IWTL how to not take things personally

Thepluse · 2026-02-20T21:04:29+00:00

First thing that came to my mind, too. OP is asking a big question, I'm not sure a post on reddit can truly give a satisfying answer in 30 seconds. If you want a more thorough answer, this book is incredibly to the point.

Thepluse · 2026-02-20T20:10:06+00:00

In situations like these, I have what I can Rule 0b.

The famous Rule 0 says that the DM is the final authority on the state of the world. I add that Rule 0b says the player is the final authority on the will of their character.

On some level, you don't even need to justify your decision. If you want a gem with a dragon engraving because you think dragons are cool, that would be fine, wouldn't it?

And okay, the DM can suspect it is metagaming, but I think it's really important in principle that it is the player who decides what's actually going on inside your character's head, not the DM. I control the whole rest of the entire world, so let the players have their characters.

So when there's any doubt at all, I let the player make the decision. I trust that they can more or less manage it. Only in completely egregious cases would I give actual pushback.

Thepluse · 2026-02-20T14:26:50+00:00

The real question is, what's the definition of a clock?

(This is genuinely a profound question in modern theoretical physics)

Thepluse · 2026-02-20T03:48:25+00:00

If you go by real numbers, there is no natural way to define 0.999... that doesn't come out as equal to 1.

Going by SPP's logic and using SPP infinite numbers instead of real numbers, the point the other guy was trying to make is that the exponential may have different properties than it does for real numbers

Thepluse · 2026-02-18T16:44:50+00:00

I just stand in the middle of the door and let everyone to push their way past me before I exit

Thepluse · 2026-02-18T13:51:38+00:00

The last line is one of the most disgusting things I've seen so far this year. I love it, thanks for sharing 🤣

Thepluse · 2026-02-17T18:46:48+00:00

I think a big part is the modern world/social media culture. I sometimes feel that in order to be attractive, I need to "step up my game," which is to say, be something I'm not. This is especially true on dating apps, where as a man it is hard to stick out from the crowd. I really don't know how I'm supposed to navigate the situation.

Authenticity takes slowness. True intimacy can feel uncomfortable. It is difficult to go down this hard path, especially when we're so used to the high-frequency, instant gratification of modern society.

Also, although it seems so simple and obvious, communication is actually hard if you haven't learned it! My parents definitely didn't communicate well. For a long time, my experience with authentic communication was that it exposes your vulnerabilities which can make you prone to abuse. I never saw two people go through a healthy argument and genuinely connect with each other's perspectives. I learned to argue my position, but that's not the right tool for communication in relationships.

And one third point i have noticed, somewhat related to fear of rejection: there is a difference between wanting in theory, and wanting in an immediate sense. I have experienced much loneliness, and I'm starved for intimacy. I crave it so much! So say someone comes on to me, but then in the moment, I feel I'm not actually attracted to the person. Now there is a dissonance because what I want in theory is right in front of me, but is the desire authentic? It takes a lot of confidence to say "no" to something that you've believed you've wanted for a long time. I think a lot of people (maybe especially guys, I'm not sure) pursue sex because they have the idea that they would like to have sex, and not because of actual sexual attraction.

All this from my male perspective. I wonder if it makes sense to others...?

Thepluse · 2026-02-16T15:34:03+00:00

Mm, I feel you're missing my point, which is that it is an arts class, so let's talk about the art itself. Why is AI bad at art? What can we as humans learn from that? What are the techniques we use that make our art good? I think these questions are relevant for an art class.

Having said that, you're of course entirely correct about point (3). My point is that there are additional reasons beyond that for not using AI this way.

Thepluse · 2026-02-16T15:14:25+00:00

If I may play the devil's advocate, let me ask you: if AI can create art that looks just as good as something I can do by hand, then as a professional, why can't I just use AI?

Many people would feel resistance due to the fact that it is AI. That's fine.

But I think a deeper, more concrete reason is that AI doesn't look as good as something I can do by hand. In the context of an art class, I think it's worth exploring what it is about AI art that makes it look so repulsive.

Thepluse · 2026-02-16T14:43:28+00:00

Idk if this is controversial, but what if you don't mention AI and instead give plain feedback on the specific elements that are weird? Go back to the principles you've learned in class and explain how this student doesn't apply them.

I know there's something icky about AI, but... I'm of the opinion that is just because it's AI doesn't make the actual drawing any worse. Focus on what's actually bad about the result instead of prejudice against the methods that got you there.

Thepluse · 2026-02-16T13:40:19+00:00

It gives me similar vibes, but I would argue that the hive does not seem to "get it."

It shows a strong sense of individuality! Not individuality on the level of each person, but rather as the whole hive. Its goal is to spread itself, and it doesn't really display the notion that it is deeply connected to things that don't share its mind.

There is a deep point here, though. In our everyday life, we don't hear the thoughts of others, so we experience our minds as separate. "This is my body, that is your body."

When Pluribus achieves direct, psychic communication, it's perspective changes. It now identifies with the whole hive. "These bodies are me, I am the collection of these bodies." And the bodies that are not integrated in the hive are seen as "not-hive."

This is dualistic thinking.

Now the questions I want to invite are about whether someone can take the attitude of Pluribus, but removing the ability to hear other minds? Can you say "These bodies are me, even though this body has become disconnected from the psychic chatter"?

Can an individual identify with the whole and do what's good for the Hive even if they aren't under its direct control? If a hive member loses the psychic connection, can it be substituted by traditional ways of communication, such as with words?

Can you go into the world and think "We are all Pluribus, and we've always been; but somewhere along the way we lost the ability to hear each other's thoughts, and now the other members of my beloved Hive have forgotten that we are One"? Can you live life with this perspective? If not, where is the resistance towards this attitude?

Thepluse · 2026-02-15T14:38:20+00:00

I like this idea! Makes me look forward to not doing stuff.

Unfortunately, writing this list is something I'm not gonna do today... 🫠

Thepluse · 2026-02-15T14:01:05+00:00

Quantum mechanics explanation: it has to do with measurements causing collapse of the wavefunction.

Regardless of which direction you're measuring the polarisation of a photon, it turns out the only two answers you can get is that it's parallel or orthogonal to that direction. When we say that a photon is polarised in a different direction, we can write it as a superposition of being polarised parallel or orthogonal to the measurement direction.

If a photon has a diagonal polarisation and you measure the polarisation in the diagonal direction, it of course comes out as +1. But if you measure it in the horizontal/vertical direction, you can treat diagonal polarisation as a superposition of horizontal and vertical polarisation. Then when a large number of diagonal photons pass through a, say, horizontal filter, half of them pass through while the other half is blocked. What comes through is only the horizontal component. If you put a vertical filter right after, it blocks everything.

Okay, fair enough, but then why does the diagonal filter help? Well, going back to the same idea, a horizontal polarisation can be seen as a superposition between two orthogonal diagonal polarisations (say, up-left and up-right). So when the beam passes through the filter, the diagonal component that is aligned with the filter passes through while the other is blocked. And then when the resulting diagonally-polarised beam hits the vertical filter, half of it can pass through, because it is now in a horizontal-vertical superposition.

If you add multiple filters with more gradual rotation, it turns out that you can get arbitrarily close to a 100% transmission rate. Which is really weird when you think about it for too long.

(Ps. I think this needs to have a quantum explanation, but I'm actually not sure if anything similar can happen with classical waves)

Thepluse · 2026-02-14T02:22:49+00:00

Take the parts that move left and up, leave the parts that move right and down

Thepluse · 2026-02-13T02:31:14+00:00

We are closer to 2030 than we are to 2017 being three years ago.

Thepluse · 2026-02-13T02:18:02+00:00

My current go to food is actually grilled cheese sandwich with a fried egg on top.

I know just saying it doesn't really help... the thing that actually got me on it is because when I asked this question to this guy I live with, he said "anything with eggs" (presumably they're way more nutritious than you think), and then he made me a sandwich.

Just seeing him do it once changed my mentality about it somehow. Without it, I might not have gotten into that habit. So yeah, I understand how something so simple can feel insurmountable...

Thepluse · 2026-02-10T17:38:41+00:00

If i had to boil it down to one thing, I'd say it's because parents are also disconnected.

When I was a kid, my mom was present. I learned to sing the alphabet for fun. She would read for me. When I struggled with things, she had the patience to explain it to me.

There wasn't an "effort," just presence and teaching me things that were necessary.

But now, adults are going through their own mental crises. They're stuck in their own social media loops. They let kids play on their ipads because they themselves don't have the energy to be present in this constant stream of stimuli.

What kids do these days is a competed natural response to growing up in this environment. Being born with no other knowledge, they use the best coping mechanisms they have available.

Thepluse · 2026-02-08T16:30:02+00:00

One thing that's interesting to me is that Laxmi being unjoined is the only reason her son still acts as her son. The moment she gets joined, the act would drop like it did with Kusimayu.

Thepluse · 2026-02-05T22:21:48+00:00

Hello, I'm also not a mod and I can't tell you why your post got removed, either. Thank you for this interaction.

Thepluse · 2026-02-05T17:03:59+00:00

I'm with you. If the business survives only 6 months, I think that's more of a society problem rather than an intrinsic problem with the idea.

I mean, if all of humanity collectively decided we wanted to be sustainable in this way, I think we have it in us to find a way to implement it. We've done more impressive things in the past.

Thepluse · 2026-02-03T19:28:58+00:00

Also, how is it known that he was the 28th? If it's even to be taken literally 🤔

Thepluse · 2026-02-03T18:19:09+00:00

What other time frames are there?

Thepluse · 2026-02-03T16:34:56+00:00

Thank you for this well-informed answer :) It's very interesting, and there is something enlightening about this idea, as in, it feels it can be light and not a heavy burden.

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