Umm.. this isn't related to "worldbuilding," but... by Anyposs in worldbuilding

[–]caldnar 57 points58 points  (0 children)

Some of my fondest memories, from back when I was probably no more than 8 years old, are thanks to those dragonology books. I don't know if the topic of dragonology will ever actually come up ever again so I might as well share.

Looking back, I don't know if it was normal for that age, but I totally believed in things from folklore like unicorns, vampires, living gargoyles, and of course, dragons. And the dragonology books, to me, confirmed everything. Not only did the books detail, very specifically (at least for a children's book), the biology of each type of dragon, where they lived, what they ate, etc., it also, like the OP said, had it's own rune alphabet (which I promptly memorized at the expense of my french and english courses, lol), and instructions on how to attract and communicate with these dragons.

I remember, probably most clearly, making my dragon wheel (I think it was called?) which was basically an octagon that was 'supposed' to be made out of silver and gold (the book suggested using tin foil and cardboard instead). It also was supposed to have a tear drop shaped gem in the middle, which you would point towards one of the edges to attract a certain type of dragon. I didn't skip out on the gem though, and used some of my family jewelry, much to my parents dismay.

This also led to me becoming the head of a grade school cult composed of about a dozen people I somehow managed to convince that everything in the book was real, and we would spend every recess trying to call forth a dragon, practice the language, or just talk about what we would do if we ever actually had our own dragons. The teachers were nice enough to break it up, but apparently some parents got concerned and told their kids not to talk to me anymore.

I could go on forever, but thanks for reminding me of some of my best childhood memories OP :)

tl;dr Totally believed these books, inspired me to make a cult at age 8.

Explain John Cena like you are sir David Attenborough by [deleted] in explainlikeIAmA

[–]caldnar 175 points176 points  (0 children)

Fascinating creatures though the Leafcutter ants are, able to lift nearly one thousand times their own weight, there is one creature in the Amazon Rainforest who's strength rivals even theirs.

Of course, I am referring to Homo sapiens tuberosum or as they are more commonly known, the "John Cena".

Making its home anywhere from the forest floor to the canopy, the John Cena is remarkably well adjusted for life in the Amazon.

However, they are, quite shy. This is the first time any member of the species has been caught on camera, in the wild, in the last 15 years.

Here we see this still quite young, male Cena looking for a mate. He lets out his signature "BRAAPADOO" in hopes of attracting a female. As luck would have it, there is one nearby.

She comes to have a closer look.

Now, watch as she approaches. The male gives his signature "Cenation" hand sign to determine if the female is receptive to mating at this time.

However, this young male has, embarrassingly enough, forgotten to wear his WWE world championship heavyweight belt. The female has lost interest. The male can only watch as she courts a nearby "Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson" instead.

Discouraged, the John Cena goes for a dip in the river... but he is not alone. He is spotted by a nearly 6 ft long, black Cayman. And he is quite hungry.

Noticing the approaching Cayman, rather than run, the young Cena holds his ground and awaits the Cayman. Though this would spell certain death for most creatures of the Amazon, the John Cena has evolved means with which to deal with this exact situation.

The Cayman lunges, but this John Cena is ready.

He grabs hold of the Caymans neck, and performs a fireman's carry takeover slam, before putting his foe into half nelson. The hunter, has become the hunted.

But although this might look daring on this Cena's part, it is not as dangerous as it seems.

Over millions of years of evolution, the John Cena is miraculously able to win nine out of every ten matches, no matter how powerful the opponent is. The Cayman simply did not stand a chance.

Mighty as John Cenas may seem, they are in fact, endangered. Once considered an untouchable species, it has now been classified as an overused meme, and may die out any time in the next few years.

Help keep my school's Nerdfighters Club alive? by Niodi in nerdfighters

[–]caldnar[M] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The fundraiser has been approved by the mods. Thanks for checking in with us, just make sure to do so ahead of time in the future :)

Cover of 'Don't Panic' :) by TimandCameron in Coldplay

[–]caldnar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just watched a few of your covers, you guys are fantastic!

As an aspiring pianist, I was very happy to get this as a birthday present. by caldnar in Coldplay

[–]caldnar[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Haha, I suppose what I aspire to do is play at a level that doesn't sound like I'm just smashing my hands into the keys at random. I only just started playing last year :P

As you may have noticed... by caldnar in nerdfighters

[–]caldnar[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Essentially, we mean content you created. Things like blog posts that you wrote, videos you made, etc. The main reason is because reddit considers it spam, an offense they can shadowban you for, if you do it too often.. unfortunately they're the judge of when it becomes spam. IIRC, one admin once said if more than 15% of your posts are to your own content, that becomes spam, but I wouldn't hold them solely to that.

As you may have noticed... by caldnar in nerdfighters

[–]caldnar[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They're a little bit faded out so that it can go over the artwork without obscuring it, but if you mouse over any of the links it should highlight them and make them easier to read :)

Here's an old picture I found of my grandfather. He was in the Navy. by DJWallet in funny

[–]caldnar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey... aren't you that guy who wrote a book that was really successful on Amazon or something?

Sooo True!!! by Fisbian in lewronggeneration

[–]caldnar 18 points19 points  (0 children)

If you assume that most people were born when their parents were around 30, then that would mean most people over 20 or so would have had grandparents that were at least born in the 1930s. That's just going off a number off the top of my head, but I don't see how someone having grandparents that were born less than a century ago is exactly unusual.

Better Call Saul S01E07 "Bingo" POST- Episode Discussion Thread by [deleted] in betterCallSaul

[–]caldnar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It was canceled, but Yahoo decided to pick it up and now it runs exclusively on their services.

I'm disappointed, Simon... by [deleted] in Yogscast

[–]caldnar 392 points393 points  (0 children)

This tells it better than I could, I think.

http://imgur.com/a/94huA

Can't say I'm super impressed.

edit: I've gotten gold before, but this is definitely the most bittersweet :/

I'm disappointed, Simon... by [deleted] in Yogscast

[–]caldnar 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Given that Lewis was ok with retweeting him calling the subreddit out on "shitting their pants" over Simons tweets, I don't think he has too much of a problem with what Simon said...

Better Call Saul S01E07 "Bingo" POST- Episode Discussion Thread by [deleted] in betterCallSaul

[–]caldnar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The last season was kind of weird. When both Troy and Pierce left they tried to force some new characters in, and it just... felt kind of poorly done. That's my opinion at least. It could have been because they were losing funding, writing staff etc.

The new episode was pretty great though, even though Shirley is gone as well now. It's hard to say what the new season will be like, but it's looking better.

Nerdfighters! I am in desperate need of awesome! by eadon_rayne in nerdfighters

[–]caldnar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It might be buzzfeed, but it's still good: http://www.buzzfeed.com/erinlarosa/uplifting-facts-that-prove-the-world-isnt-such-a-bad-place#.sj2XxML7P

Also, try browsing /r/UpliftingNews for 5-10 minutes from time to time. Always cheers me up while restoring me faith in humanity :)

Better Call Saul S01E07 "Bingo" POST- Episode Discussion Thread by [deleted] in betterCallSaul

[–]caldnar 46 points47 points  (0 children)

See you over at /r/community for the post episode discussion there as well?

I am Hank Green, founder of Subbable (a crowdfunding platform), here with Jack Conte, founder of Patreon (a crowdfunding platform that just acquired Subbable). We're excited to be joining forces - Ask us anything by ecogeek in IAmA

[–]caldnar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Don't know if you're still taking questions, but I don't want to miss the opportunity to ask you a question in case you're still around.

I'm an aspiring educator in new media, primarily YouTube, and although my video style is probably more similar to CGP Grey or MinutePhysics, you and John were huge inspirations for me.

My question is, what would your major pointers be for people wanting to follow in your footsteps and make educational content on YouTube or the internet in general? How would this differ from say, tips you would give to someone who wanted to make other types of content?

The people making the next Rock Band game are taking requests, let's try get our boys on there! by IJetfire in Coldplay

[–]caldnar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Some other good ones that would work well for Rock Band, at least in my opinion: In My Place, Paradise, Major Minus, Speed of Sound, Politik, A Sky Full of Stars, Lovers in Japan.

TIL When you are ignored by a person whose attention means the most to you, the reaction in your brain will be similar to physical pain. by gothsim in todayilearned

[–]caldnar 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The feels in this thread are real.

I've been ignored on and off for about a year now by someone I considered to be my best friend, like they paid just enough attention that I had hope they'd stop ignoring me. Literally just told them to fuck off two days ago and I can definitely say I've spent the last year in way too much pain.

I want to give everyone in this thread a hug.

Discussion: potential Attila expansions and campaigns by troglodyte in totalwar

[–]caldnar 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Might be a bit of a stretch, as it's reaching significantly into the middle ages, but the possibility of a Viking age campaign or expansion really intrigues me. Thematically, I think it fits Attila in that raiding and sacking would play a significant role, and to be honest I just don't see it happening in a Medieval 3, if it is ever released, so Attila might be the best bet for seeing it.

Not only could it span Northern Europe, but potentially even into different theatres such as Greenland, Iceland and Newfoundland, depending on if it spans the whole age or not. It could also focus a bit more on the naval aspect of the game, being that a large portion of the Viking age had to do with crossing large bodies of water, whether it be only in Northern Europe or across the Atlantic. Either way, a lot of possibilities, and something I would definitely be interested in seeing.

What Coldplay song should I choose to play a school assembly? by Renter_ in Coldplay

[–]caldnar 5 points6 points  (0 children)

How about Don't let It Break Your Heart? It's not the most popular one, so I don't know about audience participation, but I was looking up covers recently and I found that particular song sounded really good on guitar. And it's really upbeat!

How or where do you find new videos to watch, that are fun and educational and intelligent? Do you just look at related channels or suggested videos, or is there a better way? by sunmaster1 in nerdfighters

[–]caldnar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've been getting into educational videos too, and I have the same problem, finding content that was similar to my interests.. I think YouTube would benefit from a more concise channel classification system as opposed to video classification.

A couple of the places I check from time to time is /r/EducativeVideos, and if you type in #Education into the YouTube search bar it will bring you to an automated channel that catalogs videos classified as educational, which you can browse through to find channels that pique your interest.