Month: September 2016

If you’re a Harry Potter fan, you’ve been waiting for this for years.

You can now get your Patronus on JK Rowling’s Harry Potter website, Pottermore.

The Magic Queen Herself’s patronus is a pine marten, according to her official Twitter page.

I took the @pottermore test (which I wrote) ages ago when it was a work in progress and got a pine marten Patronus. I was happy, because…

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 22, 2016

Most people are over the moon about this, understandably. Twitter is a magical menagerie of dolphins, dogs, birds, and even magical creatures.

https://twitter.com/jenwilsonca/status/778998118524125185

I discovered my Patronus is an Aardvark on J.K. Rowling’s @pottermore. Find yours: https://t.co/5IEScxUI01 #ExpectoPatronum

— Shiny (@tsuraretemiru) September 22, 2016

https://twitter.com/itsamandaross/status/778998135481786368

Some people, however, are less-than-thrilled.

Did the "what's your Patronus" test on #Pottermore. Apparently I'm a "MONGREL DOG". THANKS, JK ROWLING. pic.twitter.com/XWB8mrBVCY

— Jenny Lawson (@TheBloggess) September 22, 2016

https://twitter.com/magicrobins/status/778998114946461697

https://twitter.com/mariapaulan97/status/778998209410576384

https://twitter.com/HelenScottUK/status/778985613827706881

Everyone is upset they didn't get a hippogriff or a thestral as their patronus but at least you didn't get a SALMON. I am so embarrassed. pic.twitter.com/QSNIog8a7c

— Charlotte (@charlotte_santo) September 22, 2016

As someone who also got Salmon, I offer you this word of caution: do NOT jump into this quiz without taking a little forethought, especially not while excitedly calling to the rest of your colleagues in your office your extreme joy at this momentous occasion. This is a pivotal moment in your life, a defining instant in your fandom career, and it needs to be cherished.

Instead, approach the quiz calmly. It’s more than a quiz, it’s sort of a game. Think carefully of your happiest memory and go steadily through each question — if you take too long, it’ll skip to the next one.

Keep in mind, too, that this feature on Pottermore seems to be more random than, say, your house or your wand. Twitter’s animal choices are all over the board, including “black and white cat” as well as “tortoiseshell cat,” “black stallion” as well as “white stallion,” and at least three kinds of dog. Salmon is still the only fish I’ve found, even though I’ve seen a few dolphins.

I think the @sortingbot is less random in its magical assignments than Pottermore's Patronus toy. Which, ya know… pic.twitter.com/Cy3wbJRXMi

— maniraptor (@maniraptor) September 22, 2016

The bottom line is, it might not be as big a deal as we think. Queen JK also Tweeted that your Patronus can change over time, too. So does this mean we can one day retake the quiz? That seems only fair.

Few of us are lucky enough to have a mystical creature, like, say, a dragon, although one Tweeter did. Also, this one:

https://twitter.com/typicalfeminist/status/778998096936202240

Whatever your Patronus, Queen JK does a brilliant job of keeping the magic alive with new content on a regular basis. I wish you the best of luck–remember, think of a happy memory!

Atlanta Public Schools 4th grade paraprofessional Patrice Brown has been the topic of much discussion for her work outfits. Brown, an Alabama State University graduate, has been given the title “#TeacherBae” because of her curvaceous figure and what some consider “too revealing” outfits.

In now deleted Instagram posts, Brown showed off some of her work week #OOTD. The internet responded with its usual polarized fervor. Over 19,000 posts have been shared about the topic. The central question is whether or not she dresses too provocatively for the classroom. The three images circulating the internet show her in outfits that had social media users in a tizzy.

There has been much and rather divided discourse on Brown’s fashion. Commenters are either criticizing her choices or defending her right to wear what she wants to work.

Critics of #TeacherBae feel her choices are better fit for brunch with friends or after-five outings, not multiplication tables and recess. They feel she is more of a distraction than resource for students in her form fitting clothing.

In response to the outrage over her fashion choices, counter-critics feel Brown is the internet’s latest target of misogyny-noir, sexism targeted specifically at Black women.

These social media users cited historical and current examples of African American women’s over-sexualization and subsequent indictments of their characters because of shapely bodies. One user even shared a photo of a dress that is allegedly the same as Brown’s in one of the now viral photos suggesting a White woman would not be under the same media fire for the same dress. Posts in support of Brown seem to outnumber the negative ones considerably.

Atlanta Public Schools has issued a statement about Ms. Brown’s wardrobe and her professional standing in the school. So far it seems they have reprimanded her for her social media presence rather than her clothing choices.

Overall users have been supportive of Patrice Brown. Some have even gone so far as to create a Twitter account dedicated to positive messages about her work and sense of style.

Also in true internet fashion, the whole uproar has been turned into a meme referencing popular culture.

At any rate, the blogosphere was a-twitter because of the curvy teacher. This past week of repost/sharing frenzy has made another entry in the novel of women, work, and the internet.

On Friday, September 16th, Donald Trump announced that “President Barack Obama was born in the United States, period”. He believed it was finally time to put the issue to rest by claiming that presidential nominee Hillary Clinton started the birtherism movement during her 2008 political campaign.

However, multiple news sources, including Politifact, have shown that it was a Clinton supporter and not Hillary Clinton herself who started the rumors about President Obama’s birthplace.

Donald Trump’s statement caused quite the uproar on Twitter with people either standing behind him or disavowing him completely. Searches for posts containing Trump and birtherism, and Hillary and birtherism found a total of 45,240 posts, 42,135 of which were tweets.

As the above image shows, there were some noticeable spikes in the number of tweets – one at 12pm for Donald Trump and one at 7pm for Hillary Clinton. The number of posts begin to taper off after 7pm with only a few minor spikes on September 18th.

There were mixed feelings about Donald Trump’s statement with most people outraged by his statement, while others were in full support.

Also, conversation clouds revealed specific words used in association with birtherism and both political candidates.

Both conversation clouds show that birtherism, lies, and started are the key words being used in social media posts.

It is interesting to note that in the Trump conversation cloud #imwithher, which is used primarily by Hillary supporters, shows up. This could be a result of Hillary supporters ending mentions of Trump and birtherism with #imwithher.

Also, the Hillary conversation cloud includes words such as racist and vile. Again, it is not clear as to what context these words are being used. They could be used by Trump supporters describing Hillary or vice versa.

Supporters and opponents of both presidential candidates had a lot to say about Donald Trump’s birther statement. While sentiment is difficult to track, the software did pick up on more negative tweets about Trump and birtherism. One thing to note is that there was not much mention of Hillary’s response on Twitter, which could contribute to the lack of positive tweets.

The use of social media throughout this presidential campaign reveals it is a powerful tool in informing voters and arming candidates with the tools to respond directly to claims made by the media and other candidates.

If you have an iPhone, you probably just got the update to iOS 10. Maybe you’re excited about the new features, like invisible ink or the hidden magnifying glass.

The new emoji seem pretty cool, too.

One of them, though, has some people pretty ticked.

The “gun” emoji is now replaced by a little green water gun—the kind you used in the pool as a kid.

In Apple’s official announcement of updated emoji, the focus is more on gender diversity than any sort of pacifist message. The article threw the green water gun on the bottom left, almost like an afterthought.

Some say this is making a big political statement about violence. Others are just ticked that they can’t send texts like, “ugh 2 hr meeting, shoot me” anymore.

Whatever your opinion is, Twitter has a lot to say.

In fact, @SquirtGunEmoji already has its own handle, if you want to follow it.

Interestingly, nearly ALL of the posts today about the topic were negative. Nobody really seems to like it.

Lots just said it “destroyed the fun” of using a gun emoji. Twitter seems shocked and upset that what apparently is everyone’s favorite emoji is suddenly tame.

Others, however, took a more serious view. Dozens of posts sarcastically called out the new emoji, Apple, or “’Merica” on the change. Some blamed government crackdowns, others the violence inherent in the system…one joked about Harambe and how he would still be alive today…if only they had changed the emoji sooner.

Even the posts that said they liked the new update still called out the water gun for being lame or not as emphatic as the old one. Basically, opinions on Twitter range from “flipping out” to “…seriously?”

Much of the chatter is about censorship, free speech, and gun control. It seems that, at least for now, people think the new water gun is pointless compared to the old one, despite what Apple might really be saying about the meaning of texting conventions and violence.

Off of Twitter, however, opinions are more divided. Supporters of gun control applaud Apple for making the change, and New Yorkers Against Gun Violence is a group that launched a campaign to #DisarmTheiPhone. People who originally supported this hashtag surely are texting for joy with their newfound ability to squirt people via iPhone.

As time goes on, maybe people will re-frame the water gun as a push for peace. Or, maybe it will always represent corporate censorship.

Either way, “pictures speak louder than words,” and emoji are no exception. Given the current political climate, even a tiny emoji becomes a real consideration.

What do you think? Are you going to update?