Ragasa Steers Toward China
Sep. 23rd, 2025 05:04 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
earthobservatory_iod_feed
The super typhoon headed for Guangdong province after lashing Taiwan and northern Luzon in the Philippines.
earthobservatory_iod_feed
perfectly salted soup
Sep. 23rd, 2025 08:56 pmwwdn_feedIn every partnership, a division of labor emerges over time that allows each partner to play to their strengths, stay out of each other’s way, and efficiently get shit done together.
In our house, I do most of the cooking, because I genuinely love everything about it … with one very important exception: I always fuck up the salt.
So I’ll do everything in a recipe until the “salt to taste” step. At that point, I summon Anne (usually with my voice, though in my imagination I am using a bat signal that projects the Morton’s girl with the umbrella) and she uses whatever weird magical skill she has to put in exactly the right amount of salt.
A few weeks ago, I was making soup. Anne had to run to the store when I got to the “salt to taste” step, and I would be lying if I told you that I did not panic, hard. I mean, a normal person would be, like, “Oh, I guess I’ll wait until she gets back,” but not me! Bill Junior was a DAREDEVIL! Just like his old man.
“Look on the Internet,” a mysterious voice echoed in my head, “look for ‘how much salt for two quarts of soup’ and math will save you.”
The voices in my head have never lead me astray (well, except for all those times they did), so I did a quick search.
This is where I tell you that this post isn’t about the salt, but I know at least one of you wants to know the answer, so I’ll also tell you that it’s about a teaspoon, which is what I put into my soup, with trembling hands.
Fuck yeah, math! It was perfect.
But that’s not what this is about. This is about an entirely different recipe that I saw a little further down in the search results; it’s about the Martha Stewart recipe for basic chicken soup.
Martha Stewart always makes food in such interesting ways, I was curious to know what her take was on chicken soup.
Oh my god, it’s incredible.
She tells us to buy a whole chicken, cut it up, and use it to make the stock. Then we pull it out of the stock, cut the meat off the bones, and return that meat into the stock we just made.
Quick aside: this is the point in writing this post that yet another voice in my head asserts that this isn’t interesting and I should just delete it. I’m doing my best to push on through, though.
I showed the recipe to Anne when she got home (after I asked her to taste my properly-salted soup — she loved it) and then texted it to our family chat, because Ryan likes to cook as much as I do (I love that I passed that along to him, without even trying). We all agreed that it looked amazing.
Last night was the first opportunity I’ve had to make this recipe and HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS.
It’s so much fun, it’s so satisfying, and the resulting soup was so magnificent, I almost couldn’t believe that I made it.
And yet, I needed to go further. I needed to make some matzo balls.
That’s also something I’d never done before, but I knew it was simple enough. So I made some matzo meal in the food processor, followed a simple recipe, and ended up with something that wasn’t too bad for a Gentile’s first attempt.
I put it all together and …
It was so good. The matzo balls were a little too big, but that’s an easy fix for next time.
Oh, and … it was perfectly salted.
Protect Your Contact Information From Scammers
Sep. 23rd, 2025 04:14 pmao3_news_feed
In the last year, AO3 has seen a rise in "art commission" spambot comments. The bots leaving these comments pretend to be artists who want to make comics or illustrations for a fan's fic. After convincing their targets to contact them off AO3, they scam their targets into paying for that art. Fans have reported that after sending payment, they either received AI-generated art or nothing at all.
AO3 has been working on various methods that we hope will reduce the spam. However, these scammers are persistent and creative about circumventing our protections.
To avoid falling victim to one of these scams, the Policy & Abuse committee recommends:
- Do not commission art from someone who solicits you by commenting on your work on AO3. Commercial activity is prohibited on AO3. If someone is encouraging behavior that violates our Terms of Service, it’s a good idea to be cautious. They likely do not have your best interests in mind.
- Do not provide your email or social media contact information to a commenter who asks for it, even if they say they'd just like to discuss your work further. Scammers try to get you to talk to them privately, because it is often easier to deceive or manipulate people in a one-on-one conversation.
Example of this type of scam
cool_username_42069: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it. <3
Elizabethbrown123: You're welcome! I'm so glad you responded. Do you use Discord or Twitter, or could you tell me your email so we can chat more? I've got some ideas I'd love to share with you, but I don't want to spoil anything.
This is just one example of how a scammer tries to lure the work creator onto a different platform where they can pressure the creator into commissioning art. These scammers use AI to generate realistic-sounding comments. The comments often contain generic praise or statements that could apply to any work, but sometimes they are extremely lengthy and/or specific. If the creator is suspicious and asks why the scammer wants to move the conversation off-site, they will typically claim that they aren't a scammer and/or that they can explain things better in private.
However, unlike a regular user, a scammer will always do at least one of two things:
- They will ask you to commission art from them, or
- They will share their contact information and/or ask for your information (such as an email address or username on a site that supports private messaging, like Instagram or Discord)
If you suspect that you've received a spam comment on your work, don't reply and especially do not provide them with your contact information. Just report the comment to Policy & Abuse so that we can take care of it.
What to do if you encounter this scam
If you receive a scam comment from a guest, you can press the "Spam" button on the comment. This helps train our automated spam-checker to better detect this type of behavior.
If you encounter a scammer that has a registered account, or if you encounter a guest posting scam comments on someone else's work, please report them to the Policy & Abuse committee. To do so:
- Select the "Thread" button on the scammer's comment. This will take you to the specific comment page.
- Scroll to the bottom of the page and select Policy Questions & Abuse Reports.
- In the "Brief summary of Terms of Service violation" field, enter "Spambot".
- In the "Description of the content you are reporting" field, enter "This is a spambot, their username is USERNAME."
Reporting in this fashion helps us auto-sort your report so that it can be handled as soon as a Policy & Abuse volunteer is available. To help us address reports about these types of bots as fast as possible, please only submit one report per account, and don't include multiple accounts in the same report.
If you encounter a scam commenter on someone else's work, you can let the work creator know the commenter is likely a bot and link them to this news post.
We also encourage you to share this post on social media and help spread the word about how to protect yourself from scammers and reduce spam on AO3.
A Golden Moment for Boreal Forests
Sep. 23rd, 2025 12:00 amearthobservatory_iod_feed
Hillsides in Alaska’s interior showed their changing colors ahead of the autumnal equinox.
Reshaping the Forests Around Kisangani
Sep. 22nd, 2025 12:00 amearthobservatory_iod_feed
Satellite data show decades of gradual but persistent change to forests around one of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s largest cities.
The Pinky and the Brain Page is Moving to the AO3
Sep. 21st, 2025 06:03 pmao3_news_feed
The Pinky and the Brain Page, a Pinky and the Brain fanfiction and fanart archive, is being imported to the Archive of Our Own (AO3).
In this post:
- A bit of background explanation
- What this means for creators who had work(s) on The Pinky and the Brain Page
- And what to do if you still have questions
Background explanation
James, the archivist, used to run and maintain a Pinky and the Brain fandom site from around 1995 to 2000. When he recently found some of the stories in an old hard drive he searched the Internet for some of them, but his searches came up empty. Rather than letting those stories sit unread he thought he would rather they be shared on the AO3 for people to enjoy and remember.
The purpose of the Open Doors Committee’s Online Archive Rescue Project is to assist moderators of archives to incorporate the fanworks from those archives into the Archive of Our Own. Open Doors works with moderators to import their archives when the moderators lack the funds, time, or other resources to continue to maintain their archives independently. It is extremely important to Open Doors that we work in collaboration with moderators who want to import their archives and that we fully credit creators, giving them as much control as possible over their fanworks. Open Doors will be working with James to import The Pinky and the Brain Page into a separate, searchable collection on the Archive of Our Own. As part of preserving the archive in its entirety, all fanfics and fanart currently in the The Pinky and the Brain Page will be hosted on the OTW's servers, and embedded in their own AO3 work pages.
We will begin importing works from The Pinky and the Brain Page to the AO3 after September 2025. However, the import may not take place for several months or even years, depending on the size and complexity of the archive. Creators are always welcome to import their own works and add them to the collection in the meantime.
What does this mean for creators who had work(s) on The Pinky and the Brain Page?
We will send an import notification to the email address we have for each creator. We'll do our best to check for an existing copy of any works before importing. If we find a copy already on the AO3, we will add it to the collection instead of importing it. All works archived on behalf of a creator will include their name in the byline or the summary of the work.
All imported works will be set to be viewable only by logged-in AO3 users. Once you claim your works, you can make them publicly-viewable if you choose. After 30 days, all unclaimed imported works will be made visible to all visitors.
Please contact Open Doors with your The Pinky and the Brain Page pseud(s) and email address(es), if:
- You'd like us to import your works, but you need the notification sent to a different email address than you used on the original archive.
- You already have an AO3 account and have imported your works already yourself.
- You’d like to import your works yourself (including if you don’t have an AO3 account yet).
- You would NOT like your works moved to the AO3, or would NOT like your works added to the archive collection.
- You are happy for us to preserve your works on the AO3, but would like us to remove your name.
- You have any other questions we can help you with.
Please include the name of the archive in the subject heading of your email. If you no longer have access to the email account associated with your The Pinky and the Brain Page account, please contact Open Doors and we'll help you out. (If you've posted the works elsewhere, or have an easy way to verify that they're yours, that's great; if not, we will work with the The Pinky and the Brain Page mod to confirm your claims.)
Please see the Open Doors Website for instructions on:
- importing your works to the AO3
- adding your works to the new collection The Pinky and the Brain Page
If you still have questions...
If you have further questions, visit the Open Doors FAQ, or contact the Open Doors committee.
We'd also love it if fans could help us preserve the story of The Pinky and the Brain Page on Fanlore. If you're new to wiki editing, no worries! Check out the new visitor portal, or ask the Fanlore Gardeners for tips.
We're excited to be able to help preserve The Pinky and the Brain Page!
- The Open Doors team and James
Commenting on this post will be disabled in 14 days. If you have any questions, concerns, or comments regarding this import after that date, please contact Open Doors.
Mozambique’s Rio Lúrio
Sep. 21st, 2025 12:00 amearthobservatory_iod_feed
Sediment from the riverbed, especially during periods of higher flow, helps shape the surrounding beaches and sandbars.
wwdn_feedYesterday, I had the privilege and the honor to emcee the opening of the new Metro A Line light rail extension from Glendora to Pomona.
If you’re local, you know what a big deal this is, and how much of a difference it’s going to make in the lives of tens of thousands of people who no longer have to endure the 60 or the 210 for their commute.
If you’re not local, you’re gonna have to trust me on this: it’s a big deal, a significant investment in our communities that will endure for generations.
And here is the absolute coolest thing about it: our light rail system in Los Angeles only exists because of my friend and mentor, George Takei.
[George] was appointed to the Board by Mayor Tom Bradley. The Board was comprised of an appointee from each of the five County Board of Supervisors, two appointees of the mayor of Los Angeles, and four appointees of the City Selection Committee representing the other municipalities within Los Angeles County contained in the District.
This Board was tasked with determining the future of passenger rail service, something that hadn’t existed in LA since the Pacific Red Cars were (in my opinion, tragically) decommissioned in 1961. As you can imagine, it faced intense opposition from the usual gang of idiots, so in 1978, when George was on filming Star Trek The Motion Picture, he left the set and went to the board meeting where he cast the deciding vote to approve light rail service for Angelenos.
Think about that for a second. Our entire Metro rail system, which now includes the longest route in the world at over 50 miles, would not exist without George. Never, ever, let them tell you one person can’t make a difference.
I didn’t know any of this until yesterday, so I dropped that story into my prepared remarks, as a way of honoring George’s legacy, Tom Bradley’s legacy, and to celebrate the way Star Trek and its fundamental message of humanist hope are woven throughout the entire Metro system. It was so lovely when all the people who were there cheered for him.
I made myself look like an adult, fooled everyone, and had an absolutely great time. On the train ride back from Pomona to Glendora, I mentioned to Anne that for as long as I can remember, whenever I finish a performance, the only thing I feel is relief; I have always struggled to find joy and satisfaction in a job well done. But yesterday, I felt good about myself. I felt like I wrote a good speech, delivered it well, hit the notes that everyone wanted me to hit, and I felt so happy and maybe even a little bit of pride.
That’s very new for me, and I hope it sticks around.
I posted updates all morning long on my Instagram stories. Behind the jump, I’ll repost all of that stuff, as well as my prepared remarks.
Mom and dad cleaned up so we didn’t embarrass you in front of your friends.
Keeping things in chronological order, here are my prepared remarks:
Good morning! It’s a beautiful and historic day here in Pomona as we celebrate the official grand opening of the A Line Extension to Pomona!I’m Wil Wheaton, and it is truly a pleasure to be your host for today’s celebration of this amazing accomplishment.
I was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, and I grew up in a middle-class neighborhood in Sunland, before my family moved to La Crescenta in the 80s. When I started my family in the 90s, my wife and I moved to Arcadia, where we raised our children in the new millennium. I’ve seen a lot of things change in five decades. I am old enough to remember when the Valley was mostly farmland. I remember when the 210 was built (and stood in for all of our freeways on one of my favorite television shows, CHiPs.) I remember the 80s, when we had to stay indoors, because the air quality was so bad before the AQMD stepped in.
One thing that hasn’t changed, that has actually been a defining constant, is the love we all have for our city and our neighbors. Sure, we have our fun intra-community rivalries (818 for life!) but at the end of the day, we are all Angelenos who love our city of angels. Our Metro system is an expression of that love for our communities. Our Metro system connects us, brings our communities together, and serves the public good. It is an expression of our civic pride, yet another reason Los Angeles is such a wonderful place to live, work, and raise a family.
But the biggest reason I love LA is our diversity. More people live in Los Angeles County than the total population of 13 states, and we score 95 on the 100 point diversity scale.
I grew up steeped in the culture and traditions that my neighbors brought with them when they came to LA, as well as the cultures and traditions that existed here before my ancestors arrived.
I love that I got to grow up experiencing food and music, fashion and traditions from all over the world, just by walking down the street. I love that I can hop on the metro and get a taco in Highland Park, spend the day at the Long Beach Aquarium, and finish the day at a Kings game. And I know I’m not alone because I see my fellow Angelenos on the train, often taking their families with them to do something that only happens in LA.
Whatever I want, whatever anyone wants, it’s here. Great food, performing arts, museums that are the envy of the world, and near perfect weather, every day, at our beaches and in our mountains. There is so much to do here, being bored is a choice.
In fact, LA is so special, the Angels, down in Orange County, insist we pretend they are from Los Angeles. Uh, you’re not. The only major league baseball team in Los Angeles is the World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
But I understand your envy, Anaheim. I really do. This is a great place to live. Oh, and Shohei Ohtani plays for our team, which is pretty great. I’d hate to be the team that couldn’t re-sign him!
One of my favorite local bands, Bad Religion, has a song called “You are the government” that reminds us that we, the people, get to decide what our communities look like. When I rode the A line to get here, and when I look around here this morning, I see, over and over again, the good we can do when we come together for the mutual benefit of our communities.
And in that spirit, before I bring up our first speaker, I want to take a moment to personally thank the regular citizens, community organizers, and elected officials who helped move this project through all its stages of planning and construction. I want to thank all the skilled tradespeople who worked so hard to build this line and this beautiful station that will now serve generations.
And finally, I want to thank my fellow Angelenos who love our city of immigrants, who are standing up right now to protect our friends and neighbors, our wonderfully diverse communities, and ensuring that wherever we go, from Pomona to Pasadena, from downtown to Long Beach, from Hollywood to Santa Monica, and all across the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, we are all safe.
The people who worked so hard to bring this project to completion cut the ribbon, confetti canons went TO TOWN, and there was much rejoicing.
Then, there were tacos.
We followed our tacos with churros, as is traditional.
Then we rode the train back to Glendora.
It was a deeply meaningful honor and privilege to be invited by Metro to speak at this event, and to share my passion for my city, my neighbors, and our public services. It was an unexpected gift to learn that I’m a link in a chain that was originally forged by one of my favorite people. It was a tangible reminder of what we can do — what we must do — when we come together as citizens and choose to do big things.
The entire Metro system is free to ride this weekend, to celebrate this extension.
By the Warm Light of the Moon
Sep. 20th, 2025 12:00 amearthobservatory_iod_feed
Astronauts and much of Earth’s population had a chance to view a coppery “Blood Moon” during a total lunar eclipse in September 2025.
Arctic Sea Ice Ties for 10th-Lowest on Record
Sep. 19th, 2025 12:00 amearthobservatory_iod_feed
Satellite data show that Arctic sea ice likely reached its annual minimum extent on September 10, 2025.
Cooper Creek Replenishes Lake Eyre
Sep. 17th, 2025 03:19 pmearthobservatory_iod_feed
Another major tributary reached the Australian outback lake in 2025, extending the months-long flood of the vast, ephemeral inland sea.
WIP Wednesday
Sep. 17th, 2025 12:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
firethesoundFinally--FINALLY!!--back to our usual routine and it's been glorious. Life stuff does unfortunately continue. My car died again so I'll need to for sure deal with that before Mr FTS goes on a work trip soon, and I did have a cold last week, and then I got my Covid shot this week which always knocks me on my butt for a couple of days afterward. But there's been words! Actually, quite a lot of words!!
New words this week : 7503 words which is pretty awesome and I am delighted. This was a wonderfully productive week.
WIPs worked on this week : 2, with no new WIPs (yay!)
The Old Guard
☆ food truck au : 5353 words which brings the total to 21,871 words and I am pretty sure that it's going to go past 25k, but I think that I can keep it under 30k? I don't even know what I'm doing anymore with it, partly because it still feels like a 5k idea and somehow it's gotten enormous and I don't know if that's a good thing or not? First chapter is completed and off to beta, though, so I'm really hoping that some feedback will help.
☆ werewolf au : 2150 words which brings the total to 7969 words and all of them were smut.
New words this week : 7503 words which is pretty awesome and I am delighted. This was a wonderfully productive week.
WIPs worked on this week : 2, with no new WIPs (yay!)
The Old Guard
☆ food truck au : 5353 words which brings the total to 21,871 words and I am pretty sure that it's going to go past 25k, but I think that I can keep it under 30k? I don't even know what I'm doing anymore with it, partly because it still feels like a 5k idea and somehow it's gotten enormous and I don't know if that's a good thing or not? First chapter is completed and off to beta, though, so I'm really hoping that some feedback will help.
☆ werewolf au : 2150 words which brings the total to 7969 words and all of them were smut.
ao3_news_feed
Do you have experience copyediting or proofreading academic journals? Would you like to wrangle AO3 tags? Can you read and translate from Chinese to English? Can you read and translate from Italian to English? Do you have experience in managing or leading people?
We're excited to announce the opening of applications for:
- TWC Committee Copyeditor - closing 24 September 2025 at 23:59 UTC
- Tag Wrangling Volunteer - closing 24 September 2025 at 23:59 UTC or after 125 applications
- Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Chinese) - closing 24 September 2025 at 23:59 UTC or after 45 applications
- Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Italian) - closing 24 September 2025 at 23:59 UTC or after 30 applications
- Fanlore Chair Track Volunteer - closing 24 September 2025 at 23:59 UTC or after 40 applications
We have included more information on each role below. Open roles and applications will always be available at the volunteering page. If you don't see a role that fits with your skills and interests now, keep an eye on the listings. We plan to put up new applications every few weeks, and we will also publicize new roles as they become available.
All applications generate a confirmation page and an auto-reply to your e-mail address. We encourage you to read the confirmation page and to whitelist our email address in your e-mail client. If you do not receive the auto-reply within 24 hours, please check your spam filters and then contact us.
If you have questions regarding volunteering for the OTW, check out our Volunteering FAQ.
TWC Committee Copyeditor
Transformative Works and Cultures (TWC) is an international peer-reviewed Diamond Open Access online publication about fan-related topics that seeks to promote dialogue between the academic community and fan communities. Copyeditors professionally copyedit submissions for TWC according to Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) 18, Merriam-Webster online, and the TWC style guide. Editorial standards are those of a university press.
The copyeditor's main responsibility will be to carefully copyedit word-processed manuscripts to correct errors of grammar, usage, style; normalize presentation of information; check the literature; and ensure consistency of usage of, e.g., presentation, capitalization, italic, and numbers.
Applicants are required to pass a brief copyediting test that will be drawn from live copy (a not yet published article that is currently in production). All returned tests will be assessed and the applicant provided with feedback.
Applications are due 24 September 2025
Apply for TWC Committee Copyeditor at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
Tag Wrangling Volunteer
The Tag Wranglers are responsible for helping to connect and sort the tags on AO3! Wranglers follow internal guidelines to choose the tags that appear in the filters and auto-complete, which link related works together. This makes it easier to browse and search on the archive.
If you're an experienced AO3 user who likes organizing, working in teams, or having excuses to fact-check your favorite fandoms, you might enjoy tag wrangling! To join us, click through to the job description and fill in our application form. There will also be a short questionnaire that will help us assess whether you have the skills and attributes that will lead to your success in this role.
Please note: you must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. For this role, we’re currently looking for wranglers for specific fandoms only, which will change each recruitment round. Please see the application for which fandoms are in need.
Wranglers need to be fluent in English but we welcome applicants who are also fluent in other languages, especially Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian), Čeština (Czech), Español (Spanish), isiZulu (Zulu), Polski (Polish), Português brasileiro (Brazilian Portuguese), Suomi (Finnish), Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese), Türkçe (Turkish), Українська (Ukrainian), ไทย (Thai), Русский (Russian), беларуская (Belarusian) and 한국어 (Korean) — but help with other languages would be much appreciated!
Applications are due 24 September 2025 or after 125 applications
Apply for Tag Wrangling Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Chinese)
The Tag Wranglers are responsible for helping to connect and sort the tags on AO3! Wranglers follow internal guidelines to choose the tags that appear in the filters and auto-complete, which link related works together. This makes it easier to browse and search on the archive.
If you're an experienced AO3 user who likes organizing, working in teams, or having excuses to fact-check your favorite fandoms, you might enjoy Tag Wrangling! To join us, click through to the job description and fill in our application form. There will also be a short questionnaire that will help us assess whether you have the skills and attributes that will lead to your success in this role.
Please note: you must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. For this role we're currently looking for applicants who are fluent in both English and Chinese.We welcome all Chinese dialects! The work will involve both regular Tag Wrangling work and translating tags from Chinese into English.
Applications are due 24 September 2025 or after 45 applications
Apply for Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Chinese) at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Italian)
The Tag Wranglers are responsible for helping to connect and sort the tags on AO3! Wranglers follow internal guidelines to choose the tags that appear in the filters and auto-complete, which link related works together. This makes it easier to browse and search on the archive.
If you're an experienced AO3 user who likes organizing, working in teams, or having excuses to fact-check your favorite fandoms, you might enjoy Tag Wrangling! To join us, click through to the job description and fill in our application form. There will also be a short questionnaire that will help us assess whether you have the skills and attributes that will lead to your success in this role.
Please note: you must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. For this role we're currently looking for applicants who are fluent in both English and Italian. The work will involve both regular Tag Wrangling work and translating tags from Italian into English.
Applications are due 24 September 2025 or after 30 applications
Apply for Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Italian) at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
Fanlore Chair Track Volunteer
Do you have experience in managing or leading people? Are you an organizational wizard? Do you have an interest in preserving fannish history or experience in wiki editing? The Fanlore committee is looking for new Chair Track Volunteers to join our team!
Fanlore is the committee responsible for maintaining and promoting the Fanlore wiki. We promote Fanlore on social media, run Fanlore editing challenges, support Fanlore editors, write the wiki's policy and help pages, and respond to emails from editors and readers. The Chair Track Volunteer position is for people who have the time and dedication to learn all about our operations so that they can be considered for the role of committee Chair.
We're looking for someone who has experience in wiki editing and an understanding of social media, who is comfortable with personnel management and training new recruits, and who is experienced in leadership or management whether in a business or nonprofit environment. Candidates also need strong time management skills and the ability to work on and track multiple tasks at a time. If that's you, please apply!
For your application to be considered, you will be required to complete a short task within one week of submitting your application.
Applications are due 24 September 2025 or after 40 applications.
Apply for Fanlore Chair Track Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.
The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.
Australia’s Howick River
Sep. 17th, 2025 12:00 amearthobservatory_iod_feed
Winding across the Jeannie catchment in northern Queensland, the river sustains diverse ecosystems on its way to the Coral Sea.
Smoky Skies in the Pacific Northwest
Sep. 15th, 2025 05:06 pmearthobservatory_iod_feed
Smoke filled river valleys in northeastern Washington and parts of British Columbia.
Updates to "No Fandom" Additional Tags, September 2025
Sep. 15th, 2025 03:48 pmao3_news_feed
AO3 Tag Wranglers continue to test processes for wrangling canonical additional tags (tags that appear in the auto-complete) which don't belong to any particular fandom (also known as "No Fandom" tags). This post will provide an overview of some of these upcoming changes.
In this round of updates, we continued a method which streamlines creation of new canonical tags, prioritizing more straightforward updates which would have less discussion compared to renaming current canonical tags or creating new canonical tags which touch on more complex topics. This method also reviews new tags on a regular basis, so check back on AO3 News for periodic "No Fandom" tag announcements.
None of these updates change the tags users have added to works. If a user-created tag is considered to have the same meaning as a new canonical, it will be made a synonym of one of these newly created canonical tags, and works with that user-created tag will appear when the canonical tag is selected.
In short, these changes only affect which tags appear in AO3's auto-complete and filters. You can and should continue to tag your works however you prefer.
New Canonicals
The following concepts have been made new canonical tags:
- Abandonment Issues
- Childhood Friends to Lovers
- Friends with Benefits to Lovers
- Enemy to Caretaker
- Enemies with Benefits
- Father/Daughter Incest
- Mother/Son Incest
- Roommates to Lovers
- Clit Play
- Cosmic Horror
- Eldritch Horror
- Cottagecore
- Crying During Sex
- Cryptids
- Defecation
- Diarrhea
- Messing | Soiling
- Dominant Character
- Feather Preening
- Field Medicine
- Humans are Space Orcs
- Humiliation Kink
- Love Languages
- Not Edited
- Past Trauma
- Pussy Spanking
- Self-Deprecation
- Self-Sabotage
- Soulmate Goose of Enforcement
- Sugar Baby
- Sugar Mommy
- Wound Care
In Conclusion
While all these new tags have already been made canonical, we are still working on implementing changes and connecting relevant tags, so it’ll be some time before these updates are complete. We thank you in advance for your patience!
While we won't be announcing every change we make to No Fandom canonical tags, you can expect similar updates in the future on the tags we believe will most affect users. If you're interested in the changes we'll be making, you can continue to check AO3 News or follow us on Bluesky @wranglers.archiveofourown.org or Tumblr @ao3org for future announcements.
You can also read previous updates on "No Fandom" tags as well as other wrangling updates, linked below:
- Past "No Fandom" Additional Tags Updates & 5 Things Said by Wrangling Volunteers
- Past Fandom-Specific and "No Fandom" Tag Wrangling Change Posts & Announcements
Got Questions?
For more information about AO3's tag system, check out our Tags FAQ.
In addition to providing technical help, AO3 Support also handles requests related to how tags are sorted and connected. If you have questions about specific tags, which were first used over a month ago and are unrelated to any of the new canonical tags listed above, please contact Support instead of leaving a comment on this post.
Lastly, as mentioned above, we're still working on connecting relevant user-created tags to these new canonicals. If you have questions about specific tags which should be connected to these new canonicals, please refrain from contacting Support about them until at least two months from now.
The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.