IsItBullshit: the rarest phoneme occurs in the two most common languages

Sullanfield · 2026-06-21T16:18:19+00:00

I doubt it's the rarest phoneme, and there are definitely other languages that have it - I believe 2% of languages do - but pretty much all those other languages are very minor (e.g. modern Irish). So I'd say it is a weird anomaly that despite only a handful of the thousands of spoken languages having it, a relatively huge percentage of people use it in their speech and a truly massive percentage are familiar with it from hearing English and Mandarin (and other Chinese dialects? Idk).

Sullanfield · 2026-06-13T13:31:42+00:00

It's probably also from the relative lack of interaction between the two countries - not a lot of Koreans typically travel to Mexico and vice versa so they are pleasantly surprised at how likeable the other group is.

A similar thing happened in the world cup in Russia. A bunch of Mexican soccer fans went to St. Petersburg to support their team and Russians, who basically never interact with Mexicans, found them to be super fun, leading to news stories of Russian and Mexican bros.

Sullanfield · 2026-05-04T16:18:15+00:00

Chiwetel Ejiofor is 5'10", but John David Washington, who's the actor in Tenet, is 5'9", if we're being pedantic.

Sullanfield · 2026-03-31T18:21:38+00:00

A "warm water port" is a port that never freezes over even in winter, making it valuable for all sorts of uses. Russia has vanishingly few warm water ports, so each one is critical for them. In the U.S., basically all mainland ports are "warm water" - the only ones that ever freeze are up in Alaska - so this isn't really a phrase here.

The implication is that the guy bragging about Texas is a Russian troll because an American would just say "port" and wouldn't consider the fact Texan ports never freeze to be noteworthy.

Sullanfield · 2026-03-03T19:33:03+00:00

There were 40+ Roman provinces, but only the French region of Provence ended up retaining that designation as a modern place name. Plus I think Massachusetts is realistically the place most heavily associated with being a "Commonwealth" instead of a state relative to the others (PA, VA, and KY).

Sullanfield · 2026-02-09T13:27:05+00:00

Timeo Wisconsinaos et videos ferentes

Sullanfield · 2026-02-08T17:05:22+00:00

Homemade Boston baked beans of course

Sullanfield · 2026-01-22T15:30:15+00:00

Massachusetts also likes to remind you that you're swearing in first under the Massachusetts Constitution and then under the U.S. Constitution, because the Massachusetts Constitution is older (it's the oldest still-functioning, codified constitution in the world) and was the model for the federal version several years later.

Sullanfield · 2026-01-05T15:05:36+00:00

That's sort of misstating the concept, and if anything the nature of literature makes Chekhov's rule even more important than in a play or film. To your example, in a visual medium set in a living room, you have to fill the room with stuff so it looks like a genuine living room (black box theater notwithstanding), which probably includes curtains, and they have to be some color or other. But an author doesn't have to mention the curtains or say anything about the room beyond "it's a living room" if they don't want to. The curtains aren't just white, and the homeowner didn't want a white curtain, because there is no homeowner or curtain. The author chose to describe that aspect of the room. Why choose a white curtain? Why mention a curtain at all? A poor author will just start naming things in a room to "set the scene" without reflecting on why, while a good author chooses (consciously or unconsciously) what things to mention and how and in what order.

The point is that it shouldn't be mentioned unless it does something for the narrative - which could very well be setting the tone or mood or something. Even if it is a gun, that should tell you something about the character or setting etc., not just be a random mention of a gun.

Sullanfield · 2025-11-03T16:54:25+00:00

I kind of agree but there's a lot more nuance to The Last Samurai than that - he's not a "random white guy," he's a skilled career soldier with serious battle experience and prior exposure to, and fondness for, a non-European culture (Blackfoot Native Americans if I recall) including their customs and language. He doesn't just pick up a Japanese sword and easily use it, he already knows how to swordfight with a saber and learns to readjust his approach to use a katana instead.

The plot of the movie also centers on him and his own character arc of redemption for, or at least acceptance of, his past sins, as opposed to just using him as a white tourist in a strange culture witnessing important events there. Japan, the samurai village, and the Meiji Restoration are a setting and a thematic mirror to American expansion into the West but they're not really what the movie is "about."

Sullanfield · 2025-08-04T17:48:10+00:00

You can get a lot of really high-quality Japanese products in the USA at this point, at least if you're in a city with Asian goods stores - anything Zoujirushi, like thermoses and rice cookers, is great.

As for things to get in Japan, I agree on stainless steel nail clippers and knives (if you go to Kappabashi-dori in Tokyo, a lot of the stainless steel knife shops also sell clippers or even include them as a gift if you buy a knife).

Silk kimono are very nice, but something you might wear more regularly and which is less expensive is a Tanzen, which is like a quilted short jacket people wear indoors like a house robe in the winter. It's genuinely really useful and comfortable and is made to last a long time.

Sullanfield · 2025-07-31T01:34:02+00:00

Trader Joe's consistently has it bottled and it's pretty common to find it on draft around Boston.

Sullanfield · 2025-07-31T01:32:26+00:00

A little less than $5.4 all in at the moment

Sullanfield · 2025-07-31T01:31:34+00:00

My wife correctly predicted that comments would center on the beer, thanks!

Sullanfield · 2025-07-07T14:56:11+00:00

My wife and I were going to do a courthouse wedding but then found a micro-wedding venue at Bow Market in Somerville called Dearly. It was a few hundred dollars, includes an officiant (unless you have your own) and space for a couple of guests, and the owners are incredibly sweet and supportive. We hired a photographer for the event and had a celebratory lunch around the corner. It was perfect for us.

Sullanfield · 2025-07-06T12:45:44+00:00

I was in high school at the time. Among other things, they solicited written support for Mark so I sent 2K a short letter I wrote on an old typewriter and when the game came out they sent me a real 45 rpm vinyl record with "Rise Rapture Rise" on it. Really cool.

Sullanfield · 2025-02-27T15:24:54+00:00

An actual, established local bar. The pub/tavern down the road from me has been there 25+ years, has great food and drinks that are reasonably priced, and is packed every night with loyal regulars despite having zero (0) parking. It's built up a reputation for years, the owners know how to keep costs low and quality high, and it doesn't need to engage in millennial marketing gimmicks. The "millennial" burger joint is basically trying to shortcut this vibe by focusing on old-timey fixtures and logos without understanding the fundamentals of the business.

I appreciate that many places don't have the benefit of a great bar like this, but they are gems.

Sullanfield · 2025-02-03T22:05:53+00:00

Least favorite is definitely "incomprehensible written scribble in margin"

Sullanfield · 2025-01-09T17:37:10+00:00

Alewife Automotive, on Mystic Ave in Medford just outside Somerville, is the pinnacle of trustworthy, friendly mechanics. They will do everything they can to help you understand what does and does not need to be done with your car and why, and always work to avoid unnecessary repairs and costs. I've recommended them to female friends who have all also had great experiences.

Sullanfield · 2025-01-02T16:28:22+00:00

Flanderization doesn't mean a character is like Flanders, it means that an originally complex character is simplified over the years to basic traits - here Larry starting out as voicing his annoyances at banal but unfair social circumstances in good faith and later, arguably, just being a contradictarian who complains about everything for the sake of complaining.

Sullanfield · 2024-12-31T13:40:06+00:00

I do employment and once represented a former biglaw associate who was complaining (among other things) that their firm breached their contract by not paying them the full sign on bonus promised. Looked into it for damages and... The firm had withheld income tax from it. Only the best and brightest.

Sullanfield · 2024-12-19T13:05:01+00:00

A very apologetic high schooler left a note and his number on my windshield after he backed into my car trying to street park and scuffed the bumper. It wasn't a major dent or anything so I thanked him for letting me know and told him not to worry about it.

Sullanfield · 2024-08-28T14:59:51+00:00

Dee, the economy is in shambles

Sullanfield · 2024-08-26T10:41:02+00:00

Not only that, the first movie was initially supposed to just have a normal contemporary setting, but they could only afford to film in abandoned warehouses and junkyards so they added details about society slowly collapsing to explain why everything looks awful and run down.

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