UCF

On a first glance, we feel inclined to agree that everything that isn't a potato is, in fact, not a potato. But given the famed versatility of this plant, the variety of items that could under certain circumstances be considered potatoes throws some of them in a grayer definition, which threatens the logic of the presented axiom: if something is a potato but also, disturbingly, not quite a potato, therefore it would be wrong to say that everything is either a potato or not.

This is where our research comes to the infamous "Sweet Potato". This alien-looking tuber appreciated by bodybuilders and literally no one else puts the statement subject to the study to paradox with its dubious existence. Sweet Potatoes are not at all like the regular Potatoes the world knows and loves. They are smelly, horribly tasting and have the appearance of what one would assume an alien penis to look like. Yet for the lack of a better term, they are deemed "Potatoes" by almost every known language.

What really is this Strange, purple vegetable? Sweet Potatoes have no identity of its own, they are grouped among Potatoes for the sake of convenience due to its few potato-ish characteristics. Yet it is not a complete potato, and does not hold the same prestige as them, it's treated merely as a pseudo potato. Or rather, the fact that it retains both Potato characteristics and non-Potato characteristics brings it in a gray zone of difficult scrutinizing. It is at the same time a potato and not a potato. Truly a case of what one would brilliantly call a "Schrödinger's Potato" in a reference to the famous german logician.

What conclusions can be drawn from this seemingly paradox? Is the famous internet meme truly a logical fallacy? What role do yams play on this debate? Should sweet potatoes be considered dangerous and abolished, not only for their uncomfortable appearance and taste, but also for bringing the dangerous threat of confusion? The next 400 pages will shed light on these questions. Maybe.

Pride month commemorates the Stonewall riots in the US. My dashboard is full of posts about US LGBT icons, US LGBT events and so on. But what about the rest of the world? 

This is why some admins and I have decided to make another “challenge” in the next couple weeks, where we post about LGBT facts from our countries. The struggle for acceptance is by far not unique to the US, and there are many stories to be told about LGBT history in other countries.

Here are some suggestions about what you can post:

Pride parades in your country (photos, gifs, videos...)

Important historical and contemporary LGBT people from your country

Movies or art about LGBT people, or LGBT history in your country

Important events for the LGBT community (legal/political decisions, riots, parades etc.)

LGBT history of your country

LGBT language (how to express gender neutrality, vocabulary lists about sexual orientations, genders etc)

LGBT groups in your country, where to meet LGBT people, 

Of course, people that aren’t part of ucf are also happy to join, it would be great if you can submit posts, tag admins of the corresponding country, or just simply tag the posts with #uselesslgbtfacts.

Blogs: @useless-vietnamfacts, @livefromvietnam (main blog focusing on languages or the Vietnamese language)    

Name: Diệp (admin name : Lạp)

Gender: female

Age: 16 (in highschool)    

Personal interests: I would say that I love learning. I learn sciences, languages, cultures, religions, and other random things as well. My favourite science is Biology but anyway I study specialised Math. I’m still brushing up my native language Vietnamese, highschool English and home-taught German. I have crushes on a lot of countries in the world but my favourite country is South Africa :D and I’m interested in Islam. I pay some attention to politics, especially international. I’m also extremely against China due to their “oppression” in Vietnam    

Why I chose to run a blog about Vietnam: Vietnamese people create too many bad impressions on the world . The rude, careless and selfish actions of our people cause annoyance and frustration. Thus, I want to show the world (:v) the beauty in ways of our country and the reason why a proud Vietnamese loves our Vietnam. 

Blog: useless-netherlandsfacts

Name: Nika

Born in: May 2000

Gender: Female

Personal interests: I’m really interested in international politics and diplomacy, and I’m an active participant in Model UN. I also love learning new languages and doing sports!

Blog: @useless-polandfacts (personal blog: @cruento-ombro, nothing special I guess but go ahead if you want)

Admin name: Celina (#celina)

Real name: Zofia (diminutive Zosia)

Year of birth: 2001

Gender: Female

Personal interests: I like traveling, discovering new things, cultures and people. I learn Japanese for few months now and it’s going pretty well, I have in plans to learn more languages and to polish (hehe) my German (it’s so bad). I love art (in any kinds), popculture and music (mostly rock, but any kinds are open for me). I’m (trying to be) open to everybody and to everything!

@useless-brazilfacts​ had to take a hiatus because of the exams, the admin himself is a Northeasterner, and we think that even with a very distinct culture in a same country, it would only lead to the fragmentation and creation of several blogs, like it happened with USA, and that is something we should avoid.