#teaching an undergrad language class for the first time

[shimyereh]

Done with my third semester of grad school!

#I am now halfway through the coursework portion of my PhD #highlights of this semester included: #teaching an undergrad language class for the first time #(so much work! but very rewarding) #and making rapid progress with Polish #(the start of adding a new lang. and lit. to my research space!) #next semester will be a similarly intense workload #but at least I have a bit of a winter break first #during which I will read ahead as much as I can #(and I expect to fall back into my old habit of brain-noise poetry) #(now that my hours are more my own again) #(I had no headspace during the semester — constantly busy)

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

Oh I saw you answer a question about lecturing so I'd like to ask another! I am a postgrad student but miraculously landed a job as an instructor in my uni for an elective module on Language and Culture for Beginners for undergrads. I was all like "wohoooo that's great I know this shit" until I discovered there were going to be 20 people in my class so now I'm like 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫 because it's my first time teaching and what if they eat me alive. What if no one collaborates on the module I've designed to be interactive. What if no one caressssssssssssss I'd wilt like a flower 😭

Well, the great thing about uni is, these are adult learners who want to be here and are paying a lot to do so, so the chances of total non-engagement are low and outright refusal even lower. And if they do, you're under no obligation to keep anyone in the class, so you can boot them out if they're disruptive.

(In five years, this has yet to happen to me. The closest I've come was two guys who just wanted to chat, but saying to them "Lads, I don't know if you've noticed, but someone has built a lecture hall around you" worked a charm, and then they apologised and paid attention.)

So, the odds are staggeringly in your favour that you will not be cannibalised! You'll be absolutely fine on that count.

The engagement levels - that's a more reasonable concern, though again, remember that they've chosen to be here. This isn't high school - they're interested in the subject, and in what you have to say. So, you need to just make sure you're doing all the things that boost engagement. Examples:

NOTHING ON THIS EARTH switches students off faster than when the lecturer is bored by the subject. Regardless of your personal views on any given part of the material, to them you must be visibly and obviously Super Interested In The Subject at all times.

Human attention spans experience a lapse every 10-18 minutes - this is why TED Talks are that long. Change your learning activity in time with this. If you're doing straight lecturing for 10 minutes, then throw out a question to the class - "So what is everyone's experience of this? How might this be applied to X situation? What would do do if this happened to you?" etc. Or a research task - give them 10 minutes to look up a set of terms in groups, and then report back to the class. Your next slide could be the one that then explains the definitions of those terms yourself, but it gives them a bit of variety, and a bit of self-learning

Do they look like they're flagging? Get them up and moving. Ask a question like "So which of you agree with X, which agree with Y?" Instead of hands up, make them get up and go to different sides of the room. Then ask them to explain their reasoning. (Be aware of disabilities when doing this)

Give them activities to work on in groups. It's great for applied learning anyway, but also for helping them bond with each other, and it keeps them more awake and engaged. But also:

Students are much more likely to pay attention when they can see why the material they're learning is relevant. If it feels like a filler lesson, they won't pay attention. This is one reason of many that a class of 20 will work for you, actually - that's small enough that you can get to know these students, and what fields they've come from, and what they want to move into. If one or two seem disengaged, find out how to emphasise the relevance of their fields to this course, and vice versa.

And on that note, call on their experience! That's the glory of adult education - these are people who have lived lives, even if only for 18 years. Call on that. Example: my field is the environment, but this year, we have a farmer on the course. That's an absolute gift to class discussions, because if we're talking about land management practices, she can describe the socio-economic pressures farmers are under to do poor practices in the name of Line Goes Up far better than I can.

You will learn to spot the quiet ones. These ones are listening and learning, but shit scared of standing out. You might be tempted to call on them directly to answer questions, but this will make them shrivel in an attempt to seem smaller so you won't attack. Instead, draw them in by going around the class to ask the same question, and come to the quiet ones towards the end. This gives them time to realise that the question is coming, and lets them formulate an answer; they'll also be less scared of Getting It Wrong if they see the variety of answers everyone else is giving

On that note: There Are No Stupid Questions. Not in your class. You need to actively encourage the students to think that it's a safe learning space, and that includes asking things that might be the dumbest fucking question you've ever heard in your life; doesn't matter, you still answer it with the same gravity as any other. In This House We Love And Support Each Other.

If you truly think they won't collaborate properly, the trick is to have a fall back. It's very unlikely that they won't, but just have a plan B in case.

Either way... honestly, there's a reason I always tell people that, while I'm a lecturer, I could never be a teacher. Adult education is easy mode. You'll be fine - you know your shit, you're already planning fun collaborative activities, you've got this.

And if it doesn't work out, and I mean this very genuinely and honestly - a huge part of teaching is figuring out what works and what doesn't work for the students. Your job is work out how to fit the knowledge you hold into the uniquely-shaped holes in their heads, and that will be slightly different every time. You've got them for the whole module - you can afford to take a breath and try again if they bounce off of your first attempt. That's not a sign that you can't do it - that is the job. Getting it right first time requires a big component of luck, even using the tricks above.

So. Good luck! And enjoy it - the students can also tell if you're having a blast

#asks #the professional world of careers and tasks

[starscabaret]

How would Cynthia react to a love sick puppy dog reader that admired her so much as a first year?

Lovesick Student Introduction

pairing: yandere! Graduate Student Fem Cynthia 📚 x Fem Reader

summary: you are in her class

warnings : mentions of a minor, no actual minors, this is wlw, sapphic, gay, all that!

Authors note : yall are so smart with your request I love that !! check out my oc profiles to learn more about cynthia pookies !

Cynthia enjoyed graduate school. She was very excited to be furthering her education. She also worked in a field she loved and was very passionate about. The professors she worked under were very kind and had her best interest in mind. It was obvious she would go far after obtaining her master’s degree. 

There were some parts of grad school she enjoyed much less than others. At her university, all of the graduate students were required to be Graduate Teaching assistants. Her job was to help a professor with their class and build a bridge between students and faculty. She graded papers, held office hours, and occasionally led the lecture. 

Cynthia knew that just a few months ago she was an undergraduate but she still couldn’t help but find some of the undergraduates she assisted complete nuisance. Sending her emails in the early hours of the morning, asking simple questions that were obviously on the syllabus, crying about their grades during office hours, the list went on. 

But she would grin and bear it, at the end of the day she had to. But then there was you. An undergraduate freshman. You looked so naive and full of life. So excited about college. Something that had been sucked away from Cynthia after 4 grueling years of undergrad. She wouldn’t exactly consider you a nuisance like the other students. But you were a nuisance in other ways.

You stirred something in her she hadn’t felt since junior high school. She didn’t know what it was but she didn’t exactly like it… or hate it. The only way she could describe it was like the first time she saw Megan Fox in the movie Jennifer’s Body. She came out as a lesbian the next day. 

But you were forbidden… you were technically her student for Christ’s sake. And not only that but you were a freshman … how old were you? 18? what if you were 17? ugh gross, she couldn’t even think of that. No matter what a relationship between you two would be completely inappropriate, no matter your age, and no matter how strong her desires were. 

But you didn’t make it easy. You came to all of her office hours and stayed the whole time no matter what you were doing in class that week. You would sit at her desk making sure to lean over it so she could see right into your cleavage and ask her, “Is this good Miss. Cynthia?”. Of course, it was good, you had a perfect score in the class, she doesn’t know why you continue to come to office hours. And she told you to stop calling her that. It was just Cynthia not “Miss.Cynthia”, that stirred something in her she wasn’t sure she could control.  

This wasn’t your only attempt at tempting her. You signed every email to her off with “Can’t wait to see you next class, Love Y/N”. As the semester went on it became increasingly obvious you were a love-sick puppy for her. You only came to class for her approval and to see her, hoping she’d see you in that way. You only did well in the class because you wanted her to see you as smart and mature. 

You had no clue that Cynthia more than saw you in that way. She was strong and stoic. She would ward off your every advance with kind professional language. But inside she wanted nothing more than you make you hers. 

#yandere scenerio #yandere x reader #yandere blurb #yandere insert #yandere x you #yandere oc #yandere #yandere imagines #soft yandere #yandere x darling #yandere oc x reader #tw yandere #fem reader #fluff #masterlist #female reader #x reader #imagine #fanfiction #smut #actually obsessive #wlw #sapphic #fanfic #oc #ocs #female rage #feminism #lesbian #sapphic yearning

[atthebell]

Hey i saw your post about the translator and pacs accent from yesterday and thought i would throw in my two cents as a brasillian, though im merelly a hobbyist linguist and havent a degree in it like you so take this with a grain of salt please.

First of you are absolutelly right about pacs time in canada not really affecting how he sounds, i watched tazercrafts content for years and the accent is the same. As you said pac has not been through language loss or anything like that, so much so that he still has a pretty strong brasillian accent when he speaks english and that before joining the qsmp his fluency level was still a little clunky.

I also agree with you that the reason the translator has a hard time with pac/mike/forevers accents is the training data, which is likely composed of mostly paulista accents.

Now heres where i can add smth, so, idk about the UN thing that you mentioned, but as you said a lot a lot of tradicional brasillian media is filmed in rio. So why isnt there much carioca training data? Well, its probably because most of that media is most likely professionally produced for tv, and most of the people who work in entertainment or news (or politics in regards to the UN training data) actually learn how to speak with a "neutral" accent, which is basically just a paulista accent but slower. With very enunciated words and little to no maneirisms (thats why the translator sometimes gets confused with some slang or repetitions cellbit or bagi say even if they sound paulistas). Idk why that is the established neutral accent, but it sort of is.

The stereotype is basically: paulista – as long as you dont use too much slang – makes you sound professional, carioca makes you sound like you like to party, gaucho makes you sound like a bit of farmer, bahiano makes you sound very chiillllllllll (think surfer dude chad type of chill), nordestino makes you sound straight to the point (but also some people think it sounds simple-minded and poor, i personally dont see it but its a think that enough people think that rich people from that region learn to speak like paulistas/teach their children to speak like paulistas), and honestly i dont know what a northern accent sounds like bc they have so little coverage in media. So yeah, i hope this bring some insight, idk why i wrote this i guess i just wanted to share

thank you for your insight! also i don't have a degree in linguistics, for clarity, but i took classes in undergrad and it's a big area of interest for me personally.

good to know i was right about the canada thing! i feel like that's kind of a piece of language misinfo that people talk about a lot and i wanted to clear it up generally along with the fact that it doesn't apply for pac specifically.

and the stuff about media & the paulista accent is super interesting! that's kind of similar to the accent many broadcast news anchors use in the US, which is a kind of general american accent that is meant to not alienate viewers from across the US rather than having a more regional accents (mental floss & insider articles about said "broadcast voice"). i think that being the case for brazilian media makes a lot of sense! my understanding is this is the case in many countries, so if training data was based on traditional media like tv and movies, it would make sense that it would be less able to understand other accents & various types of slang.

thank you for the accents breakdown! it's always cool to learn about regional differences and how they impact social & media settings.

#asks #anons #linguistics talk #super interesting ty for sharing!!!

[practically-an-x-man]

I'm back with more asks :3

Your characters are asked to teach one full semester of a course at a university/college for a substantial amount of money. It can be on any topic of their choosing, but they need to be able to fill the entire semester with material in order to get paid. What topics do they choose? Who has a subject ready to go? Who makes up something on the spot just for the paycheque?

Oooooh very good question!! Thank you!

Rae: Since she already teaches languages for the X-Mansion sometimes, she sets up a language course at this university too.

Robin: Vocal performance, history of music, something like that

Madison: Struggles for a while - she never went to college, technically she never even finished high school - but eventually manages to set up a course on identifying the native plants and animals in the area.

Ophelia: Would actually have a lot of fun with it: she'd end up teaching Intro to Engineering to undergrads, and her students would love her for how passionate she is about the craft and how she's willing to take more of a "no-rules" approach to it (y'know she's got the textbook but she also tells stories about how she's built things with techniques that technically shouldn't be done)

Jasper: Honestly... they're swamped. They don't have time to come up with a full lesson plan. They end up digging out one of their old college notebooks from whatever class they least hated, and reverse-engineering that class to teach.

Kestrel: Actually gets really involved in planning this lesson on zoology and wildlife science, it's really their passion... and then gets fired from teaching for bringing in a live owl one day without warning the university about it. (the owl was Kestrel, there was no danger, but obviously they couldn't explain that they're a shapeshifter)

Katherine: Hm... I feel like she'd end up turning it into more of a studio space - just enough of a lesson plan to still qualify as a class, but that in practicality acts more as a space for students to recharge and express a little creativity. She tosses in a few fun stories about her passions, art and ancient history and what have you, but the tests are all super easy and the grades are really just technicalities

Quinn: Turns it into a game - how much total bullshit can she make up on the spot and get away with? She actually spends more effort on her fake lesson plan than most teachers do on her real lesson plan, just to make things completely airtight. She makes it through the semester and even cashes in that nice check before the university is like "wait what the fuck"

Eris: You might guess that they wouldn't even show up - why do they need money? But actually, I think they'd have an absolute ball teaching history from their perspective. The first few classes would be a bit of a drag, but by the end of the semester they're bringing in their old weapons as demonstrations, they're holding reenactments out in the courtyard, they're teaching the students swears in dead languages... they end up being most students' favorite professor, just because they don't give a shit about anything except having fun

(Now I'm imagining Rick popping in some days to bring them coffee or whatever, and Eris is... Eris, y'know, about the most affectionate they'll ever get, and the students end up developing a whole running narrative about who this Rick guy is that's so close to their immortal war-obsessed professor here)

Nikoletta: She's running on a high school education and fifteen years of federal imprisonment, but she really needs that paycheck. She ends up giving a lesson on metahumans, at first sticking to standard lessons about Superman and the Flash and the others everyone knows about, but eventually manages to corral her buddies from the Suicide Squad into giving demonstrations. She even demonstrates her own power (though she's careful to save that for the end of the semester, just so none of her students panic)

#my friends!!! #answered asks #my ocs #jasper wilson #ophelia octavius #madison douglas #oc quinn/aces #oc katherine johnson #oc kestrel #rae mckinney #robin cassidy #oc eris #nikoletta bordeaux

[morrak]

Untitled Wednesday Library Series, Part 88

Last week, in the midst of some otherwise unremarkable cataloging, I had to call upon my rapidly atrophying German chops. This week we’re visiting my rapidly disintegrating German reference materials. I’m reading new books, I swear, and interesting ones, it’s just slow. Unless you want this to turn into a journal club of obsolete papers on indexing languages — you don’t — bear with the repeats and late night posts for a bit.

In the 1952 third edition: Basic German: A Brief Introduction to the German Language, courtesy of one Paul Holroyd Curts’, Ph.D., Professor of German, Wesleyan University’: a Prenctice-Hall, Inc. joint.

The How

One of my undergrad German classes met in the joint German-Russian lounge. We had a sink, about seven thousand half-used packages of paper napkins, a samovar, rolling chairs, and several direct-to-drywall bracketed shelves full of old books. Mostly German ones, some Russian. I think there were some Scots papers on the bottom shelf. The director of German and Russian — also, incidentally, the head of that class — spoke some of that too. I expressed slightly too much interest in the collection and got tapped to weed some of it, which meant I ended up with some of the salvageable but less interesting or useful bits. This is one of those.

The Text

Neither very interesting nor very useful, if you can believe that. Kinda curious but ultimately the same as any number of alternatives and woefully out of date. Why so?

Blackletter, for a start. Sorry, ‘German characters’. I’m so sure. By the time this edition rolled out this wasn’t exactly a political statement, but it smacks of what I’ll call the wisp of a suggestion of a political aspect. Now, for an updated edition of an already old(ish) book by an American, eh. Still looks a little funny to me.

The hand script, though? Sütterlinschrift. Nice. Love to see it. Not a primary mode by this printing, but taught into the 70s in Germany. I’m not sure how you’d go about finding it on paper these days (especially in the US) other than to find old teaching books, though of course lots of Sütterlin material has been digitized.

The German it espouses is very dusty and the English it espouses it in hasn’t aged any better. No one writes chapters on the genitive like this anymore; certainly no one still teaches things as ‘modal auxiliaries’ or ‘past/present/future time’. This does use what my brain insists is the correct layout for pronoun tables, which I appreciate.

The Object

In sad condition, and worse even than a few years ago. It wasn’t bound to last in the first place, much less be handled like it was. I like that it was very clearly used as a textbook for a class — some of the markings are identical to ones I made in newer books and it even has homework notes in spots, which is one of my favorite genres of marginalia. The paper’s yellowing and the glue has swollen a bit; it’s bound for the bin in a decade or so.

Any upsides? Well, yes. It has maybe the only multi-typeface index I’ve ever seen.

The Why, Though?

Sütterlin is a soft spot of mine, even if I don’t use it anymore. I considered referencing my this and similar for my papers on blackletter, but thankfully found better options. Beyond that, I’ve really only kept it around for eventually using in one of these posts. This very next sentence may be the death rattle of it mattering to anyone. So it goes.

#images #untitled wednesday library series

[thistransient]

- So I went to the Taiwanese trial class with my friend. It was taught by a little old lady who was nice enough but gave me some mild flashbacks to those harrowing weeks with the Mandarin teacher of a similar age. Most of the session was her explaining the history of 台語 in Taiwan, with a side of trying to force the 8 tones and counting from 1 to 10 upon us via rote memorization. I felt a bit frustrated and not entirely thrilled, my friend was miffed that the school hadn’t explained the price they quoted was for the trial class only. We’ve decided to give it a pass and try a different school, although our scheduled trial there is on hold on account of the teacher falling ill. In the meantime my friend has begun to contemplate taking group Japanese class instead (as his partner and her kid are Japanese), which is much more widely available. I am tempted. Do I need to start half-assedly learning yet another language? Probably not. Do I want to divert my energy from Mandarin to whole-assedly learn Japanese? Also not really. Is there a high chance of following through nonetheless? At least I’m self-aware about it...

- Job applications here largely require a photo, and I need a haircut but I’m afraid to go back to the place I went in August for the big chop. The guy started cutting it while wet, then broke out the blow-dryer and kept snipping til he was satisfied, but because my hair is curly and I do not own styling product more complicated than a comb, it reverted immediately to a vague dandelion shape and took several months to actually resemble the reference photo I’d provided. The thought keeps crossing my mind to simply shave my head entirely. I had it buzzed to a 3 some ten years ago after a dye-job gone wrong and did not enjoy my appearance. Of course I look different now, and hair grows back, but the struggle between wanting the catharsis and radical change (not to mention less mess in the shower drain strainer) of a head-shave, and fearing the hassle of growing it all back out if I do truly detest it is raging inside of me.

- After coming back from Korea I may have spent one whole day languishing in bed and eating spoonfuls of peanut butter as a meal before slowly reconvening daily activities. I have been meeting some friends and going out, but I end up needing one day of hermit-like recovery for every outdoor social endeavour. I have yet to implement any kind of proper schedule (beyond “try to eat three meals and go outside at least once”), leading my friends to recommend I start by contemplating my greater, overarching goals for life. Every few years I come round to the notion of attempting a STEM degree (which would require redoing undergrad, but, as they say, “the time will pass anyways”). I think it would be really engaging to do a program taught in Chinese, and possibly motivate me to overcome my deficiencies in the math department, which is what always puts me off the whole scheme. Scientific terms are so much simpler in Mandarin because they’re extremely 顧名思義 (just as the name implies); English really shot itself in the foot with all the Greek and Latin. I don’t even need to check the dictionary to figure out 光合 means ‘photosynthesis’... Will I actually follow through with this, and live out my days happily studying trees and avoiding small talk with humans, or will I continue to trundle through life intermittently trying to teach English between bouts of autistic burnout? When I put it that way, the answer seems obvious, but this is without factoring in all the bugs that live in trees... Also wasn’t I trying to convince myself to go to grad school for what, translation? linguistics? library science? something? just a few months ago? Maybe overarching life goals are a red herring at present, and I should just get a job first and then see what kind of things I’m interested in when I have consistent disposable income to pursue them at length.

- I am, at the ripe old age of my mid-30s (I’m rounding up since my birthday is next month- again, so soon??) being forced to reconsider what it means to like someone. Perhaps on account of being socially inept and spending all of my formative years in Catholic school, I took for granted that it was that painful, infatuated pining one feels for attractive strangers or casual acquaintances who generally don’t reciprocate. In the past couple years I began to experience the strange phenomenon of having great affection for friends I’d gotten to know slowly and who became increasingly physically appealing as time wore on, but I wrote this off as Mystery Emotion X because it lacked that frantic obsession I was accustomed to. Now I suspect this may simply be a healthy manifestation of romantic attraction. I’ve often struggled with exactly what identity label the intersection of my gender, attraction pattern, and neurodivergency might land me under. I think the plot is thickening... but I will put off pursuing further clarity by going to the BDSM bar instead.

#i should probably figure something out jobwise before my 90 days are up #i actually did buy an exit flight to show the inbound airline as i was leaving korea #which they checked in detail and i was sweating bullets BECAUSE #i actually bought the flight for the wrong day on accident and just manually edited the date before i printed the itinerary #it was one of those super cheap sale flights that probably does not allow amending #but who knows maybe as the date approaches i'll feel the urge to see what goes on in Manila at 4 AM

[salvadorbonaparte]

So! Here I am with some translation studies questions :) These are a bit specific but-

There is a single university that teaches translation studies in my country. All of them are Hebrew < - > Something Else, and not many options for interesting languages here. How language dependent are translation studies? How crucial it is to the experience and the knowledge?

Does the masters degree include a thesis? Have you started yours? Have you heard of some interesting questions or works that were done during the thesis part?

I know this is very dependent on your specific place of study, but how active are the studies?

How was your first tatse of the subject and how telling was it? What made you choose this degree in the end?

What are you planning to do after? Will you stay in the field? How are the jobs in the field in your opinion? What other directions can this take you?

Sorey for the crazy amount of questions, I am just a bit excited, you don't have to answer all of that of course.

Hi :)

Well the first question is already a bit tricky. My uni offers several different languages and what I've found is that the theory is not language specific at all, we take all the basic classes together and there's plenty of different examples from different languages. But obviously you need to have some source and target language combination to actually translate for practical assignments and, well, hopefully your future job. It's very difficult to approach translation studies without a good knowledge of at least two languages and without getting some practice in translating between them.

At my uni, the degree includes either a thesis or project and I already have a topic but we're not really starting until the end of the next semester. I know that last year someone worked on fanfiction translation and that one of the PhD candidates is doing her thesis on fansubbing.

It's quite active here, we have lots of lecture seminars where we'll get a little lecture first and then have active discussions or group work or we have homework we have to prepare for a course.

We did some translation in the last year of my undergrad Spanish classes and I just really really enjoyed the problem solving aspect. Previously we'd only ever translated single sentences but now we were doing little articles or short stories and I always thought of it as little puzzles.

I am trying to keep my options open. I am toying with the idea of getting a PhD but I'm also keeping an eye open for different interesting jobs. I'm especially interested in subtitling, literary translation or translating for the EU or Embassy. There's also some cool work in video game localisation but I don't know enough about that yet.

There are so many different jobs in translation, some of them are less actively about translation though. People become project managers or work in machine translation etc there's just a lot of variety.

I hope this was helpful! If you want to know more you can DM me any time

#Asks

[shimyereh]

Tagged by @carpe-mamilia — Thank you!

Last song: This early-20th-c. music-hall version of “Dark Eyes”:

Last film: Dangerous Gentlemen [Niebezpieczni dżentelmeni], a historical-fiction comedy set in Zakopane in 1914. A bunch of notorious Polish literary figures have to solve an increasingly convoluted murder mystery. This movie was delightfully stupid in ways that very much appealed to my sense of humor.

Currently reading: Odoyevsky’s Russian Nights [Русские ночи] and Nałkowska’s The Romance of Teresa Hennert [Romans Teresy Hennert].

Currently watching: Watching the seasons change out my window. The treeline has gotten noticeably sparser over the past week. We’ve got some snow coming this weekend.

Currently consuming: Toast with peanut butter, and a strong mug of tea.

Currently craving: A good night’s sleep. Time and headspace to really savor what I’m reading, and to play with it a bit more. This has been a heavy semester — just constant work.

Tagging: @mr-craig, @highkingpetermagnificent, @scarvenartist, @dragongirlg-fics, @monotonous-minutia, @vera-dauriac

#this has been my first semester as a TA #(which means straight-up teaching undergrad language classes) #it's fun! but it takes so much time and energy #and meanwhile I'm still taking coursework myself #(substantial coursework — incl. adding a new lang. at a very accelerated pace)

[dishchan]

Rudimentary study of how language relates to colors? 👀 (Several of my uni classes have addressed how language is tied to cultural nuances, so my curiosity is piqued.)

Right, so [crack knuckles and stretches] - this story goes in all different directions but OMG I'm so excited to tell it soooooo, sorry not sorry.

I'm big into color, like my favorite task at my part-time job in high school was organizing the thread towers or being let loose on the wall of broadcloth solids to make sure everything is in rainbow order. So needless to say I have a fair obsession with paint chips and the paint/color displays at home improvement stores. Which was a large foundational reason I chose this project.

My major in undergrad was Japanese and all language majors had to take a few basic linguistic courses, which was unfortunately, a class I did not enjoy because the International Phonetic Alphabet is so confusing to me and probably the TA teaching it didn't explain it well. (That said, etymology and language evolution FASCINATES ME. Ask me about words, any day, any time, any place.)

So we had our year end project and we had to conduct our own language experiment. None of this class (or any undergraduate class) has gone over how to read, conduct, or run research projects so we're all flying fairly blind in this and approaching it with the brain of an undergraduate but the scientific method of a sixth grader submitting something to the science fair.

One thing we . . . read? discussed? (I dunno how I stumbled across it in this class) that we touched on at some point was how researchers were starting to really look into how different language speakers categorized color. So I, of course, immediately decided something about THAT was going to be my final project. Because color! Because paint chips!

I wheedled someone with a car to drive me to the local Lowe's (or Home Depot or whatever), and just went CRAZY on collecting paint chips. And when I got back to my dorm, I randomly labeled them all with numbers. Then, I started reaching out to friends to ask around to ask for participation from people whose first language wasn't English. When I got about five or six people who weren't native English speakers and like three who were, I'd meet them and have them sort the colors into categories. No pressure on what they wanted to sort them into, but just to sort them, like colors with like colors.

After I’d note their grouping with the number on the back (i.e. group 1 had paint chips 2, 5, 19, 27, and so on) with the person’s native language and it’s language family. And then wrote it all up in a paper (mind you, see above about research not being taught so it was definitely an ESSAY over any attempt at a research paper).

And honestly, I mean, there were like ten people MAX I asked to do this, the results seemed to be very heavily skewed towards languages really having an effect on how one groups color or mentally categorizes it.

It's like the idea of orange, you know. Orange the color is supposedly named after the fruit, so until English speakers encountered the fruit, the color was categorized within the red or yellow family. But it could be that a language that developed in places where orange natively grew, orange might be it's own category within color.

There is a book called "Color Language and Color Categorization" edited by Geda Paulsen that I'd really like to read at some point.

But yeah, that's my long form answer!

#long post #my asks #rambling

[countthelions]

Dear Operator, what’s in a name?

 a continuation of [this piece], taking place near the beginning of the timeline after Gaster makes the impulsive decision to take home the elemental he accidentally created. Dedicated to @/plantpretender for their support when I was feeling very low about this AU. I don’t know what else will be created for it, but like our two here, it’s worth sharing for the joy of it existing.

--

Gaster tends to call the operator in his apartment stairwell, ‘cause he’s got six flights to trek up and he gets tired lugging all his books and equipment and whatever else he tries to bring up from the labs up all those steps. His magic could be used to help carry things, but it’s honestly not the strongest and he’d rather save it for delicate lab work instead.  

So he usually takes a break on the third level 'cause no one lives in the rooms right by the stairs on his side of the building (he doesn't know why, but it's why rent is cheap despite being in walking distance of the subway, so he'll take whatever he can) and it gets surprisingly good cell service. Usually. There was one time it was just garbage noise until he switched to the other side of the space then it cleared up just fine. But during this pause, he asks about Names.

He’d been talking but not-really-talking to Alphys about the elemental - not-really-talking because he doesn’t want her to get in trouble either, but still desperately needing someone to hear what’s going on - and about her class because her undergrads were a really neat bunch this quarter. As always, she was very worried about their needs and making sure they understood what she was teaching them, and when one came in with an interpreter, she knew she needed to brush up on her signing with Gaster. Since y’know, skeleton talk is his first language and monster-speak is his second and sign was the bridge between them. 

That then sorta rolled into the idea of Names, because of name signs and Gaster kinda stops and is like, well. shit. The elemental needs a name. I can't just keep waving to get his attention. He seems used to that sort of greeting already for reasons Gaster doesn't want to think about. It feels... wrong, and so Gaster calls the Commission line, and doesn't try to think too hard about Papyrus yet again being the one who picks up.

"Welcome to the Monster Commission Helpline, Papyrus speaking, how may we help you on this fantastic day?"

"Hi Papyrus." It might be karma or something that it's Papyrus every time actually. Gaster's trying to hide this monster who isn't supposed to exist outside of war efforts and something wants him to get caught. Not Papyrus at least. He hopes. For as rule following as the other monster is - he does work for the Commission after all, it’s probably some sort of requirement - he's never actually asked for any more information, just excited to share his knowledge. 

"Mr. Elemental Research!" Well... Maybe..... Gaster tries to not fidget in concern, or look around like someone suddenly started monitoring them. 

"That's me aheh..." He rubs his free hand on one pant leg, trying to get out the jitters. These calls were worth it, he reminded himself, it was worth learning more about this elemental and about what he needed and - "I bet you can tell why I'm calling?"

"Absolutely, I've got the book out again and everything." There was a shuffle, like some sort of elemental tome had been pulled from the shelves. It'd be easier if Gaster could just... get that somehow, but he was already in deep enough trouble with hiding an elemental and there was no way Papyrus would just hand it over. Also seeing him? Seeing the operator? Yeah that was a really bad idea. He did not need Papyrus to know who he was or what he looked like because then he'd tell Stratus and she would - "you still there?"

"Uh, yes. Yes! Sorry, I was," Gaster jolts, pacing the length of the little landing platform as he tried to think of a good lie. "uh, getting out my notebook to write this down." yeah that's.... that'll have to do. "Uhm, I wanted to ask about... names?"

"Oh! Give me one moment." There's another shuffle of pages, Papyrus humming quietly to himself instead of putting on the hold music which Gaster appreciates. The hold music for one is boring and two, it means Papyrus maybe isn't telling someone about these calls when Gaster can’t hear. Gaster can continue to hope and fret that that’s why Papyrus is humming.

He doesn't recognize the song either but something about it is familiar? He taps his foot along as some sort of beat - and to continue to get out the nerves until Papyrus finally answers. “Thank you for waiting! I don’t really see anything on names here. As tools, they were easily replaced by the units assigned to needing an elemental’s destructive strength, usually the frontlines, so you could look up specific units to track any historical significance between these weapons. The practice of not naming them appears to have kept up to this day.”

Papyrus keeps talking about where Gaster can look up the different commanders and units and battalions and all this other military jargon Gaster has dumped immediately into a mental box of "really not good news probably" when these calls first started but he's not listening anymore. A ringing fills his skull he knows is an increase of magic because everything in his vision goes blue and there's a static crack to the air that feels like a thunderstrike about to crush him to bone dust. 

No name.

No name?!

"I'll be sure to look those up, thank you." Gaster cuts Papyrus off, hanging up. He barely resists the urge to throw his phone - if only because he unfortunately still needs it and doesn't have the money to replace it - and instead shoves it in his pocket and gathers all his stuff to hike back up the stairs. He takes them two at a time, unburdened by his load in the fury that rises. 

What sort of monster creates a living creature and doesn't name them? 

They're not tools, they must've had lives and beliefs and things they liked and didn't like and favorite foods - he knows what this elemental likes - and different voices and flame patterns surely and - it doesn't make sense. The heartlessness wedges beneath his teeth, and all his magic tries crushing the idea with each grind of his jaw. It doesn't make sense. 

He'll have a name. Gaster thinks. We'll spend all week looking for a good one, he's gonna have one no matter what.

--------------

He'd been thinking. 

Usually he thought about the books Gaster had brought him, because whenever he came home, Gaster would ask about which ones he liked best so the next books he brought the elemental would be about those topics. He was working up through the younger monster books to stuff with less pictures and more words in them too, so there were a lot of topics to pick from as language clicked more and more in his mind. This week was almost half and half words and pictures, and that felt like a really big accomplishment, especially seeing how the stack on the left - the one he put the read books in, that he understood - grow compared to its neighbor, the one where he'd have to ask Gaster for what certain words meant. The dictionary he was given helped with figuring out words too but it was more fun to ask Gaster instead, to see what the skeleton knew and if it was something related to his work. Those were the best topics he discovered, because it made whatever core that made up Gaster's magic - a soul, he thinks Gaster had called it, but it was bigger than that single word could define. His own felt bigger at least - glow like fire. When it glowed, he seemed happier too, less worried.

The worry made the elemental wonder if there was something he was supposed to do to help. There was an urge that told him he needed to protect and fend off whoever hurt his creator - but something too told him that urge had no actual target. Gaster hadn't really made him, at least, that’s what he kept saying. But he still wanted to protect Gaster from whatever was worrying him. 

This worry though was his own. 

Sometimes Gaster would go out to the balcony when he thought the elemental had fallen asleep and talk with someone. An Alphys. He hadn't met her yet but she sounded like Gaster. Excited about their shared topics, and worried about other things. Her worry this week was about a student of hers who needed signing. He wasn't sure what that was, but Gaster did, which helped whatever worry Alphys had. Then they were quiet for a long while, the elemental actually falling asleep before Gaster had come back in. That worry wasn't what he was focused on though, it was the names. They called each other Doctor, and these shorter names from their names, Gast and Alph - and he wanted one of those. The characters in the books he read had names. Every item seems to have a name of some kind too, like book and pan and well, elemental. 

But Gaster wasn't Skeleton, he was W.D. Gaster. If the elemental was a creature like him then... shouldn't he have a name too?

The books didn't really tell him how to get a name. The characters already had theirs when the story began, but they must've come from somewhere. So he looked through all the books from this week. The stacks moved sides again, the right one to the left, then back again as he sifted again. It seems names could be given, like the nicknames were, like Doctor seemed to be too, but also the characters could choose their own. Sometimes they shed old names. 

 One of the fantasy books had a hero who did that, proclaiming it in front of the gathered supporters who saw how their work saved their burrow by blocking up the flood waters with their really fluffy fur, that had been something they were made fun of at the beginning of the tale. I'm not the scruffy bunny anymore! I'm the fluffiest one, and everyone will know me as that!

Their change was celebrated, and the elemental had nodded in agreement. They truly were the fluffy bunny. 

So could he do that too? He didn't do some big thing like save his home but... he existed, and that felt like a good reason.

Today when Gaster left for school, the elemental did the start of his regular routine. He cleaned up after breakfast, putting those all to cool off to the side, but instead of doing the next part of his routine - looking out the window to watch pieces of other morning routines - he sat back down where his books where, and pulled all the ones he had marked especially for this day. He hadn't told Gaster he was doing this, wanting to surprise him. There were a lot of words on his list so far, the pages carefully folded in the corners - dog eared as Gaster called it when he saw the elemental doing it - so he could flip quickly to his favorites. 

The books formed a neat semi-circle around him as he examined them closer. Names could be anything - they could even be an object name, but he already had one of those, so it was time for something more specific. He liked to cook a lot, so most of the ideas surrounded that line of thinking.

Pepper was the top contender. He liked adding it to their meals, liked the smell of it, how it made Gaster sneeze. He liked too how it could be multiple things - a spice, a vegetable, a color - but that also made him hesitate to choose it. It might be too broad. He was just one thing. 

Maybe an action word would be better. There's peppery but I don't like that as much, he thought, setting aside the books with Item Names. He aligned their spines carefully, using small nudges to check in between each touch for any burn marks. He hadn't burned anything yet, but he knew he had to be careful anyways. Gaster is kinda an action-y word. G is a nice letter too.

He sorted through the G words, more books back to their proper stacks until a much smaller list was before him. He scanned through it, saying each name aloud to feel how it sounded, and to continue to practice speaking. 

"Grinder." Hmm no.

"Glaze, Glazing, Glazed." No, he liked the 'gr' better. 

"Gravy." Closer. But it was a bit off. He was... kind of gravy? Fire gravy. He made a face. Nope.

"Griddle." .... that was, getting there. The next one on the list was, "Grill."

"Grill." Oh he liked that! That had the 'Gr' and it was a cool action thing. The books about grilling food were really neat too. "Grill." It just... need something. The Y on the ends were nice, could he...? "Grilly. Grillsy, Grillty, Grill... Grillb... Grillby." 

Oh. 

"Grillby." He said again, fire warm, warm, warm inside his soul. That was it. That was it! That was him, he wasn't just an elemental, he was Grillby the elemental. Grillby! Grillby grinned, I can't wait to tell -

The door opened, making Grillby jump at how sudden and wide it flung, before Gaster hooked a foot around the bottom edge, and shut it behind him. A little click said he used some magic to lock it. 

"Gaster!" Grillby greeted, getting up to collect whatever Gaster had chosen to take home for the day. It looked like this time it was a box of wires and tubes, probably connected to repairing the device he had been working on with Alphys. There were definitely more pieces though, Grillby peering into the box as he took over carrying it the half of the table they designated as "the work zone" with a long piece of tape to split the sides up. His soul was all fluttering, giddy to share his news but knew to wait first. It was best to stick with the routine, the schedule, before changing it up. "Tonight I was thinking we could try enchiladas for dinner. The books you got me this week had that recipe repeat a few times across them, and I think we have all the ingredients except for maybe tortillas. We might have used the last of them with breakfast - but we still have the green peppers and the cheese." 

"Maybe if they're good you'd be able to take them for lunch. I mean," Grillby scratched the side of his head in thought, before pulling off his glasses to resettle them. "I can still make you sandwiches if you want those but this could be something more filling maybe? I feel like something more filling would be good."

The box was easy to unpack and place all the items into their designated areas, Grillby staring at the organization with a bit of pride making his fire curl delightedly, before turning back to Gaster who hadn't answered his question or responded to his greeting, who... who hadn't moved from the doorway actually. Grillby paused. He didn't know what that expression was on Gaster's face, still not the best at figuring out what the physical changes meant when the magic was right there for him to feel out for instead. Grillby definitely felt the magic. It wasn't the excited feeling or the worried one - maybe a little bit? - but something... sharp. Kinda like pepper. It made that protective urge bubble up. 

"Is everything alright?" Grillby asked, moving away from the table towards Gaster, starting to scan around for any magic he didn't recognize, going through the motions that were as ingrained as the beat of his heart. Gaster locked the door so if someone followed up him, they'd have a hard time getting in - like I'd even let them get this far. This was his home. He wouldn't let anything bad happen to Gaster. 

"Wh wait, wait, I'm s-" Gaster interrupted Grillby's thoughts with a sigh of frustration towards himself. "I'm sorry, it's. We're fine. Everything's.. well, everything's not fine but not something you need to defend or fight against. It's..." He stopped with another short sigh, a forceful one that tried to push the magic out of the air with little success. 

Oh. Grillby relaxed his stance, confused. "If it's bad but not something I can fight, then what is it?"

Gaster stares for a moment, and that was familiar at least. That look said he had talked to that person on the phone, and learned something. With careful, exact words - that specific way of speaking he used to let Grillby know his frustrations were never aimed at Grillby - Gaster said, "I learned elementals aren't named, when they're - when they're created. And. You - all of them but, you - "

"I chose one." Grillby interrupted before those careful words got off track. Gaster stared again. "I uh, heard, I heard you and Alphys talking and wanted a name and chose one."

"Oh." Gaster kept staring, the rush of his frustrated magic vanishing in a little blip of surprise, as if whatever plan he had thundered in with was completely derailed. His next words suggested the same confusion as what Grillby felt in the skeleton's magic too. "Well that's. Good. I'm - really glad, that's. What is it?"

"Grillby." Grillby said, smiling in pride. 

"Grillby." Gaster repeated, softly. Then he smiled too, a burst of magic that felt just like fire. "That's perfect, Grillby. You found the perfect name." 

Grillby beamed, pulling Gaster further into the apartment as the warmth grew brighter and brighter from their combined delight. Gaster laughed, willingly pulled along, turning their motions into a little spin in the open living room space until they were moving and dancing just for the joy of getting to move. 

"It's absolutely perfect Grillby!" Gaster repeated, and Grillby was certain his soul never felt so bright.

#undertale fanfic #grillster #grillby x gaster #grillby #gaster #w.d. gaster #lionwrites #operator au #yes this is 100% a trans analogy #because that's important to me #esp in this au #dehumanization tw #yeah there's not a lot of context thus far but I'll write a master post up of all that was going to exist for it #so it'll stop tearing pieces off my heart #but this one needed to be in full

[deep-peach]

augh i don’t even know who to talk to about any of this, i’m exploding

i was really anticipating just taking a few classes and doing tea club and maaaybe having a distance job w flexible hours for extra money

and in this this one meeting my advisor was like oh ok so you should actually teach a 101 language class this fall and also translate some of that book u talked about last spring and then we’ll use the book and ur translations in the class i’m teaching

also shadow another teacher to start teaching literature classes

like ok sure i’ll get tuition covered which was a big worry but uh

uh

i have The Autism and Social Anxiety and Unmedicated, Wild, Out of Control ADHD

y’all rly trust me to teach!!????? an entire class????????

lord i can barely keep my basic particles straight when i talk how could i possible grade students on their mistakes 😞😞😞 i’d be a hypocrite!!! i need help myself!!!!!!!! but he was p insistent that the work that goes into the modern lit class would be a much bigger demand of my time energy and focus and i do trust him and don’t want to wade into dark territory at the start.

but i did miss all my scholarship deadlines so idk what choice i have…. so i started reviewing my basic grammar again (rip that i threw out my 101 and 102 books since i figured i wouldn’t need to reference them……. it’s always the ONE thing i let go of that i realize i need ffs) and i’ve been studying my kanji again the past month or so already so that’s good. i’ve gotten half this first chapter typed up and 1.5 pages of rough translation. i hope he doesn’t want this whole book for fall 🌚 but i could probably get a chapter or two ready by august at least.

woof. i know being in academia means teaching but like this is so much right from the start that i was desperately hoping to avoid. but i know i need to get stronger at public speaking & being more of a leader or mentor etc, and it’s something i’ve really wanted the opportunity to try to grow into but i haven’t been in that position before. i’ve never even been like, a key supervisor or whatever in retail you know? and now i’m a teacher???? at least i’m Old compared to other fresh grad students straight from undergrad but like idk if my life experience measures up to someone else my age. and, this is a good chance to feel out if i should pursue a phd and/or another masters, and if academia is a good career path for me; or if i should just look at making some okay money in a boring office job and translate things on the side as a passion. idk man. my anxiety is really rough and so is my physical health. it’s a lot of pressure 😞 but i think i should go with it and see what happens.

#peach posts

[graziadiocenterilpostino]

Faculty Spotlight: Sienna Hopkins

1. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your experiences at Cal State Long Beach.

For the past 15 years I have been a lecturer of Italian, Italian-American History, and Comparative Literature at CSULB.  Each subject is scintillating to teach, but only in Italian am I actually paid to ask my students questions about their lives – repeatedly, every day – for the entire semester. It is pure joy. The camaraderie that is developed in a language class is unparalleled, and has given me a benchmark for what every class can be: student centered. I structure my other courses with that goal in mind. 

2. You pursued a PhD in Italian Studies at UCLA. What initially interested you in this program and is there anything about your time there you would like to share?

When I started my graduate program at UCLA, I was behind the eight-ball.  I had not even minored in Italian at my undergrad university because at the time, a minor did not exist.  In essence, I had gone to Italy for year, fallen in love with the people and the language, then returned home with a desire to pursue my Italian studies, without the ability to do so.  So I started working at an Italian restaurant (learning every dialectal word for “cheapskate” while doing so), listening to Italian music, and watching the occasional film.  These things weren’t easy in 1998!  I had to drive across LA to a small video store in Santa Monica to snag these precious movies, and order music CDs from Italy. There was NO YouTube. NO apple music. NO Netflix. Graduate school was the natural next step if I was going to pursue this passion that had no outlet. Still, I started a GRADUATE program in Italian without even knowing the subjunctive tense.  I had a LOT to learn, and UCLA was a wonderful place for that, because Italian was spoken in every nook and cranny of Royce Hall; walking into the 3rd floor, east wing, was like walking into Italy. Because my Italian was intermediate at best, I didn’t think I would ever teach the language–I thought I would leave that to the native speakers, so during my first year there, I TA’d for an Italian cinema and Italian history course. But that summer I earned a Fellowship at the Dante Alighieri School in Siena, Italy, and when I returned I realized that after a year at UCLA and a summer in Italy, I was ready to teach the language. The training I received at UCLA, while teaching my first language course, was grueling, but top-notch. When we walked into the classroom to teach, we were PREPARED.

3. Have you ever studied or lived in another country? If so, where and what was that experience like? Did you learn anything from it?

As an undergrad I lived in Paris for a summer, and learned that a city can seep into your very bones; you can feel the cobblestones in your heart, you smell your favorite patisserie from miles away, and your eyes expectantly seek out every beautiful monument, statue, tree, and ornate street lamp as you walk through the city; you even become bossy in French, about HOW you want your crepe beurre sucre, to be made. That is when I learned that I don not particularly like to travel to a foreign country; I like to live there.  

I have lived in Italy 4 separate times: to Florence for an academic year abroad, to Siena, Italy for two summers (not consecutive), and to Florence, Italy, to accompany a group of UCLA students and teach Italian. I confess, it felt strange to be an American teaching Italian in Italy, but I have found that learning Italian as a second language is an asset in the language classroom, because I understand when something might be confusing (having struggled with the concept myself), and can help my students with those questions. Ex: how do you say “drop” in Italian? You don’t! You can’t!  Instead, Italians say, “made it fall/ far cadere”- which was very frustrating to me as a language learner, because obviously when we drop something, it is not purposeful at all! These are the things language learners wrestle with, so I can see their questions coming before they even ask them. Plus, I know every grammar exception under the sun, because UCLA made sure I learned them.  

4. Are you currently working on any projects or research you would like to discuss?

Every time I step into the classroom, I am researching and learning.  When I teach a new course, I generally like to publish something about that topic, but it’s more a natural outpouring of my love for learning itself, and realizing that I need to have a deep, ingrained knowledge of the content to be an effective teacher. I am currently working on an article about how to teach with primary sources in the transnational language classroom, specifically elaborating upon how memoirs of the Italian American experience teach history “sneakily”- unobtrusively and naturally, through anecdotes, and how teachers of history need only point the way, helping the students reflect upon the stories to reach historical conclusions, and perhaps providing the occasional historical date or statistic to help them fit the stories into a historical framework.    

I am also slowly writing an Italian language textbook with my colleague and friend, Daniela Zappador-Guerra. It features American students traveling abroad in Italy - their friendships, their love of Italian culture, and of course their linguistic discoveries.  Diversity and authenticity are central to this textbook, as is implementing the breadth of theoretical knowledge on language instruction that we have learned here at CSULB from the myriad of scholars who have passed through our grateful doors.  

5. What is a fun fact you would like to share about yourself?

How about a story? This is my favorite: on my first day in Italy, as a student in Pepperdine’s Florence year-abroad program, I decided I did not want to join the rest of the students on the tour of the city center; I wanted to explore on my own!  I have always had a spirit similar to Anne of Green Gables, so as you can imagine, this decision had very interesting ramifications.  The first is that I convinced two other girls to join me on my rebellious jaunt through the streets of Florence.  The second is that we realized, after walking for about 15 minutes, that we had NO IDEA WHERE WE LIVED. That’s right. No address. No idea. This was pre-internet (gasp), so we decided to do the only intelligent thing: figure out where we were at that intersection, and then get directions back to that spot when our city escapade had concluded.  We were sure we could find our way home from that spot, so we looked at the street signs and saw the words: “Senso Unico.” We continued on our way and after an hour or two, I decided to use my language skills to obtain directions home. I approached my first Italian and asked, “Mi scusi, dov’è via Senso Unico?” As some of you have already surmised, the response was not one I was hoping for: key words like destra, sinistra or dritto were NOT uttered. Not once. Just a string of words I didn’t understand. So we thought we should try asking an elderly gentleman. Same result. I decided that my language skills were obviously not what I had hoped, so we slowly made our way back, and (gasp) we found via “Senso Unico!” We followed it home; or at least, we tried to. This street was very odd.   It stopped and started in the strangest of places, but we eventually found our way back to the river and made our way back home. The next day, when I was sheepishly walking with the group to a tour of the outdoor market, I pointed out “Via Senso Unico” to the director, remarking that the streets in Italy were beyond strange to which the director responded, “That means One Way - it’s not a street name, it’s a direction!” That is when I learned that street names in Italy are posted on buildings, not on street-posts! I had been looking in the wrong places, and asking the very wrong questions! “Excuse me, where is one-way street?!”

Since that day, the expression Senso Unico has become replete with symbolism for me: it means following one’s dream with dogged determination, it spiritually signifies that love is the only path worth taking, and it even influenced a quote my husband and I used in our wedding: “Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking outward in the same direction” (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry). We recently celebrated our 20th anniversary, and I composed a song for my husband entitled Senso Unico. Perhaps that is an interesting tidbit about me: I love to sing, but I never do it publicly, unless I am singing a phrase or two for my students, but in the classroom, singing a few words feels as natural as speaking them - because speaking Italian feels like singing to me - it harmonizes with my personality in a way that feels like home.  

If you are wondering, I did eventually learn the address of the street where I would live for that entire year: 41 Viale Milton.  I even had my father, artist extraordinaire, sneak the numbers “41” and the senso unico symbol onto the painting that will eventually be the cover of a language textbook I am writing with my colleague, Daniela Zappador-Guerra. Picture below.

Steve Ladd, Possibilità

Sienna Hopkins

[aiminstitute22]

What Is The Best CUET Coaching Institute In Delhi?

Wandering what is the best CUET coaching institute in Delhi? We got you covered, as this article contains all the required information one might need to select the best CUET institute and pass the exam with flying colors. Below is the basic information for students who are planning to sit for the CUET exam.

What exactly is CUET?

The Common University Entrance Test, formerly known as the Central Universities Common Entrance Test, is an all-India test administered by the National Testing Agency for admission to various undergrad, integrated, postgraduate, diploma, certification, and research programs in 45 central universities across India.

The computer-based test (CBT) for the CUET entrance test will be held online (CBT). The exam will last 2 hours, or 120 minutes, and will consist of 100 multiple-choice questions. Each correct try will give the candidate one point, while each incorrect effort will result in a 0.25-point penalty. Understanding the CUET Exam Pattern is one of the most important things you can do to help prepare for the CUET Exam.

Exam pattern

The CUET Language Test Syllabus

Questions in Reading Comprehension (based on multiple sorts of passages: factual, literary, and narrative [literary aptitude and vocabulary]) will be used to assess the students’ language proficiency. The following languages are included in Sections 1A and 1B, respectively:

Section 1A includes English, Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, Assamese, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Marathi.

Odia & Urdu.

Section 1B: Chinese, German, French, Arabic, Italian, Japanese, Nepali,

Russian, Spanish, Tibetan, Dogri, Bodo, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Manipuri, Santhali, and Sindhi.

CUET Syllabus for Domain Subjects:

Domain Subjects

Accountancy, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, and Computer Sciences.

Economics, Geography, History, Home Science, Legal Studies, Maths, Physics, Political Sciences,

Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, and Sanskrit.

Additional Subjects: Physical Education, Engineering Graphics, Fine Arts, Knowledge

Teaching ability, performing arts, entrepreneurship, teaching ability, mass media, and agriculture are all areas of study.

CUET Syllabus for the General Test

Section III of the CUET paper is the General Aptitude Test (GA), which consists of the following sections:

General Knowledge and Current Affairs

General Intelligence

Numerical Ability

Quantitative Reasoning

Logical and Analytical Reasoning

What are the educational requirements for CUET exam eligibility?

To apply and take the CUET, candidates must meet the Central Universities’ qualifying requirements. The following are the criteria for eligibility:

For UG: To enroll in bachelor’s degree programs at Central Universities, students must have completed Class 12 from a recognized board in the Science stream. To be eligible for the CUET, candidates must have obtained a minimum grade of 50% in Class 12 in the General category and a minimum grade of 45 percent in Class 12 in the SC/ST category. For BTech programs, general category candidates must have a minimum aggregate of 45 percent, while reserved category students must have a minimum aggregate of 40 percent.

Applicants for a master’s degree must have earned a bachelor’s degree from a recognized university. To be eligible for CUET, candidates must have obtained a minimum of 55 percent (General) or 50 percent (SC/ST) in the same subject as a Bachelor’s degree or a different degree.

Ph.D. applicants must hold a master’s degree from a recognized institution or institute in order to be considered for admission to research programs. A candidate must have a minimum GPA of 55% (Genera) and 50% (SC/ST) to be eligible for Ph.D. programs at Central Universities.

Best CUET coaching institute in Delhi

We all know that this is the first time students will sit for the CUET exam, so it’s understandable to be concerned about the exam’s difficulty level and, more importantly, the pass percentage. So it is a good idea to go for coaching. There are a lot of CUET tutoring options in Delhi, which makes it tough for students to choose the best one. Every student aspires to be a part of the best CUET coaching program in Delhi.

Therefore, Aim Institute Of Professional Studies is a wonderful option if you are looking for the best CUET coaching in Delhi. as it is the most prominent coaching institute in Delhi. They have educated and encouraged kids throughout India since their establishment in 1999, creating the road to their success. They have a staff of specialists who lead dynamic and intuitive sessions that help students relax and gain confidence while also resolving their doubts.

It is one of the best when it comes to practical and career-focused learning, and it has also been preparing students for the rigors of the real world. They also offer courses in Chartered Accountant (CA), Company Secretary (CS), and Cost and Management Accountant (CMA) certification (CMA). AIM Institute of Professional Studies makes it possible for you to integrate school into your schedule while also providing great support.

There are two types of coaching available at Aim Institute of Professional Studies.

1) Coaching in person (Offline Class)

2) Pendrive class (online class)

Aim Institute of Professional Director CS, Ruchi Dutt Kaushik, has been involved in teaching and research for approximately seven years. She worked as a company secretary for several MNCs after practicing as an advocate in the Delhi High Court for a few years. She passed the Company Secretary (CS) exam on her first attempt. Aside from that, she runs a Vedic Mathematics and Abacus institute.

With a team of dedicated teachers who push their students each semester in class, through career training and real-life examples. They make certain that each student receives undivided attention. One’s lecturers and staff advisors will be there to help them from the first visit on.

AIMS also provides pen drive or online classes. Students who find it difficult to commute on a daily basis can enroll in online classes, which will save them both time and money. Students who are apprehensive to ask questions in online classes can also schedule a personal question-answer session. AIMS professionals ensure that students are at ease while studying and that they receive assistance as needed.

As a result, AIMS offline and online/Pendrive classes make students’ life easier and more enjoyable. With AIMS You have the opportunity to take part in one of the most interesting and intuitive learning experiences currently accessible. It’s time for AIM — the institute that will help you achieve at every turn — if you’re ready to take the next step toward the future you want.

#best cuet coaching in delhi #cuet coaching #cuet coaching classes #cuet coaching in delhi

[that-disabled-radfem]

Happy back-to-school y’all

I’ve attended and worked at a couple of super liberal universities. I avoid the gender studies departments for obvious reasons and I still had a lecture in which the female prof gave a brief overview of TERFs and proclaimed her hatred of JKR. Being openly critical of gender ideology, the porn industry, kinks, and ‘sex work’ are the kind of things that can ruin your future in academia. Not to mention the fact that any speech or actions that could be labelled transphobic (ie. defining woman as adult human female) can get you a suspension according to many universities anti-hate-speech policies. 

So, here’s a list of small and smallish (small in terms of overt TERFery, some may require more effort than others) radical feminist actions you can take as a university student:

(this is a liberal arts perspective so if you’re a stem gal this may not apply. but also if you’re in stem maybe you can actually acknowledge that women are oppressed as a sex class without getting kicked out of school. idk)

(Note for TRAs hate reading this: One of the core actions of radical feminism is creating female networks. This is not so that we can brainwash people into being anti-trans. This is because female solidarity is necessary for creating class consciousness and overturning patriarchy. It is harder to subjugate the female sex when we stand together.)

Take classes with female profs. Multiple sections of a class? Pick the one taught by a woman. Have to chose an elective? Only look at electives offered by women. When classes have low numbers they get cancelled. When classes are super popular, universities are forced to consider promoting the faculty that teach them

Make relationships with these female profs. Go to office hours. Chat after class. Ask them about their research. Building female networks is sooooo important!

Actually fill in your end of year course feedback forms. Profs often need these when applying for tenure or applying for a job at another university so it is very important (especially with young and/or new profs) that you fill out these forms and give specific examples of how great these women are. Go off about what you love about them! Give her a brilliant review because you know the idiot boy in that class who won’t shut up even though he knows nothing is going to give her only negative feedback because he thinks any woman who leaves the house is a feminazi b*tch. 

(note: obviously don’t go praising any prof - female or male - who is blatantly racist, homophobic, etc.)

(Also if you have shitty male profs write down all the horrible things they have done and said and put it in these forms because once a shitty man gets tenure they are virtually untouchable)

(also also, leave a good review on rate my profs or whatever other thing students use to figure out if they want to take classes. idc if you copy paste your feedback from the formal review. rave about the class to your friends. do what you can to get good enrolment for that prof for reasons above.)

Participate in class. Talk over the male students. Say what you mean and mean it. Call out the boys when they say dumb shit

Write about women. If you have the option to make a text written by a woman your primary text in an essay, do it. Pick the female-centred option if you’re writing an exam-essay with multiple prompts. (Profs often look at what works on their syllabus are being written about/engaged with as a marker of whether to keep those texts the next time they teach the class. If there are badass women on your syllabus, write about them to keep them on the syllabus) Use female-written secondary sources whenever possible. 

(pro tip: many women in academia are more than happy to talk to you about their papers. expand your female networks by reaching out to article authors through email and asking them about their cool shit)

Get your essays published! Many departments have undergrad journals you can publish in. This will ensure more people read about the women you write about and will demonstrate to the department that people like learning about women

Consider trying to publish your undergrad essay with a legit peer-reviewed journal. If you can do it, your use of female-written secondary sources boosts the reputations of the women who wrote those secondary sources. Also this helps generally to increase scholarship about women’s writing!

Present your papers at conferences! Many schools have their own undergraduate/departmental conferences that you can present at. Push yourself by submitting to outside conferences. Bring attention to women’s works by presenting your papers. Take a space at a conference that would otherwise be reserved for mediocre men

Talk to your profs and/or your department and/or your university about mandating the inclusion of female works in classes if this isn’t something they do already

Sit next to other women in your classes. Talk to them. Make friends. Form study groups. Proofread each other’s essays. Give each other knowing looks when the boys are being dumb. Just interact with other women! Build those female networks!

Be generous with your compliments. A female classmate and I were talking to a prof after class and the classmate told me (out of the blue) that I always have such interesting things to say. I think about that whenever I’m lacking confidence about my academic skills. Compliment the women in your classes for speaking up, for sharing their opinions, for challenging your classmates/profs, for doing cool presentations, etc.

Talk to other women about sexist things going on on campus. Make everyone aware of the sexist profs. Complain about how there are many more tenured men than tenured women. Go on rate my professor and be explicit about how the sexist profs are sexist

Be active on campus and in societies. If a society has an all male executive or is male-dominated, any women who join that society make it less intimidating for more women to join. Run for executive positions! Bring in more women! 

(Pro tip: Many societies’ elections are super gameable. You can be eligible to vote in a society election sometimes just by being a student at that university — even without having done anything with the society before. Other societies might just require that you’ve taken a class in a particular department or attended a society event. (Check the society’s governing documents.) Use those female networks you’ve been building. If you can bring three or four random people to vote for you, that might be enough for you to win. Societies have trouble meeting quorum (the minimum number of people in attendance to do votes) so it is really super achievable to rig an election with a few friends. And don’t feel bad about this. The system is rigged against women so you have every right to exploit loopholes!)

(Also feel free to go vote “non-confidence”/“re-open election” if only shitty men are running. Too often people see that only candidates they don’t like are running and so they give up. But you can actually stop them getting elected)

Your campus may have a LGBTQIA+alphabetsoup society. That society definitely needs more L and B women representation. It may be tedious to argue with the nb straight dudes who insist that it’s fine to use “q***r” in the society’s posters and that attraction has nothing to do with genitals, but just imagine what could happen if we could make these sorts of societies actually safe spaces for same-sex attracted women and advocated for our concerns

Attend random societies’ election meetings. Get women elected and peace out. (or actually get involved but I’m trying to emphasize the lowest commitment option with this one)

Write for the campus newspaper. Write about what women are doing - women’s sports, cool society activities, whatever. Review female movies, books, tv shows, local theatre productions. Write about sexism on campus. We need more female by-lines and more stories about women

Get involved with your campus’s sexual assault & r*pe hotline/sexual assault survivor’s centre/whatever similar organization your campus has if you can. This is hard work and definitely not for everyone (pls take care of yourself first, especially if you are a survivor)

(If your campus doesn’t have an organization for supporting survivor’s of sexualized violence, start one! This is probably going to be a lot of hard work though, so don’t do it alone)

Talk to your student council about providing free menstrual hygiene products on campus if your campus doesn’t already do this. If your campus provides free condoms (which they probs do), use that as leverage (ie. ‘sex is optional, menstruation is not. so why do we have free condoms and no free pads?’)

If you’re an older student, get involved with younger students (orientation week and such activities are good for this). Show the freshman that you can be a successful and well-liked woman without shaving your legs, wearing heels, wearing make-up, etc. Mentor these young women. Offer to go for coffee or proofread essays. 

Come to class looking like a human being. Be visibly make-up less, unshaven, unfeminine, etc. to show off the many different ways of being a woman

Talk to the custodial staff and learn their names. (I know there are men who work in this profession, but it is dominated by low-income women) Say hi in the hallways, ask them about their lives, show them they’re appreciated

Be explicit with your language. When you are talking about sex-based oppression, say it. Don’t say ‘sex worker’ when you mean survivor of human trafficking. This tip is obviously a bit tricky in terms of overt TERFyness, so use your best judgement

That’s all from me for now! Feel free to add your suggestions and remember that feminism is about action

#back to school #university #terf safe #terfs DO interact #feminist action

[miekasa]

speaking of college boys, what do the college au aot babies study??

Okay, okay, I think I’ve talked about this in an ask before but I can’t find it 😭😭 but it’s okay, I love college aus, so I’ll talk about it again! Plus, now I’ve got more thoughts for more characters, so here we go

Levi — neuroscience and psychology of human behavior

He started out on track to do a bachelor of arts in psychology, but when they touched on the anatomy and biological parts of it during his first year lecture, he switched to a bachelor of science.

The focus is still psychology, but through a more clinical lens. Essentially, he gets the best of both worlds this way. He’s intuitive and analytical, so clinical and mental diagnosis is easy to dissect for him. He’s also canonically good at math, so the calculus and stats parts aren’t too bad, either.

This major also leaves him with a few options post-grad, which is a nice bonus for him. He’s likely going to medical school, but that’s not the only route open to him: law school, therapy, lab work, medicine and pharmacy, even teaching are all viable options without going to grad school.

Do not talk to him about Freud unless you wanna get punted off a building.

Be careful with him, because with a single glance he’s already got scarily accurate predictions about your parental and emotional attachment styles, your behavior in social settings, and the onset (or seemingly lack thereof) of your frontal lobe development.

He thinks he’s so smart making comments like, “I see those synaptic connections aren’t working so well for you today,” like mf come here let me lobotomize you and see how well your synaptic connects are working after that🙄

Eren — general health sciences

He’s interested in science and the discovery aspects of it, but picking a specific field of focus right now feels too final. He likes it this way, because his schedule and requirements are less restrictive, and he has more room to find out what really interests him.

He does best when he’s doing something he loves, so picking a major with a bunch of reqs that he couldn’t care less about would have sucked big time for him. It also would have affected his grades. There are still some classes he has to take that he’s not fond of (see: chemistry), but that’s to be expected. Science in general is cool to him and he hopes to make his own discovery some day, even if it’s microscopic.

He also plays a lot of sports, keeping his schedule flexible is important. The sports end up helping him excel academically, which is a nice bonus. Honestly, Eren uses his time at university to learn more about himself than anything, so having control and freedom to do what he likes the majority of the time was important to him. 

He uses his elective credits to take philosophy or history courses of his interest, or maybe even a course that you’re in just to spend time with you. He also uses you as a live model for his homework bye, congrats on being patient number one to him.

Armin — astronomy and physics

He’s still interested in marine biology, but unless he attended a school near a coast, or with a specialized integrated program for that, it’s unlikely he’d major in it during undergrad.

Space and ocean exploration aren’t all that different. Both are vast, largely unexplored domains that reel-in Armin’s interest for discovery. So, while studying astronomy, he still gets to study evolution and make his own predictions about what could be out there because there’s so much to know.

Physics comes with the territory of learning about planetary science, and he’s mathematically inclined, so it works out for him. Learning about the different physical properties of other planets and space masses is honestly pretty sick to him. Because math isn’t a struggle, he actually considered aeronautical engineering, but he didn’t want to be a part of the college to military pipeline; that is, he didn’t want any potential design of his to be weaponized. 

He still gets to study animal biology through his elective courses, and might even find a few focused on marine animals to satiate him. Plant and cell biology are also of interest to him, and are just further applications of his primary study anyway, so he’s got plenty of room to work with.

This boy is interning at NASA and still, with his whole chest out is like, “I don’t need to discover a new planet, you’re my whole world.” Armin, go check on the Mars rover or something please.

Mikasa — anthropology + minor in japanese language studies

Anthropology is virtually interdisciplinary in nature, and Mikasa is a pretty well rounded student, so she’s able to excel in a program like this. She gets to study history, science, cultural studies, and even a bit of art all at once.

She’s still debating between going to law school vs med school, so anthro this is a good in-betweener. She gets a taste of science through her anatomy and kin courses; and lots of practice with reading and dissecting texts through the historical and cultural lectures. So, when the time comes to decide, she’ll have some experience with both.

Don’t know whether it’s confirmed that she’s (part) Japanese or not, but either way I headcanon that she speaks/spoke some second language at home. She wanted to delve more into it, and courses were offered at the university so why not?

Cultural studies courses end up being her favorite. She likes learning about the history of people and their cultures, and it encourages her to learn more about her own family history and culture. It also propels her to apply for a study abroad opportunity, so she spends at least one semester doing an exchange program and absolutely loves it.

She would also encourage you to apply and go, too. You guys might not be in the same program, but if there’s an applicable program in the same country she’s going to, then she’d definitely want you to apply. Spending the semester away with you would be a dream come true.

Hange — bioengineering + minor in political philosophy and law

It’s almost self-sabotage to be in an engineering program and have a minor; the coursework for engineering alone is backbreaking, and bioengineering has the added weight of human intricacies, but of course Hange makes it possible. 

They’re nothing short of a genius, so of course they have time to work a completely unrelated minor into their schedule. It doesn’t surprise anyone that they go on to complete an MD-PhD after undergrad. Insane. 

Bioengineering is essentially the synthesis of chemical engineering and health sciences; Hange spends their time exploring biological sciences and applies the engineering aspects of their coursework to their understanding of (and interest in creating) medicine. Truly a one of a kind mind. 

They also have an interest in philosophy and justice, so when they found out they only needed a measly nine or ten courses to minor in, they went for it, of course. In honesty, they don’t find the studies all that opposing: both law making and medicine making both have some kind of philosophy or method to them in their eyes. 

Hange has... little to no free time pls. They don’t mind it, because they love their coursework, but this means you are essentially ducking into their labs or scrambling to find them in-between their classes during your time in undergrad. They appreciate every second spent with you tho, and will gladly rope you into long discussions about their work. 

Jean — biochemistry + minor in art sustainability

He was undeclared his first year, and took a little bit of everything: art, science, history, anthropology, english. Basically, anything that fit into his schedule. It was hard for him to pick one thing—he liked the science and lab applications of STEM courses, but not the math; and the obvious painting and creativity of art, but hated the pretentious air about art history.

What he wants to do is make a difference, which is how he ends up knowing that he wants to go to med school after, so he picks a science-heavy major, but uses his elective spaces to take art courses. When he mixes the two, he ends up on sustainability—and the complexities about it that are applicable to both science and art are what really reels him in.

Interdisciplinary studies end up being his forte. He can approach sustainability from a science perspective which impacts his art style and materials; and tuning into his creative side allows him to think about science not just from a purely clinical perspective, but from a human one, too—patients are people after all.

He believes that everything is connected somehow, even things as seemingly opposite as art and biochemistry. And he works towards finding the unique intersection where everything overlaps. His studies are pretty cool, and he’s very passionate about them, so ask him about it 😌

The art he makes is pretty sick, too, and often commentary about science; he’s proving they’re not so opposite. You also heavily influence his studies in both areas: caring about you so much inspires him to take the healthcare focus seriously, and your very nature is inspiration to his art. 

Sasha — nursing

She’s friendly and good at working with people, so nursing was an easy choice for her. She accredits most of her motivation to being around her younger family members, and learns that she finds a simple kind of joy in helping to take care of others.

She struggles a bit her first year when it’s mostly all grades and standardized testing, but when she starts getting clinical experience and working in the hospital on campus, things round out for her.

Patient care is her strongest point. A lot of people often forget that knowing everything isn’t everything; if you don’t know how to calm or even just talk to your patient, you’re not that great of a healthcare professional.

Pretty certain that she wants to work with kids in the future, but she’s open to public health and even being a travel nurse if she finds opportunity there!

Of course, she’s pretty doting when it comes to you and all her friends. She might want to go into pediatrics, but the basics of nursing and health care extend to everyone, so you’re guaranteed to be well taken care of with Sasha around. You might even have to switch roles and take care of her sometimes, because her coursework can get pretty out of hand.

Connie — computer engineering with a focus on game design

He might not look it, but Connie has a brain under that shaved head of his. Computer engineering is cool to him because he basically learns about how simple things he uses every day (ie: phone, computer, microwave) works.

Systems and coding are actually the easy part for him, especially when they get into the application of it and aren’t just stuck looking at examples. That’s how he gets into game design.

The part about math and electricity and magnetic fields… well let’s just say he needed to make friends with someone who likes math and hardware his first year to get through it. But the struggle was worth it, because by his junior year he’s found a professor willing to mentor/supervise him as he works on his game and other projects, so life is good.

His school work is definitely hard, which is why the lives by the mantra of “work hard, party harder.” It’s only fair. 

He makes you a little avatar so you can test out his games for him <33 best boyfriend things <33 He’d also… build a game about your relationship. Every level is a different date you guys went on, and he definitely includes something cheesy, like “There are unlimited lives because I love you forever babe <3”

Porco — kinesiology + maybe mechanical engineering

He’s pretty into athletics and working out, but didn’t wanna go down the sports psychology route; he wanted something that left him with a few more options, so he ended up in kinesiology.

He was surprisingly pretty good at biology in high school, so something stem-oriented works out in his favor, and it turns out he’s pretty damn good at anatomy, too. He’ll probably end up in physical therapy after graduation.

He’s also got a knack for cars, which is where the engineering comes in, but he doesn’t care so much for the math part of it (he doesn’t care for it at all actually, fuck that); he just wants the hands on experience of building/fixing things and working with his hands. So, if he can get a minor in it and not struggle through 4 years of math, then he’d do that. If not, he’d take a few workshop-like classes.

Because he wants to go into physical therapy, you are essentially his practice patient. Your back hurts? Not a problem, he’s basically a professional masseuse. Muscle aches? He’s got a remedy and understanding of why it’s happening. Don’t let him catch you hunting over your desk grinding away at your homework, because he will poke your neck and correct your posture (he’ll also massage your shoulders, but after the scolding).

Pieck — classics + minor in philosophy

Ancient studies interest her, but more than that, the language of ancient Greek and Roman culture fascinates her, so classics is the way to go.

Because her focus within Classics ends up being Greek and Latin language studies, she is essentially learning both languages at the same time. She gets farther with Latin that she does with Greek. For whatever reason, the former comes almost naturally to her, so her written and translated work is more complex in Latin.

However, she finds cultural studies relation to Greece more interesting than that of Rome, so it’s a give and take with both; better at languages for Roman studies, better at culture and history for Greek studies.

Her minor is a natural evolution from her primary coursework. Ancient Romans and Greeks set the foundation for a lot of modern day philosophy, so it comes up in her major classes, but she wanted to delve further into the philosophy, and not just look at it historically, so she takes more courses to fulfill the minor.

Can be found laying on a blanket in the quad on a hot day, with her books spread out all around her, highlighter in hand as she works through her reading. You’re always invited to sit with her, and more often than not, it ends up with Pieck’s head in your lap, a book in her hands, and your own schoolwork in yours as you both read in each other’s company.

Bertholdt — computer science and coding

He’s level headed, good at planning, and above all, patient, so he’s cut out for this. He doesn’t consider himself to be particularly creative, which is why he doesn’t pick a speciality with lots of design; but he’s good at streamlining and ideas to life.

The patience really comes in when his code doesn’t run. It’s frustrating to scroll for two hours just to find out that the issue is a missing semi-colon in line 273 that he overlooked, but Berty will sit there until he finds it.

He’s also good at fixing issues. That’s not limited to issues in the code itself; it can mean finding shorter ways to produce the same function or loop, or integrating new aspects into existing code.

Also, he’d just be so cute, coding away on his computer. Just imagine: Berty working on his homework in the library, he’s got his signature crewneck + collared shirt look going for him, his blue-light glasses, a cup of coffee nearly as tall as him sitting at the corner of his desk. Adorable.

He’d make little codes/programs for you, too, even if it’s silly. A simple code that helps you decide what to eat for dinner or where to go on a date, one that shuffles different reminders for you, hell he’ll even forgo the torture of design engineering just to build you a little robot that says “I love you” to you.

Reiner — english + minor in justice & political philosophy

Everyone expects Reiner, star quarterback of the university’s rugby team, to be a business student or communications student; but no, he’s an English major, and he loves it.

Just imagine a guy as huge as Reiner absolutely manhandling someone on the field, just to show up in his lectures with a tiny paperback of The Great Gatsby tucked between his fingers with his reading glasses on. It’s so precious.

He’s always running a bit late to class—either coming from the gym, or practice, or oversleeping from exhaustion—but he’s so sweet to his professors and genuinely interested in the literature that they don’t give him a hard time about it. They can tell that balancing school and sports is difficult, and they just appreciate that he takes his studies seriously.

Yeah he’s in a book club and he dog-ears his books. What about it. They’re doing poetry this month and Reiner actually likes Edgar Allen Poe. Who said jocks can’t be sentimental.

He also reads a lot outside of his classes, and has a soft spot for coming of age stories. He usually empathizes with the main character somehow. His ideal weekend plans after a week of grueling games and essays is taking a long, relaxing shower at your place, while you both share a bottle of wine, and maybe even get you to read a chapter or two of his current book out loud to him.

Annie — clinical psychology/neuroscience

Almost scarily analytical and methodic, so this major was calling her name. Localizing brain legions is… insanely intuitive to her it’s incredible. She’ll be an insanely impressive doctor someday, even if she doesn’t end up working with patients directly. 

She doesn’t care too much for the more philosophical/reading heavy parts of psychology. Even experiments and research closer to the social end of the spectrum aren’t all that interesting to her; but the brain science behind it it.

Nobody should be good at cellular biology. Nobody should be able to ace cell bio and neuro and calc and work towards their thesis proposal in the same semester, but Annie proves it’s possible.

Ends up working in one of her professor’s labs by her junior year. She was offered three TA positions working with first year students, but she swiftly turned them down. Teaching isn’t her thing.

She doesn’t bring up her studies to you unprompted, but if you ask her about them she’ll explain it to you. Her notes are color coded and it’s super neat, and very cute; coloring them is somewhat relaxing for her. She usually saves the coloring part for when you guys study together; there’s extra comfort in doing it with you around.

#anonymous #anyways jean kirschtein date me challenge paint me like one of ur french molecules #aot x reader #snk x reader #levi x reader #eren x reader #levi fluff #levi smut #eren fluff #mikasa x reader #armin x reader #jean x reader #jean kirstein x reader #connie x reader #porco galliard x reader #pieck x reader #annie x reader #theres too many of them im tapping out #aot imagines #minicanons