regalstudies

[regalstudies]

Look, I knew five languages by age 19 and now I am learning like 3 more. I work as a language instructor and a consultant. If I can give language learners only one advice, this is it.

STOP LEARNING WORDS ON ITS OWN.

You're doing yourself a disservice by learning lists of "30 words you must know!" "100 most common words!" like it literally means nothing if you cannot use those words in an appropriate context with proper grammar. So what you actually need to do is learn those words via example sentences.

Of course, sentences have more words so you may think you're learning less but you're actually learning the way to use it in context. That's what's important.

Language is about communication, which also means if you want to learn languages, you have to observe how people communicate with each other universally. Native speakers never have a list of words they know and they don't count every single new word they've learned. So why are you doing it to yourself? What native speakers do is listen to the new word, remember the context they're spoken in, and keep using that word in that context. And that's why people go "wait, you can use that word LIKE THAT?" all the time. So you, a language learner, are also allowed to do that. I'm not even saying those word lists are useless but they're the most useful AFTER you've known most of them and are trying to go over them for practice etc. Native speakers do click on those word lists to check out how many words they don't know or to remind themselves of those words or to learn some facts about each word. That should be your goal as well.

Learn sentences. Learn them in context. Do not fall into the "I must know xx amount of words or I'm a failure at language learning" trap perpetuated by bloggers or youtubers or whatever. Have fun with it!

#gen

[regalstudies]

one of the best academic paper titles

#general

[regalstudies]

i have GOT to make a study plan + get back in to routinely studying Japanese, because the amount of very basic vocabulary/kanji I have forgotten is embarrassing

#leo speaks

[regalstudies]

3語の間違えやすい動詞

飽きる（あきる） = to get tired of, bored of

呆れる（あきれる） = to be amazed; to be shocked

諦める（あきらめる） = to give up

#vocab #queue

[regalstudies]

How to start reading books in Japanese

This is a great blog on how to start reading books in Japanese. Even if you already read in Japanese, it has some interesting things to think about in the way you approach Japanese books.

#reading #ref #queue

[regalstudies]

Automattic will sign a contract with OpenAI for Midjourney to learn off of Tumblr and Wordpress

Hello! Automattic, Tumblr's parent company, will sign a contract with OpenAI and Midjourney so Midjourney can learn off of Tumblr's and WordPress' art and other user data. :) (The full text of this article is copy/pasted in the cut below). You can opt out! but I truly cannot imagine a more idiotic or out of touch decision on the part of Tumblr's CEO.

First thing's first: When/if this goes live, opt out of this immediately. Do this even if you're not an artist. The more people opt out, the less valuable this contract is to Midjourney. in an ideal world, literally all of the active users would opt out, but if we can even get to 50% that's pretty delicious.

Second: Contact Tumblr Support. It's vital that you do this politely. Tumblr staff is not responsible for this decision and the point of doing this is to show the userbase's unwillingness to be involved in this, not harangue Tumblr staff. (Seriously, stop haranguing Tumblr staff). Here's a script:

Hi, I'm writing in to express my disappointment in Automattic's pending contract with OpenAI to sell user data. Midjourney is already embroiled in copyright lawsuits, and it is not possible to train it without compromising copyright, including violating the IP of artists on this site. I strongly protest this contract and will opt out if it goes live. Depending on the privacy terms around what user data is sold to OpenAI and why, it is possible I will leave the platform entirely. Thank you for your time.

Third: Download Glaze and start poisoning them prompts, my friends

Fourth: Stare into the middle distance for a second with me because holy fucking shit? How stupid can one decision be?

Tumblr and Wordpress are preparing to sell user data to Midjourney and OpenAI, according to a source with internal knowledge about the deals and internal documentation referring to the deals. 

The exact types of data from each platform going to each company are not spelled out in documentation we’ve reviewed, but internal communications reviewed by 404 Media make clear that deals between Automattic, the platforms’ parent company, and OpenAI and Midjourney are imminent.

The internal documentation details a messy and controversial process within Tumblr itself. One internal post made by Cyle Gage, a product manager at Tumblr, states that a query made to prepare data for OpenAI and Midjourney compiled a huge number of user posts that it wasn’t supposed to. It is not clear from Gage’s post whether this data has already been sent to OpenAI and Midjourney, or whether Gage was detailing a process for scrubbing the data before it was to be sent. 

Gage wrote:

“the way the data was queried for the initial data dump to Midjourney/OpenAI means we compiled a list of all tumblr’s public post content between 2014 and 2023, but also unfortunately it included, and should not have included:

private posts on public blogs

posts on deleted or suspended blogs

unanswered asks (normally these are not public until they’re answered)

private answers (these only show up to the receiver and are not public)

posts that are marked ‘explicit’ / NSFW / ‘mature’ by our more modern standards (this may not be a big deal, I don’t know)

content from premium partner blogs (special brand blogs like Apple’s former music blog, for example, who spent money with us on an ad campaign) that may have creative that doesn’t belong to us, and we don’t have the rights to share with this-parties; this one is kinda unknown to me, what deals are in place historically and what they should prevent us from doing.”

Gage’s post makes clear that engineers are working on compiling a list of post IDs that should not have been included, and that password-protected posts, DMs, and media flagged as CSAM and other community guidelines violations were not included.

Automattic plans to launch a new setting on Wednesday that will allow users to opt-out of data sharing with third parties, including AI companies, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, and internal documents. A new FAQ section we reviewed is titled “What happens when you opt out?” states that “If you opt out from the start, we will block crawlers from accessing your content by adding your site on a disallowed list. If you change your mind later, we also plan to update any partners about people who newly opt-out and ask that their content be removed from past sources and future training.” 

404 Media has asked Automattic how it accidentally compiled data that it shouldn’t share, and whether any of that content was shared with OpenAI, but did not immediately hear back from the company. 404 Media asked Automattic about an imminent deal with Midjourney last week but did not hear back then, either.

Another internal document shows that, on February 23, an employee asked in a staff-only thread, “Do we have assurances that if a user opts out of their data being shared with third parties that our existing data partners will be notified of such a change and remove their data?”

Andrew Spittle, Automattic’s head of AI replied: “We will notify existing partners on a regular basis about anyone who's opted out since the last time we provided a list. I want this to be an ongoing process where we regularly advocate for past content to be excluded based on current preferences. We will ask that content be deleted and removed from any future training runs. I believe partners will honor this based on our conversations with them to this point. I don't think they gain much overall by retaining it.” Automattic did not respond to a question from 404 Media about whether it could guarantee that people who opt out will have their data deleted retroactively.

News about a deal between Tumblr and Midjourney has been rumored and speculated about on Tumblr for the last week. Someone claiming to be a former Tumblr employee announced in a Tumblr blog post that the platform was working on a deal with Midjourney, and the rumor made it onto Blind, an app for verified employees of companies to anonymously discuss their jobs. 404 Media has seen the Blind posts, in which what seems like an Automattic employee says, “I'm not sure why some of you are getting worked up or worried about this. It's totally legal, and sharing it publicly is perfectly fine since it's right there in the terms & conditions. So, go ahead and spread the word as much as you can with your friends and tech journalists, it's totally fine.”

Separately, 404 Media viewed a public, now-deleted post by Gage, the product manager, where he said that he was deleting all of his images off of Tumblr, and would be putting them on his personal website. A still-live post says, “i've deleted my photography from tumblr and will be moving it slowly but surely over to cylegage.com, which i'm building into a photography portfolio that i can control end-to-end.” At one point last week, his personal website had a specific note stating that he did not consent to AI scraping of his images. Gage’s original post has been deleted, and his website is now a blank page that just reads “Cyle.” Gage did not respond to a request for comment from 404 Media. 

Several online platforms have made similar deals with AI companies recently, including Reddit, which entered into an AI content licensing deal with Google and said in its SEC filing last week that it’s “in the early stages of monetizing [its] user base” by training AI on users’ posts. Last year, Shutterstock signed a six year deal with OpenAI to provide training data.

OpenAI and Midjourney did not respond to requests for comment. 

[regalstudies]

Please be aware that the "opt-out" choice is just a way to try to appease people. But Tumblr has not been transparent about when has data been sold and shared with AI companies, and there are sources that confirm that data has already been shared before the toggle was even provided to users.

Also, it seems to include data they should not have been able to give under any circumstance, including that of deactivated blogs, private messages and conversations, stuff from private blogs, and so on.

Do not believe that "AI companies will honor the "opt-out request retroactively". Once they've got their hands on your data (and they have), they won't be "honoring" an opt-out option retroactively. There is no way to confirm or deny what data do they have: The fact they are completely opaque on what do they currently "own" and have, means that they can do whatever they want with it. How can you prove they have your data if they don't give everyone free access to see what they've stolen already?

So, yeah, opt out of data sharing, but be aware that this isn't stopping anyone from taking your data. They already have been taking it, before you were given that option. Go and go to Tumblr's Suppport and leave your Feedback on this (politely, but firmly- not everyone in the company is responsible for this.)

Finally: Opt out is not good under any circumstance. Deactivated people can't opt out. People who have lost their passwords can't opt out. People who can't access internet or computers can't opt out. People who had their content reposted can't opt out. Dead people can't opt out. When DeviantArt released their AI image generator, saying that it wasn't trained on people who didn't consent to it, it was proven it could easily replicate the styles of people who had passed away, as seen here. So, yeah. AI companies cannot be trusted to have any sort of respect for people's data and content, because this entire thing is just a data laundering scheme.

Please do reblog for awareness.

[regalstudies]

For the dishware enthusiasts, one way to keep hot sake hot! This bottle has two parts: the top insert, where the sake goes, and the bottom receptacle, which is filled with hot water. The water keeps the sake hot between pours. Best thing! Best thing in the world. I wish I had one for coffee.

The name, as far as I can tell, is just 熱燗器 [atsukan-ki], literally 'hot sake vessel,' or sometimes 保温器 [ho-on-ki], 'keep warm vessel' (which can also refer to hotcases and catering/buffet dishes).

#culture #oh this is very useful!

[regalstudies]

Nothing is more devastating than this. The UN World Food Program has officially suspended aid delivery to northern Gaza, citing violence and lack of safety as major reasons the aid trucks aren’t getting through. Israeli officers are liberally shooting at Palestinians who try to approach the trucks in hopes of getting even the smallest morsels of food, despite the fact that Israel has allowed only one crossing for the already woefully low numbers of aid they’re permitting entry. Reportedly this number has fallen from 140 a day in January to just 60 a day this month, and now 16% of all Gazan children under 2 are “acutely malnourished.” Meanwhile, the US vetoes a call for a ceasefire for the third fucking time. It’s so inhumane in its cruelty it’s actually shocking to see it being allowed to go on and on, and on an international level no less.

[regalstudies]

BEIT HANUN, GAZA, PALESTINE - 2015/02/27

Photo by Ahmed Hjazy/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

[regalstudies]

The thought of having to navigate this is very stressful to me

#僕 gang right here hehe

[regalstudies]

Does anyone have any recommendations for books on translation/translation theory? (Can be written in English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, or German. Though I'm most comfortable navigating English and Japanese)

[regalstudies]

regarding the genocide song contest:

various past eurovision contestants are campaigning for the removal of israel and some national finalists are now choosing to boycott. olly alexander, who will rep the uk, condemned the palestinian genocide and was subsequently attacked by israeli media (in a blatant rule violation the ebu did nothing about)

slovenian broadcaster rtvslo is purportedly trying to negotiate the removal of israel

1000 artists from host country sweden are preparing to send an open letter to the ebu to ban israel; the swedish left wing has also called for israel to be removed immediately

iceland is officially threatening to boycott eurovision pending the removal of israel

word on the street is that if iceland does compete, it will send palestinian artist bashar murad who is openly anti-israel and has collabed with previous icelandic reps hatari, aka the guys who did this back in 2019

iceland is now leading in the odds whereas israel has been steadily dropping, suggesting that the bookies are aware israel is becoming increasingly unpopular

lastly, in a move so ridiculous i'm beginning to suspect eurovision is a figment of our collective imagination, israel is seemingly gearing up to enter eden golan, a moscow-based russian singer. while russia is still banned for terrorism.

if you're european: please contact your participating broadcaster and demand for the removal of israel, or try to contact your nation's selected artist to put pressure on the broadcaster. if you're swedish, please try contacting svt or authorities with security concerns regarding the inclusion of israel. if israel does enter eden golan, complain about her selection and ties to russia. and absolutely DO NOT vote on, watch or promote this show if israel does end up competing.

#i know the eurovision has always been popular on tumblr #and i see a lot of langblrs enjoying it year after year #but please...recognise their repeated failings on social issues

[regalstudies]

I might not be returning to Japan this year after all, which is absolutely heartbreaking

I was supposed to be going over with a company, but I just straight up can't afford their fees with the changes to my financial situation recently, no matter how much I scrimp and save

I know this doesn't mean I'll *never* get to go back, and I'll *never* get to work there but...it's starting to feel like it :')

#leo speaks #this has been weighing on me so much recently...i still havent told my family because its embarassing haha #i wish i hadnt wasted my time being so scared and anxious when i was a student there...i should have let myself experience more #slight vent

[regalstudies]

[ID: the UNRWA logo and a screenshot of a UNRWA statement with the title, "UNRWA's lifesaving aid may end due to funding suspension". the date is 27 January 2024. the subheading reads, "over 2 million people in Gaza depend on UNRWA for survival as war and displacement continue". the statement is from Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner General. /end ID]

Today, Jan 27, the United States, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, and Switzerland have suspended all funding to UNRWA because Israeli authorities have accused UNRWA workers of allegedly being involved with the Oct 7 attacks on Israel. [UNRWA statement] [Al Jazeera] [Reuters]

From their own website, UNRWA says that they rely on donations--

"UNRWA is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East… UNRWA helps Palestine Refugees achieve their full potential in human development through quality services it provides in education, health care, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance, and emergency assistance. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions."

If you are able, please consider donating to UNRWA. If you live in the USA or Spain, your donation can be claimed for your taxes.

{{LINK TO DONATE}}

You can make a one-time donation or set up a monthly donation. There is also an option for Zakat.

I donated in memory of my Teta (grandmother), who was born in Jerusalem before Israel even existed and was a UNRWA nurse.

[27Jan2024]

[regalstudies]

高知県

#photography

[regalstudies]

why cant kanji just get like... downloaded into my brain

like im just a girl. why must i learn kanji 😞

#reading