#that ones a short video but I switch art programs in the middle of it and got a bit disoriented

[gimblegamble]

What happens when the game doesn't want to let you go?

#last life smp #hermitcraft #MumboJumbo #ImpulseSV #probably my last ll thing if I even manage to finish the other one #that ones a short video but I switch art programs in the middle of it and got a bit disoriented #switched #skndjwkw I'm not typing all of that again #posting on the main tag still scares me (≧▽≦) #gim's drawy bits

[oceansgratitude]

Me and the Megamind Fandom

Hey, since I’m recently getting more interaction with the Megamind fandom than I have in a long time, and I’m already overwhelmed by the new discord, I thought I’d share a little of what my experience has been with this fandom, cause I don’t really talk about myself very much.

I first saw the movie in theaters with my family when I was, like, thirteen. I wanted to watch Tangled instead, but Megamind had the majority vote. After words, I had a new favorite movie ever.

I ravenously read fanfictions that came out on fanfiction.net. I know all the old good stuff (as long as I haven’t forgotten a bunch of it... which I’m sure I have.) I was vaguely aware of art being posted on social media, but I wasn’t really on it.(I’m still not, really.) 

During that two-year-ish period, I was being homeschooled because our local Middle School was just awful (Bullies, mean teachers, bad experiences, etc.). I had no friends, my four siblings were always on their computers, and I never got out of the house. During that time I ran myself through self-improvement programs, exercised, and wrote a lot because I didn’t want that time of lame-ness to define me. I fancied myself a future writer. I have a lot of pieces in my Google Drive from that time, and I’ve lost some of it that I’ll never get back.

I learned about the livejournal website for the Megamind fandom from a link in an author’s note, so I’m on there just enough to get emails about new posts, which happens once in a blue moon. Then, either from there or another author’s note,  I learned that a bunch of us are on Tumblr, so I went and made myself a Tumblr account.

At some point in there, my family moved to Texas, and I started high school. I got dang good at writing, as far as I knew. My journalism teacher let me turn in poems instead of the actual assignments and sometimes asked me to read them in front of the class.

I also developed a strong affinity for fish? I’m not sure if they’re may favorite because of Minion, or if Minion is my favorite because of them. My mom and I kept a goldfish pond in the backyard, and I studied their biology. Whenever someone doesn’t know what to get me for a present, anything with a goldfish on it is a safe bet. And I once took a little goldfish in a giant jar to all my classes, and it got loads of attention. Apparently lots of people are afraid of fish? I was thinking about Minion the whole time.

One time in color guard we were doing a dance warm-up, and our instructor was like “yo, let’s switch this up” and we switched songs to Micheal Jackson’s “I’m Bad.” And right after words, one of my best friends said, “At least I can listen to that song without thinking about Megamind.” At the time I hid my face in my hands to hide my blush, but in hindsight, I should have said, “Well, apparently, you CAN’T!”

I thought I’d integrate myself into the Megamind community through sheer power of writing and art skills. But back then, I didn’t really know how human relationships worked. And I wasn’t good at the whole self-discipline thing either (it’s still something I struggle with.)

I got all kinds of mixed feelings about Tumblr. I enjoyed learning about people, finding cool content, and getting feedback for my own content. But there’s also a lot of extremism on here. It makes me nervous about sharing too much of myself because “open-mindedness” on tumblr seems different from its normal definition. I feel like I have to be careful not to step on toes or accidently label myself as an enemy.

Not that I’ve been involved in drama! That’s just an anxiety I had. I was the type to drop into a discord like “hey, here’s this thing I wrote, please read it and tell me what you think, okay, bye!” and the disappear for months and feel bad about the irrational idea that no one liked me.

I found a fandom friend through tumblr, joined a discord, and just chilled there for a few years. I was barely on it. I didn’t know anyone particularly well, but it was cool to get ideas, see the differences in our lives, and get feedback for my fan projects, which were few and far-in-between, but which meant a lot to me.

I graduated high school and moved out to Idaho for college, studying Communication. I like writing and art and music, and I couldn’t pick one so I took a major that would help me use all of those things to make $$$. I really only checked on the fandom once in a while. 

There I learned about some drama that happened in the Megamind fandom a while ago? Well, not learn ABOUT exactly.  I just learned that it existed and it was too terrible to bring up again. Which, okay, cool? I’ll try not to be a meanie, I guess? Can we all just be friends?

I got married in May 2020 (a video news crew showed up so all the world could know that there were only eight people sitting in the spaced-out chairs. Only my family was able to make it) and we finished the whole Ceremony in December up in Idaho with just my hubby’s parents. I graduated and got my degree in December, too. And now I’m living in an apartment with my husband (which is freaking awesome) and filing taxes as an independent, and I have a full-time job while my dude’s still finishing school, and things have changed a lot really fast.

SO IN SHORT: I’ve been here the whole time (this dang 10-year-old movie has been part of my life for the whole second half of my childhood); I’m just not super social online. I’m actually an extravert with a crazy life. Also, please leave comments on my fanfictions and art! That makes me really happy, and that’s most of the social contact I have with ya’ll. That’s about it I guess. Thanks for reading through this whole thing. That’s pretty nice of you.

#my life #megamind fandom

[dafukdidiwatch]

Cool Cat Saves The Kids

I watched this movie and I still can’t believe this is the actual cover art for it.

God I wrote so many notes about this that even my flipping Bullet Points were basically an essay. I don’t even know how to begin just thinking about it hurts my head.

Overview: Cool Cat is Cool. Things happen to him, and he has to deal with bullying.

That’s it. That’s the thing I watched. Because there is no Real Flipping Plot to this movie.

This is a kid’s show. Or at the very minimum, a movie that is intended for children. It was based on a kid’s book series I’ve never heard of whose author Derek Savage decided to turn it into a movie. Though movie isn’t exactly what I would call it. When you watch it, it honestly feels like there are six 15 minute shorts that they just mashed together to a feature film, but even then that is a Generous Description.

Basically, the film tries to be a children’s program (and I guess has beef with Barney?). And you can see intent behind it being informative child-friendly psa. But the execution was so bad.

First, there is no plot. Sure the cover says that this is “an anti-bullying kid gun safety movie,” but it really give you nothing. What would happen is that Cool Cat has a problem, like someone bullying him or his friends. It would either A) be addressed immediately and solved so that’s great, or B) it is dropped immediately and never really addressed throughout the rest of the film.

And example of A is that the bully kid Butch just starts stealing candy just to be “evil,” Cool Cat sees that and chases him, and the kid gets arrested twenty seconds later. The End.

For B, Cool Cat gets a mean email. And...that’s about it. He responds to the email, but doesn’t actually address the issue and the subplot drops entirely until that VERY Last wrap up scene.

I think the reason for this lack of plot is that there was just WAY too many messages in here. Like, take a shot every time you see a psa announcement. It ranges from don’t bully, how to deal with bullies, being creative, crossing the street safely, to fricking GUN?! Like, the gun thing that I Guess was promoted in the movie tagline, only shows up the last 10 minutes. It caught me so off guard. You cannot call this a Gun Safety movie when guns aren’t even prevalent!!

And the lack of plot is counterproductive when you want to make a Kid’s Movie like this. If you want to tackle each issue as a show or a short, the messages would come across better. There would be more time to develop each message for kids to really understand. But because there is So Much to cover, a lot of the things are gonna fall to the wayside. There is no way a kid would pay attention to this, and if they do I doubt they are gonna learn everything that Derek Savage is trying to teach. There just isn’t any real focus.

The acting, god like they Tried to go with the kid friendly vibe, but was not working. At All. It was like they thought that to add emotion is to just enunciate your words as loudly as you can. Cool Cat was way too yelly. Every line he was just screaming, has no change whatsoever. Even Elmo can sound sad when need be (fucking love Elmo, but he does has a similar voice vibe to Cool Cat, just better).

Then the kids....I don’t want to be mean but I’ll be blunt. They are just reading lines, this is a middle school stage play basically. I’m not blaming the kids, Butch look like he had a hell of a time doing his villain laugh. It’s just that some of the scenes felt like it was taken in one shot and they didn’t bother to retry. Example: One kid got too excited and jumped his line, but they couldn’t just retake that??

And the lines, man. OOF. Some of it was bad. Like, really really bad placement.They should have had someone proof-read this.

Cool Cat: “Why Are You Painting That Wall?”

Random Kid: “Because Nobody Loves Us”

lol what?

Maria: “I bet those kids have never been shown love before.”

Cool Cat: “Thanks, and it’s all true”

LOL What??

There are just a LOT of lines like that that should have been rephrased.

THEN there are the freaking technical issues.

The audio kept fluctuating in sound quality, which honestly started to hurt with Cool Cat’s constant yelling. Some scenes it sounds like they recorded in a studio, sometimes it sounded like the actors had to yell in order for the camera to capture it. There were echos, there were layers, you can’t hear the lines over the song, you can’t hear the song over the cheers. There was one point whispers overlaid on top of the lines where I thought that Cool Cat just got haunted now. And the fun side of having headphones on means I heard the phone button noises in only One Ear. LOUDLY.

Blocking could have been better. There were a lot of backs to the camera, shots of characters walking away from camera not just off screen. This didn’t bother me as much, because I know this isn’t professionally made. But it didn’t feel like they really tried as much as just half-assed it. Example:

Cool Cat was drawing a picture with different colors, but the actor only used one marker and just said different colors. Or Cool Cat is working on a poster but really just rubs the already completed poster  on a clean table as him “working.” Like, how hard is it to just film on a table with a bunch of craft supplies around you?

Then there are the questionable camera shots. LOTS of lingering shots to I assume fill up run time. These are shots of just showing Cool Cat walking round without having any real purpose. It shows Cool Catwalk all the way Up Stairs. Walked all the way Down Stairs. Walking into the House, walking into the Car. Even just shots of the parents doing things with no real motivation or impact to whatever Cool Cat is doing. It’s just there. If you want to say stuff like "oh well its to show the parents relationship" no it doesn’t. You can’t really add nuance to characters when the rest of the film is just one chaotic shot after the other. It just gets lost in translation.

The music number is probably what hurts me the most. You see Cool Cat WRITE the song. Then he SINGS the song. Then he DANCES to a DIFFERENT song. And that was it. He just needed the song for the parade, but there wasn’t any explanation or anything. I don’t even know WHY he needs the song for the parade! There was no explanation. It was just an excuse to have two back-to-back bad music video of poor choreography that again, NO POINT to whatever plot/message/psa thing he is trying to do.

I get that there should be some leeway since it looked like this was shot at Derek Savage’s house/neighborhood, so there really isn’t much they could do with their setting. But they could at least tried more with what they had. Cool Cat’s room doesn’t look exactly child friendly. There are only blank drab walls with two, maybe three posters of just Cool Cat himself. There is a reason the settings in other children shows have vibrant colors to engage them. Along with that, another half-assing moment was Butch graffiting Cool Cat’s poster, but it was one of those political posters you stuck on the lawn so it was like a foot tall outside. 1) You can’t really see that shit that small. 2) You couldn’t put the poster on a wall to film that scene at, to give a better view to the audience? It’s just a bunch of little things like that all over this film that really adds up.

Also, what’s with the posters only being about Cool Cat in his own room? A bit narcissistic if you ask me.

I'm also like 70%,sure they made this movie around the footage of them being in the Hollywood parade twice. They were at the parade, got the film, and wanted to use it so they made a movie for it. And I know it was twice because the announcers that were there to announce the arrival of Cool Cat had a costume change after switching scenes.

And after ALL of this, there is just so many random shit that really don’t do anything. Elements are randomly introduced and just as randomly dropped. We get a “next day” transition in the middle of the movie when days have already passed before them. Cool Cat breaks the 4th wall a couple of times with no real reason why. There is this joke where the camera was following Cool Cat into the bathroom for Cool Cat to ask for privacy, only to just ignore that bit every time he goes to the bathroom afterwards. Cool Cat just makes random ass noises when doing things, not important stuff. Just Doing Things. And he does this weird thing where I think he is trying to do Air Guitar, but it just looks like he is just shaking his leg a lot. I don’t really get it.

(Oh Shit, it is only after like the 3rd proof-read of this review I notice that in the gif you can clearly see the dude’s actual leg. I don’t know how mascot suits actually work, but I’m pretty sure that you’re not supposed to let kids actually see that there’s a person underneath in a kid’s show.)

There is also this....lowkey humblebrag going on? Which does not do the movie favors. After the first dumb song number, Derek shows off that he has a signed guitar by Van Halen. Like not just him playing it (which after the 15th zoom in on the guitar how could you NOT notice it thank you Derek), but pointing out to the audience that, Yes it was Indeed signed by Van Halen. Then there is the footage from the Hollywood Parade about the cars there. Sure, I get showing off like the Ghostbusters car, or Jurassic Park car, or the Batmobile. But Hurby the Love Bug? Night Rider?? Starsky and Hutch??? Magnum P.I.?????? The target audience is elementary kids, they aren’t going to know these old shows. So who is this for exactly?

Kudos to the cop for actually doing this, seriously. That cop probably had a hell of a lot of better things to do than arrest children for a bad after-school special.

And this is just SOME of the main problems of this film. There’s so much going on it would be impossible for me to go over everything without

The thing is, there is good material here. Maybe not great results, but there are a lot of ideas here that you can work with to make a decent kid’s movie. I actually loved the part where Cool Cat is dreaming and trying to figure out how he should handle bullies. I thought that was a good scene and a good way to show kids how to think through different options. There are good ideas here, but it was just way to much going on at once the movie basically shoots itself in the foot.

So here is My Version of what Cool Cat should have done. 

Cool Cat is running for School President. That’s the main story line. Early in the movie he learns of a writing contest where the winner gets their own float at the hollywood parade (stretch but roll with it). But Cool Cat has no idea what to write, and talks to it with his friends who offers ideas. So he is juggling that along with running for Student President.

However, the Butch the Bully doesn’t like that. He doesn’t want Cool Cat to win. So he vandalizes his posters. Cool cat still runs and makes better posters. Butch tries to frame Cool Cat for vandalizing the playground, but instead his cronies get caught and convinced that it was a bad idea. So Butch decides to cyberbully Cool Cat and his friends to scare them off. He works with the other kid running for President to make a hate ad against Cool Cat, telling everyone how terrible and bad Cool Cat is. Cool Cat tries to go against this my making his music video song over how cool he is to swing the votes, making Butch more angry and vindictive to his bullying scheme.

Cool Cat doesn’t know how to get Butch to stop, but after getting advice from his friends, parents, teachers, and some hard thinking, he decides to confront Butch about his bullying issue, tell someone, and thus solves the problem. Later on after talking to Butch, maybe manages to convince him to start being friends. 

Finally, Cool Cat uses this scenario to write his story about how to deal with bullying and make new friends. Which wins and we end with the Hollywood Parade.

Is this perfect? No. But it focuses the idea to one main plot (running for president) with the other issues naturally coming off of it, instead of making each issue it’s own separate thing. There is no random shifts in narrative, no GUN moments (or GUN in general we kick that shit out) and just focus on the main bullying theme.

Overall: This was a weird and bad children’s show. You have to put in a lot of effort into making a movie, but there was just too much going on for this to be a Good Children’s Movie, least of all a Good Movie in general. But it isn’t to say that it wasn’t morbidly enjoyable. It’s was like playing Spot The Difference to find all the Wrong Things in here. It was fun in a bad way.

So will I show this to children? No. But will I play a drinking game with my friends where we take a shot every time someone says the phrase “Cool Cat”? Yeah that sounds enjoyable. 

Take a shot for every time you read “Cool Cat” in my review.

Side Note:

You had this as a GUN PSA, wtf are you doing holding a gun!? Given how the only 3 videos this channel has is only Cool Cat Trailers, I’m assuming this is official Cool Cat. Soooo.....what the hell?

#dafukblog #dafuking films #cool cat #cool cat saves the kids #week 8 movie #derek savage

[moonfireflight]

Happy Birthday to Saeran and Saeyoung!

Oof, I know I’m cutting it close, but I managed to finish a little story for the boys. It’s been so beautiful seeing all of the art posted here and on Twitter to celebrate their day. Happy Birthday to my 2D husband and muse, Saeyoung, and to my digital brother-in-law, Saeran. You both deserve the all of the best

Anyway, onto the story! 1.7k words of fluff, cake, and gift-giving. 

“Honey~ Are you still asleep?” MC patted the blanket-covered form next to her, but the only response was a quiet snore. She was worried that he might sleep through half of his birthday but didn’t want to rouse him if he was tired enough to snooze through that. Deciding to give him more time to sleep, she snuck out of bed to begin preparations for the day.

***

A few hours earlier, Saeyoung had been the one to slip out of bed unnoticed by his girlfriend. Once dressed, he headed to his workroom and gathered up everything he needed. It was tough work by moonlight and his cellphone’s flashlight. After checking the guide he’d found online, and rearranging the garden soil to look nice again, he stood up and dusted off his hands. He tapped on the new app he had created and smiled at the sound that told him everything was working. Or, so he hoped.

Back inside the house, he scrubbed the dirt from his fingernails and shuffled out of his stained clothing. MC stirred, making a cute sleepy sound as Saeyoung curled back up next to her. As he drifted off, he marveled at how his life had changed over the last year. His brother was back in his life and would wake up to his gift soon. Then there was MC…, the woman who had completely altered the course of his life. Someone who loved every side of him and let him finally drop the mask that he had long thought to be a permanent part of his existence.

***

The sun was barely up when Saeran made his way out to the garden. He was learning to love the smell of it again - the earthy scent of the soil, sun-warmed grasses, and the few flowers that had already begun to bloom. With a deep breath, he stretched his arms over his head, drinking in the sunlight and fresh air, letting it infuse his body. The sound of his phone beeping frantically shook him from his morning reverie. “What is it…,” he grumbled, pulling his phone from his pocket and unlocking it. There were several messages from his brother.

   “Happy Birthday to my other half! I know you were worried about the garden wilting if you went on a vacation, SOOOO!!! I hacked your phone, sorry not sorry, and added a new app! Check it out!”

“What the hell would an app on my phone have to do with the garden?” Though he groused about it, he was honestly curious. How would an app let him leave the garden alone without having to worry about it? On the home screen of his phone, there was a new app with an icon of a cartoonish plant sprout. It opened with a short video of Saeyoung’s goofy avatar explaining that the app-controlled a new irrigation watering system that he had… installed in the middle of the night? Saeran shook his head, subconsciously trying to hide the smile on his face. He had to admit; it was pretty impressive.

***

With a ferocious yawn, Saeyoung woke up from his morning nap and snuck away into his workroom. He cracked open a Ph.D. Pepper, relishing in the satisfying hiss it made, and flopped into his favorite office chair. Paying no mind to it creaking under him, he booted up the program he’d made for his drones. A smile, interrupted by another yawn, stretched over his face as he played back a recording from earlier. Saeran had liked his gift! Judging by his brother’s reaction, he’d done a decent enough job of installing the tubes and connections and hadn’t ruined anything in the process. He replayed the video again, sighing in contentment.

After a moment, he switched to control mode and guided the drone he had left perched outside back into the shed. With a few clicks, he took control of another smaller drone that was already in the house. He knew that MC would be mad if he found out what she was working on for his birthday but he couldn’t resist taking a peek. Keeping the tiny robot close to the ceiling, he panned the camera around until he spotted her. Heat rose to his cheeks. She was licking white frosting from a spatula and dancing around the kitchen. How could she be so cute and sexy at the same time?! A moment later, Saeran entered the kitchen but his back was to the drone so he couldn’t guess what they were talking about. Saeyoung decided not to risk moving his drone closer to find out - Saeran was always much better at spotting them than MC was. He carefully perched the bot on top of the refrigerator, out of sight. Hmm… what were they up to?

He decided to find out in person instead. Besides, he was dying to wrap his arms around MC and snuggle up to her soft form. So she would have a chance to hide anything she was working on, he called out to her from the living room. “Honeyyy~ Good morning!”

“It’s almost afternoon! Oh, and hold on a sec! I’ll be right there!”

Saeyoung snickered and leaned up against the wall as he waited for her to arrive. His brother stepped out of the kitchen first and nodded to him. “Hey. I got your gift.”

“Yeah?” Even though he had seen Saeran’s reaction to it, his heart fluttered a little at the idea of hearing his thanks in person.

“You must have put a lot of work and research into that, huh?” Saeyoung replied with a shrug. It honestly had been a challenge to figure out how to make it work and program that app. He’d even set it to monitor local weather reports so it wouldn’t waste water on rainy days. “Mmhmm. I can tell. It’s… actually pretty brilliant. And helpful. Thanks.” Saeran pointed at his brother as he walked past. “No crying on your birthday.”

“Sae, honey? Are you okay?” She had arrived right as Saeyoung was putting his glasses back on from wiping his eyes.

“Yeah, I’m… oof!”

His breath left him in a woosh as his girl ran up and hugged him tightly. She rested her cheek against his chest, nuzzling against him. “Happy Birthday, love.” Her warmth suffused him, his heart full of his adoration for her. They stayed that way for a long moment, enjoying being so close together. Eventually, she stepped back. “I’m sure you already know I’m working on something, but if you give me a minute to hide it, you can hang out while I work on lunch?”

He stayed close to her all day, his hands finding her back or shoulder at every opportunity. Even after all the time they had spent together, he still loved having those little reminders that she was real.

The day passed in quiet companionship, though Saeyoung’s curiosity grew by the hour. He knew that his family was planning something for him, but he hadn’t been able to figure it out. Finally, when dinner was over, MC asked them to stay at the table while she disappeared into the kitchen again. Silent understanding passed between the brothers, and they nodded to each other with a smile, waiting for the reveal of their cake. Sure enough, MC returned with a cake decorated much like a Christmas treat - white icing peaks topped with strawberries, but also festooned with candles. “Happy Birthday, guys~! I hope you like it!”

Saeran appeared to be mesmerized by the candles. Last year, he stayed in his room for most of the day, so this was their first real birthday celebration since being reunited. “I was going to let him tell you, but Saeran grew these strawberries in his garden!”

Saeyoung glanced over at his brother and caught a smile from him. “Seriously?! That’s amazing! I can’t wait to try them!”

“It’s nothing. They’re tiny strawberries compared to what we can buy at the store.” Saeran’s eyes darted back to the cake.

“I tried one earlier and they are much sweeter than the ones from the store. You sell yourself short, hun. Anyway, shall we?” MC began singing “Happy Birthday,” and after a few notes, Saeyoung joined in as well. Both brothers leaned in and blew out the candles together, each making a wish in their hearts.

“Hey. Do you mind if we eat our cake out in the garden?”

Tilting his head in confusion, Saeyoung agreed to his brother’s suggestion even if it seemed odd to eat outside in the dark. “Let’s do it!”

Once everyone had their plates full of cake, they headed out to the yard. As they turned the corner, Saeyoung gasped. While the garden had been entirely dark when he was sneaking around that morning, it had been transformed. Glow in the dark rocks had been added to the gravel path, making it shimmer with blue sparkles. Tiny solar-powered lanterns peeked out from between the beds. Lastly, a string of star-shaped lights bridged the two tall poles on either side of one of the beds, casting light down on a trellis filled with large white flowers. “What is all this?”

Saeran motioned him over to a picnic table that had recently been added as well. “I know you aren’t into gardening, but I wanted to make this place into something nice for you too. I thought about this kind of thing a lot when I was a kid - making a space-themed garden for you to return to.” He gazed off into the distance as he continued. “Anyway, I didn’t know how to do it then, but here we are. The white flowers are called moonflowers and only bloom at night. The other flowers in that bed haven’t bloomed yet, but they’ll be columbines, which look like shooting stars, and night-sky petunias, which are blue with white spots like stars. Of course, the ones with the big fuzzy green leaves are… red geraniums. Maybe they look like supernovas or something but they were the flowers I picked out for you long ago.”

MC turned away, crying silently as the brothers embraced. It felt like finally, after all this time, the last of the barriers between them had fallen away. Even though she had known what Saeran was planning, seeing it all together like this was amazing. They had researched ideas together, but the design and work were all Saeran’s doing. She slipped away to get the gifts she had wrapped earlier, not wanting to end their evening in the magical garden just yet.

#saeyoung choi #saeran choi #707 #mystic messenger #luciel choi #saeran #saeyoung #moonie writes #aaah I finally finished something #I can't wait to be done with school so I can finally get some other things done #I just would have felt so awful if I didn't do anything for their birthday #It feels good to have this done #Also I totally want their garden #I do have strawberries growing and my geraniums bloomed like crazy over the last few days #My columbines haven't sprouted yet and my moonflowers are so tiny #If my yard wasn't so trashy I would definitely do the rest of what I posted here #maybe next year #I bet Saeran also set up a hammock so he can relax outside near the garden #I like that image

[uas-fics]

‘The Pandering Country Western Star’ Epilogue

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 

You can also read it in full on AO3

---

The final harmony of chords faded away as the video panned from a backyard scene with two kids playing to the starry sky above. Twin shooting stars shot across the sky before the video winked out to black with the words ‘Be Your True Self’ appearing on the screen.

Craig turned his grinning face to Red and Kevin. "Well? I think it was a good music video. One of my best."

The hand he kept on Tweek’s hip squeezed, and Tweek leaned against him. They had worked overtime this past month on that video, but it was the most fun Craig had had on set in a long time.

No worrying he was going to send some big, expensive Ford truck into a ditch. No pretending all the bikini-clad ladies that hung off him held any interest for him. Nothing that left him stressing out or uncomfortable by the end of the day’s shoot. Just he, Jimmy, Tweek, and Stan’s recruited kids playing around shooting a music video.

Red looked over Jimmy’s shoulder at the video editor program.

“You did all that with just some open-use software?” She asked, completely ignoring Craig.

Jimmy bobbed his head. “Yup. I’ve helped p-pl-plenty of indie musicians make their own videos. I’m practically a pr-professional.” He laughed, clicking to save the file, though he hadn’t made any changes.

Craig inserted himself into their conversation. “I asked what do you think? Of the song, anyway? Tweek and I wrote it together. It’s good, right?”

“It had a ukulele solo in it.” Red didn’t look up from the screen.

“So?”

“It had a ukulele solo.”

“I like ukuleles,” Tweek chipped in, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. “I learned it before I learned guitar. Jimmy taught me. That’s ok, right? No, that Jimmy taught me, that we used it, I mean. It’s supposed to represent the wonders of childhood dreams and—”

“And that I wanted a ukulele solo in the middle of the song,” Craig cut in. Right now, Red didn’t care about the song’s themes or underlying message of self-acceptance.

She then shrugged in a way that Craig knew meant she wasn’t going to make them retool the song, but she still wasn’t sure about it.

But Red wasn’t sure about any of this.

She’d complained to Craig that taking a year off to work on himself wasn’t the best plan for his career, but Craig had waved off her worries.

A year off to soul-search and decide if country music — or even music in general — was really what he wanted to dedicate himself to had been amazing for his mental health. He felt calmer and happier and refreshing

He also had enjoyed a year to spend more time with Tweek.

Tweek even let him perform with him on a video for his channel, and it had been the most fun performing Craig had had in a long time. (He had  a lot of ‘most fun in a long time’ this past year, he was realizing.)

He didn’t have to keep up a persona or pretend. It was just an hour of him and his boyfriend caterwauling to any song they could half-way play and heaving with laughter when they messed up the lyrics.

His fans liked Tweek, best he could tell. They bombarded their video with comments about what a cute couple he and Tweek were, and how Craig or Tweek was lucky to meet the other, and that they should collaborate together on a song since their voices worked so well together.

A few ex-fans came to the video comments to stir up trouble, but to Craig’s relief both his and Tweek’s own fans were quick to shut down any trolling and report any particularly hateful comments.

Kevin rested his elbow on Red’s shoulder. “I liked the part with the space trip in the cardboard rocket. You liked it too, right, Red?”

Red grunted in response but continued talking with Jimmy about small edits he could make to the video.

“She liked it. The video and the song. You two did great.” Kevin gave them a thumbs up.

“It’s only as good as it is because of what a great lyricist Tweek is.” Craig nuzzled his hair.

“Don’t sell yourself short,” Tweek bumped his shoulder against him. “You really have an ear for melody and such a good voice. It’s no wonder you’re a star.”

“Well, you’re the only star I need,” Craig teased, earning a blush from Tweek. “You really are an amazing songwriter, though. You should be more famous than me with your talent.”

“You could write an amazing song by yourself if you wanted. I know you could.” Tweek rubbed a circle into Craig’s lower back through his T-shirt. If he were a cat, he’d be purring in delight both from the compliments and the gesture that accompanied them.

Craig grinned cheekily. “So if I wanted to write an entire album to my love of guinea pigs, I could? You’d support me?”

“Only if you let me include a song about my budgies as a bonus track.”

Jimmy gagged. "If you two are going to act like m-m-mush-mushy teenagers and shit, go to the living room. The adults are trying hard to work."

"Jimmy, I've been on a date with you, and you are no better." Tweek snorted and coiled his arm around Craig's waist so his hand also rested on his boyfriend’s hip.

Jimmy opened his mouth, thought for a moment, then shut it with a shrug. "You know what? I'll give you th-that one."

"Give them whatever you want, but I agree they should go." Red straightened back up, nearly hitting a desk lamp set on a pile of folders. "I think we all should. It’s cramped."

She wasn't wrong. Jimmy's workroom was a mess of stacked papers and boxes and old filing cabinets. Craig couldn't take a full step any direction but backwards without hitting something or someone.

Jimmy pressed control and s to save the recent changes before stretching. "I think Mrs. Red is r-right," he announced. "Besides, Stan's coming over soon. I need to make sure the house is b-b-ba-baby proof."

Craig nearly pointed out that Stan's kids were in upper elementary school, only to remember all the trouble he got into at that age and shut his mouth.

“Don’t call me that,” Red ordered before pushing her way out of the cramped office, nearly sending Tweek and Craig into a pile of works in progress.

Craig rolled his eyes.

Deep down, Red was happy Craig was doing music and art that felt true to his true self; she was just stressed by all the issues a switch in style like this would cause. There would be fans who would claim Craig was abandoning country ‘now that he was gay’ and fans who would call him a sellout.

Worse, if his new shift failed dramatically, his career could suffer for it more than it ever would for coming out as gay.

After a few minutes, everyone made they’re way out of the cramped office and to the living room. Just outside it, Craig’s phone buzzed. He took it out then pursed his lips. Tweek paused and looked back at him.

“What’s wrong?” He asked.

Craig put the phone back in his pocket without replying to the text. “Thomas asking to see how Red liked the song.”

Though he was still mildly upset with Thomas, the two had worked through at least most of their problems to the point their relationship was ‘sort of friendly, but not really friends.’

It was Tweek suggestion that they let Thomas critique their newest song. Craig didn’t really like the idea of his ex giving constructive criticism over his and his current boyfriend’s work, but in the end, he had to admit that the critique had been a big help adding flow to the wording of the chorus.

“Are you going to tell him she liked it?” Tweek frowned. “If you’re going to ignore him, I’ll message him for you.”

“Nah, I’ll reply later, but right now,” Craig grabbed Tweek’s hand, “I want to go steal Red and Kevin’s seat with you.”

He peeked into the living room were Red sat pressed up against Kevin in a loveseat. She barely fit in his lap, but he didn’t seem to mind at all. If Craig sat on both of them, Red would have to stand up to push him off, then Tweek could dive in and take the seat. Craig then would proudly sit on Tweek’s lap and watch with a snicker as Red fumed about it until Kevin pulled her down to sit on the couch with Jimmy.

Chuckling, Tweek nodded in agreement.

“That sounds awesome.” And the two walked into the living room.

---

AN: Thanks to everything who reblogged and liked this work. :) It means a lot! I hope you enjoyed it. :)

#south park #sp creek #fanfiction #tweek tweak #Craig Tucker #multi chapter #jimmy valmer #sp red #kevin stoley #revin #creek

[paulisweeabootrash]

Series Review: Read or Die (R.O.D. the OVA)

Welcome to another episode of Paul is Weeaboo Trash! Today’s topic is a show I’ve previously seen one episode of, so long ago that I’m almost going in fresh: the OVA (what we in the US would call a “direct to video release”) of Read or Die (2001–2002)! I was lucky enough to grow up in a household where education and fun were not portrayed as opposites, and we had the means to find plenty of fun educational things to do.  My parents searched for all kinds of potentially interesting activities, and living in southern New Hampshire, the Boston area was not prohibitively far to go for them.  And so I was signed up for Splash, a program one weekend per fall in which MIT students teach middle- and high-school-age kids seminars on a wide variety of topics.

What counted as topics worthy of education was quite broad, however.  I ended up in a "class" that consisted of watching one episode each of several anime that the student running the class was a fan of.  This was back in the days where anime fandom spread person-to-person by recommendations and there was more emphasis on developing a background knowledge of "classics" among the more informed and/or snootier fans.  (I still feel this way a bit because certain tropes and references are so common or influential that being familiar with the original sources can make newer shows suddenly make a lot more sense, but I disapprove of the gatekeeper tendency to look down on people who don't yet know the things "everyone knows".)

I don't remember how many shows we sampled there, but the two that made an impact were Hellsing, which in retrospect was at best questionable for the age of the audience, and was very much not my thing because I have a low tolerance for gore, and the topic of this post, Read or Die, which was very much the kind of thing I wanted to see: a nerd being a badass in a fantastical way.  Especially since I was also really into James Bond at the time, so I was probably primed to eat up other media involving a British spy fighting a mysterious secret organization.  Since I'm incredibly averse to media piracy and had no clue where to buy anime, though, I never followed up to finish watching it, and eventually it faded from my mind.  Until I stumbled across the first volume of the manga for super-cheap at Saboten Con last year, and it flicked some nostalgia switch that reminded me how much I'd enjoyed it at the time, although I barely remember any actual details, so I am practically going in fresh here.

Read or Die follows Yomiko Readman, a teacher, obsessive book collector and reader, and superpowered secret agent who can manipulate paper in nearly any way.  Any paper available, from money to ribbons to a briefcase full of blank looseleaf she apparently just brings with her.  She uses this power in the course of her service as a secret agent, codename The Paper, working for the British Library?!  Along with Miss Deep, who can selectively phase shift, and Drake Anderson, a gruff and dismissive military type (and apparently potter in his cover job), she is assigned to a plan to save the world in a way that vaguely involves collecting books.  Saved from whom?  The I-jin, clones of historical geniuses with superpowers related to their areas of expertise, such as... knowing stuff about insects, or... uh... spreading Buddhism to Japan... who are going to flashy and violent lengths to steal books the British Library is trying to acquire legitimately.  Trust me, it eventually gets explained, and the Big Reveal, although pretty goddamn weird, fits in with the rest of what has been established.  Suspend your disbelief enough to accept the I-jin at all, and it’s fine, although still a bit ludicrous.

And I submit that all that is still less weird and ridiculous than your typical superhero or spy movie, and this show does after all have elements of both genres in one.  Or, well, more and more superhero and military action as it goes on.  Although the theme music uses 60s guitar sounds, chromatic chord changes, and blaring brass hits that are virtually guaranteed to evoke the James Bond theme, and our main cast do work for a secret intelligence agency, they are in quite open military-style conflict with the I-jin -- with the approval of the UN -- and very little that’s actually covert occurs, with the notable exception of something I can’t spoil that happens at the end of ep. 2.  And because of the superpower angle, some of the instances of weirdness are not flaws at all but pretty creative implementations of the characters’ powers (using a paper airplane as a lethal weapon?!).

This last point didn’t really fit in organically, but I'd also like to mention a couple of things about the art that I love but don't see often.  The very first shot of the series uses multiple flat backgrounds at different distances moving in relation to each other to convey the camera moving across the scene, which I have seen in other animated works (at the moment, I can only think of examples from very old Disney movies off the top of my head), but not in recent ones.  I don't know whether it's simply out-of-fashion or this is a result of the shift to CGI so animators figure "why would we do this when we can actually render a city with realistic perspective?"  This show also has a particular kind of fluid motion in characters that I’ve seen in many reasonably-high-production-value shows from the 90s and 00s, but rarely in newer shows (Space Dandy being a notable exception).  Maybe I'm watching the wrong recent shows, maybe it's just a stylistic choice that's out of fashion, maybe it's harder to pull off convincingly when you're not animating by hand.

I’m glad I finally got to watch this.  It’s even better than I remember.  Now to get to work on the rest of the manga and the other series.  Oh yeah, haha.  The abbreviation "R.O.D." stands for both "Read or Die" and "Read or Dream", which are different parts of the same larger series.  The Read or Die manga (4 volumes), this OVA series, the Read or Dream manga (also 4 volumes), and a 26-episode TV series all take place in the same narrative universe, rather than the usual model of the anime being an adaptation/retelling of the manga.  There is also a light novel series I know nothing about, but it sounds from the Wikipedia article like that is the single ongoing series that is the source for the two manga and two anime.  (There is also apparently a barely-related future side story manga.)

-----

W/A/S: 1/3/3

Weeb: I don’t think there’s much, if anything, in here that would require explanation to a typical Western audience and which isn’t also explained in the dialogue.

Ass: There is a single implied nipple in the opening sequence.  Gasp!  And Miss Deep's costume design is pretty fanservicey, but only barely more explicitly so than you're likely to get in American media deemed suitable for older children.

Shit: Until the Big Reveal, it's just unclear why anyone involved other than Yomiko should be this interested in acquiring the specific books that serve as the show’s MacGuffin, nor is it clear that the I-jin’s plans extend further than searching for them in a very destructive way, leaving me baffled that the Library immediately makes the connection that the books are key to saving the world.  There are a few minor errors in the subtitles and a visual glitch (Blu Ray remaster, please?), and a couple of places where faces just... don’t... look right.  Oh, and if you’re watching the dubbed version, add another half point of Shit for Crispin Freeman’s British accent.

And for the first time I feel the need to add a CONTENT WARNING.  Usually, I think the review is sufficient to give you the idea whether there is anything likely to be disturbing in a show, but this is different, because the first two episodes have the sort of over-the-top stylized combat you might expect from other action anime or Western superhero media, where even a death comes off as un-shocking.  But in ep. 3 of this, there is a shocking pivot.  There are several short instances of graphic and sudden violence of kinds that are quite a bit more disturbing and distressing (even when they involve the use of powers) than anything that occurred previously.

-----

Stray Observations:

- Yes, those of you who know a little Japanese caught that joke: "Yomiko" could be loosely translated as "read girl".  Her name is "Read Girl Read Man".  Because she likes to read.  Get it?  Ha!  Ha!  Ha!

- In the manga, Yomiko is also established to be a literal bibliophile.  As in "books, regardless of content, turn her on".  I'm kind of glad this is not a plot point in the anime.

- The “secret” operation in the last episode, which is conducted with UN approval and involves an actual military attack with an actual goddamn naval fleet (and collaborating with North Korea to keep the US too distracted to notice it, even though this is a British operation against an organization that literally burned down the White House in the first scene of the first episode) might actually beat the first few episodes of Full Metal Panic! for “worst undercover operation ever”.

#R.O.D. #Read or Die #anime review #weeaboo trash

[sunshinekarliekloss]

Karlie Kloss Debuts Her New Kode With Klossy Offices in New York City

The 25-year-old model and entrepreneur is encouraging young women to break into tech—and has a chic new office to do it from!

Karlie Kloss took her very first coding class three years ago. In 2014, the now-25-year-old model had a short break before fashion week and decided to attend a boot camp at New York City's Flatiron School. It was meant to serve as a challenge for Kloss—not to inspire a new career.

Fast-forward to the present day: Kode With Klossy is Kloss's burgeoning charitable organization, which hosts coding summer camps for girls, awards career scholarships to young female developers, and creates a community for the role of women in tech. Now in its second year, the program has expanded from three to 15 coding camps in 10 different cities, and, perhaps equally as exciting for any young start-up, moved into its first official office. With a former Victoria's Secret Angel model for a founder (one who has graced more than 30 Vogue covers and walked 64 fashion shows in one season, no less), Kode With Klossy was going to need a little something more than the bare white walls and standard-supply furniture most tech start-ups are forced to endure in their first offices. So Kloss reached out to Homepolish and Lulu & Georgia, which partnered the model with interior designer Tina Rich. "My goal in designing this office was to create a clean, modern space that had its own personality," explains Kloss. "Since I'll be hosting my team, business partners, friends, and family in the office, it was important for the space to feel comfortable and chic, and flow from room to room."

Despite Kloss's jam-packed work and travel schedule, she didn't just hire the designer and walk away. She spent time culling resources to nail down the look she wanted and took regular weekly meetings in the Klossy offices with Rich, highlighting particular aspects of spaces she admires, from the aesthetics of her pal Emily Weiss's Glossier office to the furniture design in the Soho House in Berlin. "They have this wooden kitchen table that actually inspired me to go for a wooden piece in our conference room," she says. "Pinterest was a great resource for me. I loved researching different modern and open offices. Many of the offices I love have these amazing and intricate light fixtures, so I knew I wanted that to be a focal point of my own space."

With this direction from Kloss, Rich rolled up her sleeves and got to work. The ultimate goal? To create a space that felt more like a home than an office. "I wanted the conference room to feel like a dining room—especially since Karlie wanted to be able to host dinner parties—and the meeting room to feel like a living space," says Rich. To accomplish this, Rich chose statement-making carpets, chandeliers, and pendant lighting from Lulu & Georgia, and added unique artwork from Uprise Art to each room. Also high on Kloss's priority list was a quality kitchen. No surprise considering Kloss's now-famous gluten-free, nut-free, and dairy-free cookies, dubbed Klossies. "As an avid baker, it is really important for me to have a functioning kitchen in both my home and office so I can cook and bake for friends, family, and special guests," she explains. According to Rich, the kitchen was the biggest transformation: "It had dark cabinets and wood countertops. We freshened it up with Semihandmade cabinet fronts, brass hardware, and a cement tile on the face of the island. Karlie spends a lot of time in the kitchen making cooking videos! I wanted to make sure we created a kitchen that she would love spending time in and one that was the perfect backdrop for her videos." To really personalize the space, Kloss introduced antiques and personal items from home. The model calls her personal office a snapshot of her life: "I always keep a pair of sneakers and an extra makeup bag with my Carolina Herrera perfume at the office so I can head to the office before or after workouts. There are photos of my family and friends on my desk, and the drawers are filled with Klossies and healthy snacks that I can enjoy throughout the day. I keep a lot of books and fan mail around the office for inspiration, and even have my Video Music Award moon man as a paperweight!" Small additions (and subtractions) went a long way toward making the space look—and feel—completely different. "Initially, I didn't think I would need a dressing room, but with my busy schedule, we ended up installing a curtain in one of the rooms so I could change for different meetings, workouts, and events," explains Kloss. Another switch: Wooden panels in the middle of the office were removed and the walls were painted white to keep the space consistent. "I was surprised how much that little change completely opened up the room," admits Kloss. "What's great about the office is that while each room stands on its own, they all balance each other to create a collaborative, functional space." (x)

#karlie kloss #architectural digest #klossy HQ #klossy #2017 #august 2017 #news #article #nyc

[kansascityhappenings]

The teenagers so addicted to cellphones they’re going to detox centers

https://newsource-embed-prd.ns.cnn.com/videos/newsource-video-embed.js

SOUTH KOREA – It was 4 a.m. when 16-year-old Yoo Chae-rin realized she had been on her phone for 13 hours. In less than three hours, she had to be up for school.

The South Korean high school student knew she had a problem, so she enrolled in a government-run camp for teenagers who can’t put their phones down.

“Even when I knew in my head I should stop using my smartphone, I just kept going,” Yoo said. “I couldn’t stop, so I’d be on it until dawn.”

South Korea has one of the highest ownership of smartphones in the world. More than 98% of South Korean teens used one in 2018, according to government figures — and many are showing signs of addiction.

Last year, around 30% of South Korean children aged 10 to 19 were classed as “overdependent” on their phones, according to the Ministry of Science and Information and Communications Technology (MSIT). That means they experienced “serious consequences” due to their smartphone use, including a decline in self-control.

It’s those children — like Yoo — who qualify for a place on government-run camps to treat internet addiction. The program started in 2007 and expanded in 2015 to include smartphones.

This year, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family held 16 camps across the country for about 400 middle and high school students. For some parents, it was a last resort.

“I think they send kids here because of their desperate desire to get an expert’s help,” said Yoo Soon-duk, Director of Gyeonggi-do Youth Counseling & Welfare Center, which runs a camp for teens in the northern Gyeonggi province.

Sleepless and scrolling

Yoo had been an average student in middle school, but by high school she had sunk to the bottom of the class. She would stay up late, scrolling through her Facebook feed, playing with South Korean camera app Snow and talking with friends on instant messaging service KakaoTalk.

“I felt like my sense of reality was fading,” said Yoo. “Even when I had a fun and productive day (with my friends), it felt like a dream.”

Her father, Yoo Jae-ho, became increasingly worried about her. “There wasn’t much conversation among the family,” he said. “If I talked to her about her phone, there would be an argument.”

He set a time limit of two hours a day for smartphone use, but his daughter still found ways to get around it.

It was Yoo Chae-rin’s idea to join the camp in July. At the gate, she handed in her phone for the first time in years and started a 12-day detox.

Detox camp

South Korean internet camps are free, aside for a 100,000 won ($84) fee for food. Boys and girls are sent to separate camps, and each caters for around 25 students.

At camp, the teenagers are encouraged to participate in scavenger hunts, arts and crafts activities, and sports events. They also have to attend compulsory one-on-one, group and family counseling sessions to discuss their phone usage. Then, for 30 minutes before sleep, the campers meditate.

Many of the camps are held in youth training centers, away from the city, in green, leafy settings to help the young addicts switch off. Yoo’s camp was held in the city of Cheonan at the National Youth Center of Korea, which has an indoor swimming pool and sports ground.

Camp director Yoo Soon-duk said for the first few days the teenagers have an “agonized look” on their faces. “From the third day, you can see how they change,” she said. “They (start to) enjoy hanging out with friends.”

On a wall at the Cheonan camp, parents had left messages on a “tree of encouragement.”

“We hope that the camp will be a time to reflect on yourself and love yourself,” read one. Another — more ominous — message said: “Go Yong-joo! Don’t escape.”

While this camp is for teenagers, there are separate camps for elementary students, and the National Center for Youth Internet Addiction Treatment offers programs during the semester.

Why South Korea’s teens are so addicted

South Korea is not the only country where teenagers are hooked on phones — worries are growing about excessive smartphone use worldwide.

In 2015, 16% of 15-year-olds in OECD countries spent more than six hours online each day outside school hours, according to a report published in 2017. On weekends, the figure rose to 26%.

In South Korea, societal pressures are exacerbating the problem. There, children face a heavy academic workload and have few ways to relax. At the end of the school day, many are sent to cram classes, leaving little time for other activities.

In 2015, just 46.3% of 15-year-old South Korean students reported exercising or practicing sports before or after school — the lowest percentage of all 36 OECD countries.

Lee Woo-rin, a 16-year-old student who attended the same camp as Yoo Chae-rin, said she used her smartphone to relieve stress from school. “I temporarily forget my stress when I’m on my phone,” Lee said. “But the moment I stop using it, things that made me upset come back to my mind. It became a vicious cycle.”

Dr. Lee Jae-won, a psychiatrist who treats smartphone addiction, said that cycle was a symptom of addiction. When humans are stressed, it reduces dopamine in the brain, prompting them to seek other forms of satisfaction. Because teens don’t have other ways to relieve stress, they use their smartphones, he said.

“At first, smartphones comfort them, but they eventually think that a smartphone is enough to make them happy,” Dr. Lee said. “This leads them to give up school or studies.”

The problems with addiction

In the short term, a smartphone obsession can impact school grades, but the struggle to put down their phones can also have longer term effects for teens.

Over time, internet addicts can become socially isolated and suffer symptoms of withdrawal including “feelings of anger, tension, anxiety and/or depression,” according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

“There’s a high chance that they will live alone after losing family, jobs and friends,” said Dr. Lee.

Not spending time with their family and friends could mean they don’t develop the ability to solve interpersonal conflicts, said Yoo, the camp director. She recalled one teenage camp attendee who threatened to take his own life if he couldn’t leave the camp.

“For him, a smartphone was a bridge to society,” she said.

The South Korea government hopes that treating addiction early can prevent problems in the future.

“Later, when (these adolescents) grow up and have a hard time performing their social roles, not only is there a damage to an individual, but also the nation’s resources will be spent in order to support them. It’ll be a double loss,” said Kim Seong-byeok, the chief of the department that oversees the camps at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family.

After camp

One month after the camp, Yoo said she only uses her phone for two to three hours a day, compared to around six to seven hours before.

One of the camp’s counselors helped her to understand why she was spending so much time online — as soon as she got bored with one app, she’d switch to another, then another, then another.

“Before, even if I thought in my head that I should stop, I couldn’t,” she said. “But now, if I want to stop, I’m able to stop right away.”

However, Yoo is not sure how effective the detox was for her fellow campers. “I had two roommates. As soon as the camp was over, one (of them) didn’t even say bye to me properly and ran out to use her smartphone,” she said.

According to psychiatrist Dr. Lee Jae-won, the camp’s long term benefits depend on how willing the teenagers are to change their habits. Those who still can’t control their need to use smartphones after the camp may need to seek medical help, he said.

Yoo said friends who went willingly to camp had noticed an improvement in their phone habits. However, she couldn’t say the same for those who fought the process.

“For friends who were forced to go because of their parents, I think the camp wasn’t that effective for them.”

from FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports https://fox4kc.com/2019/10/21/the-teenagers-so-addicted-to-cellphones-theyre-going-to-detox-centers/

from Kansas City Happenings https://kansascityhappenings.wordpress.com/2019/10/22/the-teenagers-so-addicted-to-cellphones-theyre-going-to-detox-centers/

[srednjeskole-blog]

Arthur A. Benjamin Health Professions High School

Arthur A. Benjamin Health Professions High School

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These students need guidance, but I do not believe that high school students need to be told what they should be interested in studying and learning. I think that some students have begun to do this but I am not sure about students who do not feel comfortable sharing their ideas with the class and are a little more quiet. I'm going out on a limb here, but I'm going to say that a good 3-4 hours of a students day isn't totally necessary. The story centers on the life of Tsubane Haruna, an ordinary female high Elektrotehnicar energetike predmeti school student who then starts a revolution in her school. In this week-long experience, students will investigate how the world is impacted by the innovation, disruption, and creation of new technologies across smartphones, tablets, laptops, and PCs. The following courses are common in most Italian schools: Italian Language and Literature, Latin, foreign languages (English, French, German), history, geography, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, computer science, physical education, and religion.

I was unable to attend due to a work commitment in Thailand where I was teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL.) My greetings were sent to my classmates, and they responded by sending me some pretty cool pictures and summaries of their life experiences after high school. If your heart is really set on entering a career in the healthcare industry, I really encourage you to try and take tehnicar drumskog saobracaja predmeti science subject AP courses over language and history. Written verification is necessary in order for students to be recognized in the program and ceremony. We offer more than 700 programs at over 400 high schools. Choose from courses in more than 30 academic areas as well as specialized programs in engineering, business, and journalism all while experiencing life as an NYU student.

Anxiety, as a mental illness, is truly on the rise and helping students cope with their anxious moments can be stressful for school counselors. Switching classes can be difficult after the master schedule is built, so take this scheduling time seriously. Jon Lovitz as Richard Clark, a naive Caucasian teacher whose main goal is to help underachieving students at Marion Barry High School succeed. Students Ekonomski tehnicar should be aware of the particular adjustments for AP courses at their high school. Occasionally, teachers must cope with unmotivated or disrespectful students. The people who are in my life are there for a reason, they are true friends. These worksheets are great for Sunday school, vacation Bible school, homeschooling, religious education, scripture in schools, Bible note-booking, and more.

I didn't go to my first high school reunion, but I've gone to all of them since and I surprised myself by really having a good time. I say challenge yourself, take AP classes in areas that you have a true interest, not to boost your transcript. A teenage high school student foundation of a general education has been built and it is time to build on the areas that you are most interested in as an individual. Students in the research center are doing really exciting research, and they are learning valuable skills of using the state of the art equipment in the lab. In this exciting one-week residential camp, students engage in hands-on lab experiences in ceramic processing and tape casting, plus glass melting and press forming. Students come in and see this and know what to expect for the day.

[zipgrowth]

Not Just for Reading Class Anymore: 5 Tips for Teaching Literacy Across Multiple Subjects

The very first year I taught middle school science, I found myself teaching more reading lessons than I had ever expected—and that didn’t change when I switched to a middle school math classroom two years later. Add in the fact that I had several English language learners in my class, and my lessons on mitochondria and tetrahedrons largely started with basic vocabulary and sentence flow instruction.

But looking back, I shouldn’t have been surprised. It’s not just the Language Arts or Reading teacher’s sole responsibility to teach literacy. In fact, teaching literacy is connected to any and every subject—and it’s only getting more necessary as the online and offline worlds become more intertwined.

“But I wasn’t trained to teach literacy,” you say—and I’m right there with you. In fact, to this day, I’m not entirely sure that my ways of teaching literacy were standard or acceptable practices. But after talking to a number of different educators and reading their various accounts, what I can tell you is that your peers have discovered creative, technology-supported ways to approach teaching reading, writing and vocabulary in their multi-subject classrooms—and they were willing to share it to help you out.

Science

Dora Kastel may not be a traditional classroom teacher, but she and the team at the American Museum of Natural History have founded a number of professional learning programs and tools related to the Next Generation Science Standards. Among them—a cheatsheet for science teachers looking to integrate literacy strategies into their curriculum and instruction.

One of the strategies listed in the cheatsheet (discussed in the video above) encourages teachers to help students make sense of natural phenomena by asking those students to develop explanations with the writing scaffold “Explanation Tool” (downloadable here). Essentially, the tool functions as a guide to the scientific method, but with a small dose of mind mapping inspiration. For further support, AMNH also provides a rubric that science teachers can use to evaluate the proficiency of a student’s written explanation.

Art / Music

In 2014, California teacher Ricardo Elizalde took to the EdSurge website to share how he’s blended teaching literacy to English Language Learners with projects involving animated shorts and tools like iMovie. While not specifically an art teacher, Elizalde’s tactics could be adopted by teachers in both ELL and art instructional courses.

In his class, one of Elizalde’s best students, Lourdes Lopez, was surprised when her mother, “said that she thought that now, after six years in the United States, Lourdes’ English should be better.” He continues, “The comment surprised and insulted the rambunctious but thoughtful teen. She was a good student but lacked the confidence to speak her mind outside of the EL classroom.”

And so, Elizalde put a plan together. He asked his students to do reflections of themselves as language learners, and then interview someone who knew them well. After that, they created a video using iMovie in which they simply read their results aloud.

“This was,” Elizalde explains, “the initial assessment for a framework called the Learning Record... One key component to the Learning Record is to measure how you develop along the Dimensions of Learning: confidence and independence, skills and strategies, knowledge and understanding, prior and emerging experience, reflection and creativity, imagination and originality.” And in Elizalde’s classroom, one way he accomplished this was through these movie-making projects.

"It is important that we don’t take for granted the language used to talk about and describe math problems and situations.”

Bethany Lake

Math

A few years ago, former math teacher Bethany Lake (known online as “Math Geek Mama”) left her classroom to become a homeschool teacher to four students of her own. Figuring out how to teach literacy across all subject areas was essentially a non-negotiable—especially when it came to math.

“Math is a foreign language,” Lake writes, “and it is important that we don’t take for granted the language used to talk about and describe math problems and situations.”

In one of her posts, Lake offers her recommendations for how to use literacy strategies to teach math, and one of her biggest points relates to using “word sorts,” where students actually write out the physical words to describe what an equation implies. (Here’s an example: Underneath “3 x 5 = 15,” a student writes “three times five equals fifteen.”)

But wait—are you finding that students struggle doing word sorts when they don’t even grasp the basic vocabulary? Time for a word wall. And for those interested in more than just putting up something physical on the classroom wall, Padlet can provide the “virtual” word wall you’re looking for.

Coding / Computer Science

If you want to teach the importance of punctuation, look no farther than computer science instruction; put one “<” out of place, and an entire program might not run. But for Dr. Susan Klimczak, L2T Director of Special Programs at South End Technology Center in Boston, computer science offers so much more than teaching about exclamation points and periods. Rather, coding instruction should be about teaching how to write a story.

In her July 2016 account, former librarian Mary Moen witnessed a computer science training for school librarians where Klimczak encouraged teachers to think about how the five-stage story structure is right there in computer science instruction. “When you code, you set the scene, build tension, create climax, include falling action, and come to a resolution—think Minecraft game design,” Moen writes. “The possibilities for librarians to collaborate with English and reading teachers using code are wide open and exciting.”

"When you code, you set the scene, build tension, create climax, include falling action, and come to a resolution."

Mary Moen

Fast-forward to the following school year, and Moen describes how a fellow school librarian, Jennifer Robinson, created a collaborative English language arts and coding project for a fifth grade class. The initiative? Students created a computer program using free online coding platform Scratch to show their progress on a particular Common Core narrative writing standard. “First, students read a biography and then created a narrative script highlighting important parts in this person’s life. After a brief tutorial on Scratch, students attempted to master the broadcast and receive commands to code a dialogue sequence from their script,” Moen explains.

Social Studies / Current Events

Social studies is no stranger to the literacy discussion, given how often students find themselves reading primary sources from the 1800s or writing accounts of what happened during the suffrage movement. But talk to Christine Sciascia, an 8th grade social studies teacher at Mark Twain Intermediate School in Brooklyn, and she’s got some favorite edtech products that have effectively switched her role “from lecturer to facilitator.”

“Their learning has become more self-directed; these new digital tools and materials are allowing my students to engage with primary sources, current events, and historical subject matter in deeply meaningful ways,” she wrote on EdSurge last year.

For the best repositories of content, Sciascia recommends the Library of Congress and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, which she writes, “have a wealth of digital resources that illuminate American history at my students’ fingertips.” Following that up, TIME Edge also falls into Sciascia’s “favorites” category, both because of its specificity for middle schoolers and because of its paired content “from 90 years of primary sources from TIME Magazine through the TIME Vault.”

The fun doesn’t necessarily stop here, though. What literacy strategies do you incorporate into your classroom or school? Tell us in the comments section below.

Not Just for Reading Class Anymore: 5 Tips for Teaching Literacy Across Multiple Subjects published first on http://ift.tt/2x05DG9

[deadphoenx]

Who Are Those Chibi Characters? [10 Anniversary Special]

So you’re now accustomed to the gallery and all its intricacies. But you’re probably wondering what those Chibi characters are adorning the header (and several other areas, like on Twitter, DeviantArt, Pixiv, and the 10 Anniversary Poster). I’ve already explained a little bit on both DeviantArt and Pixiv where they come from. But now I’ll give a full explanation as to when they were created, what they were associated with, what years they represent, and if they’ll still have any use in any projects or stories I create.

I should probably start with the fish, the odd-man out of the entire group. Finne is my mascot. He technically debuted in 2006 under a different name and part of a fan-game idea. However in 2009, I started drawing him more frequently among my friends and family, acting as something of a calling card whenever I was around and I wanted to leave behind a drawing. He was quick and easy to draw compared to other characters I’ve done. He soon became part of my “DeadPhoenX” logo in 2010. My gaming blog “The Wired Fish” was also named after him and incorporated into the site’s logo. Today, he’s still in almost everything I do. As a matter of fact, since 2015 he’s included as an Easter egg in all original art (not fanart) that I do. Think can you find him? He represents years 2010-2013. Artwork With Finne: He's everywhere! 

Chelsí is the next one, full name Chelsí Pleinair. Her creation is an interesting case and is something that almost every girl in this group has in common. She was created in 2004 as “Chelsea” and was a schoolgirl with a French Painter theme. Her design was inspired by a line of Lollipop Girls dolls that my sister was collecting. The story she was included in was actually a hentai story I had concepts of. However that went nowhere with the story being scrapped (but the characters being retained for repurposing in other stories). She was then (somewhat subconsciously) repurposed for a medieval fantasy story as a French-themed princess around late 2005. Like before, it too was hentai themed. However that story was scrapped too (with the characters being retained as well). So she was never drawn again until 2015. There was a ribbed sweater craze going on in the ecchi art community, and I was wondering how I could get in on it. Then I remembered having a French painter girl in my repertoire of characters that wore a sweater. So I brought her back with her old design and under a new name spelling, Chelsí, and made her sweater ribbed. Once uploaded, she became my postergirl for everything I do, representing the art side of things. Since she debuted in very late 2015 but had more art in 2016, she represents 2016. Artwork with Chelsí: What Am I Going to Draw Today (2015), No Valentine's Day Pic (2016), I'm Ready To Paint (2016), Chelsí's Summer Fashion (2016), Joyeuse Saint Valentin (2017), Zis Chandail, It'z So Low! [Virgin Killer Sweater] (2017) 

The catgirl, Rhapsody, was actually something of an error in both name and design. Starting with the name, she was actually a short-and-pink-haired catgirl. She debuted with a set of 5 catgirls and was part of a regular story idea I had. You can still find her tucked away in my DeviantArt gallery. All catgirls I’ve ever drawn had musically themed names. Here’s where the error part comes in. I had another catgirl under a different name that has the current white paws, pink stripes, and blonde hair look. She was part of a hentai story idea that saw all the catgirls from the normal story repurposed to here and completely naked. So she was a new addition to the group. When it came time to draw her and Lullaby together on DeviantArt, I realized too late that I accidentally named the new girl Rhapsody. So I pretty much gave her the Street Fighter II treatment. She would stay as Rhapsody while the old one would have whatever name the new girl originally had. She represents her online debut year, 2007. Artwork with Rhapsody: Wanna Play a Game (2007), Purrrfect Valentine's Day (2015) 

Belinda comes from the second hentai story idea that Chelsí once appeared in. All I could remember was that she was a witch, and that’s about it. Any details about her relevance to the story were all forgotten. In 2015, I wanted to get in on the Halloween art and had the perfect character I could use. So I brought back Belinda from the Scraps ghetto and gave her the full artwork treatment 10 years later (since the story she was in was conceived in 2005). She currently doesn’t have much of a story and is really only made for anything Halloween/spooky themed. Since she made her online debut in 2006, that’s the year she represents. Artwork with Belinda: Belinda's Halloween Rush (2015) Next is Harriette. She came from the same hentai story that Rhapsody came from. Talking more about that story, the theme of it was mythical fantasy-creature girls. Not necessarily monster girls, but things like Mermaids, wood nymphs, fairies, angels, catgirls, etc. Harriette (whose original name was simply Fluffy), was one of only two bunnygirls in that story. She never made her debut online and was never repurposed for any other story. When Easter 2015 was close by, I figured it was time I drew her again. However since Japanese artists and quite a bit of the ecchi/hentai community like it, I decided to make her a bit thicker this time, as well as give her a new name. Her name is actually a pun on “Hare”, which actually gave me a hard time sometimes when I would say her name out loud and trying to squeeze the “Hare” in there. I’ve since given up and just pronounce it like normal. Since someone already has 2015, Harriette’s online debut year, she instead represents 2005, the year before I joined DeviantArt (and having any online presence). Artwork with Harriette: Harriette Easter Surprise (2015), Please... Gimme That Chocolate Carrot (2017)

The No-Name Mermaid comes from the same hentai story as Harriette and Rhapsody. She actually had a name back then, however around that time naming things didn’t really work too well. I can’t remember her name right now, but it was probably something simple and dumb. So now she doesn’t have a name. She was paired with another mermaid in that story that I might draw in the future. I wanted to do something water themed in 2015 that would help me flex my background-making muscles at the time. In bringing her back, I changed up her tail fin design a bit, and also made the tied hair more straight instead of making it flow out like big strands. She represents her online debut year, 2015. Maybe she’ll finally have a name before the decade ends! Artwork with the No-Name Mermaid: Sailing Through The Sea (2015) 

Lola’s origin is actually kinda forgotten. I can’t quite remember if she came from either a hentai story or a different story. Regardless, she ended up getting repurposed for the only story idea to make it to DeviantArt, Devangie’s Fairy Tale. She herself made her debut in 2007 with a light counterpart. However I made the mistake of building up her individual story, as well as others, before building up the world she would inhabit. This is something that I did a lot during my highschool/pre-online days. This would result in a lot of stories getting the axe and the characters shelved or repurposed. This would also include Devangie’s Fairy Tale. That story has been abandoned with all the human characters (except one of them) getting shelved. The fairies that were in that story might get repurposed back into the hentai that they were once in. I currently have plans to repurpose Lola into a normal story, this time without her light half. She represents year 2007. Artwork with Lola: Hell Hath No Fury (2007), Darket of Lolitas (2007)

Lady Jess comes from a series of girls I drew in 2009 called the BladeLadies. At the time, I was really into rock and heavy metal, getting a metal poster calendar and got inspired by the music video Ghost Town by the group Shiny Toy Guns. I remember sketching out a more realistic semi-nude Heavy-Metal inspired woman in a small sketchbook I had. Right next to her I drew this tiny puppet like thing with a cartoonish blade, a helmet covering half her head, and very pointy torpedo-tits. I wondered what this would look like if it was drawn larger. So I did that on the next page. I then got the idea to draw more of them with different boob deformations and weapons. The end result was seven of them being made. Also around this time was when I would change programs right in the middle of the series, forcibly getting switched from Picture Publisher 7 to GIMP. This was when my artwork creating skills would improve with better hardware. Lady Jess represents 2009. Artwork with Lady Mimi: Bladeladies - Lady Jess (2009)

Lady Mimi is my newest creation, making her debut in 2014 with the series BladeLadies 2nd. She was actually conceived soon after the first wave of BladeLadies ended, most likely around 2009/2010. The old theme of BladeLadies 2nd was actually based on gore, building up from the first wave’s theme of rock and heavy metal. I had drawn some BladeLadies concepts, with a few catching on. One of them was Lady Mimi with the giant piecing in her tongue and the tongue length being much shorter than now. At this time however, I had really bad artist block as well as college work eating up a huge chunk of my time. On top of that, I ended up realizing how bad I actually was at drawing gore. Upon my return to making pics on DeviantArt, I decided to bring back the BladeLadies. The theme was switched from gore to a circus, and this some had something of a story unlike the first wave. But it’s very minimal right now so that I can build the world first. Lady Mimi represents 2014. Artwork with Lady Mimi: BladeLadies 2nd (2014).

Meet the newest girl to the chibi parade, Xiuying Gushan! Like many of the other girls, Xiuying had her start in a hentai story. And like the others, when that story folded, they were all shelved. Due to my lack of knowledge on the specifics of Chinese and Japanese culture and language back then, Xiuying's original name wasn't even Chinese, but Japanese. I had desires to bring her back for a while, but I didn't find a good time to do it. I finally had a chance during this year's Lunar New Year celebration. The release did something of a snag, but I was able to upload the pic close enough to the Lunar New Year Date to be relevent enough. Currently, Xiuying is being utuilized in a story as high-ranking general. The story details won't be known anytime soon however. Xiuying represent 2017. Artwork with Xiuying: Natsuko Nakahara (2005, old name), Elegant Flower of the Lone Mountain (2017).

#chibi #chibi art #french girl #mermaid #bydpx #demon #witch #qipao #bunnygirl #gothic lolita #catgirl

[digitaltrends2018-blog]

To look: Handson with Apple's iPhone X

To look: Handson with Apple's iPhone X.

Apple released its first leading i-phone re-design in 36 months on Tuesday using i-phone X, a technologically complex smartphone that features a allnew OLED Super retin-a Display, true-depth camera system, Face ID, A-11 Bionic Processor with onboard neural engine plus more. AppleInsider went hands with Apple's new flagship and came away impressed by the hand set's finish and fit.

As analytically anticipated -- predicated on which we already knew ahead of the last details were introduced and before to a time hands-on -- i-phone X gives Apple the potential to induce earnings of an "a lot more superior" smartphone, comprising specifications and capacities which are harder (or even impossible) to establish at the mega-million volumes which existing generations of I phones currently sell at.

But with the important points presented from the keynote-- and also getting to see and texture i-phone X hands-on-- this simple fact assumes a completely new meaning. Apple did not simply slap to a greater camera and also upgrade the screen resolution to be able to control more or announce a "technological original." The application form of and integration between each one of the brand new i-phone X features is just nothing short of extraordinary. "the effective use of and integration between each one of the brand new i-phone X features is just nothing short of extraordinary."

The brand new Super retin-a H-D of all i-phone X is astonishingly amazing, using vivid broad color and incredibly dark blacks. Nonetheless, additionally, it is perfectly incorporated in to the newest metal case design in a means which is similar to how Steve Jobs clarified i-phone 4 because with the luxury overall look and technical appearance and texture of a Leica camera. I-phone 6/6s/7 shared a wonderful design, however it seemed ostensibly functional. So far so that every additional mobile manufacturer reproduced it, calling it that the obvious way you'd to style a phone nowadays. I-phone X-- and also to a point i-phone 8 as well-- is as a dip back in to believing distinguished and elaborate.

The i-phone X Super retin-a H D display can also be prominently integrated to the genuine Depth camera and detector variety. When watching a picture, you are able to visualize it unobstructed or expand it to full screen, which rounds the corners off and also melts the slot at which detectors sit. The prior is nothing similar to the "flat tire" of this collapsed Moto 360 smartwatch, that tried strove to send a rounded display and simply quit on the base of the screen. The black detector variety on i-phone X basically mixes off when watching video fullscreen. So when utilized as a telephone, it can differentiate between pulling down control-center from the upper directly (that the "ear" at which in fact the battery and signal yards sit) and yanking down your alarms out of the middle or from this screen.

This re-jiggering of conventional i-OS gestures also will help remove of your Home Button, as today you can simply swipe up to visit the house screen or tap and continue to switch between running programs (a easy and instinctive gesture which also brings it directional together with just how I-pads work-in i-OS 1 1).

Forcing the complete installed base of i-phone users to the fresh method of working could cause some blow back, since nearly all people do not like shift. But linking these new mechanics to a top phone you've to pay out extra for ensures that i-phone X users may effectively be requesting for the brand new behaviour, as opposed to being pushed to it.

One other attributes attached to your home button, Touch ID authentication along with Apple Pay,'re now set off by the side button, bringing i-phone X obligations based on the way it works on Apple Watch. Additionally, this empowers Face ID being an instant approach to float with no fingerprint detector. Additionally, this may help explain why Apple never executed a number of the qualities which might have already been attached with the Touch ID detector (for instance, utilizing this for a pointing device with finger gestures)-- even Apple knew it desired to finally do away with Touch ID and regain your home button real estate.

At 1 jump, this Home button migration can be currently done-- at least for buyers picking in to Apple's Future Phone. For everybody, Touch ID has been work how it's. It was seen the proportion of i-phone users can select in these brand new methods of working. Using the flip side, you'll find also changes for use to and significant additional upfront expenditure. On the flip side, these changes have been remarkably amazing, empower other superb trendy features (for instance, reestablish emoji or even "anamoji," which can be incredibly enjoyable to make use of), and also actually simplify the way i-OS works. Apple might have difficulty construction enough.

Trickle-down X technician The i-phone 6, 6s and seven productions each marketed approximately 170 million units within their very first calendar year. There simply isn't any origin on the planet capable of supplying 170 million good-quality OLED displays within a calendar year, nor will any seller afford to create and sell that lots of 3D thickness sensors (the add on Occipital Structure Sensor to get i-pad and the infrequent Android apparatus encouraging Google's Job Tango all sent in volumes much lacking just one million).

But by supplying a premium-priced i-phone X, Apple could present a main stream 3D true-depth detector and Super retin-a H D OLED display because of the premium-hungry audience, and also build both in to a excessively large quality apparatus that looks superior and feels ultra-luxurious. This was therefore obvious we can detect it before even taking a look at i-phone X upward close, or using a completed listing of its own features.

Perhaps less obvious is that the fact that the superior $999-and-up price of i-phone X wont just finance the creation, execution and manufacture of features just like the brand new Authentic Depth detector and Super retin-a H D, but may even help cover additional fresh characteristics which can be distributed to its more conventional cousins, i-phone 8 and 8 Plus. Some fresh "X" features shared over the board comprise its impressive build quality, for example, glass straight back which empowers Qi wireless charging plus produces the most recent base version i-phone 8 options look just like i-phone 7's jet-black on-steroids (also in three distinct colors of gloss: silver, distance gray and golden).

All models also share Apple's very speedy A-11 Bionic processor, as when you look innovative ion logic, the more processors you fab the less they purchase. Therefore sharing the difference involving both X and 8 products allows Apple to additionally enhance Portrait style and its own lively, non-destructive lighting features across most of its own 20 17 i-phone releases.

I-phone X in addition enables Portrait style selfies, with its Authentic Depth technology. Everybody else who's used Portrait style on i-phone 7 Plus already knows just how amazing it is to possess the exact identical sort of technology improving their own selfies and pre-assembled group shots since it already does to their own photos of children and pets (and some other inanimate objects that want some heightened play for Insta-gram). Apple's A-11 Bionic GPU Apple's brand new a 11 Bionic processor is a significant jump in the processing power and efficacy, empowering that huge new expansion of Portrait fashion photography-- that eventually become perhaps one of the very widely used and impressive functions of the past season's i-phone 7 Plus. The new chip also pushes the responsiveness of up coming ARKit programs and games, partly because it comprises Apple's propriety brand new GPU for quickening pictures, a feat that we weren't sure Apple can display so soon.

Even the Apple GPU is still among the largest announcements of this event, however, it got the smallest amount of applause only as the people does not yet fully comprehend how essential that this really is right today and in to the long run. Apple was already leading to cellular phones-- specially in gambling and also the smoothness of i-OS' UI-- only as it'd selected the finest available thirdparty GPU layouts (compared to Android along with Windows Phones which were satisfied using an increase of basic images). However, now Apple has its own own inhouse GPU technology, also has got the capacity to closely optimize its products to reach sustained identifying capacities.

Be aware that GPU cores are not confined by quickening images but are also increasingly being used to float through heaps of technical mathematics, like in machine learning and artificial intelligence. The countless dollars Apple is purchasing GPU technology will further expand the gulf we've found rise between $650 I phones and average Android mobiles that currently sell at under $300 by more basic commodity components. However, Apple's proprietary GPU technology may even trickle down to cellular phones including Apple Watch, at which in fact the nation of this art in $650-and-up smartphone tech has already begun pushing to morrow's scaled-down micro-devices and appliances such as appletv 4K and the brand new HomePod.

Qualcomm along with other portable chip vendors have tons of Android mobile manufacturers to sell their processors to, but those manufacturers aren't effective at selling highend apparatus in iPhone-like amounts. Further, they are also not selling substantial variety of ultra portable phones like smartwatches. Meaning that even when Qualcomm were to create advanced level high end GPUs and super-efficient watch processors, it'd not have buyers to sell them in bulk. And because volume is this a massive element generally pricing (to distribute the value of initial evolution), there exists a catch22 inplace that functions to keep the status quo in Android-land of functioning the very low end and moderate tiers where smartphones just will need to be "sufficient."

#iphone #iphone x #iphone x availability