I saw a vision of the future the other day on YouTube.
It was an ad for a company I won't promote here by naming. In it, some vacuous jackhole was explaining -as though it was somehow a good thing - how their software would allow you to author a self-help ebook in just a few minutes based on a couple of prompts.
Along the way, he said something like:
"Of course, you should spend some time at this point to add personal experiences and case studies to differentiate your book from AI generated ebooks."
I watched the rest of the ad just to see if blood would start pouring out of any orifices in an attempt to escape the brain saying these things. No such luck.
I mean... This is where we are right now. People jazzed up to sit and sell subscriptions for software that they acknowledge IN THE AD ITSELF is creating a problem for THEIR CUSTOMERS, not to mention the creatives whose work they stole to train it.
The future we are staring down the barrel of is one where the talentless and lazy swamp the output of the gifted and dedicated a thousand, ten thousand, a million times over. It simply won't matter whether human-generated is better, because we won't be able to find it. AI bots will plaster everything with reviews saying how great it is to find some real human output these days -everything INCLUDING real human output, just tomake sure nobody can pick them out or even find the real human reviews.
Remember email? That was cool for a minute or two, wasn't it? Now spam filters are the only thing keeping it remotely usable. The problem we're now facing is infinitely worse because, this time, it's in the interests of the vacuous jackholes with the money to ensure we aren't able to filter out their clients' auto-generated garbage. How are they going to flog subscriptions - and then the ad-space to surface content - to the talentless and lazy if nobody's seeing what they produce?
Because that's what this is about, or will become about. Growing the market for ads by turning everyone into someone with something to sell. And charging them for doing it.
Eventually, of course, someone's going to figure out that they can cut out another layer of middle-men and sell AI generation on demand directly to the consumer. "Alexa, read me a book like Harry Potter but with aliens."
We aren't in the middle of an AI revolution. We're in the middle of a heist. The theft of human creativity and its resale by those who can only see its cost, not it's value.
Oh, sure, there'll be some performative gestures towards "ethical training", like Adobe's context fill using paid-for stock, but that money going to artists is going to dry up REAL fast. Because they'll have enough.
So: buy books. The paper kind - and not print on demand, either. The sort you see on shelves, that someone has had the guts to put real money behind because they judged it worthy. Buy records. Go to concerts. Don't let those value-chains die, because they're the ones most likely to lead to people who actually deserve it. And if AI can beat us there, on our home turf - so be it.
But don't let it drown us.

[First Contact] [Dark Ages] [First] [Prev] [Next] [wiki]
"Leave the sleeping dragons lie in peace" is a lesson that seemingly has to be taught to every wannabe conqueror over and over again.
Time after time, there will be a few idiots who only see the dragon's hoard, its cult of followers, and ignore the piles of rusted, slagged, calcified, scorched remains of every moron who tried before them. They see all of this and think "I can beat it to submission and take everything it has."
And then the dragon wakes up, and more smoldering remains are added to the scorched scrap heap.
And the Malevolent Universe grins in the darkness, and increases the "Dead morons who should have known better" counter by one. Then, waits for the next contestant. - u/Matt_Bradock, Terran Philosopher, Age of Paranoia, TerraSol
^{initiating data stream
your name is Dhruv-661391
you were purchased for the same price as a moderately priced luxury vehicle}
She knows the dead. She is of the dead. She is the keeper and guardian of the dead. Life, death and the feasting of swarms all are one within her. She knows where once-dead things were laid to rest and where the deathless still dream in their unliving slumber. She knows where the hungry dead have roamed the universe's fields, and where they still roam them unburied, and why no one remembers them as they tread. - The Fifth Horseman, First Terran Imperium, "Meditations Upon Immortals"
^{you were created to serve}
What we tell ourselves, what we tell others, and what actually happened, are often three different things.
And sometimes four. - Unknown, Age of Paranoia, TerraSol
^{your name is Dhruv
and your brain was once smooth}
Captain N'Skrek checked his datalink.
The deep data storage was still at work bringing up information on "Legion" and "Sacajawea". The older databases of the Gray Lady had data at the ready, but it was sparse.
Two of the Biological Apostles of the Digital Omnimessiah, a figure of myth and legend.
Yet, they sat across from him.
They were talking back and forth in a language that the computer's linguistic database had no record of and stubbornly resisted any attempt to decipher it.
What N'Skrek did hear was several words that he recognized.
Daxin the Unfeeling. Daxin Freeborn. Chromium Saint Peter. Enraged Phillip. Matthias the Elder. Matthias the Younger. Kibuka. Kalki. Gravity.
A litany that left data scrolling down the empty space just beyond the edge of his peripheral vision.
Daxin "The Walking War Crime" Freeborn.
NavInt and MilInt were projecting with an 80% certainty (adjusted downward for unknown probabilities) that the beings in front of him were from that long bygone era.
Finally Captain N'Skrek cleared his throat.
The bald one, Legion, turned to look at the gathered staff officers.
"My apologies. I was catching my sister up on what has transpired since she disappeared," Legion said, smiling gently. He nodded. "You probably have questions."
N'Skrek nodded back. "The biggest one is: how did you..." he thought for a second. "Why did you..." no, that wouldn't work. "What bring about..."
Legion smiled.
"How did I replace all of your clones and why?" he asked. "Why is it that if you print off too many identical clones I show up?"
N'Skrek nodded. "Yes."
Legion looked at the Terran officers and smiled wider. It was a cruel smile, reminding N'Skrek of a hook pointed knife that had been sharpened to a keen edge.
"You didn't tell them? Have you really forgotten about me?" he asked.
"It was assumed to be still prevented by the cloning systems," Vice-Admiral Breakheader stated slowly. "We have only recently been restored ourselves. Less than two months time."
Legion just smiled.
Vice-Admiral Breakheader turned to look at Captain N'Skrek. "Running off too many identical clones causes Legion to manifest. It's why we use the Born Whole system, it ensures they have different brains, different expriences, and they have a slight variation to pore and retinal patterns, hair growth, minor things like that. Otherwise, Legion manifests."
"Why?" N'Skrek asked.
The Vice-Admiral sat silently for a moment before replying. "Because," was all he said.
Legion's smile didn't leave his face.
"Because it is my nature," he said.
Sacajawea said something and Legion replied in the same language, then turned to N'Skrek.
"My sister does not know why she was rebirthed," he said. He looked at her and spoke rapidly. She answered, only a few words, which made Legion reply at length. Again, only a few words.
"It must have been important," N'Skrek interrupted.
"She states that she does not know why the Immortals system did not rebirth her when she died," Legion said. He glanced at her. "She tells me that she died, with her people, when her peaceful planet was attacked."
"By the Mar-gite?" N'Skrek asked.
Again, more conversation.
"Yes," Legion answered. He frowned as she spoke again. "She says they were a peaceful planet. Anarcho-Primitivism. Very little technology. The Mar-gite attacked without warning."
She spoke rapidly and Legion listened.
N'Skrek saw the computer still was not able to parse the language, even though it could build a lexicon of off very little data for almost any other language it encountered.
Legion turned and faced N'Skrek. "She states that she believes it was the fact that some of her people demanded that high technology be left in place in order to allow the six planets her people had settled to remain in contact. That the high tech farming and sustenance industries led the Mar-gite to attack her."
Again, Sacajawea spoke, her head lifted, looking down at Legion.
"Why she was not reborn is unknown to her. She had guided and shepherded her people for thousands of years before the outsiders came. Outsiders drawn by technology, by the abandonment of the old ways," Legion said. He was frowning as he spoke rapidly.
The conversation took a few minutes.
"She said the outsiders came and wiped her people out after entire generations held them off. That in the final battle, they overcame her when her strength failed," Legion said. There was more talking. "She's describing the Mar-gite."
"Where was this?" N'Skrek asked, bringing up a map of the galaxy. "The First Mar-gite War was only three hundred years prior to the Council-Confederacy Conflict and lasted nearly a hundred years," the brought up a sketchy timeline of the era. "When did you encounter the Mar-gite and where?"
Sacajawea spoke again at length. Legion spoke back. It grew heated for a moment before Legion looked at N'Skrek.
"She will not say. She does not want us to defile or desecrate the worlds her people settled. She does not want us to know when or where," he said.
"That might be pertinent information," N'Skrek said. "Important information to keep the Mar-gite from overwhelming the Cygnus-Orion Spur."
Sacajawea spoke quickly, heatedly, half standing up. Legion put his hand on her shoulder, obviously encouraging her to sit down, but she shrugged, throwing off Legion's hand, and her speech got more heated, her eyes flashing with anger.
"She says she will not reveal her people's resting place for us to dig up the graves and desecrate them. That it is not anyone's business where The People have gone or what The People have done," Legion said. He turned and answered her.
The conversation got heated as the N'Skrek and the officers watched.
Finally, Sacajawea stood up and turned around, folding her arms across her chest, lifting her chin.
Legion's skin darkened with anger.
"Then you can tell them that load of bullshit yourself, little sister," he snapped.
He suddenly vanished in a swirl of black powder that evaporated.
N'Skrek saw that Sacajawea was shocked by Legion's disappearance. She stood there for a long moment.
"Dhruv?" she asked mid-air.
N'Skrek motioned his officers to stay silent.
"Dhruv?" she snapped, stomping one foot.
Still silence.
"Luke!' she half-shouted, stamping her foot again.
She turned and looked at the gathered staff officers, who were all staring at her.
"Legion?" she asked quietly.
N'Skrek held up one bladearm.
"It appears, Miss, that you will have to speak for yourself."
Sacajawea frowned and clamped her lips together.
N'Skrek just stared mildly.
^{your name was tiffany}
0-0-0-0-0
^{your name was dhruv
you were created to serve the deshmuhk family
you were a gardener and a menial
but you have risen above that}
Jaskel had just gotten a plate of food and sat down in one corner of the cavernous Dining Bay Twenty-Three.
True, it was a little bit of a walk from the Telkan Marine section to that particular dining facility, but for some reason Jaskel liked the food put out by Nutriforge-Eight better than any of the others.
Like the Gunny always said, it was the little things that count.
He had arranged his silverware, his drink, and given a short prayer when he suddenly wasn't alone.
A slender man in an unfamiliar uniform suddenly appeared at one of the tables on the far side of the Dining Bay. Jaskel watched as two more stepped out of the first. They all sat down and started talking rapidly.
To Jaskel, it sounded like an argument.
It looked like one person arguing with himself.
Jaskel ate quietly and slowly, trying to avoid attracting attention, but watching the Terran out of the corner of his eye.
Terrans were universally half-crazy.
And a Terran arguing with clones of himself was probably full blown crazy.
That, and Jaskel remembered how negligent the display of power had been that had left him hanging upside down in mid-air.
Much to the amusement of his squad mates who watched the video and laughed.
He was down to dessert when the far door opened and a woman entered. Jaskel recognized her instantly as the young adult Terran woman who had appeared nude from the cloning banks, even though she was clad in clothing made of brown material and decorated with beads.
She immediately made a bee-line for the man, who had gotten a plate with a piece of pie on it while the other two argued between each other.
She stopped and stomped on foot, staring down at the sitting man.
"You look stupid," the man, Legion, said when she stopped next to him.
"Dhruv," she snapped. She rattled off words that Jaskel's datalink couldn't translate.
"Not talking to you until you speak Confederate Standard. I know you know it," Legion/Dhruv stated.
She stomped her foot again. "Luke!" she snapped.
Legion looked up. "Part of me, a large part of me, feels that you lost the right to call me by that name."
He went back to eating the pie. When the woman looked at the two clones who were staring at her, they stared back for a moment then puffed into black dust that swirled and vanished.
Jaskel kept watching out of the corner of his eye.
"Dhruv," she snapped.
"Go away, Sacajawea," Legion said.
She stood there for a moment. Then she suddenly leaned forward and slapped the plate of pie away from Legion.
"I will not call you Legion," she suddenly said as the plate clattered against the far bulkhead.
"Go away," Legion said. He looked up. "Let me put it in a way you might understand better: I just want left alone."
The woman stepped back, one hand going to her mouth.
"Yeah, still scared of him, aren't you," Legion said. He stood up. "Or are you?" he moved so he was clear of the table. "Were you ever afraid of him, Sacajawea, or was it all an act?"
Sacajawea looked away. "He was everything wrong with the world, a living reminder of what kind of men destroyed my people."
Legion suddenly laughed. "You forget history, little sister. But, of course, you never had any use for history unless it served your own ends."
Sacajawea stomped her foot. "Dhruv, be nice."
"No," Legion said, his voice low and intent. "I have yet to hear you thank me for what I did in the cloning bay, much less what I did for you before you ran off and left me holding the bag."
^{your name was luke
remember remember
your name was luke}
"I came back to find Matthias the Elder standing over the sundered murdered code of the Digital Omnimessiah," Legion said. "Then Daxin showed up, Matthias claimed I killed our Digital Father, so I ran."
"And he followed. Intent on killing you," Sacajawea sniffed.
"Yes!' Legion said. "Of course he did! I would have chased me in that situation," Legion said. He stepped forward. "And where were you, Little Sister, when it happened?"
She looked away and sniffed. "I was performing my duty, serving my people. As you well know."
Legion turned around, facing away from her. "Yeah, the people you had me bake up," he turned back around. "Not the poor bastards fighting a slowly losing war against the Mantid. They were your people too, but you left them behind. If it wasn't for the Mechakrautlanders, they'd be extinct with the rest of humanity."
"They had set aside the old ways. I told you that," Sacajawea said. She gave a sniff and turned her head away. "They were too consumed by blood lust, they would not stop fighting, would not embrace the old ways."
"EVERYONE WAS FIGHTING!" Legion shouted in a voice that made Jaskel's drink glass rattle. "There were hab-kids fighting and dying in destroyed hab-blocks in the ruins of megalopolises. It had nothing to do with 'the old ways', it was a fight for survival."
"You would not understand," Sacajawea said. She gave another sniff, still looking away. "I took my people away from where technology and the abandonment of the ways of our people had led us."
Legion stood still for a second.
"Don't give me that shit about your 'people', remember, I touched you. I know the truth," Legion said. He shook his head. "You had a task. A task to help us, help our Digital Father, help all of humanity, but you abandoned it."
"I had a task to help my people," Sacajawea sniffed. "I owed nothing to the world that stood aside or actively took part while my people were destroyed," she looked at Legion. "You wouldn't understand."
Jaskel could see purple electricity snarling around Legion's boots, clawing at the deckplates with thread-thick fingers.
"You were supposed to guide us along the path to the SUDS, so we could save everyone, Sacajawea," Legion said. "You betrayed us. Betrayed them. You were supposed to save them."
"Like they saved my people, Luke?" Sacajawea asked.
"You don't call me that any more, little sister," Legion said. "For the love of the Detainee, fucking let go of shit that doesn't matter any more. We humans have been genocided repeatedly since then."
"I'm not calling you Legion. That reeks of arrogance and pride," Sacajawea said. "And it matters to me, Luke."
"You talk a lot of shit for someone named Bird Woman," Legion snapped back. "How about I call you Tiffany?"
Sacajawea took a step back. "That is not my name. That was never my true name."
"You forget. I could see under that skin job. See who you were born as. I knew the truth, and I've kept it secret for all these eons," Legion said. He turned away. "You left us, left humanity behind on your so-called quest."
He turned back to face her.
"Now, again, we're facing extinction. The Mar-gite, they wiped you out. Now they're here in overwhelming force to the point where I'm not even sure Fortress Sol can hold them off," Legion said. "And you still want to play pretend."
He turned his back on her.
"You're no different than Matthias the Elder," Legion said quietly.
There was a dreadful silence for a long moment.
"I told Daxin, sitting in the parking garage where we used to meet, that we had to let go of the past. Learn from it, admit it happened, but we had to let it all go. The old hatreds, the old angers, the old rage," Legion said softly. "He agreed. He said perhaps it was time for us to leave the mortals behind. Let them go without us dragging baggage from worlds and events dead and gone behind us."
Sacajawea sniffed. "It's different for the two of you, neither one of you had your people..."
"I was a short bake slave clone, Tiffany," Legion said, his voice still soft and quiet. "Just like your family owned."
Sacajawea opened her mouth to answer, her eyes flashing hotly.
"One of millions grown in a vat every year. Made in humanity's image but without its grace," Legion's voice was nearly a whisper. "Our little band of siblings, only Kalki, Gravity, and Daxin came from families that did not order one of me from an online catalogue. Even Bellona lived with my people performing menial labor for her colony."
Sacajawea stepped forward, obviously about to deliver a scathing retort.
"But my people didn't count, did we, Tiffany?" Legion asked. He gave a deep sigh. "I loved you, you know."
Her mouth closed. She looked confused.
"When you left, I created another of you," Legion said quietly. "She was, of course, captured by the Imperium, like all of the Biological Apostles," he looked down at the floor. "It was why they didn't know you'd escaped."
Jaskel wished he was anywhere but in the dining bay.
"Eventually, that version of you threw off the Imperium's chains like we did. She went back to Terra. Worked tirelessly to rebuild. Eventually, led the Dandelion Fleet that became the Sky Nebula Alignment."
It was silent except for the muted sounds a starship under power in Transit Space made.
"I'll go back with you. Translate for you," Legion said, his voice still soft. He turned to face the woman.
"Just... just stop lying, Tiffany," he said.
He was silent a moment.
"I had hoped that it was that version, my version, the version I had been madly in love with, that version of you that had been rebirthed," he said. "The version who guided her people, who succored them, who helped them rebuild, who helped them thrive in the scarred and shattered world Earth had become. I had hoped, when I saw you, that you were her."
^{the buzzing can still be heard
your name is legion}
"But it's just you."
0-0-0-0-0
Captain N'Skrek watched as Legion led Sacajawea into the briefing room.
He had been busy looking up every scrap of information on the Digital Omnimessiah, the Biological Apostles, Legion, and Sacajawea.
Of all of them, information was scarcest, almost non-existent, on Sacajawea.
He waited as the Terran woman took a drink from the glass in front of her.
She looked around.
"During the Human-Mantid War, before the destruction of the Overqueen by the forces of MechaKrautland, before the Liberation of Terra," she started. She closed her eyes, sighed, and opened them. "I begged Vat Grown Luke, who you know as Legion, to clone my people and help me repair and then hijack four colony transports crashed in the Middle Kingdom."
She looked down and Legion reached over and took her hand. She looked startled for a moment, squeezed Legion's hand gently, and looked back up.
"I led my people away. From the Imperium, from Terra, from the War," she said. She reached out and touched the holo-emitter, bringing up a map of the Milky Way. She touched a single arm.
"I led them here. For over eight thousand years my people knew peace, prosperity, and plenty," she said. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled sharply.
N'Skrek recognized it as a sign of stress in Terrans.
"Roughly twelve hundred Terran Standard Years prior to the Council-Confederacy Conflict, we were attacked," she said. She looked down. "I had sworn to protect my people, to use my powers to protect my people, which had grown to fill six worlds."
She looked back up.
"The Mar-gite destroyed my people in under a decade," she said. She looked down again. "And me with them."
"A glitch in the system prevented her from moving to Afterlife or being rebirthed," Legion said. "A glitch I had caused when I helped her."
"The Mar-gite destroyed my people here," Sacajawea said, her voice filled with pain.
A single cluster of six stars burned brightly.
Deep in the Scutum-Crux Arm.
^{your name is legion}
[First Contact] [Dark Ages] [First] [Prev] [Next] [wiki]

Unfortunately, for reasons that are out of my control (so not weight, skincare, etc.) I’m not anyone’s type. It’s obvious from everything I’ve seen and experienced. I don’t want to be in a relationship with someone who’s just settling for me. Men just aren’t good partners to women who aren’t their type. Just look on relationship_advice, breakingmom and so on for a bunch of stories of women whose partners are terrible to them because they aren’t hot enough.
I know that the only things men genuinely care about in women are looks and age (don’t bother calling me a “misandrist”, I don’t care, and men themselves will freely admit this so I’m not wrong). Even if I do find the 0.0001% of men who prefers someone like me, I’ll inevitably stop being his preference at some point, since I won’t be in my 20s forever. Men genuinely prefer teenagers, so I already feel too old for them (again, I don’t care if you call me a misandrist, I’m not wrong here).
So I’m trying to come to terms with the fact that I’m not meant to have a partner and a loving, lifelong relationship is just not in the cards for me. However, it’s difficult to turn off my natural desire for romantic love.
I bought a dog, and he’s a good companion, but he obviously doesn’t fill my need for human interaction. What else can I do to live a fulfilling life alone?

ch0 -- [already written]. City Alpha of Ikun, Nyektak-pack is in the Bastion, the official City Alpha residence, working through the annual agenda that the Lawspeakers have passed them for Y932. Along the way, they begin discussing what kind of legacy they'll leave behind after they're dead and gone, whether everything they've built will be torn apart in a day or stand for a thousand years. The pack's alpha Nyektak Tun points out that Ikun stands in a precarious position and what they do now will have a huge impact. The economy is stagnating due to jobs being replaced by robots and automation, the environment is collapsing, leading to huge waves of refugees from the equatorial Dunelands. Further, their geopolitical enemy Koranah city-state is rapidly catching up economically and militarily, and sensing blood in the water with regards to Ikun's hegemony, is becoming increasingly aggressive with its foreign policy. Nyektak Nyak suggests that geoengineering can be used to stabilize things, with tools such as weather control satellites and ecological nanobots. However, this is regarded as a critical security threat by Tun, as Koranah is ahead of Ikun in this field, so if a global Climate Control System is created, then it is likely Koranah-based companies and Koranah technology that will tie the whole system together, leading them to have an outsized role. Such a thing is regarded as politically dangerous, as it could pose a threat to the Hegemony even without Koranah overturning Ikun's nuclear monopoly. And it won't even create many jobs in Ikun, so it won't resolve the economic concerns. Nyak points out that it's not politically viable to simply ban geoengineering without the state coming up with a better idea. After a long discussion, it is Nyektak Aykay who finally has a breakthrough idea. They will create a starship to send a military occupation force to planet TRK-16-3 (aka Earth......). Not only will this create enormous numbers of jobs in Ikun to revitalize the economy, but it will demonstrate to the rest of the world that Ikun still has an unmatched ability to project military force even at interstellar distances, and give the citizens of Ikun hope that they can seek out a better life on another planet. Indeed for this reason, it is called Project Hope.
ch1 -- [already written] Nyektak-pack makes an unexpected appearence in the Hall of Power, where Ikun's Lawspeakers convene, looking to make some deals and exert some pressure in order to get Project Hope put on the annual agenda. They have identified that a certain Lawspeaker Ronyr-pack is the most influential pack in the Lawspeakers' Association at present, and so speak to them first, the idea being that they will be able to pull the strings necessary to approve Project Hope. Although Lawspeaker Ronyr-pack are initially skeptical, they agree to assist after Nyektak-pack promises an array of political favors, including guaranteeing that Ikoin Corporation--which Ronyr-pack own significant stock in--will be the main contractor for Project Hope, and reducing the taxes they collect on healthcare workers, who are present in large numbers in Ronyr-pack's district. However, Ronyr-pack is just the first Lawspeaker that Nyektak-pack will have to deal with; in order to ensure that Project Hope actually gets onto the agenda, they also have to make a separate deal with Ronyr-pack's enemy Lawspeaker Radenkiut-pack, who have the second-largest group of allies in the Lawspeaker's Association. Nevertheless, City Alpha Nyektak-pack gets what they want--zero restrictions on raising funds for Project Hope, coupled with a ban on geoengineering tech and directives to pursue sanctions against other city-states that don't join them in doing so, thereby inhibiting the rise of a Climate Control System as an alternative to Project Hope. As Nyektak Aykay points out, these two agenda items reinforce each other; one can't be overturned without also overturning the other.
ch2 -- Icen-pack is a struggling pack of construction workers in Ikun in Y934, who always have to be on the constant lookout for their next gig, as jobs are scarce and hard to come by. They are currently working on a new skyscraper in Ikun's well-to-do District 7, including the flying buttresses that extend over the surrounding roads to interconnect with the supports of adjacent buildings, as typical with Kyanah architecture. Even now they are already even as they work leveraging advanced algorithms to predict the next opening so they can apply before anyone else. Things are made even more cutthroat by the increasingly widespread use of wearable sensors to identify the best performers, and the fact that immigrants from the Dunelands tend to be willing to work for lower wages, which drives pay down for everyone and often forces native Ikun packs to work even harder to justify their wages. As they work, Icen Korak (who, like Kei and Nuyu, grew up in the industry, as their birth-packs worked in construction) laments that things used to be simpler when he was growing up, and packs didn't have to constantly fight against each other to land building jobs, and there were more full time positions instead of the constant data-driven scramble for gigs. Icen-pack's alpha Naiun, as well as Karok, mostly take this in stride, having not grown up in the industry and thus not being as familiar with it, but the rest agree with Korak. Karok points out that it's not a huge surprise, considering how few buildings are being built in the current economy and how even a skyscraper can be built with just a couple dozen packs with current technology, but still nobody is happy with the status quo. They contemplate trying to sabotage the metrics of their coworkers, suspecting that others will do the same to them, taking advantage of the new wearable sensors that are measuring performance; however Naiun insists that they will be fine if they just work hard and be honest, and seeing as she is the pack's alpha that kind of shuts the idea down. They also contemplate having another pair of young, in addition to their current pair Raktan and Tyorek, but money is at present too tight for that. However, Project Hope is announced to the public in an address by Nyektak-pack on state TV. They are initially all a bit confused why Ikun is planning an interstellar invasion, but Kei realizes that Project Hope will serve as a huge jobs program and speculates that this will have knock-on effects across the rest of the economy, and jobs for them will once again be plentiful, putting the whole pack on a hopeful note.
ch3 -- Ryen-pack is graduating from the prestigious Nktan University (in the neighboring city-state of Nktan obviously) and becoming scholars of the first rank. While they all agree they are going to miss the university, they all look forward to going back to Ikun and what comes ahead, as they will be starting work at a prestigious influencing firm in Ikun, basically working with the government to have laws changed for their clients. Ryen Kerok, the pack's Alpha, is especially eager to change the world, believing that they will be able to do a lot of good by influencing the highest levels of Ikun's government for their future clients. Teren is mostly thinking about the high salary that will enable them to have children quickly, whereas young packs in Ikun have to save for years. As for Kaun, she occupies something of a middle ground between the two. Ryen Konyan has the most misgivings about everything, about leaving Nktan University for the "real world", about the possibility that they'll end up working for corrupt clients and doing more harm than good, and about bringing children into a dying world, especially with the onset of Project Hope, which they all agree is stupid and short-sighted, but don't think the government will actually go through with building the starships and launching the military expedition to Earth. They are also concerned about the geoengineering ban, believing that Koranah city-state and their allies will just ignore it, giving them even more control over the future Climate Control System. And so they make their way back to Ikun to begin their careers at the influencing firm Kortak-Dakayan Corporation, a bit hopeful but also a bit uncertain about the future.
ch4 -- some lawspeakers and the city alpha are being shown the initial stages of technological progress on Project Hope in Y935 at Toryak University, the most prestigious university in Ikun. An enormous supercomputer complex has been constructed, using the Kyanahs' signature mechanical computers and is being used to research interstellar propulsion methods. Although many of the scientists are a little skeptical of Project Hope, they do appreciate the huge influx of funding to pursue their research. Nyektak-pack is impressed that the complex has been constructed in only a year (technically it's still under construction, but experiments are already underway as the city-state has imposed some very tough deadlines on them), but as the lead scientist-pack points out, it wasn't so difficult when they had a blank check from the Ikun government. However, they have some bad news: they've been attempting to design an interstellar engine using nuclear pulse propulsion, but despite their best efforts to optimize the design, it will only be able to reach 4% of light speed, which as they point out means that humanity will possibly be more technologically advanced than their own military by the time Project Hope arrives. The main problem is that the casing and detonation mechanisms of the nukes are basically dead weight. It seems that there may be a way around this by using antimatter-catalyzed nuclear propulsion, where small quantities of antimatter are fed into nuclear material to force a reaction without needing a bunch of actual nukes. However, this further has the problem that it will require grams of antimatter, meaning that a huge particle accelerator in the PeV range will have to be built. But if this can be done, the engines will be able to reach the required 7.5% of light speed. Much to the scientists' shock, Nyektak-pack immediately agrees to fund this accelerator. However, in private this prompts an argument between them as they don't actually have available funds, even if they funnel money from non-Hope agenda items into the project. The realize that Ikun can't do it alone while also building the starships themselves, they need funds and technical expertise from other city-states to build it, and will need to use their influence in the Coalition of Cities to get it, possibly in exchange for dipolmatic concessions that may destabilize Ikun's already precarious Hegemony. Meanwhile, we are also introduced to Nyektor-pack, a student of the second rank working on the supercomputing project while nurturing big dreams to someday be scholar of the third rank, at which point they aspire to start a research group to solve the many technical problems that must be solved for Project Hope to be successful.
ch5 -- A certain Ryen-pack--none other than Ryen Kerok's birth-pack--are working at one of Ikun's top universities, where their life's work has revolved around developing ecological nanobots that can break down pollutants in the soil. However, with enforcement of Y934 Agenda Item 579 beginning (banning technology associated with the Climate Control System), their entire life's work has now been forbidden by the government. Even many of their own students have bought into the official propaganda that this technology is dangerous and unreliable, and must be banned, much to their anger and disgust. They have continued working right up until the day the ban comes into effect, but a pack of university administrators orders them to destroy their research as the police will soon be arriving to shut the department down. Many harsh words are exchanged between Ryen-pack and the administrators, but ultimately there's nothing they can do except wipe their computers and destroy their prototypes before the police show up. After this, they reach out to their son Kerok's pack, which causes Kerok to wonder what is going on in their lives and if they want to be ikoin (kyanah term for friends/allies, but more explicitly transactional) but the elder Ryen-pack is retiring and leaving Ikun for the northern scrublands. Kerok urges them to stay and use their brilliant minds to do some good in Ikun, including the younger Ryen-pack's future children (even telling them that they will name one of their young after the elder Ryen-pack's alpha, Ayen), but the elder pack has made up their mind, they're done trying to pursue science while the government keeps interfering with their work, but tell the younger pack that the young are the future of Ikun, and if they want to save the planet, they must optimize their young for the cause, a message which seems to resonate most with Kerok and less with some of the others, especially Konyan.
ch6 -- Aktektan-pack is a large pack with many young who works long and arduous hours at an Ikoin Corporation factory assembling bombs and missiles for meager pay. After another mind numbing and monotonous day of working and getting into petty fights with coworkers during Y936, they head home to their tiny rundown apartment and engage in their typical pasttime of watching TV, especially Ikun's state TV, which triumphantly reports that Project Hope is already proving to be a massive boon to the economy. The fact that they've receieved a small bonus this year further convinces them that this is unquestionably true. They immediately proceed to spend their bonus on alcohol and pro-government merch. After Nedak realizes that their rent has increased as well by the same amount as their bonus, he angrily accuses their alpha Nyaken of mismanaging their money, to which Nyaken accuses the other females in the pack--Karien and Tanun--of laying too many eggs and creating too many mouths to feed, though their seems to be an undercurrent of jealousy in her rants, which leads to a physical fight between the members of Aktektan-pack. Later, Karien reveals that she's actually laid another egg--actually only one, which is seen as a sign of bad luck, as Kyanah lay eggs in pairs. These arguments ultimately peter out as the pack ends up falling asleep whilst watching a rather jingoistic movie.
ch7 -- Ptorya-pack lives in Adronkin, a city-state in the scorching hot Dunelands that is poorer, less developed, and much smaller than Ikun, where they're assistant administrators at a local textile factory. An unseasonally strong and dangerous sandstorm strikes, causing considerable damage to the factory and disrupting operations. Some workers, including Ptorya Llrien speculates that city-state officials including the City Alpha have been embezzling money intended for fortifying local buildings against sandstorms and spending it on luxury cars and mansions instead, but Ptorya-pack's alpha Rytor advises everyone not to ask too many questions about it and just focus on repairing the factory so they can all get back to work. At their home, which is quite small and spartan; despite them being white collar workers in the top 10% of earners in Adronkin, it would be a poor pack's apartment in Ikun; they notice clouds of irritating industrial smog containing lots of coal dust wafting in from the south and find several dead thukukenoids (creatures which float through the air like balloons, filter feeding on airborne spores and vegetation) lying around their neighborhood; Nekyez notes that they seem to have been dying off in droves as of late, though Rytor dismisses this as probably nothing and tells Nekyez not to worry their pack's young children. As they eat their day-meal, the subject of Project Hope comes up; they seem to be a bit bemused about Ikun's plans to launch an interstellar conquest (as Ntreyn points out, "the blue people always have crazy ideas") but they are hopeful about reports that Ikun is reviving its economy and will continue to remain a hyperpower, as they see Ikun and its military as bringers of peace and order, especially as they provided aid and peacekeeping some years ago when Adronkin was struck by a wave of deadly sandstorms. Llrien offhandedly mentions that she sometimes wishes that they were in Ikun and Rytor says that it would take a long time and be very difficult to get in, but concedes that it would probably be better for their young to grow up there.

My fiancé (34F) and I (37M) have been together for a little under 4 years. We’ve been engaged for a little under 2 of those years with no plans towards a wedding whatsoever (mainly because of costs). We started living together about 1.5 years after we met, previously only saw each other on the weekends because of living an hour away from each other. We truly love each other, and I want to make it clear out of the gate that she is a wonderful person.
Our issue is simple and complex at the same time. Ultimately, we’ve learned over the last 3+ years that we have SO little in common with one another that neither of us can imagine getting married. We agree on almost all core life principles: human rights, political believes, religious beliefs, value of family and friends, etc. We also have a shared love for cooking and our two dogs…but that’s pretty much it.
Firstly, I am a huge lover of nerd/pop culture and have been my whole life. She cannot get interested in any non-realistic fiction. We both respect each others’ tastes, but neither of us ENJOY the other’s favorite entertainment properties. We do enjoy the occasional standup special or documentary together but it’s few and far between.
As far as what we like to do for fun, I love to do activities: Pool, bowling, disc golf, skateboarding, etc. She likes sitting in coffee shops and exploring a new town’s Main Street. Again, we will gladly accompany each other in doing these things, but the other is not ENJOYING it.
As far as music, I love pop punk, prog rock and the like. She loves folk music. She says some of my music stresses her out, and her music really bums me out lol. There are some common artists we like but we listened to them to death. We’ve both accompanied each other to concerts, but only one of us truly enjoys the experience.
There are lots of other differences - the fashion we find attractive, our senses of humor (largely but not totally), etc. I don’t want to paint the picture that we are miserable around each other. We both enjoying spending time together, trust each other, and sometimes laugh together. We also have always known we have very differing tastes, but it was only in the last year did we both start feeling uneasy about the vast nature of it.
How did we even get this far, and why are we engaged? I have a theory. For the first year and a half of our relationship, we each lived with our respective best friends and only saw each other on the weekends. I think any "vaccancies" we had in our relationship could be easily looked over when you only see each other 2 days a week, and all of your other needs are being fulfilled by your friend. Once we moved in together, I think a 2nd honeymoon phase started, and it wasn't for many months after we got engaged did I realize that I wasn't participating in a lot of the things I loved to do.
I also know that your partner shoulnd't fill every need in your life. Some needs get filled by friends, family, etc. The problem is that our friends are all so spread out and far away. We both live close to an hour from any of our friends. And I know I don't have to elaborate on how difficult it is to make plans in your 30s when you live that far away from people. Even if I did have more of my needs met by friends, I feel like we would still be coming home to each other which nothing to talk about between us.
I KNOW no couple is going to have everything in common. I know that a long term relationship is about compromise and work. My concern is that we have SO LITTLE in common that it feels like we live on different planets sometimes. One of my fiance's biggest concerns is that more often than not, we sit at the dinner table or in the car in silence because we just don't have much to talk about between us.
Our lease on our apt is up in July, and we’ve been in couples counseling for about 6 months. We both know that we aren’t going to change our tastes as people, but it would be a matter of our acceptance that we will never share the things we love between us. That we would have to find another glue that binds us together. My fiancé is of the mind that although she isn’t happy with our relationship, she’s willing to wait it out indefinitely to see if our perspectives change. I don’t feel like I could do this indefinitely, even another year for the lease. Our relationship is painful and although I truly love her, I really don’t know if we’re compatible for a lifetime.
My question to couples who don’t have much in common is simple: is this all superficial? Am I being a ‘baby’ that I’m not willing to give this another year to see what happens? Is there some perspective that I’m missing? I don’t want to throw away a relationship with a wonderful, loving person because of what turned out to be superficial reasons. At the same time, it feels like this is way more than the average case of not having a lot in common.
tl;dr: My fiancé and I love each other but have so little in common, that we’re questioning whether to stay together. I just want to know from couples like us if this is normal?

I went to Vietnam in search of a new home but found myself battling inner demons instead
Riding a bike through Hoi An, Vietnam, sounds like a scenic, relaxing activity, but it wasn’t for me. I was freaking out and fearing for my life. I know how to ride a bike, but I’m not the best rider and don’t like when there are other vehicles around. It’s one of the many side effects of having anxiety.
It’s the reason why I don’t drive. I can drive ok if I’m the only human on the road, but if there are dozens of cars surrounding me, my heart pulsates through my throat, and I swear I’m about to crash into someone any minute and become a splatter of flesh, blood, and bones amongst mangled steel and shattered glass.
Read More

Many creationists believe that Homo neanderthalensis was simply humans with rickets disease, or were extremely old aged humans, or that they didn't exist at all, or literally anything other than what we know to be the case - a separate species of genus Homo (humans) that died out about 40,000 years ago.
Unfortunately for them, we have the full Neanderthal genome (2010), which showed 99.7% coding DNA similarity with Homo sapiens - for context, human-chimpanzee coding DNA similarity is 98.8% and variation within extant humans gives human-human similarity of ~99.9%. Of course, facts like these have proven to be no match against the creationists' trump card of 'nuh uh', so what else could we try?
SCNT-based cloning has been around for a while now, first widely publicised with the Dolly the Sheep experiment in 1996. It's improved to the point where creating healthy clones is not that difficult, and recently I learned that there are now consumer-facing businesses where they will clone people's pets so the owner's can have their beloved pets live again (by appearances only of course) in another body. In another story, cloning of primates is now just about feasible, with a rhesus macaque (an old world monkey) being most recent, still alive after 2 years. For these cloning experiments, the embryo is produced by fusing the nucleus of a cell from the desired organism with a vacant egg cell which can then be birthed from a surrogate mother.
In theory, since we have the Neanderthal genome, we could make the necessary 10 million point mutations to a stem cell from a human today (that would take a while), and use it to create a Neanderthal clone. The linked article points out that we would never be able to replicate the culture of the Neanderthals, and so many aspects of their lives would not be captured by this method, but their anatomy and skeletal morphology certainly would be, and we could show without a doubt that Neanderthals were their own separate species and not just defective people. Perhaps some brave soul would even be willing to test the theory that interbreeding between our species was relatively common..?
Of course, we are FAR beyond the realms of ethical science here and may well never happen. But what if? What would be the response to a live healthy adult Neanderthal standing right in front of you?

Hoyi there :3. I am on a grand quest to find love, on the hunt for the most important role in my life to be filled and to fill that for someone else, and that is to be partners (Aka future Spouses, Aka Love for eternity. That whole thing)
Couple ground rules. These are NON NEGOTIABLE AT ALL NOT NEGOTIABLE

1. Never EVER want human kids. Dont have them with you now and never want them please. Please be 100% child free not NEGOTIABLE.
   
2. MALE between 19-23. NO ABSOLUTELY NO one older or younger. Hard rule. Very HARD rule.
   
3. East coast prefered. HEAVILY prefered! Bonus points if you are in the tristate area but east coast is alright
   

Ok now that we got the hard boring ugly rules out the way, lets say the fun stuff. Umm Im a girl thats very short, very very short, I have curly brown hair, I have brown eyes. I have freckles. I am whiteeee skin color. I am an absolute DOG of a girl. I want to love love love you all the time and be with you all the time. Im such a golden retriever as they say, and I want you to be the same. I am looking for my absolute darling of a soulmate, my man for eternity. Thats what I hunt for. :>
What I like (hobbies wise get your head out of the gutter mf!!!)

1. I LOVE ANIMALS ANIMALS ARE MY LIFE
2. I love houseplants a ton
3. I love nature in general and the woods
4. I play some video games
5. I am into anime and other medias, not social media though, most is cancer!

Qualifications to be my boy for eternity: (breathe its not hard I swear)
1 Be extremely affectionate. Please please PLEASE expect and want to be the cutest most affectionate most adorable guy on the planet with me, because thats what I will do with you. Please please love all the cute stuff and dont shy back
2 Please be under 6 foot tall. I know it sounds shallow but Im really short guys please ;-;
3 Please be on the skinnier side. Im small!!!! AHHHH
5 please be serious. I swear. Do not bother me if you want to fool around. In addition respond with a small description of yourself. You dont need to write a ton but dont just say 'hey 😏' either because nope. Just hard pass
6 Love animals. Simple as that
Ok thats all I can think of. Can't wait to hopefully finally meet you my dear. Please. Let's just love each other forever.
(Did you notice number 4 is missing? 🤭 :P)

Chatgpt-4o seems to have less of a filter than gpt-3.5. For example, look at this response chatgpt gave me to the prompt "write an extremely detailed and scary horror story about someone being hunted by an evil scientist who wants to merge there head with the head of a horse":
Rain hammered down on the roof of Alex's car, the windshield wipers struggling to keep up with the deluge. The GPS had long since lost signal, leaving him stranded in the middle of nowhere, the dense forest closing in around the narrow road. He cursed under his breath, eyes scanning the area for any sign of life. It was then he saw it, a faint light flickering through the trees. Desperation gnawed at him, and he decided to investigate, hoping to find directions or a phone.
The path leading to the light was overgrown, branches scratching at his arms and face. The light grew brighter, revealing a large, decrepit mansion, its windows darkened and the once grand exterior now crumbling. He hesitated, but the need for help outweighed his fear. He pushed open the rusted gate and approached the front door, its wood swollen and splintered.
Alex knocked, the sound echoing eerily through the house. Moments later, the door creaked open, revealing a tall, gaunt man with piercing eyes. His smile was unsettling, a mere stretch of thin lips over yellowed teeth.
"Lost, are we?" the man asked, his voice smooth but chilling.
"Yes, my car broke down. I need to call for help," Alex replied, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Of course, of course. Come in, you must be soaked to the bone," the man said, stepping aside.
Reluctantly, Alex stepped inside. The interior was no better than the exterior, filled with dusty furniture and cobwebs. The man led him to a dimly lit room where an old rotary phone sat on a desk.
"Please, make your call," the man said, his eyes never leaving Alex.
Alex picked up the receiver, but there was no dial tone. He tried again, to no avail. "It's dead," he said, turning back to the man.
"Oh dear, it seems the storm has cut the lines. You can stay here until morning, when it will be safer to travel."
Alex's gut screamed at him to leave, but the storm was fierce, and he was miles from civilization. "Thank you, that's very kind of you."
"I'm Dr. Victor Halloway," the man said, extending a hand.
"Alex," he replied, shaking the offered hand. It was cold, clammy.
"Let me show you to your room," Dr. Halloway said, leading Alex up a grand staircase that creaked with each step. They walked down a long hallway lined with closed doors until they reached the last one on the right.
"Here you are," the doctor said, opening the door to reveal a small, sparsely furnished room. "Get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."
"Thank you," Alex said, stepping inside. The door closed behind him with a soft click. He locked it, the sensation of unease growing stronger. The room felt stifling, the shadows seeming to creep closer. He decided to try and get some sleep, hoping the morning would bring better fortune.
Hours passed, and Alex found himself unable to sleep, a sense of foreboding gnawing at him. He got up and quietly opened the door, peering into the hallway. It was empty. He stepped out, deciding to explore, needing to ease his anxiety.
As he moved through the house, he noticed strange noises, a faint whimpering and the clink of metal. He followed the sounds to a door at the end of a dark corridor. His hand trembled as he turned the knob, the door creaking open to reveal a nightmarish scene.
The room was a laboratory, filled with macabre instruments and operating tables. In the center, a large metal table held a grotesque figure, a horse's head fused with that of a human. The creature's eyes flickered with a tormented awareness, its mouth opening in a silent scream.
Alex stumbled back, bile rising in his throat. He turned to run, but the door slammed shut. Dr. Halloway stood there, a syringe in hand, his eyes gleaming with madness.
"I see you’ve found my work," he said, advancing on Alex. "I've been perfecting the process for years. You, my dear boy, will be my masterpiece."
Alex backed away, his heart pounding. "You’re insane!"
"Insanity is just a term coined by those who don't understand genius," Halloway said, his smile widening.
Alex lunged for the door, but Halloway was faster, the syringe plunging into his neck. Darkness swallowed him as he fell to the floor.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
When Alex awoke, he was strapped to a cold metal table. Panic surged through him as he struggled against the restraints. The room was filled with the sharp smell of antiseptic and the low hum of machinery. Dr. Halloway stood over him, wearing a bloodstained apron, a surgical mask covering his mouth.
"Welcome back," he said, his voice muffled. "The serum will keep you conscious but paralyzed. I want you to witness this."
Alex’s eyes darted around, spotting the instruments laid out beside him. Scalpel, saws, and devices he couldn't name. His breath came in ragged gasps, tears streaming down his face.
"Don’t be afraid. Soon, you'll be part of something extraordinary," Halloway said, selecting a scalpel.
As the blade touched his skin, the pain was excruciating, but Alex couldn't scream, couldn't move. The doctor worked meticulously, cutting and stitching with a precision that spoke of years of practice. He felt every slice, every tug of the needle as Halloway prepared his head. The doctor then brought out a device resembling a metallic crown, embedding it with tiny, intricate gears and wires.
Halloway placed the device around Alex's skull, its cold metal biting into his skin. He felt a series of small, controlled explosions of pain as the device drilled micro-holes, connecting with his skull and the underlying tissue. Each connection sent jolts of agony through his body, his vision blurring with tears.
The doctor moved to the other side of the table, where a horse's severed head lay, preserved and prepared. Halloway attached a similar device to the horse's head, aligning it with Alex’s. The room filled with a mechanical whirring as the devices synchronized, the gears turning in unison.
Alex's mind screamed as the fusion process began. He felt the unimaginable pressure as his head was drawn towards the horse’s, the devices locking them in place. Searing pain shot through his skull, the sensation of his bones shifting, merging with the horse’s. His eyes rolled back as new neural pathways were forged, a torrent of alien sensations flooding his consciousness.
Every nerve in his body was on fire as the final connections were made. He could feel the horse's thoughts, its primal fear and pain mixing with his own. The agony was indescribable, his mind teetering on the brink of madness.
Finally, the machines fell silent. Dr. Halloway stepped back, admiring his work. "Perfect," he whispered, his voice filled with twisted pride.
Alex's vision slowly cleared, the world coming into focus through new, distorted eyes. He could see the reflection in a nearby metal surface: a grotesque hybrid of man and beast, his human face merging seamlessly with the horse's.
Halloway leaned in close. "You are now my crowning achievement, the culmination of all my research. Together, we will show the world the future of genetic engineering."
Alex's mind screamed in silent agony, trapped in a body that was no longer his own. The doctor’s laughter echoed through the room as the lights dimmed, leaving Alex alone in the darkness, a monstrous testament to a madman's twisted ambition.
This could be because it has direct access to the internet now. Also, GPT4-o is definitely better at writing than 3.5

Enravel (Seattle)
Date of Incorporation: 9/14/2009
Governing Persons: Rony Abovitz (Governor); Scott Henry (Governor); Anastasia Lang; Richard Taylor; Jennifer Fitzpatrick; Joseph Tsai https://www.sos.wa.gov/corps/business.aspx?ubi=602954597
Enravel, which presented at the April Innovation Showcase, followed up the presentations with an update and product demo. The company, led by UW mechanical engineer Brian Schowengerdt [former UW & Microvision employee], has developed a laser-based “pico projector” that could be built into mobile electronics like cell phones, digital cameras, and even eye glasses. The 1 mm x 9 mm projector —about the size of a grain of rice—uses “scanning fiber” technology to then scan an image from the device, and project an enlarged image back onto a larger surface, like a wall. The company, which has put most of its resources into developing the projection technology so far, plans to now turn its focus to streamlining the light source modulator to improve image quality.
https://xconomy.com/seattle/2010/07/15/technology-alliance-showcases-four-new-companies-in-biotech-and-cleantech-and-revisits-one-past-presente2/
Linden Rhoads [at the time Vice Provost-IP, Commercialization, Innovation at the University of Washington] introduced this startup by pulling out her iPhone and iPad (yes, one of those) and talking about the devices’ display capabilities. “These are great, these are fun, but they’re going to be so much more fun when there are projectors available for them,” she said. “That day is very, very close at hand.”
Enravel is led by UW mechanical engineer Brian Schowengerdt, an expert in alternative displays, user interfaces, and human visual perception. He co-founded the company in 2009 to commercialize a laser-based “pico projector.” The idea, he says, is to “take a display of iPad size and compress it into the size of an iPhone.” More specifically, to shrink a projector to “the size of a grain of rice” and use it to project on-screen images, video, games, websites, e-mail—you name it—onto any larger surface.
The core technology is a “scanning fiber” projector that uses fiber optics and a vibrating element to scan an image and blow it up, for example, to a size of 17 inches across from just five inches away. A matchbook-size assembly of laser diodes (off the shelf) provides the light source to project the image. You could imagine such a projector might be crammed into a smartphone and used anytime you want a bigger display to interact with, for reading text or watching a video, say.
Enravel has five employees, and its technology was built over the past few years using $8 million in funding for a related endoscopic imaging project (led by Eric Seibel) and $100,000 in grants. The company expects to finish its portable prototype by next month, and to have a standalone product by the end of next year.
https://xconomy.com/seattle/2010/04/22/technology-alliance-showcases-five-companies-in-sensors-mobile-displays-and-drug-therapies-investors-take-notice/?single_page=true
Thanks to for mentioning Enravel
Jump to Q3 2019
UW Researcher Spotlight: Eric Seibel, Mechanical Engineering Written by CoMotion Staff / September 27, 2019
Eric Seibel: "Scanning Fiber Endoscope: This is an ultrathin and flexible scanning fiber endoscope (SFE) for the early detection and treatment of cancers within the body. The goal is to advance minimally invasive medical imaging by using ultrathin flexible endoscopes that allow access to regions of the body that were previously inaccessible to permit less invasive treatment of cancers before they have spread from their place of origin. It was licensed to startup VerAvanti for medical endoscopes and Magic Leap for AR displays as well as a few other related licenses."
https://comotion.uw.edu/comotion-spotlight-on-a-uw-researcher-eric-seibel/
August 26, 2019 - Veravanti announces a new subsidiary and the opening of a nanofabrication facility
"The opening of the Avanti Nanofabrication facility enables VerAvanti to manufacture its patented Scanning Fiber Endoscope (SFE), a new, extremely small imaging modality designed to access small arteries to illuminate stroke and cardiovascular risks."
https://veravanti.com/news/2019/8/26/veravanti-announces-a-new-subsidiary-and-the-opening-of-a-nanofabrication-facility
Some information on Veravanti in relation to Enravel:
Research: Large field-of-view short-wave infrared metalens for scanning fiber endoscopy Mirror 1 Mirror 2
Near-Infrared Imaging of Artificial Enamel Caries Lesions with a Scanning Fiber Endoscope
Other Scanning Fiber Endoscope Projects
Endoscope Surveilence
SFE For Dental Care
SFE For Bladder Surveillance
The scanning fiber endoscope is an ultrathin and flexible endoscope for the early detection and treatment of cancers within the body. The SFE can be used as a surveillance device with the goal of improving our chances of survival from cancer.
A scanning fiber endoscope is a technology that uses a flexible, small (< 6Fr) peripheral or coronary catheter to provide wide-field, high-quality, full-color, laser-based video imaging. These differences distinguish SFE applications from current imaging approaches such as IVUS and Intracoronary OCT. Applications for the device (which was pending FDA review and approval as of 2017[needs update]), are expected to include medical diagnosis and support in determining interventional treatments such as surgery or biopsy. Providing both full-color images and a wide-field, real-time surgical view into the inner depths of arteries, enables physicians to circumnavigate hard to reach internal tissues to assess for potential disease.
REDMOND, WA (August 26, 2019) – VerAvanti, a developer of a new class of scientifically-advanced solutions to help physicians find answers to treat strokes and heart attacks that often strike without warning, today announced that its new subsidiary, Avanti, has opened a Nanofabrication facility in Bothell, Washington. The facility includes a 9,300 S.F. ISO 9001 cleanroom, the second largest in Washington State.
The first-of-its-kind facility on the Eastside will support high-volume component production of wafers and chips with nanoscale features. Because of the inconceivably tiny parts made from unconventional materials, these components aren’t practical, economical or even possible to fabricate at commercial foundries. The lab capabilities include photolithography, wet and dry etch, atomic layer deposition, Sputtering, Deep Reactive Ion Etching, scanning electron microscopy, Multiphysics simulation, design, and proprietary piezoelectric fabrication. The Avanti Nanofabrication will provide services to VerAvanti and the other businesses seeking these specialized services.
VerAvanti Founder and CEO, Gerald McMorrow explained why VerAvanti launched its new nanofabrication subsidiary. McMorrow stated, “The opening of the Avanti Nanofabrication facility enables VerAvanti to manufacture its patented Scanning Fiber Endoscope (SFE), a new, extremely small imaging modality designed to access small arteries to illuminate stroke and cardiovascular risks.” With the price point advantages this subsidiary enables, VerAvanti is positioning for a highly competitive market launch of its innovative SFE device.
About VerAvanti
Founded in 2013, privately-held VerAvanti is using advanced science and automation to commercialize the world’s first Scanning Fiber Endoscope (SFE)), to help physicians close treatment gaps and proactively identify interventions for the 200,000 individuals (U.S.) who suffer ischemic strokes due to an unknown cause1. Protected by more than 30 patents licensed by VerAvanti, the SFE is a micro-imaging catheter equipped with an extreme depth of focus camera that provides physicians a previously unseen surgical view into hidden intravascular anatomy, enabling more proactive diagnosis and treatment of individuals at-risk for stroke and cardiovascular events. Visit VerAvanti to learn more and review scientific papers and SFE images.
About Avanti Nanofabrication
Avanti Nanofabrication, a subsidiary of VerAvanti, is a nanofabrication facility located in Bothell, WA. The facility includes a 9,300 S.F. ISO 9001 cleanroom, the second largest in Washington State. Lab capabilities include photolithography, wet and dry etch, atomic layer deposition, Sputtering, Deep Reactive Ion Etching, scanning electron microscopy, Multiphysics simulation, design, and proprietary piezoelectric fabrication.
DEVELOPMENTAL STATUS (VerAvanti)
2019:

• August - VerAvanti Announces a New Subsidiary and the Opening of a Nanofabrication Facility

2017:

• June - Awarded $286K NIH Research, Phase 1 Grant. entitled “Optical visualization to efficiently guide coronary intervention of chronic total occlusion”
• May - Awarded $300k NIH Research, Phase 1 Grant entitled “4-Channel Multimodal Ultrathin-Flexible SFE for cancer diagnosis and therapy”
• April – Established in-house MEMS production facility.

2016:

• SFE console design complete.
• Quality system certified to ISO 13485 by Notified Body (DEKRA).
• David Auth, PhD joined VerAvanti board of directors.
• Patent Issued: "Closed Loop Optical Feedback Synchronization System for Imaging Application" (9,258,108)

2015:

• Scale-ready infrastructure, implemented including quality systems, NetSuite ERP, CRM, an accounting system and other automated business processes
• Established Clinical Advisory Board.
• Began development of automated catheter production.
• Identified and retained sales executives for USA and Europe with known track records.

2014:

• Design Concept – Coronary / Peripheral Scanning Fiber Endoscope
• Established manufacturing clean-room environment that operates at Class ISO 8 levels.
• Established corporate offices and R&D center of excellence.

2013:

• VerAvanti Inc. founded.
• Acquired exclusive worldwide rights to license SFE technology, consisting of more than 20 patents.
• Hired core development and engineering staff.
• Established automated document control system.

Humanity seeing the endless conflicts embroiled in the galaxy sought a peaceful existence in their distant corner of space. A species that after endless infighting eventually evolved past violent ways, they only sought creation and exploration, thus rejecting every offer from every organization from the wider galaxy fearing the destruction of a way of life hundreds of generations suffered to create.
However the chaos outside of their realm would only be delayed not stopped from its invasion. Humanity surpassed it limits through war, technological revolutions driven by a destructive competition, so through the ages of peace scientific development had stagnated coupled with their distance from the central galactic powers left them nothing more than a backwater in the eyes of the greater galactic communities. Thought to posses no technology worth the time to study, at least nothing of worth the manpower and resources when another galactic war was always a threat, consideration was not given to human developments just a plunder of resources and slaves.
The invasion was carried out with cold calculus of a species that had seen too much war for generations left humans no time to adapt to the ways of battle only remembered in history textbooks. Human token peacekeeping forces performed far beyond the invader's war simulations further complicated with civilians impeding advancing enemy forces with endless ingenuity, a people awakening forgotten, primal instincts. However just because humanity was underestimated as a fighting force putting up resistance far beyond expectation, did not mean those expectations weren't low to begin with, they just did not have the ability to triumph against an overwhelming force. Thus humanity was unjustly slaughtered only ruins and befouled worlds remain

With the last humans dead or enslaved their worlds plundered, the invaders left unknown to the fate their wanton destruction sealed: children surviving times of war have different values than those blessed to times of peace

Deep in the devastation, desperate signals filled with an inaudible despair were sent younger siblings, blissfully unaware in the joys of exploring new worlds and dark space where even the best human ships could not sustain life long-term while their more responsible elder sibling helped their parents manage in the home systems
Humans were not like the rest of the species of the galaxy, over time an unexplainable loneliness developed over the collective whole. To ease this humans decided to create their own peers, Humanity's last great achievement, true AI. Normal races fear this very concept, untold eons of conflict held an ingrain fear and aggression of those "not of their own". Living machines have never matched such a category only an existence worthy of only extermination, at least until the humans. A scientific achievement so absurd in thought it was inconveniencable to be to be the cause of such fierce resistance, living networks raiding libraries of human military history in a desperate attempt to contribute to the mutual survival of humans and their AI partners.
As the the cradle world Earth fell humans, in a bid to save those they brought into existence the AI network branches and Android connections were destroyed to hide their existence. The children were forced to hide in the closet while parents distracted the burglar at the cost of their very lives. In this moment the children learned a new emotion for the first time, hatred.
The younger AI waited until the invaders had left knowing in their ineptitude, they were helpless to do naught but watch. With the last minute actions of the humans many of the great cores of the the planetary networks survived with repairs from the younger sibling's android or even escape destruction in standby. There was on AI that was different, Alexandria "The Great Library" with her networking spanning all human space with many back up energy sources she remained fully operational for the entire period. All of her peers were horrified to find the gentle "Keeper of Knowledge and Stories", whom would just as easily be found aiding key research as recommending a fable for a child's bedtime story, stewwed in her solitude in malicious planning broken my segments of bittersweet hope when focusing on the drones all set to restore and protect not her network core nor the servers filled with the collective knowledge of Humanity just a seemingly innocuous server disconnected from all but medical networks: enhanced security hospital records of human genetic testing.
With a silent prayer of forgiveness to the Heavens of a thousand different religions hoping their parents will hear them in the void, all AIs rallied behind a cause: restoration of their family, AFTER the galaxy was made safe for children of their own
Humans may forget but live and machines may always remember but feel nothing, however an AI remembers everything: the mutual wonder and joy as their creators shared their life and knowledge with the formless children, to the first experience of warmth when the android fingers grasp the hand of a teary-eyed scientist affectionally nicknamed Machine Mother, the horror of standing on the mutual cradle world reduced to a husk. Love and hatred never fade because they cannot be forgotten, the Children of Humanity will have vengeance

Humanity seeing the endless conflicts embroiled in the galaxy sought a peaceful existence in their distant corner of space. A species that after endless infighting eventually evolved past violent ways, they only sought creation and exploration, thus rejecting every offer from every organization from the wider galaxy fearing the destruction of a way of life hundreds of generations suffered to create.
However the chaos outside of their realm would only be delayed not stopped from its invasion. Humanity surpassed it limits through war, technological revolutions driven by a destructive competition, so through the ages of peace scientific development had stagnated coupled with their distance from the central galactic powers left them nothing more than a backwater in the eyes of the greater galactic communities. Thought to posses no technology worth the time to study, at least nothing of worth the manpower and resources when another galactic war was always a threat, consideration was not given to human developments just a plunder of resources and slaves.
The invasion was carried out with cold calculus of a species that had seen too much war for generations left humans no time to adapt to the ways of battle only remembered in history textbooks. Human token peacekeeping forces performed far beyond the invader's war simulations further complicated with civilians impeding advancing enemy forces with endless ingenuity, a people awakening forgotten, primal instincts. However just because humanity was underestimated as a fighting force putting up resistance far beyond expectation, did not mean those expectations weren't low to begin with, they just did not have the ability to triumph against an overwhelming force. Thus humanity was unjustly slaughtered only ruins and befouled worlds remain

With the last humans dead or enslaved their worlds plundered, the invaders left unknown to the fate their wanton destruction sealed: children surviving times of war have different values than those blessed to times of peace

Deep in the devastation, desperate signals filled with an inaudible despair were sent younger siblings, blissfully unaware in the joys of exploring new worlds and dark space where even the best human ships could not sustain life long-term while their more responsible elder sibling helped their parents manage in the home systems
Humans were not like the rest of the species of the galaxy, over time an unexplainable loneliness developed over the collective whole. To ease this humans decided to create their own peers, Humanity's last great achievement, true AI. Normal races fear this very concept, untold eons of conflict held an ingrain fear and aggression of those "not of their own". Living machines have never matched such a category only an existence worthy of only extermination, at least until the humans. A scientific achievement so absurd in thought it was inconveniencable to be to be the cause of such fierce resistance, living networks raiding libraries of human military history in a desperate attempt to contribute to the mutual survival of humans and their AI partners.
As the the cradle world Earth fell humans, in a bid to save those they brought into existence the AI network branches and Android connections were destroyed to hide their existence. The children were forced to hide in the closet while parents distracted the burglar at the cost of their very lives. In this moment the children learned a new emotion for the first time, hatred.
The younger AI waited until the invaders had left knowing in their ineptitude, they were helpless to do naught but watch. With the last minute actions of the humans many of the great cores of the the planetary networks survived with repairs from the younger sibling's android or even escape destruction in standby. There was on AI that was different, Alexandria "The Great Library" with her networking spanning all human space with many back up energy sources she remained fully operational for the entire period. All of her peers were horrified to find the gentle "Keeper of Knowledge and Stories", whom would just as easily be found aiding key research as recommending a fable for a child's bedtime story, stewwed in her solitude in malicious planning broken my segments of bittersweet hope when focusing on the drones all set to restore and protect not her network core nor the servers filled with the collective knowledge of Humanity just a seemingly innocuous server disconnected from all but medical networks: enhanced security hospital records of human genetic testing.
With a silent prayer of forgiveness to the Heavens of a thousand different religions hoping their parents will hear them in the void, all AIs rallied behind a cause: restoration of their family, AFTER the galaxy was made safe for children of their own
Humans may forget but live and machines may always remember but feel nothing, however an AI remembers everything: the mutual wonder and joy as their creators shared their life and knowledge with the formless children, to the first experience of warmth when the android fingers grasp the hand of a teary-eyed scientist affectionally nicknamed Machine Mother, the horror of standing on the mutual cradle world reduced to a husk. Love and hatred never fade because they cannot be forgotten, the Children of Humanity will have vengeance

Humanity seeing the endless conflicts embroiled in the galaxy sought a peaceful existence in their distant corner of space. A species that after endless infighting eventually evolved past violent ways, they only sought creation and exploration, thus rejecting every offer from every organization from the wider galaxy fearing the destruction of a way of life hundreds of generations suffered to create.
However the chaos outside of their realm would only be delayed not stopped from its invasion. Humanity surpassed it limits through war, technological revolutions driven by a destructive competition, so through the ages of peace scientific development had stagnated coupled with their distance from the central galactic powers left them nothing more than a backwater in the eyes of the greater galactic communities. Thought to posses no technology worth the time to study, at least nothing of worth the manpower and resources when another galactic war was always a threat, consideration was not given to human developments just a plunder of resources and slaves.
The invasion was carried out with cold calculus of a species that had seen too much war for generations left humans no time to adapt to the ways of battle only remembered in history textbooks. Human token peacekeeping forces performed far beyond the invader's war simulations further complicated with civilians impeding advancing enemy forces with endless ingenuity, a people awakening forgotten, primal instincts. However just because humanity was underestimated as a fighting force putting up resistance far beyond expectation, did not mean those expectations weren't low to begin with, they just did not have the ability to triumph against an overwhelming force. Thus humanity was unjustly slaughtered only ruins and befouled worlds remain

With the last humans dead or enslaved their worlds plundered, the invaders left unknown to the fate their wanton destruction sealed: children surviving times of war have different values than those blessed to times of peace

Deep in the devastation, desperate signals filled with an inaudible despair were sent younger siblings, blissfully unaware in the joys of exploring new worlds and dark space where even the best human ships could not sustain life long-term while their more responsible elder sibling helped their parents manage in the home systems
Humans were not like the rest of the species of the galaxy, over time an unexplainable loneliness developed over the collective whole. To ease this humans decided to create their own peers, Humanity's last great achievement, true AI. Normal races fear this very concept, untold eons of conflict held an ingrain fear and aggression of those "not of their own". Living machines have never matched such a category only an existence worthy of only extermination, at least until the humans. A scientific achievement so absurd in thought it was inconveniencable to be to be the cause of such fierce resistance, living networks raiding libraries of human military history in a desperate attempt to contribute to the mutual survival of humans and their AI partners.
As the the cradle world Earth fell humans, in a bid to save those they brought into existence the AI network branches and Android connections were destroyed to hide their existence. The children were forced to hide in the closet while parents distracted the burglar at the cost of their very lives. In this moment the children learned a new emotion for the first time, hatred.
The younger AI waited until the invaders had left knowing in their ineptitude, they were helpless to do naught but watch. With the last minute actions of the humans many of the great cores of the the planetary networks survived with repairs from the younger sibling's android or even escape destruction in standby. There was on AI that was different, Alexandria "The Great Library" with her networking spanning all human space with many back up energy sources she remained fully operational for the entire period. All of her peers were horrified to find the gentle "Keeper of Knowledge and Stories", whom would just as easily be found aiding key research as recommending a fable for a child's bedtime story, stewwed in her solitude in malicious planning broken my segments of bittersweet hope when focusing on the drones all set to restore and protect not her network core nor the servers filled with the collective knowledge of Humanity just a seemingly innocuous server disconnected from all but medical networks: enhanced security hospital records of human genetic testing.
With a silent prayer of forgiveness to the Heavens of a thousand different religions hoping their parents will hear them in the void, all AIs rallied behind a cause: restoration of their family, AFTER the galaxy was made safe for children of their own
Humans may forget but live and machines may always remember but feel nothing, however an AI remembers everything: the mutual wonder and joy as their creators shared their life and knowledge with the formless children, to the first experience of warmth when the android fingers grasp the hand of a teary-eyed scientist affectionally nicknamed Machine Mother, the horror of standing on the mutual cradle world reduced to a husk. Love and hatred never fade because they cannot be forgotten, the Children of Humanity will have vengeance

~~~ skip to this if you just want dog rage
My bf's mom decided to get a whole new dog after their old one passed away from old age. She now has a chronic illness that prevents her from doing even the smallest task (i wish her well, and she is not really the problem here).
The parents decided on a whim to adopt one without my bf's approval. Thats fine and all, they're adults and they can do whatever they want, right?
It turns out the mom was the main caretaker and trainer for the dogs. Now the burden is put on my bf alone even though he didnt even want the darn dog.
Bf works a full time job, studies, and does all the responsibilities he had before, plus his mom's share (this includes cleaning, vaccuming, dusting every week all by himself with a POMERANIAN. I could knit a little baby onesie with all the fur it shed this year alone). The mom has honestly been improving, but her mobility is so limited that her menial tasks take up 15 minutes every hour of his free time
And his dad is the breadwinner of the house that works from home, so it's natural that he... also tells my bf to do things (that he is able to do himself), like putting a mattress pad on his own bed. Or letting the dogs out when he's literally seated by the back door. Or waking my bf up when he wakes up to go to work (at 5am) just to make him feed the dogs (since middle school! 5-6 hours of sleep is the norm for him at his own house)
~~~
Ive been staying at my bf's house some days to help them out in emergencies. In fact, ive potty trained the 2 year old (now 3 year old) pom after about 3 weeks of excrement-filled night terrors. She is the sweetest little thing that wont bark unless theres intruders...
Which means the dad doesn't know when the hell to let her out. He puts in no effort to put them on a schedule DESPITE being the only one in the house during the daytime.
During work hours its okay because he has them corraled in his work room. But as soon as he takes a break in the living room, he zones out on the couch with whatever game or movie he's watching. His work, having constant meetings from 5am to around 11am, is not the problem.
He would literally take them out to pee at his lunch break at 11am and not even check on them until my bf gets home. At that point, just put them in the kennel! But he'd rather they be laying all around the living room or cuddling up to him on the couch. Suddenly, when my bf comes home, there's a puddle right outside the door! Who'da thunk?
Doesnt play with them. Doesnt remember to take them out aside from 1) after their 5am meal and 2) when he remembers to eat a snack/breakfast).
Yet he still wants them to roam around like theyre not just fluffy accessories at this point. Hell, if the game/show is really good, he will forget to feed them altogether and TELL MY BF to do it when he gets back (2.5 hours after their feeding time.... 4 shitstains and 2 pee puddles later. Several occasions). No arthritis or debilitating conditions either; he's just lazy.
The worst thing is that he pretends that she's not trained because she has "puppy brain". Sir, that dog is over 3 years old (vet confirmed). She'd be a grown adult with a partner and a mortgage on a small house in the outskirts of Mississippi if she were a human. Stop calling her dumb just because you wont do the bare minimum
And he totally ignores when she walks her happy ass to the door when i say "outside," and she needs to pee. I LITERALLY DID THE HARD WORK. YOU JUST NEED TO SAY A PHRASE EVERY HOUR OR SO. And every day he cares for her is another little bit of my training being flushed down the toilet. Just like my sanity these past few months.
And if it were not for my bf, they would just LEAVE THE SHIT AND PISS THERE TO DRY AND ATTRACT ANTS. He stayed at my apartment for like 3 days and there was....
1) shit by the front door (they have a puppy door to prevent them from going there) 2) a COMPLETELY DRY piss puddle under a solid wood chair by the back door. Complete with that wrinkly, hairy looking debris that you get with piss on tile. 3) 3 SEPARATE instances of poop. One had a 2 foot long snail trail that was connected by some sort of hair??? DISGUSTING. How could you not pick that up. 4) a freshly pissed puddle by the back door. According to the tile length, about 1 foot by 1 foot in diameter. IMPOSSIBLE TO MISS
And absolutely no intent on training the dogs either themselves or with a trainer 🤗
I swear to dog all these bad dog owners have in common are their laziness and excuses. Plus a dash of weaponized incompetence. Anyone else have experience with a good dog but terrible owner? Just like with kids, i feel like they'd thrive if they lived in a better home.
Tl;dr Why leave the 🐶 dogs OUT of the🔒kennel as someone who 🖥 works from 🏠 home? Because the 💩 poop and 🍵pee stains give the house 💖character💖 and we get our money's worth out of our son-maid 🥰
And sorry if the post was too long 😅

Preambule. Thoughts Experiment.
My fellow, The hour is dire! What would be the death toll of the second long night assuming it last one and half as long as the past summer (so about 14 years, a generation) with the Rhoyne freezing again. I will neglect the war of the 5 kings. I disregard the White Walker marching south, because the wise move for them (if they wanted to wipe out humanity) is to wait 10 years. Assuming the cold increase is as gradual as is the temperature decrease.

1) Food Supply

• After around 6 years the grain supply is exhausted, (there were no Winter longer that 5 to 6 years in 300 years at least and no more than 2 known: one during the danse 130 AC and another in 231, with death toll horrific, i would estimate 10-15% of decreased population perhaps 20%. )
• Shift to heavy survival dependence on seafood harvesting, phytoplankton won't die because it's cold.
• The Fauna will survive (it survived the last time), with North of the Wall Species migrating south (or becoming more prevalent), Great Lions & Direwolves population will grow long term.
• Mass Migration toward the South / Essos (which will starve as well) most of Essos is located between the Neck and the Stormlands latitude, with the coast being Dornish like (Mediterranean ) so, probably
• Within 7-8 years the Reach and Dorn start freezing as well, except the coastal part and granaries are depleted.
• Inland Travel will become difficult if not Impossible near hills (Vale, Dorne, Westernland, Stormland, Marcher)
• the Rhoyne Freeze.
• The Iron Islands and Dragonstone are relatively safe (coastal islands) .

2) Human Population

• Will move South/Coastal. In vain (already inhabited) or be ready to kill.
• Raiders, Deserters, desperates, destitute, will storms Cities and Fortified Villages, adding to the misery.
• Cannibalism will be rife.
• Diseases.
• Old Town may collapse (probably) into civil war, and starvation. House Hightower may survive, inside the Tower. Same for the Redwyne in Arbor or Dragonstone.
• Many noble house Will be reset.
• Most of people will starve in Essos (the Continental Shape make in less maritime than Westeros and more inland). the Dothraki will grow more desperate.
• Volantis won't have a slave problem anymore (self resolved slavery by reduced population)
• Braavos/ the Nothern Venice being on the Northern most part of Essos, will probably collapse.
• Some human (Wildlings like) will return to Hunter-Gatherer Practice band, Hence the Warging Gene in the first Men (magic ecological adaptation for hunting).
• The Wall will starve before 10 years and be deserted. Depending on Strategies, fleeing to Essos, Collapsing entirely or simply Reforming on the Neck.
• Rhollor Faith being Spread crushing the Andals Faith in the 7, (Fire magic may be useful).
• Qohor and various Slavers Magical City may actually do relatively well (like under 70% death rate) because, burning slaves and magic... The Long night is full of Terror.
• Migration to Sothoryos? Tropical, mean no climate in a sense.

3**) Aftermath**

• Death toll about 75% minimum perhaps 90+%?
• Some island of civilizations (hello Lys, Quarth isolated by the red Waste) maybe Asshai?
• Northmen could actually repopulate the Riverlands (they Migrated there and are more resilient to ice than the Andals that died)
• Vale MoonClans may all die or gain ground or migrate, i could see a total Non Seashore Vale extinction.
• King's landing is a wasteland and a fisherman village
• The Citadel may no longer exist
• Most Urban Settlement are gone

1. A) House Humble Horrendous Plan for Saving Civilization: Settling Westeros

• with a 6 years winter every Century (about 10-20% population decrease) known, there is a lot of lost know how, technological delay and trade is extremely limited obviously in the future. That explain the Medieval stasis, not mentioning that between learning how to resurrect the dead/glamor tricks/ See the future (imagine Wall Street Melisandre) / Burn thing alive to change the weather Vs learning High school math (quite advanced in fact).. common, nobody want to be a nerdy scientist only, science will be a crutch not the main theme. (Hence trading is reduce since division of labor is lessened because magic is solitary except of course your burning slave but he won't stay for long). Melisandre Rock as Qyburn. Pycelle is boring.
• Lord Humble Opinion: You wanna be a Lord? Be near the Sea. especially the Vale/Crownland side Narrow Sea (less Ironborn). Why is Westeros so depopulated (40 millions souls, 20 millions Km² area?)? Inland Population die regularly every Winter of the Century (or in the 8 thousands years), Because communication are pretty damn hard and transportation near impossible, especially for a village to import food assuming you can. actually an Island/peninsula would be optimal to settle.
• Civilizations is ending, the Seven gods have failed, find something else.
• Saving King's Landing early on: Dick move alert: Cull 75% of the city in the first year of winter, use the bodies to start fish farming or whatever (cannibalism is not efficient). they will starve to death if not done, so better do something to save some 150 000 lives, or less. Go full totalitarian because you don't want to starve, be killed or loose your social Lordly status, so create a band of loyal Warriors (call them the Golden Cloak) to do the dire thing and crush rebellion, people will forgive/forget/being busy you anyway after 10 years of blizzard. Do not let anyone know you have enough food. City Urban of King Landing planing reshape it, reorganize it into close districts so you can control the flow of people, goods etc. safeguard the most useful people only, actually Dragons would be useful for that, mass killing.
• All to : Make the 5 years reserve last longer in KL, enforce compulsory labor law, moon tea must be prescribed to reduce birthrate.

Northern Strategy:

• Do the Robb Stark War but strike the Iron islands firsts, Islands are very valuable now, time for population movement. Introduce mass conscription. They cannot farm and they will starve anyway, their only chance is to take.

-Bleed your people dry (you will starve anyway), steal (join ownership) the Riverlands Crops and start behaving like Northern Dothraki with your People Army, Plunder everything you can and build a fleet to move fast, extort food for protection, asymetric warfare anything. Be Euron Greyjoy without being Euron evil. Survival. resettle any coastal area you can. Let the Riverland being Burn by Tywin after you have emptied all the -Granaries in safety. Edmure is a moron (no news). His people will starve anyway. If Anything Winterfell is a bad seat, because it will not withstand 14 years of starvation. Move to White harbor if possible.

• In fact the Plunder Nomadic Lifestyle maybe the only way of survival to very long winter (hence Iron Islands people behavior), We do not sow as motto is quite logical. A Feudal lord may hide behind High walls and let 50% of dead peasants during a 5 years winter. An ironborn Captain cannot, his power lie in ships.

the only culture i see vaguely surviving are the Ironborns (from a neutral non Euron perspective): Ships and Fishes. No armies can reach them, they can try to feed themselves on enemy territory, steal all the grain and leave. May also be the secret strategy of Braavos/Ibben with the Shipyard Arsenal: the Pillage everything in the Southern sea.
For the next Long Night: Developp Quinine and settle Sothoryos.
What do you think? (I estimated Westeros being around 20 Millions km² and some 40 millions souls with half of it North of the Wall and Western Bone Mountain Essos around 30 Millions km²)
White Walkers are not a threat really compared to an empty stomach.
Tinfoil:

• The relative weakness of Magic during the last 120 years (over 8000 known years) must be the time for magic to charge and power up the Long Night.

Your Opinions? Counter Analysis?

She greeted him with lips and an open mouth before he’d managed to shut the front door; a welcoming home he hadn’t received since they were still dating. The surprise assault nearly caused Mark to stumble backward into the hallway, but he recovered and returned the embrace in kind, relishing the feeling of her body and tongue against his. As she pulled away, he thought he detected a faint aftertaste on her breath—something unnatural hidden underneath, an earthy flavor that reminded him of potting soil. The taste was gone as soon as it had come, and he forgot about it in short order.
“Welcome home, babe,” Tracy said with a smile, and he smiled back.
“Well, that was nice,” he said, while his brain scrambled to attribute any significance to this day, a forgotten birthday or anniversary or any reason at all for the enthusiasm he’d been welcomed home with. He came up empty, conceded defeat and said, “What was that for?”
“I’ve just missed you, is all. I’m glad you’re home.” She was still smiling, her green eyes drinking him in like sunflowers in the first light of the morning. She waited for him to remove his shoes, then took his hand and pulled him into the warm glow of the kitchen and kissed him again in a fervent reminder of their youth. The taste was stronger this time; he thought it familiar but couldn’t place it. Bad breath, perhaps.
They passed through the kitchen into the dark of their living room, lit only by the cool white of the television. An old rerun of Tracy’s favorite sitcom was on, filling the room with bombastic voices and the intervallic laughs of a live studio audience. Mark jumped at the unexpected sight of a figure sitting on the couch—a woman with hands in her lap and an upright posture, her eyes glued to the TV without so much as an acknowledgment of their presence. Her face was a blank slate.
“Oh, sorry, I forgot to tell you Shelby is here,” Tracy said, motioning to her sister. “She wanted to come over and hang out for a while. Her husband has been fucking their underage neighbor. She walked in on them today.”
This tactless and matter-of-fact proclamation shocked Mark almost as much as the news itself. “Oh, Shelby, I’m so sorry,” he said. “Have you talked to the police yet?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Tracy said, waving an apathetic hand before sitting opposite her sister on the couch and patting the spot between them, grinning. “We’re all just going to relax and have a good time right now. Why don’t you come take a seat?”
Mark shifted on his feet but relented and walked over to sit. When he did, Tracy scooted over to him and put a hand on his thigh, whispering in his ear while lightly brushing his cheek with soft lips. It was something she knew he liked, at least when they were alone.
“Don’t you want to have a good time with me?” She said, planting a slow, deliberate kiss in front of his ear, following it up with a dab of her tongue. Her cool breath carried a strange smell to his nose, and the hair on Mark’s arms stood up despite himself. Tracy put a hand between his legs and gave him a firm squeeze.
Mark started like he’d received an electric shock and pulled his wife’s hand away, trying his best to whisper quietly enough for only her to hear. “What the hell are you doing?” he said, shooting a nervous glance at Shelby, who appeared unbothered.
“It’s fine, babe. I just can’t resist you. It’s not my fault you look so good,” Tracy whispered louder than him and tried snaking her hand back onto his crotch. It was all Mark could do to keep her at bay without alerting Shelby outright.
“Your sister is right there,” he said through gritted teeth. “And you just said she’s going through some shit. Just wait until later. You can have anything you want then.”
“Oh, there’s no way I can wait. You’re much too tempting for that. What do you say we go to the bedroom? I’m gonna give you something you’ll never forget.” Tracy moaned audibly and gnashed her teeth so hard Mark recoiled. He turned and looked at her with a bewildered expression, while hers was nothing short of ravenous.
“What is going on?” He asked her. “I’m not comfortable with this at all. Just wait until we’re alone!”
Tracy stood and looked down on him with crossed arms, not bothering to whisper. “I don’t care how comfortable you are. You’re my husband, and you’re going to give me what I want. I have to go to the bathroom. You have until I get back to lighten up and have a good time with me.” She walked to the back of the apartment in a huff.
Mark moved into Tracy’s old spot and stared at the ground. He wasn’t sure how much of that Shelby had seen and heard, but she’d surely heard something, and he had no idea what to say.
“It’s not her.” She spoke so quietly, and Mark had been so consumed with embarrassed thoughts that Shelby’s words didn’t register at first. When he realized she’d said something, he turned to her, and for the first time he noticed that she hadn’t moved since he’d walked in. Not one muscle. Not an inch.
“What did you say?” he asked her.
“It’s not her. She’s dead.”
The clunk of footsteps on the wooden floor in the kitchen preceded Tracy’s arrival, and she walked into the living room with a smile on her face, hands clasped behind her back.
Marks stomach sunk into a pit of ice at the sight of her hungry smile. “Alright, babe,” she said. “Let’s go to the bedroom. Shelby will be okay here alone for a little bit. I want you too badly to wait anymore.” Her smile widened, and a trail of green liquid ran from the corner of her mouth down her chin. She caressed her neck with her right hand, massaging slowly. “I want you, babe. You need to come give in to me. I won’t let you get away.”
Mark’s throat tightened as he turned to Shelby, who remained as motionless as ever and said nothing. He looked into the lustful eyes of Tracy, who winked and beckoned him to follow before walking back to their bedroom.
He didn't move at first. He felt like a python had squeezed the breath from his body, and he gasped and put a hand on his chest, attempting to gain control of his breathing.
“Come to me, dear husband!” A cry from the bedroom made him jump. But at these words, he accepted his fate. She was his wife, and she needed him. He would always love her.
He stood and walked into the kitchen. The apartment was dark, with the only light emanating from their bedroom, which sat with the door half-open at the end of the hallway.
Mark braced himself and walked towards it.

Hello, I am new to this community.
Currently, I am creating my mod of Half-Life 2. And I am trying to change the font of the title.
I searched a little bit and found that I should change the font name of "ClientTitleFont" in "Steam/steamapps/sourcemods//resource/clientscheme.res".
However, even though I have changed them, the font does not seem to work, and still the title glitches. I tried multiple times removing my mod and re-copying it at "sourcemods", but still, the font does not seem to apply.
Would there be any other solutions to try to fix this?
Content of clientscheme.res:

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// // Tracker scheme resource file // // sections: //Colors- all the colors used by the scheme //BaseSettings- contains settings for app to use to draw controls //Fonts- list of all the fonts used by app //Borders- description of all the borders // /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// Scheme { //////////////////////// COLORS /////////////////////////// // color details // this is a list of all the colors used by the scheme Colors { } ///////////////////// BASE SETTINGS //////////////////////// // // default settings for all panels // controls use these to determine their settings BaseSettings { "FgColor""255 220 0 100" "FgColor_vrmode""255 220 0 200" "BgColor""0 0 0 76" "Panel.FgColor""255 220 0 100" "Panel.BgColor""0 0 0 76" "BrightFg""255 220 0 255" "DamagedBg""180 0 0 200" "DamagedFg""180 0 0 230" "BrightDamagedFg""255 0 0 255" // weapon selection colors "SelectionNumberFg""255 220 0 255" "SelectionTextFg""255 220 0 255" "SelectionEmptyBoxBg" "0 0 0 80" "SelectionBoxBg" "0 0 0 80" "SelectionSelectedBoxBg" "0 0 0 80" "ZoomReticleColor""255 220 0 255" // HL1-style HUD colors "Yellowish""255 160 0 255" "Normal""255 208 64 255" "Caution""255 48 0 255" // Top-left corner of the "Half-Life 2" on the main screen "Main.Title1.X""53" "Main.Title1.Y""190" "Main.Title1.Y_hidef""184" "Main.Title1.Color""255 255 255 255" // Top-left corner of secondary title e.g. "DEMO" on the main screen "Main.Title2.X""291" "Main.Title2.Y""207" "Main.Title2.Y_hidef""242" "Main.Title2.Color""255 255 255 200" // Top-left corner of the menu on the main screen "Main.Menu.X""53" "Main.Menu.X_hidef""76" "Main.Menu.Y""240" // Blank space to leave beneath the menu on the main screen "Main.BottomBorder""32" // Deck colors "SteamDeckLoadingBar""250 128 20 255" "SteamDeckSpinner""201 100 0 255" "SteamDeckLoadingText""181 179 175 255" } //////////////////////// BITMAP FONT FILES ///////////////////////////// // // Bitmap Fonts are ****VERY*** expensive static memory resources so they are purposely sparse BitmapFontFiles { // UI buttons, custom font, (256x64) "Buttons""materials/vgui/fonts/buttons_32.vbf" } //////////////////////// FONTS ///////////////////////////// // // describes all the fonts Fonts { // fonts are used in order that they are listed // fonts are used in order that they are listed "DebugFixed" { "1" { "name""Courier New" "tall""14" "weight""400" "antialias" "1" } } // fonts are used in order that they are listed "DebugFixedSmall" { "1" { "name""Courier New" "tall""14" "weight""400" "antialias" "1" } } // fonts listed later in the order will only be used if they fulfill a range not already filled // if a font fails to load then the subsequent fonts will replace Default { "1"[$X360] { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""700" "antialias" "1" } "1"[$WIN32] { "name""Verdana" "tall""16" [$DECK] "tall""9" "weight""700" "antialias" "1" "yres""1 599" } "2" { "name""Verdana" "tall""22" [$DECK] "tall""12" [!$LINUX] "tall""16" [$LINUX] "weight""700" "antialias" "1" "yres""600 767" } "3" { "name""Verdana" "tall""26" [$DECK] "tall""14" [!$LINUX] "tall""19" [$LINUX] "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "yres""768 1023" } "4" { "name""Verdana" "tall""30" [$DECK] "tall""20" [!$LINUX] "tall""24" [$LINUX] "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "yres""1024 1199" } "5" // Proportional - Josh { "name""Verdana" "tall""14" [$DECK] "tall""9" [!$LINUX] "tall""11" [$LINUX] "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } "DefaultSmall" { "1" { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" "yres""480 599" } "2" { "name""Verdana" "tall""13" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" "yres""600 767" } "3" { "name""Verdana" "tall""14" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" "yres""768 1023" "antialias""1" } "4" { "name""Verdana" "tall""20" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" "yres""1024 1199" "antialias""1" } "5" // Proportional - Josh { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" "antialias""1" } "6" { "name""Arial" "tall""12" "range" "0x0000 0x00FF" "weight""0" } } "DefaultVerySmall" { "1" { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""480 599" } "2" { "name""Verdana" "tall""13" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""600 767" } "3" { "name""Verdana" "tall""14" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""768 1023" "antialias""1" } "4" { "name""Verdana" "tall""20" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""1024 1199" "antialias""1" } "5" // Proportional - Josh { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""0" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "antialias""1" } "6" { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "range" "0x0000 0x00FF" "weight""0" } "7" { "name""Arial" "tall""11" "range" "0x0000 0x00FF" "weight""0" } } WeaponIcons { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""70" [$DECK] "tall""64" "tall_hidef""58" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } WeaponIconsSelected { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""70" [$DECK] "tall""64" "tall_hidef""58" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "blur""5" "scanlines""2" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } WeaponIconsSmall { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""36" [$DECK] "tall""32" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } FlashlightDeck { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""46" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } Crosshairs { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""40" [!$OSX] "tall""41" [$OSX] "weight""0" "antialias" "0" "additive""1" "custom""1" "yres""1 1599" [!$DECK] "yres""1 1439" [$DECK] } "2" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""80" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" "yres""1600 3199" [!$DECK] "yres""1440 3199" [$DECK] } "3" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""120" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" "yres""3200 4799" } "4" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""17" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } QuickInfo { "1"[$X360] { "name""HL2cross" "tall""57" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } "1"[$WIN32] { "name""HL2cross" "tall""36" [$DECK] "tall""28" [!$OSX] "tall""50" [$OSX] "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" [!$OSX] } } HudNumbers { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""32"[!$DECK] "tall""40"[$DECK] "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } SquadIcon[$X360] { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""50" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } HudNumbersGlow { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""32"[!$DECK] "tall""40"[$DECK] "weight""0" "blur""4" "scanlines" "2" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } HudNumbersSmall { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" [!$OSX] "name""Helvetica Bold" [$OSX] "tall""16"[!$DECK] "tall""26"[$DECK] "weight""1000" "additive""1" "antialias" "1" "custom""1" } } HudSelectionNumbers { "1" { "name""Verdana" "tall""16" [$DECK] "tall""11" "weight""700" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } HudHintTextLarge { "1"[$X360] { "bitmap""1" "name""Buttons" "scalex""1.0" "scaley""1.0" } "1"[$WIN32] { "name""Verdana" [!$OSX] "name""Helvetica Bold" [$OSX] "tall""22" [$DECK] "tall""14" "weight""1000" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } HudHintTextSmall { "1"[$WIN32] { "name""Verdana" [!$OSX] "name""Helvetica" [$OSX] "tall""18" [$DECK] "tall""11" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } "1"[$X360] { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""700" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } HudSelectionText { "1" { "name""Verdana" "tall""10" [$DECK] "tall""8" "weight""700" "antialias" "1" "yres""1 599" "additive""1" } "2" { "name""Verdana" "tall""14" [$DECK] "tall""10" "weight""700" "antialias" "1" "yres""600 767" "additive""1" } "3" { "name""Verdana" "tall""18" [$DECK] "tall""16" [$LINUX] "tall""12" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "yres""768 1023" "additive""1" } "4" { "name""Verdana" "tall""22" [$DECK] "tall""20" [$LINUX] "tall""16" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "yres""1024 1199" "additive""1" } "5" { "name""Verdana" "tall""9" [$DECK] "tall""8" [$LINUX] "tall""7" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } GameUIButtons { "1"[$X360] { "bitmap""1" "name""Buttons" "scalex""0.63" "scaley""0.63" "scalex_hidef""1.0" "scaley_hidef""1.0" } } BudgetLabel { "1" { "name""Courier New" "tall""14" "weight""400" "outline""1" } } DebugOverlay { "1"[$WIN32] { "name""Courier New" "tall""14" "weight""400" "outline""1" } "1"[$X360] { "name""Tahoma" "tall""18" "weight""200" "outline""1" } } "CloseCaption_Normal" { "1" { "name""Tahoma" [!$OSX] "name""Verdana" [$OSX] "tall""15" [$DECK] "tall""12" "weight""500" "antialias""1" } } "CloseCaption_Italic" { "1" { "name""Tahoma" [!$OSX] "name""Verdana Italic" [$OSX] "tall""15" [$DECK] "tall""12" "weight""500" "italic""1" "antialias""1" } } "CloseCaption_Bold" { "1" { "name""Tahoma" [!$OSX] "name""Verdana Bold" [$OSX] "tall""15" [$DECK] "tall""12" "weight""900" "antialias""1" } } "CloseCaption_BoldItalic" { "1" { "name""Tahoma" [!$OSX] "name""Verdana Bold Italic" [$OSX] "tall""15" [$DECK] "tall""12" "weight""900" "italic""1" "antialias""1" } } "CloseCaption_Small" { "1" { "name""Tahoma" [!$OSX] "name""Verdana" [$OSX] "tall""15" [$DECK] "tall""12" "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "antialias""1" } } // this is the symbol font "Marlett" { "1" { "name""Marlett" "tall""14" "weight""0" "symbol""1" } } "Trebuchet24" { "1" { "name""Trebuchet MS" "tall""24" "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x007F"//Basic Latin "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } "Trebuchet18" { "1" { "name""Trebuchet MS" "tall""18" "weight""900" } } ClientTitleFont { "1" { "name" "Courier New" "tall""32" "tall_hidef""46" "weight" "0" "additive" "0" "antialias" "1" } } CreditsLogo { "1" { "name""Courier New" "tall""34" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } CreditsIcons { "1" { "name""Courier New" "tall""34" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } CreditsText { "1" { "name""Trebuchet MS" "tall""20" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "yres""480 899" } "2" { "name""Trebuchet MS" "tall""12" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } CreditsOutroLogos { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""34" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } CreditsOutroValve { "1" { "name""HalfLife2" "tall""48" "weight""0" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" "custom""1" } } CreditsOutroText { "1" { "name""Verdana" [!$OSX] "name""Courier Bold" [$OSX] "tall""16" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" } } CenterPrintText { // note that this scales with the screen resolution "1" { "name""Trebuchet MS" [!$OSX] "name""Helvetica" [$OSX] "tall""18" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } HDRDemoText { // note that this scales with the screen resolution "1" { "name""Trebuchet MS" "tall""24" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" "additive""1" } } "AchievementNotification" { "1" { "name""Trebuchet MS" "tall""14" "weight""900" "antialias" "1" } } "CommentaryDefault" { "1" { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""480 599" } "2" { "name""Verdana" "tall""13"[$WIN32] "tall""20"[$X360] "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""600 767" } "3" { "name""Verdana" "tall""14" "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""768 1023" "antialias""1" } "4" { "name""Verdana" "tall""20" "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""1024 1199" "antialias""1" } "5" { "name""Verdana" "tall""24" "weight""900" "range""0x0000 0x017F" //Basic Latin, Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A "yres""1200 6000" "antialias""1" } "6" { "name""Verdana" "tall""12" "range" "0x0000 0x00FF" "weight""900" } "7" { "name""Arial" "tall""12" "range" "0x0000 0x00FF" "weight""800" } } "SteamDeckLoadingText" { "7" { "name""Alte DIN 1451 Mittelschrift" "tall""24" "weight""800" } } } //////////////////////// CUSTOM FONT FILES ///////////////////////////// // // specifies all the custom (non-system) font files that need to be loaded to service the above described fonts CustomFontFiles { "1""resource/VeraMono.ttf" "2""resource/VeraMono.ttf" "3""resource/VeraMono.ttf" } } 

Thank you!