Livestreams of his games often end with Niemann screaming and pounding his computer, making the speakers explode with feedback and the webcam tumble down in a blur of lights.
🤯 Inside the Savage, Surreal, Booming World of Professional Slap Fighting
Ander Monson Esquire
It’s the replay, caught with super-slo-mo cameras, that makes it exactly the kind of weird I like: We see the hand approaching the face and then the impact. BAM! Phillips’s face is briefly displaced off his skull, his neck skin stretching, his face in this moment deformed like a rubber mask—that’s how unlike a face it looks!—and then suddenly it snaps back on. And in that extended instant we see the light going out. His face is almost peaceful as he falls in the aftermath of such a sudden blast of pain. The clip ends and we don’t see what happens after.

Just curious if anyone has had their OU grades "translated" to US letter grades and/or GPAs -- for example, to apply to a Master's or PhD program in the US.
I found this one article mentioning that the author's Distinctions and Pass 2's were both converted to As by WES (one of the most prominent grade conversion companies), which would be great, but it would be nice to hear form others.

For the record, I will change names for the sake of anonymity, because some people I know browse Reddit.
I have been working with a woman named Tanya for a few years now. Around August last year, we became very close. I've considered her my work mom since then, and me, her work son. Things were great at the first few months of the friendship. We've opened up to one another, told each other some details of our past, secrets, life goals and aspirations, general work gossip and even life advice. Over time, we did things together. We took lunch together, groceries, errands, and other activities like trying out appetizers and slushie spots. We even give each other gifts, and sometimes we share recipes and exchange meals for each other to try. We generally have a good time, and we even have our own inside jokes. I'm highly appreciative of her time, and she feels the same way, so I try my best to make sure the time we spend together is quality. She has also given her boundary that if I were to do anything out of line, she would tell me, and that if it ever goes too far, she will tell me and that it would mean the end of the friendship. We also agreed that communication is a must, and that any discourse or problem, we can and should talk about. One of the things she was worried about was work gossip between the both of us, so we agreed that any invitations would be asked in private, and that nothing too friendly while at work because our co-workers are busybodies.
I wasn't a perfect friend. Because of the high-stress nature of our work, I sometimes get angry, and over the course of the friendship, I have been upset and she has sometimes, unfortunately, been on the receiving end. I sincerely apologize and communicate why and how I got angry. She always forgives me and I take to heart what she says and attempt to always be mindful of her advice, and always try to be better. I'd like to believe I've improved, because I genuinely do feel bad when it happens because she is a very kind and loving person and I don't think she deserves any of that.
For some perspective, one of my traumas (that I haven't shared with Tanya) is that I was essentially ostracized and verbally abused by my schoolmates during high school because people got jealous that I shared free, high-end food to a friend (thanks to my parent's work perks) and they didn't get any. Basically, I found out that the people only liked me because they thought they could get free stuff from me. Fast forward to now, and my co-workers are giving me vibes of that too, especially my supervisor. I'm super weary of bringing anything I make to work, because my supervisor feels that he's entitled to get something because well, he's the supervisor. I get comments like "Oh, where's mine?", "When will you make me mine?", "You always make good stuff but never for me!" and other comments along those lines. Sometimes, he'll even see me coming in at work and the first thing he'll ask is if I brought something or made something. My co-workers are roughly in the same vein, where they'd bother me to make them something, to the point where they would offer me money. I'd feel uncomfortable because they couldn't take no for an answer.
Recently, events have happened where I have been unhappy with how I acted because of me feeling like I'm being controlling towards Tanya. For example, I gave her some baked goods (in private) that she wanted to share with my co-workers. I asked her not to, and I even asked to take it back, not because I don't want her to share, but because I don't want to deal with the bullshit that comes along with it. It's now at a point where I'd feel scummy because I'd only share things with her if I knew it wasn't going to be shared with a co-worker. I've apologized to her about my actions, but haven't given a reason to why I was acting like that, saying that it's a thing that I want to explain in due time. I wasn't comfortable enough to share that part of my life with her, and also because she has stated that she doesn't want to hear any sad stuff regarding my life.
I've finally worked up the courage to open up to her, and wrote a letter about the situation. I've been asking her for a moment of her time to explain and read the letter, because I want her to know that it's sincere, and not a joke or a bit, because I've always been a bit of a jokey, funny guy, and sometimes she perceives texts as jokes even though I'm being sincere. However, she's been declining invitations and I've felt like she's being distant with me. Our conversations die, she's declined the last few meal swap or meal suggestions that I bring up, and she's declined our usual lunch traditions.
She recently sent me a message that she still wants to hang out with me, but because it's the summer time, she wants to focus on her time on her family and kids. I wholeheartedly agreed with her message, because I know my place as the "work son". I still did persist in asking her for her time once in a while, just because I really wanted to get it out of my chest. I explained to her my full intentions, and she hand-waived it as "it's probably something we've already discussed. It's all in your head, it's fine." or "It feels like a goodbye, so just say bye." She suggested that I just text her the letter or just give her the physical copy, but when I mentioned that I'd rather read it to her because she sometimes dismisses my concerns as jokes, she didn't want to do it anymore.
I'm honestly hurt because I really just wanted to tell her, but it feels like she's ignoring my feelings. It doesn't help that it feels like she's trying to get away from me because co-workers have posted photos of her hanging out with them on trips, or dinners at a restaurant, sometimes on the days where she told me that she couldn't hang out because she's busy with her family. Don't get me wrong, I'm not jealous, I'm just hurt that after establishing that communication is essential in this friendship, I didn't think that she'd have to lie to me instead of just outright saying that she wants time alone for herself or whatever.
I want to end the friendship, but I feel like I'm being unreasonable because I feel like I'm not being rational. AIO?

I tried reading all the other articles mentioning her name to find more info. At first, I could only find her first and last name along with her middle initial and her age. One of the articles above, which was written in April of 2022, says she was 29 at the time. This means if she is still alive she is either 31 or 32. Another article mentioned she was from South Carolina so I used this info and I was able to find two addresses to add to my evidence. It seems she moved from South Carolina to Virginia around 2020-2022. Coincidentally the most recent house attached to her name was the same city she talked about in the lawsuit so I’m almost positive it’s a match.
There is one other name that is a possibility that is the same age and lived in Georgia. I also found out there was an alternate spelling of her name with two E’s, which can be done intentionally if you don’t want to sign paperwork under your name or if you’re trying to hide your real identity. (My great-grandfather on my dad’s side switched a letter in his last name before he immigrated to the States back in the early 1900’s. He had been to prison in Ireland and wouldn’t have gotten approved for his visa or whatever the equivalent was at the time.)
A lot of details could just be mistakes by these free Osint sites like the one below. Especially with free ones like the one I used, most of the information unless it can be verified should be taken with a grain of salt. https://inteltechniques.com/tools/index.html
The house she was living in during the trial is in Virginia and the one site said it was paid for up front in September of 2021. It cost 1.2 million dollars and is in a pretty wealthy area of Virginia. One source says her first connection to the house was around August 2020. Two sources say her last attachment to the house and P.O. box was around August of 2022, which would have been a few months after all the court business. She also had a PO Box address listed in both states. The one in Virginia wasn’t too far from her house, but the one in SC was over an hour away from the apartments she lived in before the move. Since the last recorded date attached to the house and PO Box are the same, I think it’s safe to say that she moved to Virginia some time in 2022.
I decided to look at both of the addresses and PO Boxes and the other names connected to them. To stay on track and for privacy, I’ll only mention the people who were associated with the house during the same time Mesha was. Unfortunately, her place in SC was an apartment complex so I couldn’t find much more than that. There were also no real significant attachments to the PO box.
The PO box in Virginia is also attached to a woman who was marked as 124 years. Aside from a phone number, which I’m guessing is a dead lady, there is no other info on her profile. The owner of the home in Virginia appears to be a man in his fifties who has been associated with 5 other homes in the same city in Virginia along with one condo and another home about 2 hours outside Houston, Texas. Looking at the places they are all very modest aside from the house attached to Mesha and one other nearby that also cost a little over a million dollars. He appears to have owned the home Mesha stayed at up until March of 2024 when he moved into a little family home in the same city.
Another one of the people marked as living in the house was a woman very similar to Mesha’s age who had 3 other addresses on file. Looking at the dates it appears she grew up in a tiny little house in the sticks of Virginia, then moved to a cheap apartment, then moved into the mansion with Misha, and got another separate apartment a month later. In March of 2024, her name was taken off the lease and a month later it was also taken off the apartment. A couple of weeks ago another address went on file for a hospital in Virginia. I thought this was strange so I looked at the rest of the people who were marked as living at the address while Mesha was there.
One of them was a woman in her seventies who lived in the same house that Mesha did from September of 2021 to December of 2022. Aside from that, her 5 other houses were in California. The one that goes until 2013 is a multiple-million dollar mansion near Palo Alto that appears to have been paid for upfront. The second one she left at the end of 2016 appears to be a store, possibly with an apartment on top in San Francisco. The third is a multimillion dollar mansion in wine country and it has her on the record up until March of this year. There were also two PO Boxes in the same area of wine country, one up until January 2015 that was linked to a flower business, and the other which was up until March of this year and is linked to a wine barrel production company. The current house she lives in is another million-dollar home in the same general area.
Another name attached to the house in Virginia belonged to a man also around the same age with the same last name as the lady above so I’ll assume it’s her husband. He had four homes attached to him along with two PO Boxes. One of the houses was in Pennsylvania, while the other three were in California. Two of the houses were the same ones that his wife had on her profile and the two PO boxes were the same as well. What I found very interesting was the fact that he left all those addresses in March of 2024 and the most recent one connected to him is the same one that Mesha lived in. It appears he moved in right around the time the other lady’s address switched to the hospital.
There were a few other names that popped up in the search that might have lived there at some point. One of them is most likely the son of the couple who lived there, the only one I could connect for sure though is a 31-year-old man from Durham, whose association with the house started around the same time in May and seems ongoing. While looking into all of the court cases connected to Drake I found another court case from 2019 in Virginia accusing Mesha of defrauding a hotel.
After that I looked everywhere I could only find a few mentions of Mesha Collins anywhere on the web, even on social media. The one name that kept popping up was an actor named Misha Collins. The most obvious connection to Drake is that both of their moms are Canadian and their dads are from the States. That doesn’t mean much, but I found his career arc kind of odd along with his back story. I also found a tweet he made that kinda connects him to the situation. Still, if there is any connection he probably just knows Drake from the industry. https://x.com/mishacollins/status/855135669890437120?lang=en
This is another one from one of Misha’s costars from Supernatural https://x.com/jarpad/status/855236923471708160?lang=en
A random Tumblr post isn’t a source and is most likely fanfiction, but I found this interesting. https://www.tumblr.com/go-diane-wincheste183189140191/misha-collins-is- like-a-pedophile
One thing I was wondering if he could be one of his political connections in the US since he started his career working at the White House during the Clinton presidency and was involved in the Monica Lewinsky stuff. Apparently, he isn’t of Russian descent, but his mom gave him a Russian-sounding name because her dream guy was Russian and he said she was a “pro-communist hippy”. I read somewhere that the furthest he could trace back his ancestry was six generations all from Canada and he was the first generation born in the States. This could mean he has some VERY deep roots, similar to Drake’s mom’s side of the family. On the other hand, he also says he was extremely poor as a child and his parents had a hard time keeping a roof over their heads. https://web.archive.org/web/20131230135930/
http://www.everyjoe.com/ 2008/09/24/entertainment/misha-collins-answers-our-top-3-qs/
Before I begin my schizo conspiracy theory I just want to make it clear, just because the majority of these conspiracies seem right leaning, it’s only because the majority of the entertainment industry lean left. This does not mean that either side is worse than the other, I’m sure they both do plenty of sketchy shit around election time. The only reason I’m bringing this up in the first place is because Misha Collins is very into politics and a huge supporter of the Democrat party. I could care less about politics if it’s not related to the entertainment industry. I try to make sure it’s somewhat connected to Drake, Kendrick, or the events leading up to or following their feud. Considering that before ’08, which is the year Obama was elected, there was very little mention of him on the internet and the fact that most of the articles I found were about his political views, I can’t help but feel he might be like the political version of an industry plant (some conspiracy folks refer to them as “crisis actors”).
I could easily see them hiring young aspiring actors and getting them started in the industry on the condition that they act as a mouthpiece for their political campaigns. Another possible example of this is Kal Penn, but he had a career before he went into politics so it’s a little different. I did find it interesting that Kal Penn came out not too long ago and apparently Misha Collins came out of the closet then took it back later and pissed off a lot of fans.
Aside from some bit roles in some obscure films and TV shows starting in ‘02, his biggest role was on the TV show Supernatural where he had a recurring role from 2008-2020. There was another post on his Instagram showing he had a direct connection to Michelle Obama who also was connected to the whole Jussie Smollett incident, which many would consider political interference and is still playing out in court to this day. I went into this topic more in another piece I wrote a few weeks ago as well.
The earliest source I could find on Wikipedia was in 2011, right before Obama won his second term. It seems he kind of popped up out of nowhere in ’08. The first thing I saw about him when I searched was a giant campaign he did with a bunch of comedians featuring random B through D list actors and actresses. They all did a video together in 2013 where they all took a big dump on Trump and supported Hillary in the presidential race. I couldn’t find the link again when searching, but I did include a similar example below. https://ew.com/article/2016/11/09/misha-collins-emotional-election-video/
Interestingly this was around the time the political propaganda ban was lifted making it legal again in the United States. This has been blamed for the rise of disinformation in the media and politics making their way into the entertainment industry. https://foreignpolicy.com/2013/07/14/u-s-repeals-propaganda-ban-spreads-government-made-news-to-americans/
After Supernatural ended in 2020, he pretty much went back to doing small parts until last year when he won the leading role on his own CW show. It’s one of the superhero shows with ties to the DC universe. In one interview he said that as a child his family struggled with housing stability, but he went to the University of Chicago and got a job a few years later working at the White House for a couple of months during Clinton’s presidency. He could have gotten a scholarship, but my buddy got his degree from there about ten years ago and it was NOT cheap. I also find it interesting that Obama is also from Chicago and so is Jussie Smollett.
One recent movie that’s a good example of government propoganda is the new movie Civil War and the one that came out on Netflix recently called When the World Ends, which is about an attack on the US power grid and another foreign country sowing the seeds to start a civil war in the US. It was also produced by the Obama’s who have also been accused of trying to censor Dave Chappelle while Obama was campaigning for the 2008 presidency.
Right around the time Misha got his first leading role in 2023, he was also heavily involved in the Russia/Ukraine war. Even though he’s Canadian, he went to Ukraine and made a bunch of videos supporting them. Considering the amount of anti-Russian rhetoric at the time, plus the fact it started around the same time as the propaganda ban being lifted, it seems kinda fishy to me. https://english.nv.ua/life/us-actor-misha-collins-arrives-in-kyiv-to-show-support- for-ukraine-50328295.html
Aside from that he’s also done a lot of philanthropy throughout his career and seems like a decent dude. Like I said there is a very good chance he has nothing to do with this whole situation. One theory I have is that when someone sues somebody famous for any reason and they want to cover it up, it would be a good idea to use a celebrity name or one that is one letter off so it will dominate Google search results. For example, I have the same name as a very well-known politician from the early 2000 and his name fills up the Google search results. If my theory of Misha working for the democratic party is true he might have been paid by Drake’s crisis management team to take the attention off their case.
I found his first post on TikTok to be a bizarre video where he talks about why he’s joining the site in the first place. The second comment asks if he’s being held hostage. Like I said I don’t know the guy, he might just be acting weird like a lot of celebs or he’s completely shitfaced. If my theory is correct though this could be some contributing evidence. https://www.tiktok.com/@mishacollins/video/7003144713696054534
This Reddit post also talks about his stance on the Israel Palestine situation. https://www.reddit.com/Supernatural/comments/17xfyu4/im_curious_what_are_your_thoughts_on_misha/
Aside from that, I couldn’t find anything else that stuck out to me on TikTok or any other social media sites for the Mesha Collins involved in the Drake stuff. This doesn’t mean there isn’t though I’m not on any social media so I’m not very good with that kind of stuff.
When I changed up the search settings to show only results from before or after the court case, the only articles that popped up were about a thirteen-year-old from Vancouver who went missing, but she was found not long after. I was able to find her on social media too and there was nothing that would connect to him in any way. Another article that popped up was about a woman from Houston nicknamed “Southpark Shawty.” She apparently also went by Mesha Collins and she apparently passed away in 2019 from undisclosed health issues. This is the only article I could find that says her name was Mesha Collins and it’s from 2024. https://inckredible.com/what-happened-to-southpark-shawty/
I also find it interesting she was a victim of a hit and run two years prior, not long after Mesha was arrested for allegedly breaking into Drake’s home. Interestingly in the article below it said her name was Shantel Nelson. The rest of the articles also had that name and when I looked it up the I did find a 53-year-old woman with the same name attached to a lot of different apartments and homes in Houston and a few spots in Louisiana. I thought the timing was odd considering a lot of stuff seems to be getting wiped from the internet and the fact it came out right around the time the feud started. I wonder if Drake is trying to distract people by sending them down the wrong path. https://www.fox26houston.com/news/internet-sensation-southpark-shawty-recovering-after-hit-and-run
I was wondering if she may have gone viral around the time of the original break in to distract from the case. This is also similar to my suspicions about the actor Misha Collins. I tried finding any connection between Shawty and J Prince since they both lived in Houston. I found that the South Park neighborhood in Houston is in the third ward while J Prince was born in the fifth ward. These two areas are some of the most crime-ridden areas in Houston.
Obviously the odds of her being connected to anything sketchy involving J Prince are pretty slim; however, I did find a video of Snoop Dogg visiting her in Houston back in 2016. In one of her posts she said they were cousins, but Snoop also says everyone is his cousin and it’s more just saying they’re family. It did seem like they were very close at one time though. I saw another article that said a lot of celebs reached out to her after she was the victim of a hit-and-run, but I couldn’t find ties to any other rappers. I thought it was interesting that she often sings in a lot of her videos and she has some pipes. It also seems like she may have been a rapper back in the day because she made a bunch of songs with a local producer over the past few years. I think it’s safe to assume she had some connection to the rap game or was a singer in the past. Considering Snoop and J. Prince have similar histories in the game, I imagine they must have some type of relationship. I go into this more in my actual post. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cfaGVreak4M
The big inconsistency here is the two women’s ages. The Mesha who sued Drake would have been young enough to be South Park Shawty’s daughter though. I couldn’t find any mention of her having a daughter, but I also couldn’t find much info on her in general. One thing I thought was sad was the fact that a lot of people made fun of her for being a crackhead. Although she appears to have a history of substance abuse, you never really know. Some people are just naturally high energy and have lots of quirks and big personalities without the need for drugs.
There are also a lot of long term alcoholics and addicts who despite being sober still show the same behaviors. In the case of alcoholics it’s called, “dry drunk syndrome.” This is also a big reason why I can write almost an entire book in a month without really trying. I saw one video where she said she’s been sober for a while and appears to only drink and smoke weed similar to myself. I’ve also met a few people similar to Shawty and they were all very sweet people and very intelligent, as are many recovering addicts. It doesn’t mean she should just be written off as crazy or unreliable. I’ve noticed that many famous black entertainers have been dismissed and called crackheads whenever they start speaking out against the industry or if they have a mental breakdown from all their bullshit.
While looking into the South Park neighborhood I found out that Travis Scott grew up in that area up until he was like eight or nine. I decided to look into more rappers from the area and found the bio of a rapper who went by South Park Mexican and was charged with abusing multiple minors s.ually, including a nine-year-old, and was sentenced to forty years in prison. I find it interesting that his label Dope House Records signed under UMG two years before he was convicted. Considering J. Prince’s history with UMG and a few people close to the case claiming it was an extortion attempt carried out by the husband of a woman he had an affair with, I wonder if J. Prince may have played a part in it. There is a 99 percent chance he’s guilty, but it could be another example of an organized takedown. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Park_Mexican
I also discovered another rapper who went by Gansta Nip who was one of the founders of the sub-genre horrorcore. He was on J Prince’s label and was also from the South Park neighborhood. He used to write for J Prince’s first group The Geto Boys way back in the day so he has connections in South Park.
Another thing that I found interesting was that Jaguar Wr*ght is from Dallas, which is known to be another hotspot for Texas rappers similar to Houston, but rarely gets much recognition. Along with Austin, they are the big three music cities in Texas, yet it seems like Dallas has always been slept on. I remember during her early interview Jaguar said she moved to Dallas to help foster and promote young aspiring musicians and help them get their footing in the industry without being taken advantage of. Sadly it seems she ended up doing that exact thing when she got a deal with Roku to make a TV show that she said would follow some of these talented up-and-coming artists. It appears that she was charging a subscription fee, but never actually posted any new content that wasn’t already available for free on YouTube or social media. Now pretty much every artist she promoted will have their names connected to a scam artist just by being involved with her. https://www.change.org/p/stop-ban-dalladelphia-oppose-jaguar-wright
I’ve also discussed in the past that she has been airing out some of Diddy and Jay- Z’s dirty laundry since 2022 and seemingly has protection. She also had some wild shit go down about a week after she accused Jay-Z of trying to keep her from boarding her plane in Dallas and was arrested at Chicago Airport. https://ktt2.com/jaguar-wright-arrested-after-allegedly-throwing-her-sons-ashes-32541373
Similar to Shawty, Jaguar is often accused of being a crackhead, but again it appears she may have had a history, but currently only smokes weed and drinks and most likely is struggling with mental illness. Sometimes the weight of these subjects is enough to drive someone crazy on its own, yet alone constantly being paranoid someone wants to take you out. To her credit, Jaguar was also known for being one of Jay Z’s background singers and did come up around the time Diddy founded Bad Boy and the Philly music scene was starting to get recognition. She often talks about how Jay Z has been going after her for revealing some of his past sketchiness along with many other artists from that era.
While I trust her about as far as I can throw her, she did drop a lot of facts about Diddy in the same interview and has been dropping a lot of shit the last couple of months. She also said she used to be married to Katt Williams, who was also accused of being a crackhead after apparently getting death threats for speaking out against the industry. If Dave Chappelle had to go to Africa when he did almost the same thing, I think he probably had every right to be paranoid as fuck. I’m sure some of Jaguar’s info is coming from him and he may even be directly responsible for her blowing up on YouTube right after he did his famous interview in January. I’ve been saying for a while now I think she has motivations way beyond revenge or advocacy, but she still shouldn’t be written off completely.
I wonder if J. Prince has anything to do with this and the Bryshere Gray stuff, which was the main subject of one of my posts here about coordinated takedowns. Considering he has similar motivations and the mob ties to protect Jaguar, it could be why she constantly doxxes herself and doesn’t seem to be too worried despite revealing shit that could easily get her green-lit. It would also explain a lot of my theories on the rise of all these influencers dropping insider knowledge of the industry and the criminal underworld that resides beneath it.
I also wanted to include some links to some other attempted invasions of Drake’s embassy. Along with Misha’s multiple attempts and the three attempts right after the beef, there have been a decent number throughout the years. https://pagesix.com/2021/03/30/woman-armed-with-knife-tries-to-get-into- drakes-property/
This guy claimed Drake was his dad and talks about him selling his place in West Hollywood with a lot of details about him selling his “Yolo Estate” in LA. Weirdly it was published by Breitbart which is a far-right news organization. https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2022/07/19/intruder-claiming-to-be-drake-son-arrested-at-rappers-los-angeles-home/
I guess this is one more person who made it through the front door. I wonder if Ye knows who it was? https://ktla.com/news/local-news/drakes-los-angeles-home-reportedly-burglarized-suspect-arrested/
This one was right after Mesha broke in and has more details about her as well. https://www.vibe.com/music/music-news/drake-intruder-hidden-hills-break-in-526090/#!
The rest of the evidence below is just extra bullshit, it’s not super relevant, but it may have some connection to all of this. It’s mostly about human trafficking in Houston. One area in Houston is considered a red-light district. An old friend grew up in the area and used to sell lean heavy so he had a lot of connections to the Houston underworld. From what he told me, shit goes pretty deep like most border states where all forms of trafficking are extremely prevalent. https://www.click2houston.com/news/investigates/2021/09/16/hpd-using-new- law-to-crack-down-on-those-paying-for-sex/
Below are a few more examples of Houston rappers charged with trafficking minors. If anyone has time I didn’t look into any potential connections with J Prince. Houston is massive and there is a huge rap scene so there is a good chance they may not have any connections beyond the city they live in, but you never know, there could be some supporting evidence to my theories. https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-aspiring-rapper-sentenced-prison-child- sex-trafficking-reports
https://www.fox26houston.com/news/houston-rapper-big-face-tulu-accused-of- trafficking-and-assault-forcing-teens-to-work-for-food-and-shelter
https://www.khou.com/article/news/houston-rapper-jaimian-sims-found-guilty- of-sex-trafficking-of-a-mino285-9eebceb0-fce4-4244-84da-4fb2432c5479
https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/houston/news/press-releases/ houston-rapper-heads-to-prison-for-sex-trafficking-of-a-minor
Lastly, I can’t forget the infamous Houston rapper Viper, who was also possibly signed to SPM’s Dope House Records. He was also from the fifth ward in Houston, the same as J. Prince. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/ article/lee-carter-houston-rapper-second-kidnapping- charge-18695638.php
That’s all I have on the case. I know it’s not super relevant, but it’s only a small section that I thought was a good example of how using OSINT techniques could help with finding connections. Also, it’s good to know how these things could be used against you if you’re not careful about managing your online footprint. If you’re just on this sub sharing links or information that is publicly available and couldn’t potentially be used as evidence in a R.I.C.O case, you shouldn’t worry too much. I’m probably gonna have to run the section I wrote about Drake and J. Prince’s mob ties by the mods before posting for this very reason.
To carry out many of these more advanced exploits you’d need teams of people working 24/7 and massive amounts of money to dedicate to each person who you want to keep track of. If they did have incriminating evidence and they planned to share more, they would probably have to kill the person or convince them in some way to stop posting. This usually involves cyber threats at first, and if you continue to post actual evidence they’ll probably get lawyers involved. If they do hire someone to make the threats in person I doubt it would escalate to anything physical or potentially life-threatening.
If they go as far as investing money in hiring a trustworthy goon who isn’t gonna flip on one of the richest and honestly douchiest celebrities in our current era, they most likely wouldn’t take such a major risk unless their freedom is genuinely on the line and your evidence was specifically related to their current case. Even if they do, because of how risky it is they’ll most likely just threaten you and they might get physical depending on the person who hired them’s feelings towards violence. I have another theory that all the dirt about Kendrick is true and Drake has been blackmailing him, possibly for the last 7 years. It seems like all of this insanity in the rap game has been brewing since at least 2016. This is the year all my favorite up-and-coming artists died one after another and the trend continued up until 2021. It’s also around the time Drake started getting in feuds with multiple rappers and was accused of threatening Ye with some type of blackmail. After years of being disappointed, I finally stepped away from discovering new artists in 2021 and started listening to more indie rock not too long ago.
I’m still kinda scared they are going to kill Gucci next, or Kodak, or my favorite newish rapper Lil Darkie. If any of them die suddenly it’s more likely than not someone in the industry wanted them dead because they all have spoken out and revealed shit about the industry. Hopefully, these types of things become less frequent if the alleged R.I.C.O case is legit and there is a movement behind the scenes of rappers trying to do away with the current status quo. It’s honestly sad how a couple of shitty rappers have hogged the spotlight for years, meanwhile, thousands of more talented artists are being slept on or flat-out ignored.
I hope that one thing that comes out of this whole ordeal is that these artists are given a chance to share their talents with the rest of the world without having to worry about possibly being killed if they don’t sign with the right label. If you made it this far you were able to find some of this information valuable. As I said this was just a long tangent I went off on while I was working on my original post. I’ll try to get the rest up soon.
One last thing I’ve noticed lately, it’s probably not related, but recently they changed the date filter feature on DuckDuckGo, forcing you to manually click back every month to get to the desired date. This makes it a pain in the ass to go back further than a couple years and when you try to click it really fast the arrow button moves around so you keep having to move your cursor or tap in a different spot. It’s strange because up until a week ago you were just able to type whatever date you wanted and it was so much easier to find articles from back in the day. This update is such a downgrade from the original it feels oddly intentional. I wonder if it has anything to do with the research currently being conducted along with removing articles that might be used as evidence. Has anyone noticed this as well?
Signing off for now,
The Randomest Moniker

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Still trying to get a handle on this reddit site as my previous posts seem to have disappeared for whatever reason.
For anyone who hasn't seen it before, it is my conclusion that the "final 18" utilized a Polybius Square to create the solution as "the zodiac". The letter to the San Francisco Chronicle stated "in this cipher is my identity", and the section containing the "unsolved" final 18 characters was the segment sent to the S.F. Chronicle. There are images of the Sunday Chronicle two days later which corroborate this, so don't let any site tell you otherwise; I'll take the word of the newspaper at the time over any excuse that may be offered by a site that mixed links up.
The final 18 characters "E B E O R I E T E M E T H H P I T I" caught my attention in 2014 due to "E" and "I" appearing as often as they do. I soon noticed that if paired up you have "EB EO RI ET EM ET HH PI TI" where eight of the nine pairs either begin with "E" or end with "I". "HH" is the outlier, and the hunt for the Polybius Square is on.
The following is an example of the Polybius Square, where the 26 letters of the English alphabet are arranged into a 5x5 square by combining "I" and "J" into one square:
A B C D E
F G H I/J K
L M N O P
Q R S T U
V W X Y Z
The Polybius Square cipher is created by assigning numbers or letters to create row/column designators as follows:

 F G H I J --------------- A : A B C D E : B : F G H I/J K : C : L M N O P : D : Q R S T U : E : V W X Y Z 

To encode you message you would use the row/column letters which intersect at the letter being encoded. For example, "the zodiac" would read "DI BH AJ EJ CI AI BI AF AH". To decipher you simply reverse the process.
Let's apply this to the final 18 "EB EO RI ET EM ET HH PI TI". As mentioned above, eight of the nine pairs begin with "E" or end with "I", leaving "HH" as the outlier. "HH" as "EH" would fit the pattern, but result in a 5x6 square, while "HI" would also fit the pair and result in the 5x5 Polybius Square. I went a step further and place "E" in the middle position for row designators which resulted in the following pattern:

 B O I T M ------------- R : . : H : . : E : . . . . : P : . : T : . What was at the bottom of Z's letters? A circled cross! I have no explation yet for "ET" appearing twice, however "EI" is the one pair missing in the sequence and what would complete the cross: B O I T M ______________ R : E : H : I : E : T H Z O D : P : A : T : C "In this cipher is my identity", and his "this is the zodiac speaking" letter appears less than a week later. In his 408 letters he began simply with "this is the killer" or "this is the murderer". While I am on the Polybius Square subject, I've noticed something interesting in the Z408 misspellings. They appear to have been intentional and also present what could be another cipher based on the Polybius Square: "AS ES AI AS AS ET CS SA IW" S I T A W A . . E . . C . S . I . One of those things that causes me to go "hmmmmm". 

TLDR: my fiancé cheated on me but I think it’s because I didn’t know I was toxic? AITA for not giving up on fighting for us and for exposing his affair to his mother who says he was just helping another person?
24M , 24F year old, been together for 9, engaged for 2 years since we were 14. No other relationship before eachother. Well suddenly one day he leaves after playing pickle ball with our friends, saying “I can’t do this anymore”. For approximately 5 weeks he switches between talking to me and ghosting me. Me thinking it’s a mental Health situation because he was in his final term of his masters program and was rightly stressed continuously showed up for him through these 5 weeks by texting him every night saying I loved him and hope he had a good day, I maintained our house and our life, I would tell him it was okay that he was prioritizing himself and working through his tough emotions, I started therapy, started working in attachment theory work books, started reading about healthy marriages.
Turns out he was having an affair with a married woman in another state who is married and has two children. I confront him about it in a 10 page letter expressing my deep love and devotion and appreciation for him and what I can tolerate with the affair if he does come home and he says it isn’t a big deal and isn’t the reason he is leaving the relationship. We agree on another week break where he stops all contact with me and the affair partner, he ghosts me on the day we are supposed to me then another week goes by and he calls and ends things, saying I was emotionally abusive, I was toxic and tried to control him, i was mean to him and he was scared of me, I tried to keep him from his family, I was never happy with him. Stuff he has never said before in the 9 years we’ve been together. My heart is completely broken.
2 weeks after being broken up we are still trying to split apart our lives and move out etc. the weekend before we are supposed to be out of the apartment I get a notification on our joint emails that he is flying to her state. I tell his mom because I’m extremely worried about him, his safety, moving out, him coming back, etc. I want someone to keep him safe to the best of their ability. I wash my hands with it, learn how to sign out of everything and leave the rest up to his family. Two days later on the day he is supposed to fly back his affair partners family reaches out to me saying she left her two children and spouse to be with my ex and they are worried he is going to run away and skip states to avoid child support. I freak out and let his mom know what I know so that she can help him and keep him from doing something stupid like running away and not finishing his degree and she doesn’t sound too mentally stable to just leave her children after only meeting a person once.
Fast forward to now he hates me, blocked me on everything, his family won’t talk to me and has blocked me, our mutual friends dropped me from their upcoming wedding, and him and his family told me I wasn’t allowed back at the house and that they had moved out on time, the day before we have to be out of the old apartment I show up to meet the carpet cleaners and the fridge/ freezer is still full and there is a pile of garbage in the garage including a couch, and because he flew to her state the weekend he was supposed to move out the trash never got taken out and so the trash bins were overflowing with garbage and raccoons had drug trash all over the back yard. I have to clean to the best of my ability and rent a uhaul and pack all the garbage and the couch all by myself and pay for the dump fees.
It’s been a truly crazy roller coaster. I am completely shattered, I lost my best friend, my love, my partner of 9 years and half my family. They have treated me beyond poorly. I know I violated his privacy by not signing out of our joint email sooner and I shouldn’t have looked through his journal with all his plans to cheat and what she meant to him but our wedding guest list and list of baby names were in there and it was never a personal journal.
I am about 2 weeks out from all this and I know I don’t deserve this but I do see that my behaviors in our relationship might have driven him away. Ex. During very intense conflict I would attack his character and say things like “you don’t care” or “you don’t love me” or “I’m just not the woman that makes you want to do special things for” or “you are such a mommas boy” or “man you are a bad fiancé sometimes” or “you are being garbage right now”. I would become deeply upset if he went to spend time with others because I felt like we didn’t spend time together which is true we rarely went on dates or spent time together once we started workin full time, I would be sad if he didn’t come home after trips to visit his family on time and would revisit the hurt often in conflict as examples for how he would prioritize others over us. I was truly very toxic but I had no idea.
Whenever we did have conflict I would ask him what I needed to do to make him feel more loved and heard but he would just say I was perfect and if he did say anything at all it was that I needed to be happier and fight with him less. I live with so much regret, I never knew I was hurting him and us. I am putting in the work to be a more secure partner for whoever loves me next or if he comes back. He truly hates me now. I wish we could have been able to talk better before we hurt eachother in these ways. I don’t know what he is telling our friends and his family but I’m not some crazy ex, I only ever tried to love him and care for him and be his number one fan. I loved him so good on most days. I would have done anything for him. I know I’m capable of being a more secure partner because all through the 5 weeks of him using me and manipulating me and learning about his affair I only showed him kindness, love, respect, appreciation, and compassion.
He says I’m pathetic and a fool because I didn’t let him go easily (wrote him 3, 5 to 24 page letters about all he means to me and what being loved by him means and what I’ve learned about my attachment style and steps I was taking to improve) but I don’t think anyone has the right to judge how you handle trying to keep everything you love and every hope and dream.
There is this theory that if you do a thousand paper cuts (my behavior in conflict and when I was missing him) eventually you will create a chasm that is so deep and so wide nothing will be able to fix it. I think he and I built a chasm and his affair was the symptom. He is the love of my life and I tried hard, I did everything within my power, not to let him slip through my heart but in the end everything I did only made him hate me and lose everything I ever wanted. My soul is shattered and I don’t even want to pick up the pieces. How much of this is my fault?

TLDR: my fiancé cheated on me but I think it’s because I didn’t know I was toxic?
24M , 24F year old, been together for 9, engaged for 2 years since we were 14. No other relationship before eachother. Well suddenly one day he leaves after playing pickle ball with our friends, saying “I can’t do this anymore”. For approximately 5 weeks he switches between talking to me and ghosting me. Me thinking it’s a mental Health situation because he was in his final term of his masters program and was rightly stressed continuously showed up for him through these 5 weeks by texting him every night saying I loved him and hope he had a good day, I maintained our house and our life, I would tell him it was okay that he was prioritizing himself and working through his tough emotions, I started therapy, started working in attachment theory work books, started reading about healthy marriages. Turns out he was having an affair with a married woman in another state who is married and has two children. I confront him about it in a 10 page letter expressing my deep love and devotion and appreciation for him and what I can tolerate with the affair if he does come home and he says it isn’t a big deal and isn’t the reason he is leaving the relationship. We agree on another week break where he stops all contact with me and the affair partner, he ghosts me on the day we are supposed to me then another week goes by and he calls and ends things, saying I was emotionally abusive, I was toxic and tried to control him, i was mean to him and he was scared of me, I tried to keep him from his family, I was never happy with him. Stuff he has never said before in the 9 years we’ve been together. My heart is completely broken. 2 weeks after being broken up we are still trying to split apart our lives and move out etc. the weekend before we are supposed to be out of the apartment I get a notification on our joint emails that he is flying to her state. I tell his mom because I’m extremely worried about him, his safety, moving out, him coming back, etc. I want someone to keep him safe to the best of their ability. I wash my hands with it, learn how to sign out of everything and leave the rest up to his family. Two days later on the day he is supposed to fly back his affair partners family reaches out to me saying she left her two children and spouse to be with my ex and they are worried he is going to run away and skip states to avoid child support. I freak out and let his mom know what I know so that she can help him and keep him from doing something stupid like running away and not finishing his degree and she doesn’t sound too mentally stable to just leave her children after only meeting a person once. Fast forward to now he hates me, blocked me on everything, his family won’t talk to me and has blocked me, our mutual friends dropped me from their upcoming wedding, and him and his family told me I wasn’t allowed back at the house and that they had moved out on time, the day before we have to be out of the old apartment I show up to meet the carpet cleaners and the fridge/ freezer is still full and there is a pile of garbage in the garage including a couch, and because he flew to her state the weekend he was supposed to move out the trash never got taken out and so the trash bins were overflowing with garbage and raccoons had drug trash all over the back yard. I have to clean to the best of my ability and rent a uhaul and pack all the garbage and the couch all by myself and pay for the dump fees. It’s been a truly crazy roller coaster. I am completely shattered, I lost my best friend, my love, my partner of 9 years and half my family. They have treated me beyond poorly. I know I violated his privacy by not signing out of our joint email sooner and I shouldn’t have looked through his journal with all his plans to cheat and what she meant to him but our wedding guest list and list of baby names were in there and it was never a personal journal. I am about 2 weeks out from all this and I know I don’t deserve this but I do see that my behaviors in our relationship might have driven him away. Ex. During very intense conflict I would attack his character and say things like “you don’t care” or “you don’t love me” or “I’m just not the woman that makes you want to do special things for” or “you are such a mommas boy” or “man you are a bad fiancé sometimes” or “you are being garbage right now”. I would become deeply upset if he went to spend time with others because I felt like we didn’t spend time together which is true we rarely went on dates or spent time together once we started workin full time, I would be sad if he didn’t come home after trips to visit his family on time and would revisit the hurt often in conflict as examples for how he would prioritize others over us. I was truly very toxic but I had no idea. Whenever we did have conflict I would ask him what I needed to do to make him feel more loved and heard but he would just say I was perfect and if he did say anything at all it was that I needed to be happier and fight with him less. I live with so much regret, I never knew I was hurting him and us. I am putting in the work to be a more secure partner for whoever loves me next or if he comes back. He truly hates me now. I wish we could have been able to talk better before we hurt eachother in these ways. I don’t know what he is telling our friends and his family but I’m not some crazy ex, I only ever tried to love him and care for him and be his number one fan. I loved him so good on most days. I would have done anything for him. I know I’m capable of being a more secure partner because all through the 5 weeks of him using me and manipulating me and learning about his affair I only showed him kindness, love, respect, appreciation, and compassion. He says I’m pathetic and a fool because I didn’t let him go easily (wrote him 3, 5 to 24 page letters about all he means to me and what being loved by him means and what I’ve learned about my attachment style and steps I was taking to improve) but I don’t think anyone has the right to judge how you handle trying to keep everything you love and every hope and dream. There is this theory that if you do a thousand paper cuts (my behavior in conflict and when I was missing him) eventually you will create a chasm that is so deep and so wide nothing will be able to fix it. I think he and I built a chasm and his affair was the symptom. He is the love of my life and I tried hard, I did everything within my power, not to let him slip through my heart but in the end everything I did only made him hate me and lose everything I ever wanted. My soul is shattered and I don’t even want to pick up the pieces. How much of this is my fault?

24 year olds, been together for 9, engaged for 2 years since we were 14. No other relationship before eachother. Well suddenly one day he leaves after playing pickle ball with our friends, saying “I can’t do this anymore”. For approximately 5 weeks he switches between talking to me and ghosting me. Me thinking it’s a mental Health situation because he was in his final term of his masters program and was rightly stressed continuously showed up for him through these 5 weeks by texting him every night saying I loved him and hope he had a good day, I maintained our house and our life, I would tell him it was okay that he was prioritizing himself and working through his tough emotions, I started therapy, started working in attachment theory work books, started reading about healthy marriages. Turns out he was having an affair with a married woman in another state who is married and has two children. I confront him about it in a 10 page letter expressing my deep love and devotion and appreciation for him and what I can tolerate with the affair if he does come home and he says it isn’t a big deal and isn’t the reason he is leaving the relationship. We agree on another week break where he stops all contact with me and the affair partner, he ghosts me on the day we are supposed to me then another week goes by and he calls and ends things, saying I was emotionally abusive, I was toxic and tried to control him, i was mean to him and he was scared of me, I tried to keep him from his family, I was never happy with him. Stuff he has never said before in the 9 years we’ve been together. My heart is completely broken. 2 weeks after being broken up we are still trying to split apart our lives and move out etc. the weekend before we are supposed to be out of the apartment I get a notification on our joint emails that he is flying to her state. I tell his mom because I’m extremely worried about him, his safety, moving out, him coming back, etc. I want someone to keep him safe to the best of their ability. I wash my hands with it, learn how to sign out of everything and leave the rest up to his family. Two days later on the day he is supposed to fly back his affair partners family reaches out to me saying she left her two children and spouse to be with my ex and they are worried he is going to run away and skip states to avoid child support. I freak out and let his mom know what I know so that she can help him and keep him from doing something stupid like running away and not finishing his degree and she doesn’t sound too mentally stable to just leave her children after only meeting a person once. Fast forward to now he hates me, blocked me on everything, his family won’t talk to me and has blocked me, our mutual friends dropped me from their upcoming wedding, and him and his family told me I wasn’t allowed back at the house and that they had moved out on time, the day before we have to be out of the old apartment I show up to meet the carpet cleaners and the fridge/ freezer is still full and there is a pile of garbage in the garage including a couch, and because he flew to her state the weekend he was supposed to move out the trash never got taken out and so the trash bins were overflowing with garbage and raccoons had drug trash all over the back yard. I have to clean to the best of my ability and rent a uhaul and pack all the garbage and the couch all by myself and pay for the dump fees. It’s been a truly crazy roller coaster. I am completely shattered, I lost my best friend, my love, my partner of 9 years and half my family. They have treated me beyond poorly. I know I violated his privacy by not signing out of our joint email sooner and I shouldn’t have looked through his journal with all his plans to cheat and what she meant to him but our wedding guest list and list of baby names were in there and it was never a personal journal. I am about 2 weeks out from all this and I know I don’t deserve this but I do see that my behaviors in our relationship might have driven him away. Ex. During very intense conflict I would attack his character and say things like “you don’t care” or “you don’t love me” or “I’m just not the woman that makes you want to do special things for” or “you are such a mommas boy” or “man you are a bad fiancé sometimes” or “you are being garbage right now”. I would become deeply upset if he went to spend time with others because I felt like we didn’t spend time together which is true we rarely went on dates or spent time together once we started workin full time, I would be sad if he didn’t come home after trips to visit his family on time and would revisit the hurt often in conflict as examples for how he would prioritize others over us. I was truly very toxic but I had no idea. Whenever we did have conflict I would ask him what I needed to do to make him feel more loved and heard but he would just say I was perfect and if he did say anything at all it was that I needed to be happier and fight with him less. I live with so much regret, I never knew I was hurting him and us. I am putting in the work to be a more secure partner for whoever loves me next or if he comes back. He truly hates me now. I wish we could have been able to talk better before we hurt eachother in these ways. I don’t know what he is telling our friends and his family but I’m not some crazy ex, I only ever tried to love him and care for him and be his number one fan. I loved him so good on most days. I would have done anything for him. I know I’m capable of being a more secure partner because all through the 5 weeks of him using me and manipulating me and learning about his affair I only showed him kindness, love, respect, appreciation, and compassion. He says I’m pathetic and a fool because I didn’t let him go easily (wrote him 3, 5 to 24 page letters about all he means to me and what being loved by him means and what I’ve learned about my attachment style and steps I was taking to improve) but I don’t think anyone has the right to judge how you handle trying to keep everything you love and every hope and dream. There is this theory that if you do a thousand paper cuts (my behavior in conflict and when I was missing him) eventually you will create a chasm that is so deep and so wide nothing will be able to fix it. I think he and I built a chasm and his affair was the symptom. He is the love of my life and I tried hard, I did everything within my power, not to let him slip through my heart but in the end everything I did only made him hate me and lose everything I ever wanted. My soul is shattered and I don’t even want to pick up the pieces.

24 year olds, been together for 9, engaged for 2 years since we were 14. No other relationship before eachother. Well suddenly one day he leaves after playing pickle ball with our friends, saying “I can’t do this anymore”. For approximately 5 weeks he switches between talking to me and ghosting me. Me thinking it’s a mental Health situation because he was in his final term of his masters program and was rightly stressed continuously showed up for him through these 5 weeks by texting him every night saying I loved him and hope he had a good day, I maintained our house and our life, I would tell him it was okay that he was prioritizing himself and working through his tough emotions, I started therapy, started working in attachment theory work books, started reading about healthy marriages. Turns out he was having an affair with a married woman in another state who is married and has two children. I confront him about it in a 10 page letter expressing my deep love and devotion and appreciation for him and what I can tolerate with the affair if he does come home and he says it isn’t a big deal and isn’t the reason he is leaving the relationship. We agree on another week break where he stops all contact with me and the affair partner, he ghosts me on the day we are supposed to me then another week goes by and he calls and ends things, saying I was emotionally abusive, I was toxic and tried to control him, i was mean to him and he was scared of me, I tried to keep him from his family, I was never happy with him. Stuff he has never said before in the 9 years we’ve been together. My heart is completely broken. 2 weeks after being broken up we are still trying to split apart our lives and move out etc. the weekend before we are supposed to be out of the apartment I get a notification on our joint emails that he is flying to her state. I tell his mom because I’m extremely worried about him, his safety, moving out, him coming back, etc. I want someone to keep him safe to the best of their ability. I wash my hands with it, learn how to sign out of everything and leave the rest up to his family. Two days later on the day he is supposed to fly back his affair partners family reaches out to me saying she left her two children and spouse to be with my ex and they are worried he is going to run away and skip states to avoid child support. I freak out and let his mom know what I know so that she can help him and keep him from doing something stupid like running away and not finishing his degree and she doesn’t sound too mentally stable to just leave her children after only meeting a person once. Fast forward to now he hates me, blocked me on everything, his family won’t talk to me and has blocked me, our mutual friends dropped me from their upcoming wedding, and him and his family told me I wasn’t allowed back at the house and that they had moved out on time, the day before we have to be out of the old apartment I show up to meet the carpet cleaners and the fridge/ freezer is still full and there is a pile of garbage in the garage including a couch, and because he flew to her state the weekend he was supposed to move out the trash never got taken out and so the trash bins were overflowing with garbage and raccoons had drug trash all over the back yard. I have to clean to the best of my ability and rent a uhaul and pack all the garbage and the couch all by myself and pay for the dump fees. It’s been a truly crazy roller coaster. I am completely shattered, I lost my best friend, my love, my partner of 9 years and half my family. They have treated me beyond poorly. I know I violated his privacy by not signing out of our joint email sooner and I shouldn’t have looked through his journal with all his plans to cheat and what she meant to him but our wedding guest list and list of baby names were in there and it was never a personal journal. I am about 2 weeks out from all this and I know I don’t deserve this but I do see that my behaviors in our relationship might have driven him away. Ex. During very intense conflict I would attack his character and say things like “you don’t care” or “you don’t love me” or “I’m just not the woman that makes you want to do special things for” or “you are such a mommas boy” or “man you are a bad fiancé sometimes” or “you are being garbage right now”. I would become deeply upset if he went to spend time with others because I felt like we didn’t spend time together which is true we rarely went on dates or spent time together once we started workin full time, I would be sad if he didn’t come home after trips to visit his family on time and would revisit the hurt often in conflict as examples for how he would prioritize others over us. I was truly very toxic but I had no idea. Whenever we did have conflict I would ask him what I needed to do to make him feel more loved and heard but he would just say I was perfect and if he did say anything at all it was that I needed to be happier and fight with him less. I live with so much regret, I never knew I was hurting him and us. I am putting in the work to be a more secure partner for whoever loves me next or if he comes back. He truly hates me now. I wish we could have been able to talk better before we hurt eachother in these ways. I don’t know what he is telling our friends and his family but I’m not some crazy ex, I only ever tried to love him and care for him and be his number one fan. I loved him so good on most days. I would have done anything for him. I know I’m capable of being a more secure partner because all through the 5 weeks of him using me and manipulating me and learning about his affair I only showed him kindness, love, respect, appreciation, and compassion. He says I’m pathetic and a fool because I didn’t let him go easily (wrote him 3, 5 to 24 page letters about all he means to me and what being loved by him means and what I’ve learned about my attachment style and steps I was taking to improve) but I don’t think anyone has the right to judge how you handle trying to keep everything you love and every hope and dream. There is this theory that if you do a thousand paper cuts (my behavior in conflict and when I was missing him) eventually you will create a chasm that is so deep and so wide nothing will be able to fix it. I think he and I built a chasm and his affair was the symptom. He is the love of my life and I tried hard, I did everything within my power, not to let him slip through my heart but in the end everything I did only made him hate me and lose everything I ever wanted. My soul is shattered and I don’t even want to pick up the pieces.