Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part C

Dove Lake (Wikipedia)

I really liked the story about the lake and the questions. Nakula understandably runs up and drinks because he's so thirsty that he just ignores the voice he's hearing. When Sahadeva did it though, it seemed pretty funny because I can't imagine him not seeing Nakula's corpse sitting there. The part where Arjuna fired an arrow at the voice made me laugh too, then he rained a barrage down on it and the voice persisted. I feel like I could make this into a more humorous thing. I could increase the amount of questions, since 100 doesn't seem like much to reduce someone to start whispering the answers out of exhaustion. I think I could have different characters too, maybe set it in modern day, so at the end the same boon is given (being unrecognizable), but it would actually be somewhat of a curse for the person it was inflicted on, since they have no need to be unrecognizable.

Bibliography: The Mahabharata by R. K. Narayan

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part B

Arjuna (Wikipedia)

So again I think it'd be neat to do something that I had in mind for my storybook, and that is the whole As Shown On TV advertisement idea. I could do it with Gandiva, though the story itself doesn't go into much detail about Gandiva. Looking it up, I realized I already read about it during the start of the semester. It crackles like thunder when shot, has 108 strings (one of which is of celestial origin and indestructible), and comes with an infinite quiver. I think I could advertise it as a multi-tool type product that does everything. I'd have a lumberjack use it to cut down a whole forest, a hunter use it to hunt game, and a home owner to use it for home defense. The demonstrations could show the entire forest being cut down, every bird in every tree flying away simultaneously, and a door to a house being exploded. Or the house being exploded. Either way I'd also put some focus on the inexhaustible quiver being included for free for a limited time. I could say something that you'd see on TV like "The space inside the quiver is expanded to infinity due to our patent-pending wormhole generator inside! It works like this -" At the end I'd include a bunch of warnings to take liability away from the company, as well as no refunds in case the customer isn't deemed worthy enough to use it.

Bibliography: The Mahabharata by R. K. Narayan

Review: Week 6

I watched this video and my favorite one was Jeff dying for a cookie, because I see a lot of people use "literally" in place of "metaphorically". That makes literally no sense. It's gotten to the point where the word's losing its original meaning I'm pretty sure.

OU in the snow (Class Announcements Blog)

I chose this because the campus looks really nice covered in snow, and also because I do not have any recollection of campus being covered in snow at all. Weird.

Wikipedia Trails: From @ to Surimi

I saw a post about @ on the Class Twitter Stream. I was interested in where @ came from, and if it has an actual name.

Aragonese @ Symbol (Wikipedia)

@: It turns out it doesn't have an actual name and it's just called the "At Sign".

Narutomaki (Wikipedia)

Narutomaki: Nickname for the @ symbol. I knew what Narutomaki was, and I enjoy them so I wanted to know what they were made of.

Kamaboko (Wikipedia)

Kamaboko: Narutomaki is a type of Kamaboko, which is a pureed white fish formed into a loaf. Yum.

Surimi (Wikipedia)

Surimi: Kamaboko is a type of cured surimi, which is fish paste!

Learning Challenge: Learning about sleep

Hotel Bed (Wikipedia)

I read this article from The Atlantic.

One of the things that was confirmed that I already knew about was that the reason for why we sleep isn't fully understood and there are a lot of theories. I also knew it was bad for your health to be sleep deprived. What I didn't know that getting 6 hours of sleep a night every night can count as chronic sleep deprivation and can cause serious health problems. One thing that I'm going to try to do is get more sleep than I've been getting recently and seeing if I feel better and healthier throughout the day.

Growth Mindset: Pinterest Cats

Cat Meme (Growth Mindset Blog)

I chose this one because it's funny when cats get scared of harmless stuff. My friend has a cat that gets scared of everything, probably even itself sometimes.

Cat Meme (Growth Mindset Blog)

And I chose this because Skyrim belongs to the Nords!

Tech Tip: Weather Widget

There should be a weather widget on the right sidebar now, though it's kinda big

Week 6 Story: The Sultan of Swat

Baseball Diamond (Wikipedia)

Babe was born in 1983 to a legendary family of baseball players. His father was a slugger, like his father before him. After their fathers retired, each son in the family would take up the reigns and carry on the family legacy. Babe was no different. His father raised him from when he was a toddler to become the greatest baseball player who ever lived. When Babe started going to elementary school, he began to play baseball with the neighborhood kids, some of them twice his age. Because of his training, Babe would excel in these games and his popularity quickly rose. The older kids started calling him The Sultan of Swat. By the time Babe was in the 4th grade, the entire neighborhood, including the adults, would come to spectate at these impromptu baseball games. One day, while Babe was showing off his skill at the plate, another boy walked from the crowd onto the field.

Barry's life started in 1983 as well. He was found abandoned in front of a foster home, which took him in. He lived a hard life where he owned nothing and the few things he had in his possession were shared with all the other kids, though he had one thing he would absolutely not give up. His most prized possession was a baseball left with him when he was abandoned. The second he was told about baseball, he started playing it with the kids on the lawn of the home. When he turned 8, he was finally adopted by a couple. His new father was a taxi driver and his mother was a teacher. Barry kept his love for baseball and began to play it with the kids at his school. Through his dedication, he refined his skills to the point of perfection. Barry's family moved when he started the 4th grade after his mother found a better job in another school district.

Barry stepped out onto the field and stared at the crowd. He yelled at Babe to give up the plate to him, telling him that he could do everything he can and better. Though the other kids on the lot jeered at Barry, Babe was curious. He thought to himself that no kid as disheveled and dirty as this one could beat him, so he'd let Barry humiliate himself in front of the audience. Babe tossed the bat to Barry, who stepped up to the plate and assumed a batting position. The pitcher threw a mean knuckle ball but Barry read the movements perfectly. The bat cracked like lightning when he struck the ball as it flew into the air over the houses fences behind them. The jeers returned with the kids calling it a fluke, but Barry did it again and again until they were satisfied. He then offered a challenge to Babe. If he could win against Babe in a game of baseball, Babe would have to give up his title. Babe accepted but the sun started setting, putting their match on hold until the next time they met.

Author's Note: So this is based off a story from the Mahabharata. Arjuna has a half-brother named Karna who was abandoned at birth, put into a basket and sent down a river. Arjuna grew up as a prince and was taught by masters how to conduct himself in combat. Karna was adopted by a charioteer and wanted to learn more about archery, so he asked a master called Drona to teach him. He was rejected, so he ended up asking Drona's guru to teach him instead. Arjuna is performing these miraculous acts in front of an audience through the use of astras when Karna comes in and tells everyone he can do everything Arjuna did. So Karna demonstrates this and proposes a fight with Arjuna, but the day ends before they can fight. In my story, Babe represents Arjuna, being from a noble heritage and taught by a master. Barry represents Karna, being abandoned at birth and taken in by a taxi driver (charioteer). I liked the idea of Karna growing as an archer to be equal to Arjuna through sheer hard work, even though it's more likely it was just a natural gift seeing as they're both offsprings of the gods. Nevertheless, I showed Barry refining his skills through sheer hard work and getting to be equals with Babe.

Bibliography: The Mahabharata by R. K. Narayan

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part A

Archery (Flickr)

Reading through this, I became interested in the apparent rivalry between Arjuna and Karna. Arjuna was born from the god of storms and Karna was born from the sun god, so it's like the rivalry is destined to be. Arjuna and Karna also have completely opposite upbringings. Arjuna was praised all his life and molded into a perfect warrior and prince, whereas Karna was abandoned at birth and lived as a commoner, with his new father being just a regular charioteer. Despite this, Karna could match Arjuna in combat skills, and I think I want to write a kind of underdog story like that. I think it'd be interesting to write about a Karna that's been through hardships all his life, overcame them, and bested Arjuna in an archery competition instead of just keeping up with him. I also like Karna's more casual attitude when he meets Arjuna, and how he showed he was capable of completing the bow challenge then dropped it the second he heard the princess doesn't like him.

Bibliography: The Mahabharata by R. K. Narayan

Wikipedia Trails: Tutankhamun to Ra

Tut's Death Mask (Wikipedia)

Tutankhamun: I started with this because I don't know much about King Tut and he showed up in the class Twitter.

Amun (Wikipedia)

Amun: Tutankhamun means "Living image of Amun", and I don't know who Amun is so I'm here!

Montu (Wikipedia)

Montu: Amun replaced Montu as the patron deity of Thebes, so I was curious who Montu was.

Ra: Ra apparently manifested as Montu, but Ra fused with Amon.. Egyptian mythology is pretty confusing

Review: Week 5

I liked this video because it provides some useful tips for taking notes during reading, focusing on specific details that stand out instead of general stuff can really help when I go to write my actual story. Most of this stuff we already do while taking reading notes already though, like taking notes when we get ideas.

Extra Credit Meme (Class Announcements)

Even though I do my reading assignments, this was really funny.

Time Challenge: Schedule Review

Clock (Public Domain Pictures)

I have to say I'm definitely on track to finish the class a little bit early, or rather, I have enough extra credit to save myself if I miss some assignments, haha. The problems I've been having with time management is that some of my other classes are pretty unpredictable in terms of workload. Sometimes an assignment in one class takes 30 minutes to do then the next one takes 6 hours. It's pretty frustrating and I always end up pushing my Indian Epics assignments back until deadline, when I absolutely must finish them. Other than that though, I think I could afford to be less lazy over the weekend and stop doing all my work on Sunday.

Growth Mindset Motto: Never Give Up

When I thought about growth mindset motttos and mantras, I was immediately reminded of the tennis player Matsuoka Shuzo, a tennis player who recorded himself harvesting Asiatic clams and giving an inspirational speech to his viewers, encouraging them not to give up. So of course my motto would be "NEVER GIVE UP!!"

Einstein Tech Tip

Week 5 Story: SCP-5093

Ornate bow and arrow (Open Clip Art)

An updated portfolio version is available here!


Item #: SCP-5093

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-5093 is to be stored in a standard reinforced security safe It is should only be accessible to Level 4+ staff, excepting those with permission to access from Level 4+ staff.

Description: SCP-5093 is an ornately decorated arrow that measures 110 centimeters in length. The arrow shaft is made from ficus religiosa. The shaft is inset with with sapphires and rubies. The arrowhead is composed of an unknown metal, tested to be at least as hard as wurtzite boron nitride. The fletching is made from particularly large feathers of unknown origin.

SCP-5093 was recovered just south of the Himalayas, located in the epicenter of a smoldering crater measuring 138 meters in diameter and 14 meters in depth.

SCP-5093 exhibits noteworthy properties when fired under certain circumstances, which are shown in the experiment logs below and accessible only to Level 4+ staff. These properties are entirely dependent on the user wielding the arrow, and range from a simple increase in force applied to the arrow, to the arrow instantaneously reaching its target upon firing.

Experiment Log #001-00A
Class D Personnel skilled in archery instructed to use standard compound bow to fire arrow down outdoor testing range. The arrow was wildly inaccurate due to its size but otherwise exhibited no anomalous properties.

Experiment Log #002-00A
After over 100 experiments failing to activate the arrow, Dr. █████, who practices Hinduism, personally volunteered to be a test subject after seeing the arrow. After picking up the arrow, Dr. █████ chanted a prayer in Hindi, which caused the arrow to emanate a yellow glow. Upon firing, the arrow was measured to have an initial velocity of 1200 meters per second, creating a sonic boom at the point it was fired. The arrow was embedded into the target with reasonable accuracy. The properties exhibited here are consistent with some astras appearing in Hindu texts.

Experiment Log #003-00A
The foundation enlisted the aid of a skilled Hindu archer, Mr. █████, for the purposes of the experiment. After identifying SCP-5093 as the Aindrastra, Mr. █████ was reluctant to fire the arrow, repeatedly explaining to staff that he was not worthy of it. Mr. █████ was eventually convinced by Dr. █████ to fire the arrow.

When Mr. █████ chanted a prayer and fired the arrow, it created no sonic boom. Rather, a loud shrieking of the air reverberated across the testing grounds, retaining a constant volume regardless of distance from the epicenter. The shriek was detected from up to 1km away from the testing point. Furthermore, the arrow seemed to have instantly arrived at the target as no detection devices monitoring the testing point which were capable of detecting near light-speed objects, could detect the arrow midflight.

Experiment Log #003-00B
The test was repeated, but with a steel barrier between the target and Mr. █████. Upon firing the arrow, the the arrow once again instantly hit the target, but the steel barrier was destroyed after this. The results of this experiment suggest that the arrow is capable of causality reversal. Further experimentation has been requested.

Author's Note: I wanted to do a kind of SCP story like this but with an astra since around the start of the semester. It's a weird writing style from what I'm used to and it feels kind of like I'm writing a report. Anyways this is a story about the Aindrastra, the astra that Lakshmana used to behead Indrajit. In the story, it was said that the arrow was flying so fast that Indrajit, although seeing it coming, could not physically react fast enough to dodge it. I decided to have it go a step further and create an Aindrastra that not only went super fast, but reached its target so fast that it reverses the nature of cause and effect. I thought adding in the shriek for when it did this would give the Aindrastra a more intimidating and powerful nature. The arrow fired by the Doctor was really powerful and broke the sound barrier, causing a loud crack in the air. I thought "If the arrow were made even more powerful, shouldn't the noise generated be even crazier?", so I made a really loud noise that sounded the same regardless of how far they were and how much stuff was between them and the arrow.

Bibliography: The Ramayana by Krishna Dharma

Reading Notes: Krishna Dharma's Ramayana Part G

Archer's Arrow (Public Domain Pictures)

Continuing on my focusing of the weapons used, I took interest in the brahmastra. The arrow seemed like an unstoppable meteoric force of nature when fired. It dazzled and blinded everyone in its path with the brightness of a star. What I thought was most interesting was when Rama suggested that two brahmastras colliding could bring an end to the cosmos itself, as if all the energy contained within would suddenly release and bring about uncontrollable destruction. When I read that I thought that I could do a story where Rama does use the brahmastra against Ravana. I could detail the build up to the event, the arrow as it flew through the sky, and the shock of the collision. After this I think I would have Rama and Lakshmana still alive at the end of it, with Ravana being defeated but their surroundings turned to ash. It would be like a pyrrhic victory, and with no home to return to, or loved ones to meet, Rama would come to deeply regret firing the brahmastra.

Bibliography: The Ramayana by Krishna Dharma

Reading Notes: Krishna Dharma's Ramayana Part H

Crescent Moon (Wikipedia)

Coming into this reading I knew I wanted to focus on astras. When I made a storybook I planned to have it themed around the SCP Project stuff so I want to do at least one story so that idea doesn't go to waste. I read about Lakshmana's battle with Indrajit and saw that Lakshamana ended up winning the battle with the divine Aindrastra. So if I lay out all the things described about the Aindrastra I get that it's activated through prayer (as are the other astras), it requires great concentration to aim, it flies faster than Indrajit can react, and the tip is shaped so that it could sever Indrajit's head cleanly. So I think I'll make the tip crescent shaped. I think in my story I'll up the supernatural properties of it so that instead of being extremely fast, it affects causality itself. In the experiments I could have the arrow disappear from reality and reappear as it hits its target. I could also note that nothing happens when someone uses it if they don't activate it with a prayer, and that unskilled users would result in a diminished effect of the arrow (it just flies slightly faster than a regular arrow or misses the target). I'd include a physical description of the item as various experiments, such as shooting the arrow from multiple kilometers away from the target and shooting the arrow into a target obstructed by a wall. (It would still hit the target as long as the arrow is pointed at it, and it would destroy the wall and still hit the target too.)

Bibliography: The Ramayana by Krishna Dharma

Wikipedia Trails: From Parachute to Mortar and pestle

Apollo 15 Parachute Malfunction (Wikipedia)

Parachute: I started off with Parachute because the class twitter had a link to an article about inventors whose inventions led to their demise, so I was immediately reminded of the inventor of the parachute who jumped off the Eiffel tower, but it didn't deploy and he died.

Barber's Pole Closeup (Wikipedia)

Barber's Pole: They use this to describe a situation where the lines tangle and resemble a barber's pole, so I thought about it and was interested in knowing where they came from.

Show Globe (Wikipedia)

Show Globe: These were used by apothecaries as a method of advertising, much like the Barber's Pole, I've never heard of this before so I clicked on it.

Mortar and Pestle (Wikipedia)

Mortar and Pestle: Also used by pharmacists and apothecaries. In retrospect it makes sense because people used to crush medicine with these.

Growth Mindset: More Cats

Reflect (Growth Mindset Blog)

I chose this picture because it really captures the concept of reflection. It seems like a perfect spot to reflect is alone staring into a lake, though it does seem a bit cliche. Well, I guess it's cliche for a reason anyways. The picture looks nice as well.

Feedback Discomfort (Growth Mindset Blog)

This picture is really good at symbolizing discomfort from feedback. The cat is looking at its own reflection (a viewpoint of itself projected from something other than its own point of view), and is surprised as what it sees. I feel like this is the case a lot with feedback. You take feedback from people who don't share the same opinions and viewpoints as you and it can be quite an experience if you haven't dealt with feedback before.

Learning Challenge: Deskercise

The coveted treadmill desk (Flickr)

https://smallbiztrends.com/2015/10/deskercise-desk-exercises.html

So I'm already doing arm stretches, since sitting in a chair makes you kind of want to do that, doesn't it? The shoulder and neck stretches are also pretty satisfying and get you a little bit more energized. I also do wrist stretches occasionally since I can tire them out through drawing and typing. Don't want to develop carpal tunnel syndrome now. Some of these workouts seem really odd though and I wouldn't do it in public. I mean, could you imagine someone throwing windmill punches in their chair like they're trying to pulverize the air or something?

Week 4 Review

Dune (Class Announcements)

I chose the picture of Dune because it's the greatest science fiction novel of all time. The spice must flow. Also, I didn't know it was the anniversary of Frank Herbert's death today.

Really interesting to see how the book was received back when it came out, seeing as it's seen as a timeless classic today. Also gives some nice insight into what he was thinking when he wrote Dune.

Tech Tips: Ninja Cat and Zombie Dinosaurs

http://games.sense-lang.org/sense_NinjaCat.php

So I'm pretty good at touch typing, but this game is pretty hard sometimes. When I say that I mean I'll be in the middle of typing something and the game throws like 6 dinosaurs at me at once, haha. The levels are pretty long but apart from that the game's alright.

Comment Wall

Mount Everest (Wikipedia)

Portfolio: Stories of the Past and Present

Leave a comment with your thoughts!

Week 4 Story: Final Communication from Orion Station

Tar Seep (Wikipedia)

SAMSON: So flip mode control on.. like that, okay. This is Samson from Orion station, anyone receiving?

EAGLE STATION: Copy Orion, this is Eagle station receiving. What happened?

SAMSON: I'm not too sure myself, we've got multiple hull breaches. Whole station depressurized while I was in airlock. I'm pretty sure that I'm the only one here now.

EAGLE STATION: Where are you now, Samson?

SAMSON: East Wing Comms room. Still in my suit since I haven't found a part of the station that wasn't shot to hell. Need coordinates for evac shuttle ASAP. I'm going to try to link comms with my suit.

EAGLE STATION: Confirm comm link. Sending coordinate data. Are you able to link video feed?

SAMSON: I might have damaged the camera during depressurization. I still can't believe the station didn't blow up from that.

EAGLE STATION: Do you still have access to your research files?

SAMSON: I think that's lost already, Eagle. I'm heading to the East Wing evac shuttles.

EAGLE STATION: Acknowledged.

---

SAMSON: Uh, Eagle station this is Samson.

EAGLE STATION: Receiving.

SAMSON: I, uh, see some kind of black tar coating the East Wing's corridors through the door panel. It's moving around so I think I'm going to evacuate through the hangar's shuttles.

EAGLE STATION: Wait, you're seeing black tar in the East Wing?

SAMSON: Yeah, it looks like it's coagulating or something. Squirms around too, like it's trying to collect together. I'm running low on air though, need to get moving.

---

SAMSON: Eagle station, I'm at the hangar. Boarding the evac shut-

EAGLE STATION: Comms link reestablished. Are you receiving, Samson?

SAMSON: Sorry Eagle, had to get out fast. Didn't have time to link coordinates. The whole place started falling apart, or it started being crushed or something. Had to get out soon though.

EAGLE STATION: Alright Samson, send shuttle trajectory and give us a visual report of Orion's current status if you can.

SAMSON: Holy hell... Orion's surrounded by this stuff!

EAGLE STATION: What 'stuff'?

SAMSON: The tar! The black tar! And... are those tendrils? They're pulling apart the entire station, Jesus!

EAGLE STATION: Samson, do you have any way to visually capture this tar?

SAMSON: God, it's like it's pulling the station towards it... swallowing it...

EAGLE STATION: Samson, we still need you to send your trajectory for resc-

SAMSON: It's gone- the entire station! Oh my god, it's growing! What have w-

EAGLE STATION: Samson, send trajectory now.

EAGLE STATION: Samson, confirm that you're receiving.

EAGLE STATION: Comm link severed. Attempting to reestablish.

Author's Note: This story is very loosely based off of Kumbhakharna. In the Ramayana, Kumbhakarna is the younger brother of Ravana. He's a giant who slept for months at a time due to an accidental curse placed upon him. After waking, he would eat everything around him. As he fought Rama, he was reduced to inches of flesh but kept fighting. This made me think of a kind of ancient alien species. I wanted the species in my story to be kind of like grey goo, in that they're microscopic organisms that gather together into one mass, absorbing everything around it. The story leaves a lot to the imagination but the research project being conducted at the Orion woke this ancient evil and it started consuming the station. As Samson escapes, a tendril reaches him and he's absorbed into the tar as well.

Bibliography: The Ramayana by R. K. Narayan

Reading Notes: Ramayana Part D

Rama and Hanuman vs Ravana (Wikipedia)

Reading through Hanuman's infiltration, I can see a couple major points: Hanuman sees Ravana's wife and mistakes her for Sita until closer inspection, then Hanuman finds Sita guarded by multiple Rakshasas, then Hanuman turns giant and destroys the villa. After this he allows himself to get caught and his punishment was to have his tail set on fire. This backfires as Hanuman escapes and burns down the entire city with his tail. I feel like I could write a spy story about this where an agent infiltrates a complex, gets caught, then is sent to be executed by a flamethrower. He steals the flamethrower and uses it to wreak havoc on the complex and escape. I also like Vibhishana. He's been telling Ravana to release Sita otherwise he'll be killed, but Ravana gets angry and tells him to leave or die. This was a breaking point for Vibhishana and he joins Rama's side and shows Ravana that he was right. I could cover Vibhishana's pleas with Ravana, Ravana's outburst, and Vibhishana's mental battle that ends in him joining Rama. I feel like I could also cover the fight with Kumbakarna. Since the story mentions Kumbakarna fighting with only inches of his body left intact, I could make a story like Alien or The Thing where scientists are trapped in a station with a very durable and deadly creature. I also want to do a story about Rama's fight with Ravana. The climax where Rama used the Brahmastra was really exciting and I could make a story just about the fight alone.

Bibliography: The Ramayana by R. K. Narayan

Reading Notes: Ramayana Part C

Killing of Jatayu (Wikipedia)

I liked the scene where Ravana fought with Jatayu. It emphasized Jatayu's size a lot and the mental image that it brings up when it says it was as if a mountain slammed into the chariot was impressive. Ravana having to resort to using the Chandrahasa is a testament to the strength of the bird. I could write a more detailed battle between them. Reading Sugreeva's story reminds me a bit of a story about a superhero. The part that particularly makes me think of a plot of a comic is the way Vali chased after Mayavi, disappearing for years, only to return to find his country abandoning him. He becomes enraged over this and tries to kill Sugreeva, then returns as ruler of the country and takes Sugreeva's wife as his own. I could write a story like this but with a more superhero oriented twist. I'd also include the clash between Sugreeva and Vali, as well as Rama piercing Vali's chest. The idea of Vali being invincible and being defeated by the incarnation of a god is really interesting. The questioning of Rama's heroism and the sad farewell at the end could also be included.

Bibliography: The Ramayana by R. K. Narayan

Extra Credit Reading Notes: Ramayana Introduction Videos

My favorite video was the Crash Course one, seen above. It's interesting learning how the Ramayana was passed down vocally for hundreds of years before it was written down, and also how the names of the characters are pronounced. The video goes really fast though, and skips over some important stuff, like Rama and Lakshmana's battle with the Maricha. The animations and images are really nice as a supplement to the material though. Although it's really fast, it gives me a lot of information. I'm sure it'll help when I read more in the future, thinking back to the video. The question of who the hero is near the end of the video is thought provoking and makes me think of how the story would be told if it followed other characters.

Rama and Ramayana: Crash Course Mythology #27 by CrashCourse

Wikipedia Trails: Vampires to Vlad the Impaler

I started off with a Vampire after seeing a comic with one in the class Twitter.

The Vampire (Wikipedia)

Vampire: I think vampires are pretty cool. There are a lot of myths and superstitions surrounding them and I'm wondering where they came from.

Dracula (Wikipedia)

Dracula: Of course, Dracula is the most famous literary work about vampires, so I clicked on this.

Bela Lugosi as Count Dracula (Wikpedia)

Count Dracula: Count Dracula is the most famous of vampires in literature. Almost to the point that the name has become synonymous with vampires.

Vlad III (Wikipedia)

Vlad the Impaler: And we end with the real-life Count Dracula. Vlad Dracula. A man so cruel he inspired an entire category of horror.

Week 3 Review

I picked this video because I've watched a lot of ERB videos already. They're always completely filled with clever references and puns. My favorite is probably Eastern Philosophers vs Western Philosophers. I wish they'd make more videos though!

Werewolf comic (Class Announcements)

I chose this one just because it reminded me of a funny similar image, here.

Farquad comic (Imgur)

Learning Challenge: Happiness Jar part 2

Heart (Wikipedia)

So I ended up keeping track of things that made me happy in a journal, along with recording other stuff that was noteworthy. Among the things that made me happy were finishing my homework early, watching Made in Abyss with a friend (or maybe that made me sad?), getting a high grade on my presentation, and drawing a lot of stuff (still haven't started any big projects though). I think it's a nice thing to do, since we usually focus on the negative things that happen to us.

Growth Mindset: Random Cats

Poor Goldfish (Growth Mindset Blog)

I picked this one because the cat reminded me of my friend's cat named Kenya. Also because there's humor in making a cat's attempt to eat a goldfish into a motivational image.

Online Presence (Growth Mindset Blog)

And I picked this one because that cat on the right is having its mind blown. Technology is really spectacular, huh?

Tech Tips: Online Typing Test

Keyboard (Wikipedia)

I did a typing test on KeyHero.com. I ended up with a result of 114 wpm, which is one above what I'd gotten in middle school with typing tests. I think it's kind of sad that I didn't improve at all but at the same time I'm pretty happy with how fast I can type. It definitely helps with schoolwork where I have to type a lot.

Feedback Strategies

Chat (FlatIcon)

How To Craft Constructive Feedback: I'm not going to focus on "Be a Witness" for this class because we're meant to share our opinions and the impact of the stories on us in our comments. I like how it breaks down constructive feedback as a guide into 3 steps. The examples given did feel like they were beating around the bush though.

Presence, Not Praise: Though this seemed aimed at parents, it could be applied to interactions between anyone. It's easy to say that someone did a good job on something, but it does a lot more good to actually talk about it and have a discussion. Picking out certain parts and making remarks about them encourages engagement beyond just "Good job" and "Thanks".

Topic Research: Weapons of the Gods

Scp Foundation Emblem (The Breeze)

SCP Project: So while thinking about the supernatural abilities that these weapons bestow, I thought making stories based on SCP pages would be a neat idea. The SCP Foundation is a kind of community writing project where writers make their own documents of fictional anomalous materials and submit them to the site. Due to the nature of the project, the quality can vary wildly across different SCPs, but there's a lot of interesting material to read through. Here's a link to it: http://www.scp-wiki.net/ . If I chose this writing project, I'd keep it in the general writing style of SCP projects and I'd include some experiment logs too, since those are always interesting.

Ancient Arms Race: I thought that I could bring these weapons into a modern day setting by having government forces compete to find them in clandestine operations. It would detail how the world's governments came to know the weapons existed and would follow some agents trying to unearth them. I could make it so these findings end up public later, heightening tensions between nations and causing a worldwide crisis. At this point I might write a news article-like story detailing the events occurring around the world.

As Seen on TV: A comedy idea where the weapons are marketed as products for everyday people. Would detail the characteristics of weapons while suggesting activities. Nothing gets silverware cleaner than a Varunastra! (Caution: Not a toy. Water pressure may exceed 80,000 PSI. Use as directed. Do not stand in front of product when in use. Must be 18 years or older to operate. Do not operate while intoxicated. We are not liable to any bodily injury or fatality inflicted upon the user or others near the user.) Would also detail demonstrations.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astra_(weapon)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Weapons_in_Hindu_mythology
http://www.scp-wiki.net/

Week 3 Story: One Condition

Rama breaking the bow (Wikipedia)

Portfolio Version: https://sites.google.com/view/sotpapepics/shivas-unyielding-bow

Two assistants push open the gold-adorned doors in front of us and we're bathed in the sterilizing white light flooding forth from the assembly hall. My fellow suitors are speechless at the grandeur of it all. As my eyes adjust, I can make out the figure of King Janaka seated at the end of the table, along with the daughter we had all desired the favor of. He tells us to step in and listen to his speech.

Still sitting, he commands: "To those who wish to wed my daughter, I present just one condition."

Confusion manifested in the form of soft murmurs for a short while, then stopped as the King began to speak again.

"You must simply string this ancient and powerful bow of Shiva."

As he finished, four attendants entered the room carrying what looked like a massive ornamental bow. My first thought was that no man could hope to string this.

Some quietly laughed after seeing the bow, imagining the condition to be a joke, but the king had no air of humor around him.

So one by one, we inspect the bow. I watch the other suitors walk around the thing, examining it from all angles, then failing to lift it. Try as they might, the bow would not be carried by a single man. As I inch closer I determine the bow to be longer than I am tall, at the very least. Engraved art wrapped around the wood and the bow, although chipped and dirty, carried an aura of divinity. It became clear that the King had not lied about the origin of this bow.

I do not try to lift the bow, as I know that even if I possessed the strength of the four men required to lift it, I do not have the strength of 4000 to string it. Looking back at the king, I think that he would not compromise on this condition, so I realize the only chance for me to win Sita's hand is through force. I take my leave from the palace of the king for now.

Author's Note: This is based off a small part of the Ramayana, where Rama and Lakshmana arrive in Mithila and falls in love with Sita. The king offers the same condition to every suitor: String the bow of Shiva, passed down for generations, and you can marry Sita. Rama does this easily but every previous suitor has failed and sent an army to Mithila to win by force. They all lost. I wanted to tell the story of a previous suitor and also give an idea of how big the gap of power is between humans and the gods through the bow.

Bibliography: The Ramayana by R. K. Narayan