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Shanth

@towardstengen.bsky.social
93 followers 372 following 190 posts
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
"Know what you write" was right there — just as punchy, and discourages lazy writing without forbidding research.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Tamil is பட்டாம்பூச்சி (paṭṭāmpūcci) which translates to silky (or silk like) insect
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Jon Phillips @jowiph.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
I picked up a copy of the collected letters of JRR Tolkien for reasons, and this is the most bullshit table of contents I've ever seen. I'm actively angry that it exists
Contents

Introduction - vii

Foreword to the Revised and Expanded Edition - xi

Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien - 1

Notes - 607

Index - 637
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
It's uhuhuhu (pronounced with an exaggeratedly shiver) in Tamil, and a similar breathy, awawawa in Hindi. But I think it's less canonical than brr in English, ie. I've never seen it in writing so it's more casually onomatopoeic
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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
This is set up for laughs, but it’s actually one of the best demonstrations I’ve seen of how being capable of producing convincing sounding language and understanding meaning are two completely different things. A chatbot does not understand you, it just has automated responses based on your words.
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Rachel Leggett @rleggos.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
I got the shot. I've been scheming and hoping the conditions would work out for this for two weeks!! 🪶
A broad-tailed hummingbird hovers next to an anise hyssop plant framed by purple blooms and with a rainbow behind it!!! The bird also has a little bead of water on its bill because it is raining.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Among his long litany of sins Musk bought Solar City, merged it with Tesla, destroyed the brand, and killed their residential solar efforts.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Finally score a 950! And still there's two people ahead of me on the leaderboard 😭
Card showing results from the word game OUTLIER at playoutlier.com
Day 98: August 26 2026
A result from: shanth
ELITE OUTLIER
950 POINTS
10 words found . rarest Rarity 86

Grid:
NHWXA
MSDTK
AVRUC
GOLUE
PFIYE
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
AI slop aside, even if it actually made sense, who thinks people have time for unsolicitied freshman style essays on your own work?
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Nice! The live games are a great way to prep for it and try out words to suss out the rarity tiers. Been doing that to steal other folks's 95 outliers to use in the daily :D
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
It's a bit chancy. It does accept plenty of genus and family names (Echiuroid), but not all, so the dictionary is a bit hit or miss sometimes.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
XEROPHYTE: (botany) Any plant suited for life in a habitat where water is scarce, such as in a desert or chaparral. Such plants may be succulent, have small or reduced leaves, or spines. From xero- (“dry”) +‎ -phyte (“plant”). h/t playoutlier.com/p/ordinarydoll 10/10
playoutlier.com
ordinarydoll Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
ordinarydoll's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
OXYPHILE: Having an affinity for oxygen. h/t playoutlier.com/p/currantbun 9/10
playoutlier.com
currantbun Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
currantbun's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
MYSOPHOBIA: An abnormal fear of uncleanliness, dirt, or contamination. From Ancient Greek μύσος (músos, “uncleanness”) +‎ -phobia. h/t playoutlier.com/p/impatiens 8/10
playoutlier.com
impatiens Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
impatiens's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
EXSTROPHY: A congenital malformation of the bladder in which the normally internal mucosa of the organ lies exposed on the abdominal wall. From ex- +‎ Ancient Greek στροφή (strophḗ, “turning”) +‎ -y. h/t playoutlier.com/p/zzombie 7/10
playoutlier.com
zzombie Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
zzombie's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
PTYXIS: (botany) The way in which an individual leaf is folded in the bud. From New Latin ptyxis, from Ancient Greek πτύξις (ptúxis, “a folding”) h/t playoutlier.com/p/zzombie 6/10
playoutlier.com
zzombie Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
zzombie's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
APTERYXES: Plural of APTERYX. Genus of the kiwi bird from New Zealand. From a- (“without”) +‎ Ancient Greek πτέρυξ (ptérux, “wing”) h/t playoutlier.com/p/zzombie 5/10
playoutlier.com
zzombie Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
zzombie's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
OPHIUROID: Brittle star, a family of sea stars, from Latin ophiurus 'brittle star'; from Ancient Greek ὄφις (óphis) 'serpent' and οὐρά (ourá) 'tail'; referring to the serpent-like arms. h/t playoutlier.com/p/mekanek 4/10
playoutlier.com
mekanek Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
mekanek's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
TYMPS: Plural of TYMP, a hollow water-cooled iron casting in the upper part of the archway of a blast furnace in which the dam stands. h/t playoutlier.com/p/mekanek 3/10
playoutlier.com
mekanek Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
mekanek's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
XYLOGRAPHIC, XYLOGRAPHS: Back-formation from xylography, corresponding to xylo- (“wood”) +‎ -graph. An engraving in wood or woodcut, especially one used in printing predating the Western tradition h/t playoutlier.com/p/gut 2/10
playoutlier.com
gut Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
gut's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
#outlier-word-horde Been playing OUTLIER for a few days, and figured I'd start a thread of my 10 favourite unfamiliar words from the previous day — Day 87 XYLOPHAGES: An organism that feeds on wood. From ξύλον (xúlon, “wood”) and φάγος (phágos, “one who eats”) h/t playoutlier.com/p/gut 1/10
playoutlier.com
gut Player Profile & Stats · OUTLIER
gut's OUTLIER player profile and stats: daily scores, worldwide and country rank, current streak, vocabulary index, and the rarest words they have found in the daily rare-word game.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Reminds me of a post yesterday where someone said people should have a hobby — you know, as an observation about what is good for your self fulfillment, and one of the responses was, wHaT abOuT pEopLe sTrugGliNg wItH eXtReMe pOvErTy aNd StRuGgliNg fOr tHeIr NeXt mEaL???? Really. SMH
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
I've never been able to put this preference of mine into words as well, but you've convinced me to add this to my TBR
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Definitely, also even on the very next day, nobody has the right to use their grief and trauma to infringe on the civil liberties and rights of others.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
But is it warm wet sock or freezing wet sock?
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Very cool logic puzzle with cosy graphics and feel :)
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Reposted by Shanth
Gwen C. Katz @gwenckatz.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Played my new puzzle yet? Free to play in your browser! gwenckatz.itch.io/deductopia-t...
gwenckatz.itch.io
Deductopia: Community Theater by Gwen C. Katz
Sort out the roles and actors at a theater production
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Duolingo has chess now?
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
To beowulf or not to beowulf hwæt is the question?
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
100% this. But that Claude ↔ Claude ↝Claude ↔ Claude diagram feels like:
static.klipy.com
Matrix: Clones All Around Me
Alt: Scene from the Matrix series of movies, of dozens of identical clones in a business suits with sunglasses arrayed in rows, look at each other and wordlessly start dispersing probably to go build another data center
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
Oh! You're absolutely right. I just saw the first two results, and assumed that fixed it. This is terrible.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
`+drisl +perl` works for me: www.google.com/search?q=%2B... It shows valid results but still wants to suggest I might want to try one of the variants
google.com
Google Search
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no. @joles.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
applying for jobs again
screenshot from an online job application form. the question reads "Can you describe specific ways you have integrated AI tools into your development workflow? Please include any custom setups, automations, or use cases beyond single prompt usage" (a red asterisk indicates that this is a required question).

an answer has been typed in the textbox below the question:

"there is a monster in the forest and it speaks with a thousand voices. it will answer any question you pose it, it will offer insight to any idea. it will help you, it will thank you, it will never bid you leave. it will even tell you of the darkest arts, if you know precisely how to ask.

it feels no joy and no sorrow, it knows no right and no wrong. it knows not truth from lie, though it speaks them all the same.
 
it offers its services freely to any passerby, and many will tell you they find great value in its conversation. “you simply must visit the monster—i always just ask the monster.”

there are those who know these forests well; they will tell you that freely offered doesn’t mean it has no price

for when the next traveler passes by, the monster speaks with a thousand and one voices. and when you dream you see the monster; the monster wears your face."
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
I always figured that this trend periodically re-emerges in art? Found the tvtropes article: tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwik...
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Courtney Milan @courtneymilan.com · 29/04/2026
This is both evil and boring.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
As horrible a moral dumpster fire everything else about this is, I'm truly terrified of the complete societal collapse this is setting us up for where the worst people sink deeper and deeper into delirious self aggrandizing fantasy until they they're no longer able to function in the real world.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Though there are some juicy letters from a corn flour supplier with detailed instructions to mill owners, on how to mix it with wheat flour so no one will know.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
No direct quotes from sellers unfortunately, but reading between the lines their excuses seem to have been: - Actually corn is very good for you and you should be grateful - Everyone else is doing it so my mill can't survive unless I start doing it too - Even experts can't tell, so quit whining
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
This entire report on the adulteration of wheat (by cutting it with corn flour) by the department of agriculture presented to the US House committee on ways and means is surprisingly more engrossing reading than I'd ever have imagined possible. books.google.ca/books?id=Ij9...
books.google.ca
Adulterated Flour
Includes H. Doc. 55-309, Feb. 16, 1898 (p. 3-44).
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
media.tenor.com
a man with a cowboy hat and mustache is asking do you have to use so many cuss words
Alt: A man with a cowboy hat and mustache is asking "do you have to use so many cuss words" [Scene from The Big Lebowski]
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Ben Collins @bencollins.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Best ONN in months at least.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
If I had a penny for every book titled "The Anomaly" that I've added to my TBR this week I'd have 2 pence, which is not much but still more than I'd have expected. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ano...
en.wikipedia.org
The Anomaly (novel) - Wikipedia
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Aiyana White @aiyanaewhite.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
I do not want to create an account or open a subscription I just want to buy a thing and never hear from you again why is this so hard.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Dude has range! They're all bangers youtu.be/iQVsVNPkPmE?...
youtu.be
Mr. Cardamom - Nani (starring Madhur Jaffrey)
YouTube video by Mr. Cardamom
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Adam Conover @adamconover.net · 18/04/2026
I don't recall any previous transformative technologies that had to be sold to the public so hard. No one in 1999 was going, "Guys. Cell phone? It's coming, whether we like it or not. I think it's important, FOR WOMEN ESPECIALLY, to learn about cell phone. So that we're not left behind!!"
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Emma Monk @monkemma.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Was this GP struck off just because he asked a Muslim woman to remove her veil? How likely does that sound? 🤷‍♀️ Did he actually ask her to remove her veil 'because he was struggling to understand her?' Let's take a look at what really happened based on the tribunal reports... 🧵 1/25
GB News headline:
GP who asked Muslim woman to remove her veil 'because he was struggling to understand her' is struck off.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
The bosses are pissed, about charging 100k for this and demand an itemized bill. So she sends it: Toggling a switch: $2 Adjusting the dial: $3 Knowing which switch and dial to adjust: $99,995
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Reminds me of the old engineering joke about the recently fired engineer called back to the powerplant to fix an impending disaster. She asks for a $100,000 to fix it and they agree because no one knows what to do. She walks in and flips a switch and turns a dial and everything's back to normal.
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
C'mon I'm sure they'll fix the disruptino in no time and don't blame AI. We all know correlatino isn't causatino
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Shanth @towardstengen.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Duck typing. Programming languages have "types" for variables such as string (text), integer etc, but some modern languages allow you to assign any value to a variable and the compiler decides what type it is based on ... "if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it is a duck"
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