Cherokee writing system

The Cherokee writing system, one of the only examples in history of an official script being invented from scratch by a member of a non-literate group, was created by a man named Sequoyah. Within just 25 years of its creation, nearly 100% of the Cherokee population was literate, and the script served as inspiration for […]

Handwriting in schools

The introduction of the Common Core State Standards in 2010 led to many schools removing handwriting instruction, including cursive writing, from their curriculum as it was no longer a requirement for students to be proficient in it.

People Share Their Favorite Movie Quotes Of All-Time

We all have our favorite lines of dialogue memorized.

Great dialogue is the heart of film, tv and theatre.

How many films can you quote?

Do you have a film quote for your tombstone?

Mine is from the movie ‘Clue.’ I’m gonna make you guess…

So Redditor No_Housing_4819 wanted to hear what lines no one has forgotten from their favorite films…

They asked:

“What’s your favorite movie quote?”

Let’s talk cinema…

Unforgiven

“Sir, you are a cowardly son of a *itch! You just shot an unarmed man!”

“He should’ve armed himself if he’s gonna decorate his saloon with my friend!”  ~ Axenroth187

“You’d be William Munny, outta Missouri. Killer of women and children.”

“That’s right. I’ve killed women and children. Killed just about everything that walks or crawled at one time or another.”

“And I’m here to kill you li’l Bill. For what you did to Ned.” ~ jrf_1973

“I like:”

“ t’s a hell of a thing, killin’ a man. You take all he’s got… and all he’s ever gonna have.”

“Well, I guess they had it comin’”

“We all have it comin’, Kid.”  ~ bolerobell

Doctor Strangelove

“Gentlemen you can’t fight in here, this is the war room!” ~ AlternativeRip4728

“When I did speech and debate in college those of us who qualified for the national championship took a retreat to a cabin in the mountains for a weekend to work on our craft.”

“My head coach brought this movie along and oh man, what a great film. I highly encourage people to watch this film. Peter Sellers is brilliant.”  ~ Pawn_captures_Queen

“I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion and the international Communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.”  ~ _stuntnuts_

LEGO FOREVER

“I think I got it. But just in case… tell me the whole thing again I wasn’t listening.”  ~ WTFrickFrackCadillac

“And Octan, they make great stuff! […] Surveillance systems, all history books, voting machines… wait a second.”  ~ StarKnight697

“The fact that I’m seeing so many memorized quotes from the lego movie is making me so happy right now.”

“I was 12 when it was released and I’m gonna be 20 in two months. I miss those days. I’m getting so nostalgic now.” ~ WTFrickFrackCadillac

INCREDIBLE!!

“He starts monologuing! He starts this prepared speech about how feeble I am to him, how my defeat is inevitable, and the world will soon be his, yada yada yada, he’s yammering!”

“I mean the guy has me on a platter, and he won’t shut up!”  ~ Dazzling_Realties

“You sly dog! You got me monologuing!!”  ~ burningfirelily

Villains 

“A hero would sacrifice you for the world but a villain would sacrifice the world for you.” ~ I_Love_Small_Breasts

“If I remember correctly, Weathering with You.”  ~ protein_bars

“His selfish desire to be with an ACTUAL GODDESS.”

“I love how complex and big but also intimate and sad the romance in this movie was.”

“He was a villain for sure, but also my heart was breaking for them the whole movie.”

“I wouldn’t have been any happier if he was a hero; everyone would have lost.”  ~ WinsomeWombat

“They say the villain is selfish, but have anyone thought about this?”

“And what about the hero? What if they sacrifice you just for glory? What if they were the true villain to begin with?”  ~ BasicallyBlu123

Arnold Speaks

“I need your clothes, your boots, and your motorcycle.” ~ 11B-1P-CIB

“Me and my brothers watched T2 almost every night for a month (we couldn’t sleep without tv on and each month was a new movie).”

“We’ve always said ‘ need your clothes, your boots, and your underwear.’”

“And you reminded me of what he actually says lol.” ~ stoicambience

“My friend quotes this all the time, but he remembers it wrong and just says ‘GIMME YA CLOTHES’ in a terrible Arnold accent lol!!” ~ NutSockMushroom

NETWORK

“I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!”  ~ UpperUnderstanding77

“One of the criticisms of Chayefsky’s screenplay was that it was too cynical and unrealistic. In hindsight it almost seems quaint.”  ~ DaBake

“YOU HAVE MEDDLED WITH THE PRIMAL FORCES OF NATURE MR. BEALE, AND I WON’T HAVE IT!!!!”  ~ Wagglebagga

When Comedy Mattered

“Who are you? And how’d you get in here?” “I’m the locksmith, and I’m a locksmith.”  ~ parallel_jay

“We’re so sorry about your loss, Wilma. We would have come earlier, but your husband wasn’t dead then. -Police Squad”

“Also in the same vein…”

“Trust me, whatever scum did this to your husband, no man on the force will rest until he’s behind bars! Now let’s grab a bite to eat.”

“I wish they could make parodies like they did back then.”

“There seemed to be a legitimate love for the source material they were spoofing, maybe that’s the key ingredient to make them work?”  ~ redfoot62

“My all-time favourite joke. I love it so much.”

“The wording, the delivery, the very existence of this joke are just utterly delicious to me.”

“It’s so clever in its language. I had to think twice when I first heard it, cracked up laughing, and still laugh at it.”

“I read a quote somewhere, I don’t remember where, that ‘the essence of humour is the unexpected’.”

“This joke just hits so perfectly.”  ~ cmdrqfortescue

No Country for Old Men

“All the time you spend tryin’ to get back what’s been took from you there’s more goin’ out the door. After a while you just try and get a tourniquet on it.”  ~ Cells_Interlinked_77

Blade Runner

“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe.”

“Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate.”

“All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.”  ~f**kitillbeanunicorn

Guardians

“When you’re ugly and someone loves you, you know they love you for who you are. Beautiful people never know who to trust.” ~ Future_Rooster_3909

“I guess it might seem weird for a comic book movie to dole out some big life lessons, but GotG 2 is chock full of that stuff.”

“Hell, the whole storyline with Peter, Yondu, and Ego is genuinely one of the most touching things I can remember seeing in a movie in a pretty long time.”

“‘He may have been your father, boy, but he wasn’t your daddy.’”

“As someone who grew up without a father, that line bored a hole straight through my soul.”  ~ DextrosKnight

Movies are an essential part of life.

We often get lost in the political Hollywood nonsense of it all, but when we look deeper, we realize, film saves us.

Because when film is at its best, it reflects us.

Keep speaking those lines.

15 Random Tweets Packed With Laughs

Hey, there!

It’s time for some posts! Some posts with the most!

The most what, you may ask? I don’t know, I may answer! Just stuff! Laughs! Words! Enjoyment!

Why, these posts have so much most in them that I don’t think my own intro could inject any more mostly most into them, so I’m gonna stop writing it now and just get to the posts.

Posts!

15. The food paradox

I doubt, therefore I am.

14. Squatch and talk

One of the greats, Hedberg.

13. Read between the lines

Nothing we can do about it now, it’s in the cards.

12. Stick with it

Repeat process for infinite stick. Stick win every time.

11. Cat got your tongue?

This feels like the opposite of all the DARE program I had to take as a kid.

10. Textbook case

Here’s hoping they don’t throw the book at him.

9. Herbicide

Hey ScienceAlert, are you alright? Do you need to talk maybe?

8. Putting on a front

Even the horse looks like he’s losing his will to live.

7. What a wonderful phrase

It just clicked for me: Timon and Pumbaa aren’t just carefree sidekicks, they’re stone cold nihilists.

6. Have your cake and pan it too

This is me pretty much every night.

5. Too expensive

I’m focused on “live” at this point, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

4. My eyes are up here

No thank you please.

https://arrowswing.tumblr.com/post/179418321226/florakinesis-sskia-u-can-just-tell-jake

3. Tea for two

Yeah, I don’t know if I would advise that.

https://avenginginsanity.tumblr.com/post/630722863549284352/baelor-i-hate-making-tea-cuz-i-feel-bad-for

2. Going up?

There’s no knowing where we’re going.

https://highclass-shit.tumblr.com/post/98477800847/behind-a-wall-of-illusion-kenweys-this

1. True grit

These lyrics have played in my mind over and over again.

https://angerydj.tumblr.com/post/187441093135/mr-sandman-sand-me-a-man-make-him-so-sandy-the

Man. Those sure are some posts with the most. So much so that I’m full.

Who are your favorite funny people to follow on the internet?

Tell us in the comments.

The post 15 Random Tweets Packed With Laughs appeared first on UberFacts.

A Hilarious Alexa Mishap Ruined a Book Club When It Played a Very Inappropriate Song

Many of us grew up watching things like Star Trek: The Next Generation, which portrayed a far off future world where people simply spoke to a computer and in return it answered questions in a human voice, or carried out commands.

Just a couple decades later and a lot of that tech is not only here, but actually affordable for many consumers. I really can set up a system in my home in which I can play any music or set the ambiance of the light around me, change the temperature of the room, activate security systems, communicate with anyone anywhere, and even query knowledge on any subject instantly with just my voice.

That is, when it’s all working right. The rest of the time, it’s less sci-fi utopia, and more chaotic hilarity.

Take this story via Tumblr for example…

Chapter 1: The Soundtrack

Chapter 2: Until The Screaming Began

Chapter 3: A Long List of Alphanumeric Gibberish

Chapter 4: “That Digital Clock”

Chapter 5: Lurking Silently

Chapter 6: ALEXA!

Chapter 7: Aa Greek Chorus of a Distraught Book Club

Chapter 8: A Sort of T-Pose

Chapter 9: Genuinely Incredible

Chapter 10: Comedic Misadventures

I think that probably one day, in the not-too-distant future, all of this smart home tech will have advanced to the point that it’s a lot more intuitive and better at understanding general human intent rather than relying on specific commands.

Until that day comes, we have WAP disasters. And it’s glorious.

Have you had a smart home mishap?

Tell us in the comments.

The post A Hilarious Alexa Mishap Ruined a Book Club When It Played a Very Inappropriate Song appeared first on UberFacts.

Tumblr Users Talk About What It’s Like to Be a Writer

Oh, the writing life.

So, I’m a writer.

I mean, I’m writing right now. Want proof? Look at this assemblage of words. If I wasn’t a real writer, would I know how to use a word like “assemblage” in a sentence?

Checkmate.

Well, that’s probably enough writing for today. I did good. I should reward myself with several snacks and a season or two of TV.

While I’m doing that, you should enjoy these Tumblr posts about what being a writer is like.

And then help me because oh God the deadlines are closing in.

15. Always give your characters credit

https://whatsername-a-killjoy.tumblr.com/post/189892403346/outlining-your-novel-is-just-learning-just-how

14. “I don’t like writing, I like HAVING WRITTEN.”

https://myhoniahaaka.tumblr.com/post/189438720331/writers-while-crying-did-you-know-that-you-have

13. It’s already a tight 2,000 pages

https://writeness.tumblr.com/post/190162813830/when-i-finish-draft-one-and-realize-that-means-i

12. When being your own boss actually sucks

https://myhoniahaaka.tumblr.com/post/189942336171/writer-demon-write-it-now-or-face-the-writers

11. If you’re not sweating, you’re not writing

https://marlynnofmany.tumblr.com/post/189963392481

10. True story: one time I was commissioned to write a play about animal sex… Google was concerned…

https://h-brook-writes.tumblr.com/post/186853408821/youre-under-arrest-on-suspicion-of-murder

9. There are so many ways for writers to look like psychopaths

https://writeouswriter.tumblr.com/post/187006767058/writer-problems-my-outlining-notes-probably-look

8. Your name and date count

https://writerswritecompany.tumblr.com/post/188406324318

7. Why didn’t I burn that when I had the chance…

https://writerswritecompany.tumblr.com/post/189510009791

6. Try repeating it until it loses all meaning

https://fragmentedink.tumblr.com/post/176076009099/that-writer-mood-when-you-squint-and-glare-at-a

5. Can’t I outsource this?

https://brynwrites.tumblr.com/post/181324579614/me-a-writer-i-dont-want-to-write-this-next

4. Sometimes writing blocks you, sometimes you block writing

https://brynwrites.tumblr.com/post/180121538774/i-have-only-two-writing-moods-1-theres-2k-words

3. Ok now that I say this out loud…

https://disoriented-writer.tumblr.com/post/185340725750/my-brain-listening-to-me-trying-to-explain-the

2. This is the best idea I’ve had in MINUTES!

https://writeouswriter.tumblr.com/post/188641952457

1. Remember: nothing’s ever done, it’s just due

https://juliatilford.tumblr.com/post/179930355245/when-youre-writing-your-first-draft-and-you-know

What are your tricks for combating writer’s block?

Seriously tell me in the comments, I need to know IMMEDIATELY.

Or don’t. I’m sure I’ll figure it out on my own eventually.

… help…

The post Tumblr Users Talk About What It’s Like to Be a Writer appeared first on UberFacts.

Writing Is Very Hard: Stop Making These Common Grammatical Mistakes

Writing is very difficult.

I should know, and my editor knows I know [editor’s note: heeeeeyyyy]. Fortunately, I can count on him to gently correct my mistakes or shoot me a message saying, “Can you not use these words in those ways anymore? Thanks.”

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Recently, another editor with the patience of Job started a Twitter thread about some common grammatical mistakes.

Laura Helmuth is the health and science editor at The Washington Post, so she’s clearly seen some funky English in her time. Her list was not only fantastic, but many of her followers, grammar nerds in their own right, chimed in with other ways they see people butchering the English language.

Helmuth listed some good ones:

  • “Enormity” means something really bad, not something really big.
  • “Japanese/Brazilian/Finnish/Australian researchers discovered…” Science is the most international endeavor in human history. Any team that makes a discovery worth covering almost certainly includes people who aren’t citizens, so instead say: “Researchers in Japan/Brazil/etc.”
  • “Men and women” in almost all circumstances should be “people.” The world is over-gendered enough as it is.
  • “Famous” is a word you almost never need. If a person or event is known to your reader, you don’t need to tell them it’s famous. If your reader DOESN’T know something, calling it famous risks making your reader feel ignorant or unwelcome in your story. (One exception, as a follower pointed out, is to say someone was “famous in her time” if it’s someone who is relatively unknown now but was a big deal back in the day.)
  • It’s spelled “impostor” rather than “imposter,” which I learned only after being quoted in a story about impostor syndrome.
  • It’s fine to use “spawn” metaphorically in some cases, but keep in mind that it literally means fish or frogs ejaculating eggs or sperm. Think twice about “seminal,” too.
  • Avoid “so and so believes” because you don’t know what they believe, only what they say.

She finished up with:

Other editors and writers added their own grammar pet peeves.

  • Putting “The fact that” before something is never necessary.
  • Just deserts. Yes, it sounds like desserts, but it’s spelled deserts as in deserves.
  • Toward never needs an ‘s.’
  • “In order to.” Just “to” does the same job.
  • The use of “I” when the object pronoun “me” should be used. E.g. “He took Jean and I to the store.” The trick to knowing what’s right? Take out the other person in the sentence. “He took I to the store” just doesn’t sound right.
  • Trying to eliminate “actually” from my vocabulary, mostly speaking vocabulary. Adds nothing.
  • “And the reason why is…” is redundant. Just say, “and the reason is…”
  • Unique means one of a kind, it is absolute and there are no degrees of uniqueness. Very unique, more unique, most unique etc., are all meaningless.
  • I find the word “different” is often unnecessary—12 different people…

Many more goodies were mentioned – check out the thread for the rest. You will either feel smug or ignorant after reading it, but I bet either way you’ll learn something new.

The post Writing Is Very Hard: Stop Making These Common Grammatical Mistakes appeared first on UberFacts.