I wish I was half as interesting as you. I'm a woman with two engineering degrees who couldn't figure out why nobody was listening to us technical people so I ditched that and did a PhD in communication and studied why nobody listened to doctors and scientists during a pandemic.

So now I'm an expert in why people ignore good scientific information but still have little clue on how to overcome this without a boatload of money and the overthrow of the oligarchy.

Hey, I'm Celeste, a non-binary/trans* computer toucher who is studying computer science. I'm not really an expert in anything but I've been building a home lab for the last 8 years that is starting to fill up my basement and my office. It's a glorious, well-optimized mess.

I've started programming with the age of 7, am proficient in 8 programming languages, and started home-labbing long before I started studying. I had a lot of time between finishing my high school degree and starting at university during the pandemic to learn math, writing good code, self-hosting, networking, security, etc.

(Don't ask me about my home lab, unless you are prepared for a 6h presentation)

I have worked at a data center before as a (junior) system integrator and just started my first real IT job at a startup, which is building a software solution for managing and monitoring complex IT infrastructures using, graphs, and "AI"™

I'm mostly old, turned 80. I'm becoming knowledgeable about arthritic knees, and bruises from blood thinners.

I'm trained in physics, math, computer science, and I've a dusty old MBA diploma somewhere.

My driving interest since I was a kid is astronomy, and I still study it most days.

I am Luqa, or Lucas (Lucaas), or Luke, or whatever name people call me. My reputation as a trans man is just one of the many ways that people see me. Gender is less central to my own existence these days, and more of a reflection that others see in my mirror, and is about the viewer. 🪞

I am discovering more and more about myself than just that I'm a 48 year old mother, grandpa, writer, and activist who had a fine career writing code as a software engineer, who had a long & scary trauma path to arrive here and Now to recognize my own Self in the mirror.

My expertise is related to peace, though I only discovered inner peace even existed 6 months ago - I thought peace was from external sources. It turns out that CPTSD symptoms can become quieter, and I have recently had the privilege of helping others reclaim their imagination from the pain of nightmares induced by the world around us, and the messages we have internalized about our Self, our inner identity. I had only glimpsed hints that this idea might not be a myth, before that.

I have set about learning more about the myriad of paths to inner peace through a healing journey, so that I can help enable others to find this same feeling that I have. It turns out, that most of the people in my world reexperience their trauma on a near constant basis, like I used to. So I get to live my childhood dreams of being a Unicorn that influences the world for good by spreading joy and peace to those who ask for my guidance.

I recently set into motion my plans to expand this healing work, in ways that align with my cognitive and physical disability needs (TBI, EDS, POTS, 20+ more 🧠🦓), and my desire to travel, *without* needing to try to capitalize on this freely offered gift of cooperative emotional labor.

I am currently weighing the benefits of becoming a mushroom guide, and what that will mean for my future. 🍄🦄

#AMA

Hi, I'm Clara, and I have finally come to accept that I will never be an expert at anything, not nearly to the extent that other people are, but what I do bring to the table are opinions on technology, some humor, and that one YouTube video where I am very clearly not confident about what kind of relationship I want.

Also, I am like a truffle hunting pig for a random facts.

Hi! I'll join the newbies on this novel-length thread. I'm Willow, "multi-queer," with a PhD in Lit, primarily focused on theater and poetry of the Renaissance/ early modern period. I'm currently teaching a summer writing course on performance theory. I'm not as expert on Women & Gender Studies/ queer theory as I'd like, but I taught a course on bodies a year ago and how they disrupt traditional categories, examining discourse and lit around queer bodies all the way from ancient Greece to #GretchenFelkerMartin

I'm also a sometimes poet/writer, a ttrpg DM, a historical linguistics and conlang nerd, and an amateur mushroom hunter and forager (though nothing like an expert). My gf and I are also pretty expert in movies from the 30s through 50s, from the awe-inspiring to the awful! (Shout out to my recent terrible idea to do "the wives of Cary Grant" double feature: Dream Wife and My Favorite Wife... do not watch!)

@raphaelmorgan Oh, great question. You can retain your expertise on the vinification side of things: the science of growing grapes and making wine.

The other side is keeping up with the current number and quality of wine houses, and each vintage for each region. Only with this continuous knowledge can you say, for instance, that Paul Hobbs is currently the best California Cabernet. (Is it now? Who knows?) Weather can ruin a whole harvest. Wineries, especially in California, often go broke, and you have to change your recommendations accordingly.

Also, you need a sharp memory to keep it all in your head, including updated information. At the same time (in fine dining) I had to keep up with the latest buzz on small batch bourbons and single malt scotches and whatever trends were hot, like more potato-sourced vodka than grain-sourced.

Hi! I'm Emri!
I'm agender and pan

I'm a nurse and super passionate about supporting and teaching health literacy in the general public (God knows we need it)

That's my only "professional" info dump topic.

Nonprofessional topics are crochet and pokemon:)

I'm a plain old White cis woman.

My areas of expertise are cats, writing for comics, writing for animation, writing for games, fantasy & sf.

Hi! I'm a bisexual trans woman, I've got a PhD in compilation and I'm an expert in dynamic binary modification and memory safety related stuff. I did all my shenanigans in Rust and I'm knowledgeable in most mainstream languages from system to web.

Speaking of language I'm also a polyglot, fluent in French and English, solid intermediate in Portuguese and Norwegian. I also have good foundations in German, Italian, Japanese and Russian. Each time you complain I learn a new language.

Don't ask about jellyfishes, for your own safety 🪼

I'm trying to find an interesting remote job in compilation related stuff and escape the consulting hell

@3janeTA My longtime favourite is shortbread cookies.

1 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup Icing Sugar
1/2 Cup Corn Starch
3/4 Cup Butter.

Mix the dry ingredients
Add soft butter
Scoop into balls
Press with a fork
Bake at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 18-20 minutes, or until just slightly golden around the edges.

My favourite singular creation is a raspberry lattice pie though. I brought that to Easter dinner with my then girlfriend, and it was more popular than Grandma's apple pie.

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Hey hey,

I'm Leia, a trans, pan gal. I've got my MLIS, which is a log set of letters to say I'm a librarian. My forte is in genre fiction, (sci fi and fantasy,) because that's what I like.

I'm also a very advanced amature computer toucher. Running Linux, got my own server, etc. I'm the one everyone at work comes to before calling IT.

I've also been really into photography and photography equipment recently. My being cheap is the main thing keeping me from making a lot of regrettable purchases from goodwill. As it is I have a fungusy lens older than me and a younger one that smells like its been sitting for a while in the bottom of an outdoor ashtray.