I Already Made A Post How Russian Propaganda Works And Why They Spread Specific Discourse.

I already made a post how russian propaganda works and why they spread specific discourse.

Now here's a scheme how they usually operate:

Another way russian trolls work is this:

Create unpolitical group (about kittens, gardening, memes, local properties, etc) -> gain followers who are interested in the topic. Create a stable following of at least 100 people -> slowly start dropping political posts or memes to test the waters. Posts would be rare and far-between, and not particularly polarizing, but a strong enough topic to get a response (likes, comments, etc) -> as engagement in these posts rises (fuelled by a bunch of fake accounts supporting the narrative and creating an illusion of community and common worldview), they increase in numbers, gradually replacing the original intent of the group. This is where some people would leave, but those more easily swayed, loyal members, or those supporting the ideas will remain -> gradually change the tone of the posts from innocently questioning to blatant push narrative and accusations, radicalizing the general view -> finally, as the final form is revealed, those who still remain in the group will be persuaded and might begin sharing some of the posts on their personal pages, further spreading disinformation and propaganda.

How would it look like in terms of, for example, anti-Ukraine propaganda?

1. A cat-owner group is created. It contains articles about cat well-being, maybe some location-specific shelter information to make it look more natural, funny memes, etc - anything that would grab attention and would be boosted by algorithms.

2. As following rises, an article or two about horrible conditions of cats in Ukraine would appear. The headline might even raise some innocent-sounding questions that would encourage reactions and discussions.

3. Gradually cat-unrelated posts about Ukraine will appear, all mildly critical or questioning. Nothing too radical nor openly negative, but enough to plant some seeds of doubt, generate discourse, and thus get further boosted by algorithms.

4. Posts about cats would slowly lose engagement while political posts will slowly replace those about cats in numbers. All done gradually so very few would notice, as they would be busy engaging in discussions.

5. Posts would become more strongly worded against Ukraine. They would feature fake news or deliberately negative information to create an overall illusion that Ukraine = bad.

6. Those who remain after all this would at the very best start questioning if Ukraine really is the victim and good. No praising of russia would be featured - no need. All that's necessary is, at the very least, to make people believe that both sides are equally bad. At worst people would start genuinely supporting russia and attempt to spread that message to their friends and relatives to "open their eyes to truth".

Very simple yet very effective.

Constellations and the Calendar

Did you recently hear that NASA changed the zodiac signs? Nope, we definitely didn’t…

…Here at NASA, we study astronomy, not astrology. We didn’t change any zodiac signs, we just did the math. Here are the details:

First Things First: Astrology is not Astronomy…

Astronomy is the scientific study of everything in outer space. Astronomers and other scientists know that stars many light-years away have no effect on the ordinary activities of humans on Earth.

Astrology, meanwhile, is something else. It’s the belief that the positions of stars and planets can influence human events. It’s not considered a science.

Some curious symbols ring the outside of the Star Finder. These symbols stand for some of the constellations in the zodiac. What is the zodiac and what is special about these constellations?

Imagine a straight line drawn from Earth though the sun and out into space way beyond our solar system where the stars are. Then, picture Earth following its orbit around the sun. This imaginary line would rotate, pointing to different stars throughout one complete trip around the sun – or, one year. All the stars that lie close to the imaginary flat disk swept out by this imaginary line are said to be in the zodiac.

The constellations in the zodiac are simply the constellations that this imaginary straight line points to in its year-long journey.

What are Constellations?

A constellation is group of stars like a dot-to-dot puzzle. If you join the dots—stars, that is—and use lots of imagination, the picture would look like an object, animal, or person. For example, Orion is a group of stars that the Greeks thought looked like a giant hunter with a sword attached to his belt. Other than making a pattern in Earth’s sky, these stars may not be related at all.

Even the closest star is almost unimaginably far away. Because they are so far away, the shapes and positions of the constellations in Earth’s sky change very, very slowly. During one human lifetime, they change hardly at all.

A Long History of Looking to the Stars

The Babylonians lived over 3,000 years ago. They divided the zodiac into 12 equal parts – like cutting a pizza into 12 equal slices. They picked 12 constellations in the zodiac, one for each of the 12 “slices.” So, as Earth orbits the sun, the sun would appear to pass through each of the 12 parts of the zodiac. Since the Babylonians already had a 12-month calendar (based on the phases of the moon), each month got a slice of the zodiac all to itself.

But even according to the Babylonians’ own ancient stories, there were 13 constellations in the zodiac. So they picked one, Ophiuchus, to leave out. Even then, some of the chosen 12 didn’t fit neatly into their assigned slice of the pie and crossed over into the next one.

When the Babylonians first invented the 12 signs of zodiac, a birthday between about July 23 and August 22 meant being born under the constellation Leo. Now, 3,000 years later, the sky has shifted because Earth’s axis (North Pole) doesn’t point in quite the same direction.

The constellations are different sizes and shapes, so the sun spends different lengths of time lined up with each one. The line from Earth through the sun points to Virgo for 45 days, but it points to Scorpius for only 7 days. To make a tidy match with their 12-month calendar, the Babylonians ignored the fact that the sun actually moves through 13 constellations, not 12. Then they assigned each of those 12 constellations equal amounts of time.

So, we didn’t change any zodiac signs…we just did the math.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

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q587p

4 years ago

AU where...

Aang died with the air nomads.

The next two Avatars, from water and earth, live without ever knowing who they are.

Zuko still spoke out at the meeting, he still refused to fight his father in the Agni Kai.

Zuko was banished, and in his search to find the Avatar, earth bends.

He is the Avatar and doesn’t know what to do about it.

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q587p

4 years ago

Loving the idea of earth cryptids/folklore monsters being real only the humans have no idea until after first contact.

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q587p

4 years ago

If someone said "show me the cutest animal I've never seen before", what would you show them?

the pygmy jerboa!

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q587p

1 year ago

Listen. Just listen. NATO phonetic alphabet, except it was made for BG3.

Astarion (sorry not sorry, Absolute) Balduran Ceremorphosis Dragon Emperor Fireball Gale Halsin Illithid Jaheira Karlach Lae'zel Mizora Neil Newbon Netheril Orin Perception Quest Raphael Shadowheart Tav Urge Volo Wyll X ??? I dunno, that's the only word I didn't find a name for in the game. Yurgir Zevlor

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q587p

6 years ago

YouTube.com/fjamie013

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q587p

7 years ago

Happy New 2018 Year!

Happy 2018, all! Delighted to bring out a new print - @davidmackkabuki watercolored @neilhimself’s words for the new year. (I will donate to @CBLDF & to @GaimanFND as well as a tiger rescue or two) http://www.neverwear.net

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q587p

5 years ago