Stay Determined

clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right

here i am

Ahhh, there’s the obvious conclusion.

If we can de-extinct* species, surely there’s no point in worrying about endangered species anymore! We can bring them back anytime!

*depending on your definition of de-extinction.

And remember: they arent actually ignorant of anything here. Its not that they falsely think species can be brought back.

Its that they already don't care if most life on earth went extinct, but they know the general public and many fellow politicians might feel differently. They hope this misconception will trick people into letting them do as they please.

Ive been to this art installation when it was in Seattle it was made by an indigenous artist if I remember correctly it has small patches of astroturf in front of a black and white American flag with a sign that invites people “kneel and join in the screams of the American national anthem”

Please tag me if you can find it!

This piece is called Neon American Anthem bu indigenous artist Nicholas Galanin “to mourn the loss of lives, freedoms, and safety for people and lands subjected to American violence, and to protest continuing oppression.”

Text below the line to make it easier to read!

My car is getting serviced and this auto shop has a shop dog and he's ridiculous. Look at this guy. This is a grown ass man.

On some real shit tho

If anyone, at all, can match even a 10th of my donation, I'd consider it a massive christmas gift.

Please, help my friend Mohammed. His family is cold, and hungry.

It would mean a great deal to me.

You can find his fundraiser here,

And you can see that it's been vetted by 90-Ghost here.

We're getting on with the year, and Mohammed's family is still in need.

Please, consider reblogging at least.

"Two researchers in the US and Australia have discovered important mechanisms that prevent B cells from attacking the body’s own tissues in autoimmune diseases like arthritis, lupus, and multiple sclerosis—and in the process have won a prestigious prize.

Normally, the body’s immune system protects us from viruses, bacteria, and foreign substances. However, in autoimmune diseases, the immune system starts attacking tissues in the body instead.

Researchers had long tried to discover the cause of autoimmune diseases. But, Christopher Goodnow and David Nemazee, independently of each other, adopted a new approach.

They asked why we do not all develop these diseases. Their focus was on B cells which, together with white blood cells and T cells, are the building blocks of our complex immune system.

“They have given us a new and detailed understanding of the mechanisms that normally prevent faulty B cells from attacking tissues in the body, explaining why most of us are not affected by autoimmune diseases,” says Olle Kämpe, member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and chair of the Crafoord Prize committee that awarded the pair 6 million Swedish kronor ($600,000).

Neutralize B cells

In recent years, physicians have started to experiment by using existing drugs to neutralize B cells for patients with severe autoimmune diseases, including lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis, which has proven to be very effective at improving their quality of life.

Thanks to this year’s Crafoord Prize Laureates, we have gained fundamental new knowledge about what is happening in the immune system during autoimmune disease attacks.

“This also paves the way for development of new forms of therapies that eventually can cure these diseases—or might prevent them in the future,” said one professor of clinical immunology at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences...

More details from the video, since the article glosses over the particulars:

"The laureates discovered what is now called B cell tolerance.

When B cells develop in the bone marrow, not all of them are perfect. To remove the faulty ones, a mechanism starts, in which defective cells are programmed to destroy themself through apoptosis.

The laureates discovered two new mechanisms that are used if some of the bad cells are left. Re-editing, where the immune system alters the combination of receptors, and anergy, that silences B cells with self-reactive receptors.

The laureates were able to demonstrate that these mechanisms sometimes fail. This means that faulty B cells can cause an attack on the body's own tissues – leading to autoimmune diseases.

Thanks to the laureate’s discoveries, doctors like Anders Bengtsson soon felt able to start treating patients with lupus, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and many other autoimmune diseases, with medicines that eradicated B cells.

Anders Bengtsson: "I'm very happy that B cells has gotten so much attention because of the laureates. I have seen my patients getting so much better and getting a better life."

Autoimmune patient: "Today, I feel very good. I really have hope in the research that it will revolutionise things and perhaps even cure it all. That’s what I want, hope for, and believe in.""

-Article via Good News Network, April 6, 2025. Video via The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, January 29, 2025.

current state of the US: having a tally going for every time I call my human services caseworker/his supervisor and they don’t pick up 😔

(edited 4/10/25) HI ALL so, related again - due to some astronomical bad luck, I broke my collarbone and am out of work for the next month. T_T

before break is on the left, fractured on the right:

illustration work is my only income so this puts me in a tough spot. I'm most well known for my celestial prints and the following image:

I’m still donating proceeds from the above to charity, but I have medical expenses and am losing savings until I can support myself through commissions.

in the meantime, I'm raising funds via my Ko-fi HERE to cover the ER visit for my shoulder. print sales are always appreciated, but the money takes 2-3 months to clear for withdrawal, so ko-fi is preferred

hospital fund is currently at $118 / $700

thank you all for bearing with me as I get through this 🙏 it still suckeths out here but any support/boosts helps immensely

Just in time for Valentine’s Day... 💔 

Ready to break up with Google?

So are we!

We’ve rounded up a bunch of privacy-centric alternatives for everything Google.

Check out the full list over on the blog!

- The Ellipsus Team xo

Fun fact, on top of being staunchly against genAI, ellipsus literally has an Export To AO3 button. I do the majority of my writing in LibreOffice, but I've been moving all my GDocs over to ellipsus for a bit and I really love the interface. If you're looking for an alternative to GDocs, this is The One.

i love the phrase "which could mean nothing" i think its my favorite thing to come out of the internet ever i love saying it. it could mean nothing but we all know better. we know the truth.

excuse me, no I wasn't???

congratulations to today’s lucky 10000

Sonic '06 karate chop man saga

Fresh (turian) kicks!