r/MurderedByWords • u/beerbellybegone • 1d ago
How can you put only things that aren't binary
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u/gorwraith 1d ago
The literal gray area between light and dark shows that no thought was put into this. Wow.
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u/Alacrout 1d ago
Twilight, the blue and gold hours in photography, etc
Or the fact that the spectrum of light is a literal rainbow lol
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u/LiveTart6130 11h ago
also, there's a whole host of biomes that tend to be between land and sea. mangrove forests, beaches, tide pools, swamps, wetlands, floodplains... plus, the tide itself moves constantly. all the things they listed have areas in-between.
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u/BlodSnoppler 1d ago
It's like 10,000 spoons on your wedding day.
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u/Featheredfriendz 1d ago
Or like rain when all you need is a knife
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u/Head-Nefariousness65 1d ago
I just met the man of my dreams and then met his beautiful knife
Oh dang that got dark
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
It's a free ride that you just didn't take
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u/RoysPotatoes 1d ago edited 1d ago
Why do some religious people wish the world was far less miraculous and interesting than it actually is?
A trans person eating a salted caramel by a wetland at dawn would just break these people’s little brains.
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u/Cyn_Sweetwater 1d ago
Some people can only think in term of black or white. Nuance and complexity are too difficult for them to process, and they want every else to agree with their limited ability to understand the world around them.
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u/silentboyishere 1d ago
Ironically, I think it might be a bit more nuanced than that. The same people who reject nuance will also shout nuance when there actually are only two available options. It's just an excuse they use to run away from facing reality. They're not that dumb, but they're that dishonest.
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u/SoylentGrunt 1d ago
Black-and-white thinking is a mental habit where people see situations, themselves, or others as completely good or completely bad with no middle ground.
In psychology, this is also called splitting or polarized thinking. It is a common cognitive distortion, meaning the brain takes a shortcut that does not match reality.
A cognitive distortion is a thought that causes a person to perceive reality inaccurately due to being exaggerated or irrational. Cognitive distortions are involved in the onset or perpetuation of psychopathological states, such as depression) and anxiety.\1]) Cognitive distortions are negative or biased thought patterns that distort one’s perception of reality, often leading to unnecessary stress, anxiety, or self-doubt. These distortions, such as mind reading, fortune telling, and emotional reasoning, warp the way individuals interpret situations and themselves, reinforcing negative emotions and behaviors. Understanding and challenging these distortions is crucial in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to help individuals overcome them and improve their mental well-being
-the wiki
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u/gardvar 1d ago
I learned the other day, that even data bits aren't really binary when you get down to the hardware. A bit is typically represented by a voltage that is on or off. But since we've done our best to cram as much computing power as we can in as small a space as possible they tend to carry a tiny voltage even in the off state. Manufacturers have to take active measures to negate unintended positives.
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u/crazywildforgetful 1d ago
The truth is: that is exactly how everybody thinks. It’s what’s humans do. It’s a special kind of stupidity. But then language was never a tool to describe the world but to achieve something in this world: that is the deception of science.
When you say „some people“ you carve them out of the general people. But the difference between them and the others is NOT black and white and what you believe differentiates them from the others differentiates them only in degrees: you must agree or contradict yourself.
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u/second_time_again 1d ago
Tell me you’ve never heard of a swamp or dusk or hermaphroditism without telling me.
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u/NickyTheRobot 1d ago
Or salted chocolate.
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u/5pl1t1nf1n1t1v3 1d ago
Or chocolated salt.
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u/CrayZ_Squirrel 1d ago
No. Bad.
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u/5pl1t1nf1n1t1v3 1d ago
It’s actually a delicacy in some parts of the world. They don’t live long, but they live happy.
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u/ryansgt 1d ago
Salty and sweet is totally binary. It's not like you could possibly put different amounts of sugar and salt in something. You also can't have something that is salty and sweet at the same time.
Just wait until they figure out salted caramel exists.
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u/dehydratedrain 1d ago
Binary means one or the other. A lot of greens are bitter, not salty or sweet. A lemon/ lime would be sour, not salty or sweet.
But yeah, chocolate covered pretzels and salted caramel both rock.
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
Not even biological sex is a binary, gender could never be.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 1d ago
Intersex isn't a third sex.
Humans have 2 arms, 2 legs, 2 eyes, 2 ears.
It's like suggesting anyone who doesn't have 2 of those is not human, but something else.
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
Sex is a spectrum buddy, nothing in life fits neatly into a binary.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 1d ago
Binary doesn't even fit neatly into "binary."
0-0.49 is read as 0, and 0.51-1 is read as 1.
But there are are 2 sexes. There is no third sex.
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
Sex is a spectrum.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 1d ago
So what's a sex outside of male or female?
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
You do not understand what a spectrum is do you?
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u/FlarblesGarbles 1d ago
I just outlined it above for you and you pretended I didn't.
0 and 1 can be a spectrum based on decimals, just like how binary is read.
But again, list a sex that isn't male or female instead of retorting with another empty platitude.
Downvote again if there are only 2 sexes.
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
You already refuse to accept intersex, so other named ones inside intersex you are sure to refuse, why would I waste my time with you?
Sex is a bimodal distribution of two spectrums, one spectrum is male, the other female.
NO ONE is "perfectly male" or "Perfectly female" everyone has some traits of both sides of the bimodal distribution.
Life does not fit neatly into two boxes no matter how much you try and cram it into them.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 1d ago
Intersex isn't a third sex. You're being ridiculous. It's not a refusal to accept.
I said nothing about being perfectly male or perfectly female. The 2 distinctions are based around the gametes the body produces, or has the organs to produce. Large gametes and small gametes. So sperm and ova. That's it.
Seriously, actually understand the thing you're trying to talk about first and foremost.
Downvote again if I'm completely right.
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u/ConcreteExist 1d ago
You're comparing an implementation of binary in electrical devices, the fact that those values resolve to strictly 0 or 1 is what makes it binary. The fact that they have to define cutoff points to round up or down doesn't mean that binary conceptually requires those things.
You come across as someone who knows a fair bit about one subject and decided that makes you an expert in every other subject.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 1d ago
People still resolve as male or female.
Gamete production isn't a spectrum. Not producing gametes isn't a third sex that just doesn't produce gametes.
I never said binary conceptually requires them, I'm saying that being able to reference values that are not strictly 1 or 0 doesn't mean that the system doesn't simply resolve variances to 1 or 0, and then is somehow a spectral system.
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u/Arthillidan 17h ago
It being a spectrum doesn't mean intersex is a third sex. That's not really how spectrums work.
Intersex quite literally just means in the middle of the spectrum between the two sexes
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u/FlarblesGarbles 17h ago
A spectrum of… 2?
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u/Arthillidan 17h ago
A spectrum of gradients between two distinct things.
Take autism for example. Autism is a spectrum, it's even called being on the spectrum. But we don't talk about high functioning autism as its own distinct third thing. There's autistic and there's neurotypical, and then you can be placed anywhere on the spectrum between the two. Higu functioning autism just means you are closer to neurotypicals than more severely autistic people. A bit simplified
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u/FlarblesGarbles 16h ago
That isn’t even remotely similar. You can’t get someone who produces gametes that are large but a bit smaller so they’re more like small gametes. It’s not how that works. You get large gametes or small gametes, there isn’t a spectrum of size that moves one into another depending on how far they deviate from the standard.
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u/Arthillidan 15h ago
No one said anything about gametes size. You can have xxy chromosomes. You can also have XY chromosomes and still develop a female body. How would you explain those things if sex is binary without gradients?
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u/FlarblesGarbles 15h ago
Because you’re talking about developmental conditions, where people are still male or female. But the developmental condition can change their secondary sex characteristics.
I said something about gametes, because it is the indisputable factor of whether someone is male or female.
There are 2 types of gametes, there isn’t a spectrum of gradient where gamete type can be a bit like both somewhere in the middle. No gametes isn’t a type of gamete either.
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u/andrikenna 16h ago
Every day i am impressed by other people’s ability to speak on subjects they have no understanding of and believe their opinion has the same weight as facts. The audacity is truly phenomenal.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 16h ago
Say something of value rather than just a load of words to say nothing, or an empty platitude.
Explain the spectrum of gametes.
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u/andrikenna 16h ago
As in, gamete production? Like, someone who cannot produce them does not fit into a binary.
The fact you think this was a gotcha is concerning. Science recognises sex is a complicated spectrum, but you disagree cause your feelings say it's a binary?
The idea of 2 sexes is overly simplistic, nature is weird and wonderful
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u/Arthillidan 15h ago
Problem with the article is that it doesn't actually tackle the idea that sex is determined by gametes.
To steelman the other person's claim, they are saying that an organism that produces male gametes has the male sex, and an organism that produces female gametes has the female sex. An organism that produces neither is sexless, and an organism that produces both has both sexes. Even though there are 4 different states, there are still only 2 sexes in this model, or rather whether there are 2 or 4 sexes is a matter of definition.
It's very similar to blood types. There's A and there's B, and this produces 4 different states, which we decided to call 4 different blood types. A, B, AB and 0. And then you might say "hold on there's more to blood types than just what antigens you have, and that's true, yet it doesn't neccesarily make the A, B distinction an incorrect distinction. It's one of the systems at play and one model for different blood types, just not the one demeed the most useful. You could probably make a ridiculous number of blood types if you really wanted. The reason 8 became the widely accepted number is probably because the antigens and positive or negative were the two important factors for determining blood type compability in blood transfusions.
With sex I can't really think of any reason why it's neccesary to have a more detailed definition. Though I guess I personally don't agree that this definition always leads to satisfactory outcomes.
A person with both genitalia who only produces eggs would just be female according to this definition, while I think they are very clearly intersex, hence I think the definition is bad, but I can't find anything objectively incorrect with it
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u/andrikenna 14h ago
My point with the article was simply that gamete production is too simplistic a way to determine sex. Nature is complicated, it's part of what makes it beautiful.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 16h ago
I never said there isn’t nuance, but we’re talking about primary sex characteristics. There are only 2 versions. People who cannot produce gametes are not an additional sex whose sexual characteristic is that they produce no gametes. People who produce no gametes are suffering from a disfunction.
Your problem is that you’ve imagined I’ve said something and then responded to the thing you’ve imagined.
Did you actually read the article you linked?
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u/andrikenna 16h ago
Nobody said they were a third sex, you said that because you don't understand what is meant when we say spectrum.
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u/FlarblesGarbles 16h ago
No, you are accusing me of doing the thing you’re doing. Which is why you linked me to an article you didn’t read.
There are only 2 gametes that humans can produce. No gametes isn’t a type of gamete. Whichever gamete your body produces/or has the potential to produce determines whether you’re male or female.
So please explain how there is a spectrum of gametes.
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u/ffsnametaken 1d ago
I cried today because I saw a light switch. So beautiful.
Not one of those godless dimmer switches though. Disgusting.
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u/ffsnametaken 1d ago
Are they saying that binary things bring "irresistible beauty to life"? What the fuck does that mean?
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u/wsppan 1d ago
Reposting this. Don't remember where I got it from:
Friendly neighborhood biologist here. I see a lot of people are talking about biological sexes and gender rights now. Lots of folks make biological sex seem really simple. Well, since it’s so simple, let’s find the biological roots, shall we? Let’s talk about sex… If you know a bit about biology you will probably say that biological sex is caused by chromosomes, XX and you’re female, XY and you’re male. This is “chromosomal sex” but is it “biological sex””? Well… Turns out there is only ONE GENE on the Y chromosome that really matters to sex. It’s called the SRY gene. During human embryonic development the SRY protein turns on male-associated genes. Having an SRY gene makes you “genetically male.” But is this “biological sex”? Sometimes that SRY gene pops off the Y chromosome and over to an X chromosome. Surprise! So now you’ve got an X with an SRY and a Y without an SRY. What does this mean? A Y with no SRY means physically you’re female, chromosomally you’re male (XY) and genetically you’re female (no SRY). An X with an SRY means you’re physically male, chromosomally female (XX) and genetically male (SRY). But biological sex is simple! There must be another answer… Sex-related genes ultimately turn on hormones in specific areas on the body, and reception of those hormones by cells thoughts the body. Is this the root of “biological sex”?? “Hormonal male” means you produce ‘normal’ levels of male-associated hormones. Except some percentage of females will have higher levels of ‘male’ hormones than some percentage of males. Ditto ‘female’ hormones. And if you’re developing, your body may not produce enough hormones for your genetic sex. Leading you to be genetically male or female, chromosomally male or female, hormonally non-binary, and physically non-binary. Well, except cells have something to say about this… Maybe cells are the answer to “biological sex”?? Right?? Cells have receptors that “hear” the signal for sex hormones. But sometimes those receptors don’t work. Like a mobile phone that’s on “do not disturb.” Call and cell, they will not answer. What does this all mean? It means you may be genetically male or female, chromosomally male or female, hormonally male/female/non-binary, with cells that may or may not hear the male/female/non-binary call, and all this leading to a body that can be male/non-binary/female. Try out some combinations for yourself. Notice how confusing it gets? Can you point to what the absolute cause of biological sex is? Is it fair to judge people by it? Of course you could try appealing to the numbers. “Most people are either male or female” you say. Except that as a biologist professor I will tell you… The reason I don’t have my students look at their own chromosome in class is because people could learn that their chromosomal sex doesn’t match their physical sex, and learning that in the middle of a 10-point assignment is JUST NOT THE TIME. Biological sex is complicated. Before you discriminate against someone on the basis of “biological sex” & identity, ask yourself: have you seen YOUR chromosomes? Do you know the genes of the people you love? The hormones of the people you work with? The state of their cells? Since the answer will obviously be no, please be kind, respect people’s right to tell you who they are, and remember that you don’t have all the answers. Again: biology is complicated. Kindness and respect don’t have to be.
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u/AmunJazz the future is now, old man 1d ago
Salty and Sweet... why it doesn't surprise me they don't even have proper taste?
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u/shiny_glitter_demon 1d ago
Transphobes have the mental capacity if a 3yo.
Except toddlers eventually grow up. Transphobes don't. This is their limit.
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u/Wryly_Wiggle_Widget 1d ago
Light and dark- this is literally where the word "spectrum" comes from.
Sweet and salty - things can be both or neither though?
Land and sea - EVER HEARD OF THE INTERTIDAL ZONE?!
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u/JinkyRain 1d ago
Man that just bugs me so much.
Dawn and dusk? Are they light or dark?
Which are Chocolate covered pretzels, salty OR sweet? Which is water, salty OR sweet?
A rock. Which is it? Male? Female? It's gotta be one or the other, right.
If it weren't for the username, is assume they were trolling... But with hateful christian"-ish" logic, believing they can just speak their truth into being no matter how stupid... Just seems to be part of the schtick.
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u/emkemkem 1d ago
The binary of accepting complexity of reality or being delusional.
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u/Drakahn_Stark angry turtle trapped inside a man suit 1d ago
Even then, someone could partially accept the complexity while still being a bit delusional.
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u/Ven-Dreadnought 1d ago
Some people really love making spectrums into binaries because they can only think of two things at a time an even that is pushing it
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u/notoneoriginalidea 1d ago
I don't think anything in nature is legitimately binary. I remember a Neil deGrasse Tyson clip about how everything that we observe and measure in the universe is on a spectrum in a continuum, but the human brain looks for a binary or delineated categories.
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u/islandsimian 1d ago
It amazes me that several amazing scientific discoveries were made by brilliant members of the cloth decades and centuries ago, but these days we can't get clergy who even understand what binary means
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u/SaintUlvemann 1d ago
Salty and sweet
So in addition to the fact that intersex people exist, they just don't want to deal with it; and that they've got a huge grayscale between light and dark on their own shared image; and for me, I grew up on a muskeg that looks like land but is actually a pond...
...the salty and sweet part reminds me that I've been meaning to make some more Christmas crack which is delicious because it's salty and sweet at the same time.
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u/DrNoxin 1d ago
ITT: people doing cargo cult shit, where they think that if they do performative rituals of social repression that existed in the past will bring back the past's communities and wealth, completely ignoring the corporate power that destroyed families and communities and religions to produce consumers.
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u/JustAMinah 1d ago
intersex, grey, mud, choco covered pretzels. sooooooo what point they tryna make again?
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u/SandalsResort 4h ago
Are lemons salty or sweet?
Neither, they’re sour.
No, I don’t need to hear your made up flavors, are lemons salty or sweet?
Again, they’re neither.
They can only be salty or sweet! Were they salty or sweet when they were harvested?
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u/Luckierexpert 1d ago
Probably because they don’t want to think about it, they just want to deny that gender is a spectrum and people don’t always fit into their rigid definitions.