Student autobiography example

I'm a PR professor at a fairly large University and I have a professional development fund that's set to expire next month (2k?!), and I want to invest it to stay current with the latest trends and best practices in the PR industry so my professional knowledge doesn't atrophy... (6 years in grad school and 4 years teaching will do that...).
It's important to me that my students don't just regurgitate theories- they should be prepared to jump into the field when they graduate so I prefer access to insights and modern examples I can show my students.
So, what are your recommendations for the best publications? A blog, newsletter, a journal, YouTube channel, crisis management, digital PR strategies, influencer marketing, branding, and media relations. Whatever. The sky is the limit, I teach it all. What do you subscribe to?
And while we're on the subject- what do you WISH PR students knew before they got assigned to you? Maybe something you wish you knew before you started?
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I was recently accepted into an MS in CSE program at an R1 university. I'm interested in getting a PhD broadly studying data science, ML, and social computing. I already have had two internship experiences as a SWE, but my thinking is that getting an internship as a research scientist would be great for my career and would help with moving on to my PhD.
Does anyone know it takes to get a research scientist/researcher intern positions? What companies hire the most? Do they usually require PhD's or are MS students also considered? Is a lot of previous experience required? For example, I've done some research in ML (one small arXiv paper) but mostly in social computing and have one paper published and another on the way -- is this enough to get a research intern position related to data science or ML? It seems a lot more daunting than getting a SWE internship. Are these positions more competitive than SWE? Lastly, is the hiring timeline the same as SWE internships, i.e., should I start looking in August onwards? Thanks!

I am just finishing my first two years of courses at my local community colleges. My school journey has been unconventional and treacherous overall. I live In California (Bay Area) and am in the field of education after having been a chef for 10 years. Long story short, as an older, working student, education has felt inaccessible - at least administratively. I have maintained straight As and I am an excellent communicator, and am appalled at the administrative hoops I have had to jump through to complete simple and necessary steps. For example, transcript evaluations, petitions, enrollment verification.
So I applied to SFSU to complete this, and went through an 8 month application process which had ZERO transparency. It turned out after all that time, course modalities for my major do not match my career schedule. I had to make a quick pivot. This was 5/7/2024 SFSU has still not replied to my initial email and follow up asking about this.
I decided on OSU. I am SHOCKED at the responsiveness, efficiency, and transparency in their admissions process! In just a matter of 9 days, I have applied and been accepted, been able to have my transcripts preemptively evaluated, meet with my academic advisor, have access to my account, sort out student loans, etc.
OSU has been extremely impressive in this regard. This is a step in the right direction in terms of how a higher institution should operate. I am now a Beaver starting in the fall, and I am proud of it.
GO BEAVS!

Hi folks,
I’m a student (19nb) in Utrecht who has recently moved to the city. I’m originally from another city in NL further away, and miss having a community and friends in the city (my uni friends all live farther out). I was wondering if you have any ideas on places where you can make friends, preferably where you can come alone (my friends don’t live in Utrecht)? I saw about this place ACU which sounded quite nice, for example, but I can’t for the life of me figure out if that’s a place you can come to alone and I’m too insecure to fuck around and find out lol.
My interests are: - art - reading (basically anything, i love reading SO much) - going to museums - learning knew things - getting to know people and learning about them
I’d love to know if you have any ideas, or have had similar experiences! Thanks in advance and have a lovely rest of your day!!

Throughout my life, it's been a trend that I'll get ignored in group chat of people I know in real life.
For example, in my classroom's group chat, I asked what kind of essay does the teacher want for the previous conference trip. Was left on read by 30 people, and it was so embarrassing I unsent it. Another person asked something similar (like where to send it or when to send it) and they got a response not soon.
Another is a student group I'm working right now that organizes labs tours or other academic events. Multiple times when I'm Dming a person of different position when I need something my message wasn't even 'read', even though that person seems to be active in other groups. Meanwhile, when I messaged a large group requesting something (for example a group dedicated to advertising) I am also left on read by many people. Meanwhile, other people got enthusiastic response
I'm all for accountability instead of blaming other people and throwing hands and giving up, so if it's something that's common in my life the biggest common denominator is me. Do people dislike or are annoyed by me? What could I do to fix it?

From Quillette:

A quiet revolution in the practice of medicine in North America has taken place within the last decade. Professional associations, medical schools, and an increasing number of physicians no longer consider the primary duty of the physician to be care of the individual patient, but rather social reform...
Individual behaviour and an individual’s genetic inheritance are significant causes of diseases and disorders...Yet, the American Medical Association (AMA), the largest professional association of physicians in the United States, in its strategic plan for racial justice and health equity, exhorts physicians to turn their attention away from genetics and individual behaviour and instead move upstream to address the “root causes” of social inequities, which (the AMA hypothesises) are the underlying causes of poor health. And what are these root causes? The AMA’s list reads like a first-year college student’s rote recitation of DEI jargon: “white supremacy, racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, ableism, and xenophobia"...
This represents a sea change in the responsibilities of physicians, from a focus on the conditions and needs of individual patients to being agents of radical social reform...
The AMA’s goal of turning physicians into social reformers is now faithfully reflected in the oath taken by some incoming medical students during “white coat” ceremonies. For example, at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Medical School, students have pledged to uproot the “structural violence” that allegedly results from “white supremacy, colonialism, the gender binary, ableism, and all forms of oppression.” Contrast this pledge with the traditional Hippocratic Oath or its updated versions, which emphasise the physician’s commitment to the individual patient...
Transforming physicians into social reformers, and directing them to avoid a focus on individuals, results in a grievous misdirection of their skills. Focusing on perceived social ills diverts physicians’ attention from the immediate and remediable causes of the problems confronting individual patients.

The U of MN white coat ceremony in question occurred in 2022. FIRE, a nonprofit civil liberties group, raised concerns over free speech and the university "affirmed that the oath was not required and that students are free to reject it".
Does anyone know the oath in current use for the U of MN's white coat ceremony?

(Note: I have no specific memory of this happening, but it seems like something I would have done as a teenager. Consider this realistic fiction.)
When I was about 14 or so, my Mom was talking to one of her friends at church. Several people at this church were teachers, including this lady.
The lady was venting about the increasing learned helplessness of her students. One example she used is having to open students' snacks for them at lunchtime and snack time.
Without thinking, I blurted out "Well MAYBE if you'd just let them use scissors, they could open the snacks themselves!"
She asked what I meant by that, and I continued "If you'd let them use scissors to open their snacks instead of taking the scissors away, you wouldn't have to open their snacks for them!"
Later, my Mom told me I was being rude. I don't think I was. I just told the truth.
So, AITBF?

First of all I have to say I'm not a big music expert. More like the "listens-to-everything" type. Honestly, of course there are styles of music that I don't particularly appreciate (Rap, Jazz, Metal), but otherwise everything from Monteverdi operas to current electronic pop is included. I therefore ask you to treat my assumptions with caution and to forgive some statements that may not be particularly profound.
I often go to YT to listen to music (I often just watch the videos in passing because I don't necessarily need moving images to accompany music that I like). I've noticed lately that even without the YT algorithm (I'm deleting my cookies), I keep clicking on songs that came out in 1984. I don't do this consciously, but simply because it really seems that exactly 40 years ago only super-hit songs were coming out. Then I did some research and actually: Even if you don't just focus at Number 1 hits (I'm from Europe, but it seems the differences to the kind of songs that became hugely popular in the United States where not that big then), it feels like that during the 52 weeks of 1984 more than 100 songs that became enormously famous came out in '84 - that's two world hits every single week!
Most of them still stand the test of time and remain well-known even to people who weren't born in 1984 yet (like myself). For example, when I think of your karaoke sessions at my colleges student club, I would assume that roughly 10% of pop songs people choose to sing there (and the night is long...) where written and published in 1984! No other year seems so significant for pop music history, not even the also extremely popular Y2K for the Noughties, because the era of 00's-Hits spans over more than just one year (I would say 1997 to 2002). Of course some 80's pop classics also came out one or two years earlier or later, but I would take any bet that these wouldn't even represent the majority of the 80's-songs if you added them together against the tunes that came out in '84 ALONE!
Furthermore, I realized that I'm not the only one to notice that phenomenon: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-best-singles-of-1984-pops-greatest-year-163322/dead-or-alive-you-spin-me-round-like-a-record-174440/ or https://nerdist.com/article/why-1984-is-greatest-pop-music-year-prince-van-halen-madonna-bruce-springsteen/
But why was that? Why did 1984 become a crucial year for pop music? In the articles, I didn't find any reasonable explanation for this other than the rise of MTV (even though MTV didn't even exist in Europe at the time, and yet the songs became hits here too). I would also find it interesting how contemporary witnesses, i.e. people who experienced the 80s musically, perceived this: Were you aware back then that 1984 was a special year with one hit after another...?
Compared to 1984, 2024 seems a rather absolutely irrelevant year in pop music history: Everything is dominated by Taylor Swift - yeah, I know, Michael Jackson ruled 80's pop, but at least he wasn't alone... Maybe 1967 is probably the only comparable year to 1984 in terms of popular music - but for rock, not pop, when the big groups of the time such as the Beatles, Stones, Beach Boys, The Who, Kinks etc. released very important beat and rock albums and songs that are still widely known "oldies" today (a fact that I learned trough articles BEFORE recognizing it by myself, to be honest).

So, I'm not entirely sure what my goal is with this post. One thing I know for certain is that it will be very long, and probably sort of jumbled and frantic, more stream of consciousness than anything. I guess I just sort of wanted to share some of the important realizations I've had in recent months, and see if: 1. Other people think that they're fair or "correct" realizations, and I'm not becoming, like, delusional or something. 2. Maybe my sharing these perspectives will help or inspire someone else who has struggled in ways similar to me.
So, here's the basic background of things. I've always been a really reserved and quiet person, ever since I was a little kid. Add in being skinny and nerdy for most of my life, and maxing out at a height of 5'9", and I'm not exactly a hot product for the average girl my age (19, turning 20 in a few weeks). In fact, I'd never had a relationship until this past year in college, but I'll get more into that in a minute. Hell, I hadn't had so much as a first kiss until this past year, either.
And, at the beginning of this past school year, being my second year of college (as a commuter student, so socializing is pretty difficult), I began to really get down on myself for having never been in a relationship, never kissed a girl, being a virgin, etc. It started to really take a toll on my mental health, because I believed that there was something intrinsically wrong and unlovable about me. Whereas a lot of young men who struggle socially romantically seem to be directing their sadness, frustration, and anger outward toward the world, especially toward women, I instead found myself directing those feeling toward myself. I was convinced that, on a basic level, there was some vital component to who I am as a person that disqualifies me from being worthy of love or affection. After all, that's what 19 years of evidence suggest, right?
Looking back, I think a large component in this was how I had been struggling, and still struggle to a degree, with my identity as a young man. I'm naturally a pretty progressive person, and I make an effort to be open to the perspectives of other groups and listen to their stories. Unfortunately, as we all know, a lot of people have been harmed by the men in their lives. And I know, I know: if I'm not doing anything wrong myself, then I shouldn't take any of these stories personally.But I guess, given the poor mental state that I was already in, I took it as validation that there was in fact something intrinsically wrong about me, and that thing was being a man. I started to avoid people on the street, especially if they were a woman or presented as feminine. At work, I avoid going anywhere near female customers, out of fear of making them uncomfortable. I'd keep my head down walking from class to class on campus, worried that I might make someone uneasy with my gaze. It wasn't that I thought I was a threat; in fact, I knew that I was not. But I also knew that the people around me didn't know that. In their eyes, maybe they have to assume that I'm a creep or that I'm a dangerous type of man. And it hurt to realize that, and I realize now, like I said, that I took it as validation that there was something intrinsically wrong with me.
Due to that, as well as other factors, such as stress and exhaustion from overworking (I'm a full-time student and work about 30 hours a week, which is a lot for me, might not be for others, I admit), I experienced some of the worst periods of depression I've ever had, since being diagnosed with it and anxiety in 2021. I tried going to therapy. I went to a few sessions, then gradually started missing more and more due to a lack of time, until my therapist cancelled all of our scheduled future sessions. It was on me. I wasn't committed.
I lost my passion for my hobbies and interests, like creative writing, which had previously been an important emotional outlet for me. A lot of nights would be spent lying in bed, listening to a playlist filled with sad music and hugging a pillow, wishing it was someone who loved me in the way that I thought, or hoped, love would work.
At the behest of my friends, to whom I only presented my issues as being a little down about never having been in a relationship, I started messing around with dating apps. At first, I felt good about making some sort of effort to put myself out there. Like I said, I've always been insanely reserved, so doing something like making a dating profile felt like an accomplishment. Of course, nothing much came of it. Over the five or so months that I was on the app, I maxed out at about six likes on my profile, and only matched with two people.
But one of those two people was a girl who went to the same college as me, and we seemed to have a lot of interests in common. And I mean a lot. To the point that it was almost comical. Of course, I realize now that having some hobbies in common isn't enough to form a good relationship with someone, but I realize now that I was just desperate for someone who I could convince myself halfway-tolerated me. She and I started to go out, and after a while, we decided to make things "official." My first kiss. My first relationship. My first girlfriend.
It lasted for only a few months. After a while, something felt off. I wasn't as excited to see her as I had been before. It was hard for us to make time for each other, between my working and her being involved in extracurricular stuff around campus. Car rides and dates began to be filled with longer and more frequent stretches of awkward silence, as I tried to think of something to say or talk about, only to come up empty-handed. As we got to know each other better, I realized that we didn't have as much in common as I first thought. She was a little more conservative, not necessarily in a political sense, but more in terms of "status", if that makes sense. I learned that financial success was very important to her parents, and I could tell that it was important to her, too. She avoided telling her parents that I was an English major, instead opting to tell them that I was getting a degree in computer science, as that was my minor at the time. It seemed to me that the status of a relationship was more important to her than the quality of the relationship (pot calling the kettle black, yes, I realize). For example, there was a dance on campus that she wanted to go to, pretty much just to take pictures of the two of us together so she could show them to friends and family. But as for the dance itself, it was more of the same that had been happening before: awkward silence, short conversations, lots of looking around at anything other than each other.
After a while, I decided that, for both of our sakes, I needed to break things off. I didn't want to waste her time when I knew that my heart wasn't in it anymore. So, at the beginning of April, I drove over to her dorm, and we talked it over in my car for a while. At the end, we hugged one last time, and I haven't seen her since.
I think a key component in the decision I made is the fact that I reconnected with some old friends from high school, who are still local, even though they are going to another university. Over Christmas break, I hung out with them for the first time since the pandemic as, during that time, I ended up having a falling out with them over some dumb high school drama and political differences. To my surprise, they had changed a lot, and had managed to pull themselves out of the incel trajectory that I had seen them beginning to fall down during high school. They were kinder, more accepting people. My surprise was matched only by my pride in them. I had feared and assumed the worst of them, and I couldn't have been happier to be proven wrong. Since then, I've been invited back into their group chats, and I see them in-person with some regularity, when our schedules allow it.
I think having that connection made me feel more comfortable with the idea of being single again, and since the break up, I've been able to rely on them for support, laughs, and just feeling like I have somewhere I belong. Before, I found myself desperate for any kind of connection and fell into a cycle of denying myself that connection because I was convinced that, since it didn't just present itself, I wasn't worthy of it.
And maybe it has something to do with that, but on the drive home from my now-ex's dorm (though I still wonder if I should/could really call her an ex. Sure, we agreed to make things "official", but we still only dated for a few months), I felt my perspective on, well, at the risk of sounding over-dramatic or overly romantic, everything, being to change.
And I guess that's what the title of this post is about. The things I've begun to realize in the time leading up to and following that break-up.
Above all else, I've realized the importance of connection. If I didn't have a stable friend group again, I don't know where I'd be. Probably still in a stale relationship, clinging on and trying to convince myself that I'm not feeling the way that I'm feeling. I have people to talk with again, to confide in when I feel stressed or depressed. I go out and do things again, which I didn't realize I hadn't really done very much since the pandemic.
But I know that for a lot of people who are/were in the position I had been in, finding friends is difficult. If it weren't for my unique circumstances of being reunited with an old, estranged group of friends, I would absolutely be in the same position. I still really struggle with social anxiety, and talking to new people is a huge struggle for me. So, I've also had some realizations that don't have as much to do with the friendship side of things, and I hope that these can be of some use to people who also struggle with social anxiety.
I know that the idea of "working on yourself" is cliche and overused, so I won't frame it exactly like that. In my opinion, saying it like that makes it sound too daunting and tedious, and having been in those dark, dark places myself, I know that it was the last thing I wanted to hear. So, instead, I like to think of it this way. It's more like living in spite of your circumstances. Over the course of this past year, I essentially shut my life down, because I was so convinced that there was no point, because I felt that I knew that I would never be loved or accepted. Now, I feel an urge to go on living for myself, almost in direct spite of the fear that I may be forever alone. It's a fear that I still deal with, and who knows, maybe things will end up that way.
And, I suppose, that leads into my main realization, which is sort of an extension/restatement of the last one, now that I think about it. I now feel the desire to accumulate enough in my life, to reach a point where I am satisfied enough, that I can rest knowing that I will be okay, with or without a relationship. Before, my self-worth was almost entirely attached to my relationship status, and my lack of romantic experience. Now, I realize that a relationship can only come when I don't need it, or at least don't feel that I need it. Being a huge nerd and a writer, I think a lot about quotes from books, shows, movies, and games that have stuck with and there's one from God of War: Ragnarok that comes to mind here (by the way, I actually highly recommend playing or watching a playthrough of God of War 2018 and Ragnarok if you've struggled with masculinity in the same way I have, the music and cutscenes from those games have actually helped to pull me out of some mental spirals about my self-worth and identity as a man). It comes from a scene in which Kratos confronts his younger self, and is trying to decide if he is willing/ready to be a god again:
"Should I lose everything and everyone, will there still be enough left inside so that I do not become you? I do not know. But I have hope."
It's a quote that resonates with me now more than ever (even though it's from a DLC that just came out around Christmas, lol). I know now that I want to get to a place where there is enough left inside me that I know I'll never fall into that dark mental state again.
Something else that I've noticed has happened is the return of my passions for my hobbies and interests, especially for writing. I don't want to sound too arrogant, but I think I've begun to realize an important goal for my writing. If I'm lucky enough, I want to be able to write and release stories that explore masculinity and isolation, and, if I can, I want to create stories that can help guide other young men and boys who have struggled in the way I have and continue to do. I want to create characters who serve as positive male role models, who are emotionally strong, intelligent, and kind. I want to write stories of personal redemption, and show that no one is truly ever too far gone to be able to recover. If my writing could help even just one person who is struggling, then I would consider my career to be a success.
At the risk of being too cheesy, I'd like to end this very long-winded post with another quote, this one from a YouTube channel I recently discovered, and one I would highly recommend to just about anyone: Cinema Therapy. It's from their video about "A Silent Voice", which also happens to be one of my favorite movies, and one of my main inspirations when it comes to the kinds of stories I want to tell.
"Depression doesn't go away, doesn't lift for most people. But there's a capacity to feel again. There's a capacity to feel joy. The cure for so many things is connection. And we may think 'no one want to connect with me.' But we just need to find the right people."
I think the only thing I would add to that is that, in my opinion, the connection can also be with yourself.

I have a couple of questions. (Student) I’ve been getting different answers. I understand that when a person is on mechinical ventilation you always increase FiO2 first (until 0.60) before you raise PEEP. My question is when you wish to titrate down because the ABG is looking good(a lot better) which do you go down on first? Is it still FiO2 first or PEEP? Example, Fio2 is 0.80 with a PEEP of 12. What should I go down on first?
Second question, I always understood that if the patient has a pH less than 7.30 with a paCO2 over 50 that is acute ventilatory failure and you should get ready to intubate. Is that a good criteria to follow for regular patients?
Third question bouncing off the second. Regarding COPD patients and their ABG results. What values (pH, PaCO2, PaO2) am I looking for to begin NPPV and what numbers should i be at to tell me “hey now it’s time to intubate” ? I understand that their appearance, sensorium, WOB, and other factors come into play but I’d like to know just what to do based off ABG results.
I’m looking for what the NBRC hospital wants us to do and not real life experience. Thank you! I know that was a lot.

hey everyone (-:
I am a university student, studying aeronautical engineering with physics,
and in a Fourier series test, this question was given:
Let f(x) be a Piecewise continuous function on the interval [π, -π]. Let its Fourier series in general form.
Assume that there exists a constant C such that C/(n^2) ≥ a_n , b_n for all n≥1.
a. Prove that the Fourier series of f converges uniformly on the interval [π, -π].
b. Prove that if f is also continuous on the interval [π, -π], then f(π) = f(-π).
the problem was mainly in b,
Almost everyone used the Dirichlet Pointwise convergence theorem, but apparently it is wrong, giving the example of the Fourier series of sqrt(abs(x)), but i think it falls on it not being uniformly converges.
My question is if the Fourier series of sqrt(abs(x)) converges uniformly,
and why using Dirichlet is wrong in this case?
Thanks in advance! (-:

Hi everyone
I am a 21 year old student who was in a 3 year relationship with my gf 20 that ended abruptly two days ago.
Our relationship began in highschool and got off to a rocky start when everyone around me started gossiping about her cheating on her ex. I grew up in a household with a single mom who had been cheated on every single relationship. So I was deathly afraid of this happening to me. After months we came up with this agreement that we’d update eachother on snapchat whenever we were apart. And because we missed eachother we would also call at night when we slept.
After all those years this turned into what I think was my crutch to keep my fears away. The snapchats turned away from occasional talking to full day surveillance. The calling turned into a necessity, all day if we were apart, during showers etc. Whenever I saw something that set alight my paranoia I got extremely combative. For example if she hadnt sent a snap in an hour from the other, i would become afraid and fully believe that there was something going on. This then turned into me saying things like “if you treat me like this I wont be able to continue our relationship”. I now look at this and see that it is a threat of me leaving unless she did what i said. I saw it as me enforcing my boundaries and it seemed normal.
She also expected calls from me and would also get upset if I didnt update well, so I thought that this was just how we did things, every relationship had something weird or unhealthy they had to work on in my eyes. When I went to work she recorded herself so i could surveil what she did, and I was somehow so blind to how fucked up that is. And i sought therapy in those two years but had extreme difficulties in finding a psychologist. So these issues remained.
A couple of days ago, while she had a hard week with college, she broke down about everything to a friends mom. Who then informed her parents. While we were discussing the distribution of chores around our appartement, we were living together for 2 years now, her parents stormed in and scolded me for being a controlling manipulator. The dad got very verbal and the mother said something akin to “i dont know how i havent seen that my daughter was so unhappy here”. It blew me away, i never thought she was unhappy as we were having fun just the evening beforehand.
Now they keep her away from me and are blocking my number, telling her that my controlling behaviour outweighed any of the good i did. Like helping her out of cutting herself and abusing alcohol. They check her phone to see if she doesnt message me.
After they left I looked up if I was an abuser, and i can certainly see that i did things on the lists being unaware of what I was doing. I called helplines and spoke to as many people i could to help me and figured that i needed instant care. I will now have a team of psychiatrists and psychologists visit 3 times a week and will be admitted to a facility sometime in the future.
I do not want to be an abuser, and she wants to stay in contact but work on ourselves separately, i agree and i want to be better for myself. But i dont know how i feel with them keeping her locked down like this. its healthy for them to keep her away. But no contact entirely when I really want to change, i cannot fight to redeem myself it seems to me.
Am I a lost cause? Did I lose the best person in my life? I will be admitted to the most intensive therapy we have in our country and I wish to update her on progress and ask how she is doing. To this she is receptive as she has already texted me without her parents knowing, stating the same. But I am afraid that she will want to contact but won't be allowed to.
TL:DR: I made my girlfriend snapchat update me throughout the day as many times as she could and whenever she could. We called whenever we could, this meant also during showers or whatever private moment. I thought that us agreeing to this meant that was a ‘relationship rule’ that we both enforced. I thought that her also showing a same need for me to be available for a call when I showered or that I also update when I left that it was okay. Somehow I only see how fucked up this was now and feel extremely guilty and clueless as to how the darkest parts of me got me to lose her. Her parents found out and now she has been taken away.

I heard that different programs in DLSU offer international courses. For example, I heard that Civil Engineering students go to Japan sometime during their stay in DLSU (idk what certain course or year tho). I'm currently enrolled in Industrial Engineering and I want to know if sometime during my stay, I'd be able to go abroad! Just a little something to look forward to since my grades are going downhill HAHAHA

At what age do you think you are no longer perceived as culturally relevant or up to date? An example of my question would be: when the transition from millennial culture to gen z culture happened, how old were the last millennials?
I feel that those who carry the baton of internet/meme culture are mostly college students and some high school students, and the rest of the younger teens consume the trends, until they themselves grow up and now it's their turn to make the memes. But as soon as you graduate college and enter the workfield, you go back to only consuming.

I know someone else has made an analysis on the Valentine’s event, but I’d like to add the “Joker’s going home next month conversation” to it. (Well, I wanted to bring it up again and share my view on it, mostly because every time I get to the event, I think about how well her date is written and the dialogue choices Joker’s given for the he’s going home next month talk with her versus the choices he’s give with the other girls, which to me, they made it obvious that the writers love her. This is NOT a stab at you know who or the other characters, they did ribbon girl kind of dirty... + I have a lot of time on my hands right now.)
As we know in the Vanilla version, Makoto’s the only one Joker is direct with when it’s mentioned he’s going home next month. With the others, he either asks them if they want to come along as a question or as a joke. I was curious to see how it changed in Royal. (I watched a compilation of the other valentine’s and the first dialogue option was mostly chosen, well, except for Sumire. Non-thieves don’t matter much because they aren’t in the other games, so I'm not going to say much about them, you’re free to ship them though, that’s just my opinion.)
The Royal Version:
Ohya: “Sorry it’s so sudden.” or “I’ll visit when I can.” (I don’t care for her much, I only do her SL to see Lala! Lala is cool as shit and she ships him and Makoto.)
Takemi: “Will you miss me?” or “I’ll visit as soon as I can.” (I like Takemi, don’t get me wrong, but damn her date was done awful, besides I like to ship her with Sae.)
Kawakami: “I’ll see you again soon” or “I’m not your student now.” (👀)
Hifumi: “Sorry for the sudden news.” or “Want to tag along?” (It would have been strange to see her as a thief, in a good way, of course, but it’s better she isn’t. ((Her SL does come in handy.)) Also, I’ve seen people bring this up before, Hifumi was never going to be a thief, the development team said it themselves.)
Chihaya: “Sorry it’s so sudden.” or “I’ll come see you.” (alright!)
Futaba: “Will you miss me?” or “I don’t want us to be apart.” (I don’t ship these two, mostly because their dynamic throughout the game feels more like siblings to me, + there’s no romantic scenes or anything along those lines given to them. He’s a big brother to her and she’s a gremlin of a little sister. Plus Sojiro would probably whoop Joker...)
Ann: “Will you miss me?” or “Time for long distance.” (Damn Atlus… he didn’t get an option to ask if she wanted to come along with him. Well, you could see it more as a “we’ll still be together!” sort of thing, but considering how the lover’s arcana is usually pushed the most, P3 and P4 for example, you’d think it’d be the case in P5 and treat her like the past ones… Nope, it’s the priestess. They made it seem like it during Kamoshida's palace she's the one but as time went on, they weren't fucking with Ann AT ALL. I love Ann, but she treats Joker like a close friend and she doesn't show interest in him. Her interest goes to two other people.)
Sumire: “It might get lonely” or “Want to come with?” (it’s funny because he’s like it MIGHT get lonely and he doesn’t ask if she’ll miss him. If you pick “Want to come with?” she doesn’t take it seriously and laughs it off. As mentioned by u/VerbingWeirdsLang, she gets Makoto’s old lines from Vanilla, which is laughable because of how much they hyped her up and pushed her. You would think they’d write something good for her, NO! Just recycled shit! they did her dirty.)
Haru: “Will you miss me?” or “Are you mad?” (same with Ann, he doesn’t get the option to say “want to tag along?” or something like that. She doesn’t feel like a phantom thief due to the lack of screen time, so she’s just there. I saw someone say she’s a damsel in distress and yeah, I have to agree ((her SL, mostly and even during the story itself.)) Also, the fact he asks if she’s mad is funny because she can be a tad scary sometimes.)
Makoto: “Will you miss me?” or “Come with me.” (I like the response she has to “Come with me.” she says “Sure, let me get my tickets… I wish.” and the conversation after that. Out of all the thieves, I don’t know if you would consider Sumire to be a phantom thief considering what she’s said about them in the past and her only doing one palace… But continuing on, she’s still the only one Joker can directly tell “Come with me.” Her entire arc and the conversations she has with Joker, and of course, the romantic events are mature and well written. I don’t know if I could be convinced that Makoto isn’t the main love interest/canon even with Sumire being added. Makoto helped the story progress, she doesn’t feel forced and their interactions feel natural and they don’t leave you feeling weirded out. But come on!! Even her English VA ships them.)
Does this need a conclusion? I don’t know! You’re free to have your opinion on it.

I have been helping students apply to FAFSA this year and i finally realized what irks me so much about this year’s application.
It is built like a puzzle.
A government form that seeks to provide financial aid for students should NOT be built like a puzzle.
it should be the most straightforward and easily accessible form ever.
I have been able to help several students apply, but the amount of random work arounds and “hacks” and “tricks” that we’ve had to use to make their forms go through is INSANE. it makes me so angry.
example 1: The form wasnt opening for the kid’s dad even though the kid had invited him and completed his own sections. We physically could not click on the form in the dad’s account. I had to delete it from the kid’s side and then make a new form from the dad’s account and then invite the kid and then that finally worked. But if a kid doesnt know to do that (who would know?) then they wouldnt be able to submit their FAFSA
example 2: The form was rejecting the mom’s info for no reason when we were adding her info as the second parent. I googled it and it said to make sure her last name is not longer than 12 characters. I deleted the extra characters and it worked. Which is INSANE!!! Some kids probably never submitted the form bc they didnt try to submit their mom’s name with letters cut off because who would try that, and cant get money for college bc of that
im sure you all have many more examples of how broken and tricky this forms. Idk if this is unpopular, but id rather have the entire form just not work than have it work with these stupid “tricks” and workarounds that only some people have access to
this whole thing makes my blood boil

Salut à tous, My goal in this post is to share my raw TAPIF experience from this year now that I’m home and have reflected. I will be listing challenges that I and others faced (I’ll be discussing the cons rather than the pros).
For reference, I’m American and was placed in primary in the Académie d’Orléans-Tours. I had already worked 8-5 in a school the previous year so I came in with a fair amount of savings and work experience working in language schools.
• You might have to act as the sole English teacher of your school(s). This includes creating curriculum sometimes from scratch with little to no guidance. The term “assistant” can be very misleading. At the primary level it is unfortunately common that you will be leading 30+ students per class while the teacher uses this time for a coffee break. Some might think you are an intervenant(e) and not an assistant(e) who takes over the whole classroom even though they have worked with assistants in the past. Even your principals might not know your role (or care). It’s your responsibility to advocate for yourself in order not to be taken advantage of and break the cycle so the next assistant doesn’t have to go through this.
• You might have a housing crisis. I arrived and spent nearly $2000 to stay in an airbnb for a month. I didn’t have a French guarantor and with the low tapif salary it is virtually impossible to find an apt through an agency. They will reject you. I did the online guarantor called “VISALE” and they granted me a max rent of 380€ a month. I applied to live with two French roommates “en coloc” but couldn’t be accepted as the rent was 450€ and VISALE granted me 380. I eventually was so desperate to have a permanent address (for bureaucratic stuff) that I found an apt on leboncoin with an independent landlord who didn’t need me to supply any guarantor. The rent only had water included and was 820€ a month (the entirety of our monthly salary). I had to, without any help, order and install the wifi and tv box and set up an electricity account through EDF. BEWARE if you didn’t know- electricity/heating in France is extremely expensive. I ended up having to keep my heat around 15 C (59 F) in order to not have the bill exceed 100€ per month during the cold months (I.e. the duration of our assistantships). When I moved out 2 weeks ago, the landlord blew up on me saying everything was “dégueulasse” or disgustingly filthy- which surprise it wasn’t- it’s a typical tactic to take money out of your initial deposit (dépôt de garantie), which he plans on doing. You will be vulnerable as a foreigner in this position. I would recommend NOT renting an apt by yourself unless it’s last resort as it was for me.
• The nature of the program can be VERY isolating. As others have emphasized, this is NOT any way similar to a study abroad. No one is keeping tabs on you or making sure you are adjusting well. Depending on your schools and schedule, you might not be able to form close relationships with your colleagues either. You MUST be okay with spending time by yourself in a foreign country. Many people end up leaving at Christmas because of these difficulties, usually citing they have a “family situation” to tend to back at home. I encourage you, if single, to try to befriend or date French nationals, as it will provide extra support and protection to you as a foreigner living in France.
• Mental Health- just to expand on my point above, you will need decent mental health to complete this program. If you are on medication it’s best to see if you can ween off before coming to France as certain meds are hard to find or impossible for doctors to prescribe. For example, adderall, for ADHD, is virtually impossible to have prescribed in Europe.
• Seasonal Depression- Unless you are from the Pacific Northwest in the US, you are more than likely going to experience some seasonal depression as the majority of France becomes very gloomy during the months of the assistantship. If you are from California, Florida, or anywhere in the south or southwest, you will more than likely miss seeing the sun more than once every two weeks. In my region, it wasn’t uncommon for it to rain several times a week with no glimpse of the sun. Of course, if you are placed in the Côte d’Azur or DOM TOMs this will not apply to you.
• Incompetent Prof Refs/Conseillère Pédagogique–your person of contact who will meet with at the beginning of the program may very well be misinformed and useless. I was told by people at my rectorat that I wouldn’t receive my carte vitale (health insurance) as it’s only for French nationals. When I tried to explain that we are all entitled to health insurance with this job they became hostile towards me. Again ADVOCATE for yourself!!! I learned more from the WhatsApp chat and Facebook group than I ever did asking my schools or local rectorat for help. I would have literally NEVER received my carte vitale if I had listened to my “superiors” in this program. They told me incorrect things several times.
Thank you for reading this far! These are some of the realities I and others encountered. I plan on making a list of pros as well if anyone would be interested. (:

Hey, my name is Abdi. I have 8 years of experience in coding, with a strong focus on backend development. I’ve spent 5 years as an open-source developer, contributing to popular projects like Golang and Godot game engine. Additionally, I have over 4 years of experience in game development and low-level programming languages such as Zig, C++, and C.
I am currently a first-year university student, and at 19 years old, I’ve never worked for or been paid by any company. I’m developing a web app that acts as a web engine to assist developers. Developer tools may not seem glamorous or revolutionary at first glance, but consider the vast market potential. For instance, there are over 1 trillion websites globally, and only 30% use no-code solutions like WordPress. The remaining 70% are built using coding, which is our target audience.
Look at success stories like Figma and Firebase. Figma with less than 4 million daily users and under 50k paying users, was acquired by Adobe for over $20 billion. Google acquired Firebase in 2014 when it had fewer than 200,000 users and only 3,000 paying users, for the range of $100 million to $200 million, but this has not been confirmed by either company.. These examples show the immense potential in developer tools. As the saying goes, 'During a Gold Rush, Sell Shovels.'
I’ve been working on this project for over 2 years and expect to have an MVP ready within 2 months. I know the need for this app because, as a web developer myself, I understand the problems we face. I need a cofounder with at least some experience in venture capital, preferably someone who has been a founder or has funding experience.
If you're intrigued to learn more about me or have any questions, please feel free to reach out. Additionally, I'm open to discussing equity distribution and any other aspects essential for our potential partnership
Preferred Contact Method(s): DM me or email me at [cqanimohamed4@gmail.com](mailto:cqanimohamed4@gmail.com). Also, please include your LinkedIn in your DM.
Thank you for reading this.

Student: Sir, in the Mahanirvana Tantra it is said by the Lord that the practices described in the Agamas are most efficacious for this Kali age, ever more so than than the Vedas and Puranas. However, so many all around the world are unable to receive formal Diksha that is traditionally said to be necessary for practice of these sadhanas, yet they are earnestly longing to delve into the teaching, what is to be done for them?
Teacher: it is clear that certain rites pertaining to the Tantras cannot be followed without the guidance of a proper teacher, however, with regard to the more personal sadhanas like those taught in the Vjnana-Bhairava-Tantra(VBT) as well those techniques pertaining to Hatha and Raja Yoga, these are very effective even without formal initiation or guidance from a teacher if they be properly understood and practiced.
Traditionally, the role of Diksha was to receive a Guru to teach you these things, however, in this age there are many more ways to understand these properly and very in depth through videos for example.
We must be rational in trying to understand why traditionally Diksha was required, and it makes perfect sense if the only way was through direct transmission and demonstration by a proper teacher. However, it is obvious there are plenty of other ways now to learn these things properly without a personal teacher now, so why should one be restricted to such a degree anymore?
Furthermore, access to these teachings was much more limited in those days than they are now. If these techniques are so dangerous without formal initiation, why have hundreds of thousands of people without Diksha reported such massively positive effects? The only times when it has harmed the aspirant is when they had not taken the proper time to understand and rushed to practice. How could such immensely positive spiritual benefits be experienced for those uninitiated if it was not the will of the Lord himself? Clearly if it is against his will there would not be such benefit for these people.
At least in regards to the Trika, swami Lakshmanjoo himself said that anyone who follows these teachings with care, diligence and respect is to be considered initiated. It is Lord Siva himself who inspires such people to pursue these teachings, this is taught by the great master Abhinavagupta himself!:
“For one on the path of divine intuition, there is no (necessity) for the procedure of the several initiations, no (formal) consecration (as a guru), no succession to a lineage, and no (ritual) vow of mantras, since s/he is directed (adhiṣṭhita) by the Primal Sage, the great Divinity (Śiva). It is for the attainment of such inner power that all the rites are offered; but it is (already) his own nature.”
Further he says:
“Therefore such a devotee of the teachings of Śiva [who receives this level of śaktipāta] is initiated (directly) by the Goddesses [of his own Awareness]. Depending on the steadiness or shakiness [of his intuition] he too should perform self-refinement (svasaṃskāra), through discipline, mantra repetition, and so on, in accordance with sacred observance (vrata), either by himself or directed by a Guru.”
Therefore one should always seek out a proper teacher, however, the absence of a personal teacher should not at all restrict him/her from engaging in these techniques, for they are being guided by Lord Shiva himself, and by his grace alone does one even become aware of these teachings at all and have a deep longing for them.
Such people should be considered initiated by the Lord himself, who is none other than the true Self.

Okay, hope this helps one or three people.
I have been struggling for YEARS. Now, I’ve made a LOT of progress in this time. My life is WAY better. But, I still struggle in ways I KNOW are unnecessary.
Having been a long time student of philosophy, Eastern religion, mysticism (though I’m a skeptical atheist, there are babies in the bath water) psychology, pop-psychology, self help, healing modalities etc etc. literally several hundred books.
I was asking myself “what’s going on? Why do I have ALL the answers and yet, here I am, still struggling.” I was extraordinarily intent on getting “the” answer.
I did a low-ish dose of mushrooms and went to the park and was just intently asking this question over and over.
Then it hit me. It’s SO fucking simple. I share the insight in hopes that a couple people will “get it” and be able to escape the apparent trap that resembles what I am in. I saw it all at once, but have to share it in a few “facts”.
Warning: this is not pleasant. I couldn’t believe I “wasted” over half a lifetime ignoring these things, when they are SO obvious.
Facts:

1. The universe/reality doesn’t care. It doesn’t know you exist. It is just being as it is. Full stop.

This means it’s not “on your side” it’s not “against you” it’s just there being. When acted upon, it will react according to its nature, every fucking time. The universe is NOT a “problem” and it’s not an “opportunity” it JUST IS.

1. There isn’t an option that doesn’t exist for you. There are myriad options for you. And all of them exist.

Now you might say “but, if I had a million dollars to start a business, I could succeed”. But, if you don’t have the million, then this isn’t an option, by definition. It simply isn’t. It doesn’t exist. Thus, each apparent option that you don’t have is simply a thought, an idea, a DENIAL OF FACT ONE.
When you don’t want to acknowledge fact one, you create thoughts about non-existent options. You create a world that doesn’t exist as an escape mechanism from the ruthless fact above.
If an option exists, it does. If it doesn’t, it exists as mere thought. Period.

1. For each extant option there are things you can do to bring it about. If there isn’t something you can do to make it real, it isn’t an option.

Formulating “if I could only _. Then I could have __” is an avoidance mechanism of the above fact, fact 2.
If you don’t know what to do, the action is to find out. This is, of course, an action.
If there isn’t anything you can do about it, it is NOT an option for you. Really.
(Warning, it’s about to get real, you will be triggered)

1. Each action has an emotional price tag. There is a way you will feel when you take the action. Often, it won’t be a feeling you want to feel.

You may see that you should “call X and ask Y” and immediately you feel trepidation. The feeling is the price tag for the action that will bring about the desired condition.
It is the emotion unwillingness to experience this feeling that prevents you from acting. Full stop.
When you decide not to act, because you don’t want to feel the way you will feel, this is an avoidance and denial mechanism of the above fact, fact 3.

1. Unwillingness to pay the emotional price is the cause of confusion and delusion.

There is a simplicity to this “I want X, I must therefore do Y and I will feel Z”. But when you are unwilling to pay the emotional price, you try to concoct ways around feeing Z. These are increasingly indirect and convoluted.
This, you guessed it, is the denial of fact 4.
It is so painfully simple, do the thing, have the condition. Don’t, and you won’t.

1. Whatever you do, you become, instantly. If you want to be a “runner” you must simply run. If you want to be a painter, you must paint.

Whatever you want to “be” you must do. Example: want to be “brave” you must do the thing you fear. You don’t have to “get rid of the fear” first, in fact, if you did that successfully and then took the same action, you would NOT be brave.
There are a myriad intentions and motives within you, the ones you act on determines what you are. If you act on the faint call to be kind, you are a kind person.
Not acting on the thing you want, is a denial of the above fact, fact 5.

1. Any thought or action, repeated, get easier (relative to conditions) and repeated often enough it will be easier to do it than to not. This is what a “habit” is.

So, if you want to be a runner, you must run. And, it will be “hard” which is to say there will be a high initial price tag. This price will lower each time the process is repeated. Eventually the emotional price for running will be less then that of not running. Now, you will “identify” as a runner, or painter, singer etc.
The dark side of this is that the fact is neutral. So, if you repeat avoidance and denial as outlined above, this will be how you see yourself, and this will be your life. This IS YOUR LIFE. (if you struggle as I have.)
This is both the source and the result of the denial of the fact above.

1. One of the primary drives of a human is to be “self consistent”. This is a force that will operate to change your view of reality, so that you don’t feel the discomfort of “being wrong”

So, when you start to “see yourself” as a runner it creates a desire to run, so that you won’t feel the “pain” of self inconsistency. Of course, if you forego the the same force will work to make you avoid running.
This is why you are the person you are, the good aspects and the bad. It’s an impersonal fact of being human. It’s the “hardware” you have. However you show up in the world is the “software”.
The failure to be the person you want to be is the denial of fact 7, repeated.

1. You are going to die. Sorry to be the one to tell you, but at some point which you may infuence but not decide, this will be all over and the reality you perceive will no longer exist. Others will be left, themselves waiting to die.

What you do between now that moment IS YOUR LIFE. Your ONE AND ONLY LIFE.
You are alive now and you have many options. FAR more than you could ever become aware of. What you do about the above facts regarding the condition of your life is your life. What you have done prior to this moment is only information stored in your mind.
This is urgent.
The denial of this fact underlies the denial of all the others. If you felt the actual urgency, you would pick an option appealing to you and act.

1. The process of applying the above facts is truly LIVING rather than waiting to die.

Think about the times you have really felt alive. See that you were in alignment with the above facts. Think of the good parts of life, this is why they are good.
Likewise the aspects of your life that suck, you will find the above delusions at play. And the lows in your life will be times you were mired in the delusions.
I’m sure most people are trying to find the exceptions, which may indeed exist. You can do everything right and get hit by a bus. (Bonus fact)
Still, I would propose to you that the reason you are seeking the exceptions in the first place is to be “self consistent” and to not feel as you would were you to acknowledge them.
The search for the exceptions IS YOUR DELUSION at work.
I know this is harsh, but it’s meant with love. Really. You have ti accept your human-ness and let go the mistakes up til now. Forgive yourself. Be willing to pay the emotional price and if you feel sad, or like me, angry at yourself this is simply you paying the emotional price, in real time. You’re doing the right thing!
Now what? That’s for you to decide. Decide what you want and pick an action you are currently willing to pay the price for and. DO IT. Repeat.
If you don’t know what you want, then the first action is to make a decision.
Figure out what you want, find an action you can do and are willing to pay the price for an do it. Repeat. This is ALWAYS the answer.
This is truly living instead of waiting to die.
I hope someone that reads this decides to live!
Oh, and be patient with yourself. It takes as long as it takes and you don’t get to decide this. All you get to decide is whether or not you will truly LIVE while you’re alive.
Love you all, I swear.

Hey juniors, Well Neet 2024 is over , many aspirants will get very good marks and will get gov seats but even more number of aspirants will have slightly less marks and and will think to take a drop as they might get semi gov or private colleges as they might not be able to afford fees
Now for wealthy elite that is not a problem but for many us that means taking an education loan
So writing this post to share some valuable insights from my end if you decide to go the education loan route

1. Now first and Formost Before approaching banks for loans do search for government scholarships (like mysy in Gujarat where you get 2.14 lakh help per year and cmss for around 3 lakh per year ) or subsidied loan schemes where they provide edu loan interest free or reimburse interest on your existing loan (for example in Gujarat OBC , NTDNT students can get up to 15 lakh loan interest free) but each scheme have qualifications like income limit and admisssion quota
   
2. If not qualified for gov loan , don’t go approaching big banks like SBI , hdfc just yet , First go for smaller cooperative banks like for example Rajkot Nagrik Sahakari bank as they offer much lower interest rate but may demand collateral
   
3. Do negotiate and discuss interest rates and Margin ( percentage of fees that would be paid by you and not bank )
   Anything above 8.5 % interest and 15% margin you should definitely avoid
   

Hey juniors, Well Neet 2024 is over , many aspirants will get very good marks and will get gov seats but even more number of aspirants will have slightly less marks and and will think to take a drop as they might get semi gov or private colleges as they might not be able to afford fees
Now for wealthy elite that is not a problem but for many us that means taking an education loan
So writing this post to share some valuable insights from my end if you decide to go the education loan route

1. Now first and Formost Before approaching banks for loans do search for government scholarships (like mysy in Gujarat where you get 2.14 lakh help per year and cmss for around 3 lakh per year ) or subsidied loan schemes where they provide edu loan interest free or reimburse interest on your existing loan (for example in Gujarat OBC , NTDNT students can get up to 15 lakh loan interest free) but each scheme have qualifications like income limit and admisssion quota
   
2. If not qualified for gov loan , don’t go approaching big banks like SBI , hdfc just yet , First go for smaller cooperative banks like for example Rajkot Nagrik Sahakari bank as they offer much lower interest rate but may demand collateral
   
3. Do negotiate and discuss interest rates and Margin ( percentage of fees that would be paid by you and not bank )
   Anything above 8.5 % interest and 15% margin you should definitely avoid