queer history!

• christopher strachey (1916-1975) created CPL, a parent language of C!
• the word "sapphic" (relating to lesbians or lesbianism) comes from ancient greek poet sappho!
  • sappho was from the island of lesbos- both her name and her home are associated with (and the root of) modern day terms relating to lesbianism (sapphos - sapphic, lesbos - lesbian)
  • according to the dictionary "sapphic" relates to lesbians specifically, but these days it's used like an equivalent to wlw, or women loving women (or woman loving women or woman who loves women), so it's kinda like an umbrella term for people that identify as female and experience attraction towards other females- it's a cool word! sappho was also a pretty cool gal y'all should read about her
• PATROCLUS AND ACHILLES
  • achilles wanted their ASHES mixed together when he died and then he went out and killed like the world's strongest warrior to avenge patroclus and then DRAGGED HECTORS CORPSE AROUND FROM A CHARIOT bro what are historians ON oh "they were just close pals" they had a "strong friendship" NO AND I WILL DIE ON THIS HILL
  • anyway the relationship between patroclus and achilles is one of the most highly contested examples of queer historical erasure (and authorial intent)! although we can't exactly ask homer how it's supposed to be interpreted, a LOT of people argue that historians have retold their story in ways that twist homer's original writing for a "straighter" narrative
    • it's a cool subject to read up on 10/10 would recommend. just like queer history in general idk there are a lot of important historical figures that don't show up in your textbooks because of their queer identities, or important details about historical figures that are left out :/ the best way to learn more is to just do some research or pick up a book on LGBTQ+ history- and add any good ones you find to the book recommendations list!
• alan turing... no explanation just read about him or watch the imitation game... even though the movie wasn't super accurate... would recommend the biography by andrew hodges... it lowkey made me cry... we don't talk about it

random

• sea slugs can push their organs out of their anus.
  • :0 that's uh fascinating thank you for that
• pineapples are a natural meat tenderizer
• cleopatra lived closer to the moon landing than the building of the pyramids
• it would take 1.2 MILLION mosquitos to drain an entire body of blood
• scientists still aren’t sure how neural networks work, or why they do! scary!