New Raya And The Last Dragon Trailer? New Cultural Influences Breakdown! Please Note That This Breakdown

New Raya and the Last Dragon trailer? New cultural influences breakdown! Please note that this breakdown comes from a SEA who comes specifically from a Filipino background. Most, if not all, of the below information will be from that lens.

Seaport/night market

The scene above looks to be heavily influenced by many on the sea towns you see in SEA. Most notably, Vietnam. However, there are many towns like these all over the SEA region. The lights and lanterns give it a night market feel, which is a concept that is seen throughout Asia in general.

We see Raya’s hat which seems to be influenced by a Philippine salakot, but it is possible that it has influences from other SEA cultures. The architecture is akin to the weather that you typically see in the region which is more humid than East Asia, and more rooted in the sea. More things here are made from bamboo and there are nipa roofs.

Ignoring the blurry con baby, let’s take a look at the clothing. In this scene we see colorful golden zig zag patterns which you typically see more to the southern part of SEA, but there are similar patterns throughout. Here, the skirts and clothing seems to have much influence from Malaysia, Indonesia, and the southern islands of the Philippines.

Oh what a scene! This is such a great view of what a typical SEA rural fishing town might look like: on the water, with houses and stores even on the water. There are narrow boats and coracles with baskets of food of all kinds of fruits and vegetables that people row around. You can see the nipa roofs really well from here, and might I add–a great looking bamboo bridge.

I have no idea how I caught this but just wanted to point out that these fruits that Raya cuts up look to be either lychees or rambutan which are found in SEA as well.

Taking a moment to paste in this still from Entertainment in the same scene to note the fish in the basket to the left and the green star-shaped lantern that really gave me Philippine parol vibes. All the lanterns in the sea town look to either be made from paper or from capiz shells and dyed different colors.

Lands and architecture

The grand looking building on top of this island looks to be influenced by architecture from Brunei. Specifically, the dome shapes. A better shot below:

The building in the middle of this island is obviously an exaggerated, fantastical version of what it was influenced by which looks to be a mix between Cambodian and Thai. All that gold…very typical of many countries in SEA. I’d also love to point out the rice terraces!!! Love them! While rice is a staple throughout Asia, it’s so nice to see it represented here. It kind of reminds me of a miniature version of the Banaue rice terraces in the northern mountain region of the Philippines.

It’s also nice to see that some of the lands seem to be influenced by the tropical, humid climates of much of SEA. The palms and the thick forests are typical in much of the region.

Oh the rice fields. Raya and Sisu are standing here on one. We can see the mountainous background, reminiscent of the northern Philippines, the rain which just looks so typical that I’m kind of impressed by this particular setting.

Other cultural touches

At first glance, you might think this looks like a lotus flower, but I think it’s actually either a plumeria or a jasmine flower. Both are abundant in the region, and just imagining the fragrant smell of a jasmine flower here fits more as a story set in SEA and not in East Asia.

This is not an opinion post, so I won’t state my opinions on the final (non-statue) design of the dragon, but I can analyze what it’s most likely based after.

Unlike dragons in East Asia, SEA are often depicted with a long horn at the front. This is most prominent in Thai depictions. In many countries of the region, this dragon is called a naga. While a naga is also in South Asian mythology, they are a bit different here. Naga are so important within SEA cultures that we have multiple places (and a river) named after them all over SEA and particularly a few times in the Philippines.

What I can tell you is mostly the Philippine version, but a naga is a serpentine creature that lives deep in the ocean, and are often associated with water. Sometimes they are depicted as having the upper half of a woman. A more famous naga (or a naga-influenced dragon), is Bakunawa–the great sea dragon that devours the moon and causes eclipses. It is said that Bakunawa is a naga, and sometimes the names are interchanged.

In the southern islands of the Philippines, depictions of naga are seen carved throughout buildings, particularly on roofs. A typical dance movement where you keep your hands curved and your fingers bent toward yourself is called “naga hands” and is supposed to be reminiscent of a naga’s graceful claws.

Highlighting here how cool it is to see that this is indeed a water dragon which is consistent with a naga. It’s also nice to note that it shapeshifts with water. Naga are supposed to have influence over earthquakes, the sea, rainfall, storms, and the like. They can also sometimes shapeshift into humans.

Remember what I said about naga influencing rainfall?

And then we have the shape-shifting into a human!

Raya’s sword is a wavy blade called a kris blade. Found throughout many countries in SEA, the one I am most familiar with is the Philippine one. From what I know of it, they are blades that are wavy because when they pierce someone, it is more painful when they are withdrawn.

Her fighting style is also influenced by Philippine martial arts. Notably arnis and escrima. They are fighting techniques that rely on shifting your opponent’s weight around, using their force against them. They also have a lot of quick footwork and practitioners are usually skilled with weapons such as swords and kali sticks. (Fun fact: I’ve heard some people say that the footwork from arnis may have influenced the quick steps of the national dance of the Philippines, tinikling.) To see more on that, check out the first teaser trailer where she uses kali sticks, and my first analysis. That analysis also goes into the clothing influences.

THE GOLD. Gold is so, so important in SEA. This was a big glaring problem after seeing the first teaser trailer…there was not enough gold! Here, we can see that there is in fact, gold. The architecture here looks like a mix of different things, but I’m seeing perhaps…Thai?

And here we have Tuk Tuk who is probably named after a tuk-tuk–a motorbike with a side carriage like a rickshaw–seen in SEA. “Tuk-tuk” is what this rickshaw is called in Thailand. In the Philippines it’s simply known as a tricycle. They are vehicles for hire, which is kind of funny since Raya rides Tuk Tuk.

Also of note, Tuk Tuk the animal is a giant pangolin. While I don’t know of any this size, they are found in SEA as well as other parts of the world.

Tuk Tuk looks like he’s eating a pink pomelo (grapefruit)? Not entirely sure, but that would fit the mold if he was in the Philippines. For some reason, grapefruit seems to be a popular fruit item.

That’s all I got! If you come from another SEA culture or noticed any other things (or things that I got wrong), feel free to add to this post!

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but on the real though, here is your guide to assyrian rice preparation from your friendly neighborhood assyrian:

start wanting rice. (or, if you are traditional, simply recognize your constant desire for rice.)

measure out two cups of rice. then one more. then two more. then another. this seems fine. you love rice. there is no way that this will backfire on you.

remember that your great-great-uncle’s recipe says it should be soaked overnight.

become consumed with despair.

decide to soak it for half an hour instead, acknowledging that the final product will be inferior and anger your ancestors but will still satisfy your now almost-overwhelming need for rice to be inside your body much faster.

remember that you should have set the water to boil when you soaked the rice. goddammit.

once the water boils, put the rice in until it is half-cooked. the eyeballing or intuitive method is less effective than a timer but that’s how your aunt does it so you feel compelled to meet her standards.

now that the rice has fluffed up, realize how much rice six dry cups really is. holy shit. you’ve fucked up immeasurably.

take a minute to dwell upon your failings.

grease a baking dish with butter. this will never be as elegant as you want it to and your fingers will get greasy, but the slightly shameful, self-indulgent joy of licking your fingers afterwards will make up for it.

pour the rice into the dish. wonder immediately if you actually buttered the dish beforehand and if you’ve just fucked up.

melt approximately one thousand pounds of butter in the microwave and pour it over the rice, pondering your imminent death from rapid-onset arterial clogging. put a small pat of butter on the top to properly gild the lily.

put your pan into the oven, which you have absolutely preheated after your previous lack of foresight. shake the rice once or twice while it bakes to make sure the butter is well distributed. resist the impulse to climb into the oven with the rice. for the last ten minutes, sit next to the oven and count the seconds until it’s done.

remove the dish from the oven. shed a tear or two at the perfection laid before you. if you are dining with others, this is the time to serve the rice while making passive-aggressive statements about how oh no, you don’t need any help, you just made dinner all by yourself, you can serve everyone as well. (this is still fun if done alone, but optional.)

CONSUME THE RICE.

realize that you have eaten half of the dish in one sitting. no matter how much rice you made, this will always happen.

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Ars Technica

New Windows AI feature records everything you’ve done on your PC

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I think every computer user needs to read this because holy fucking shit this is fucking horrible.

So Windows has a new feature incoming called Recall where your computer will first, monitor everything you do with screenshots every couple of seconds and "process that" with an AI.

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This AI is not going to be on your desktop, like all AI, it's going to be done on another server, "in the cloud" to be precise, so all those data and screenshot? They're going to go off to Microsoft. Microsoft are going to be monitoring what you do on your own computer.

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Again, look into backing up your shit and switching to Linux Mint or Ubuntu to get away from Microsoft doing this shit.

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I'd like to know why the minerals are hazardous!

YES I got someone to bite!

Okay, so, the two specific minerals I have in my collection that are hazardous are hazardous for different reasons.

First off, chromite.

I'd Like To Know Why The Minerals Are Hazardous!

Reason it is potentially hazardous: On its own, chromite isn’t necessarily dangerous. It becomes dangerous when exposed to certain environmental conditions. Under certain conditions, the chromium present in chromite changes from Cr(III) (trivalent chromium) to Cr(VI) (hexavalent chromium). Hexavalent chromium is a known toxin and carcinogen.

Reason I still have it in my collection: You need very specific circumstances to transform the Cr(III) in chromite to Cr(VI). Generally, those circumstances occur when chromite ore is being processed to produce chromium. All my chromite does is chill in a jar all day. There’s very little likelihood that my chromite has oxidized to form hexavalent chromium.

(Not to mention, despite some vigorous Google searching, I couldn’t find anything about chromite being hazardous, just that mining and processing it is hazardous, neither of which I am doing.)

My second mineral in the “Danger Jar” is uraninite, aka pitchblende.

Reason it is potentially hazardous: It’s a uranium ore, which makes it weakly radioactive. Marie Curie (one of my role models) famously died as a result of exposure to radiation from pitchblende.

Reason I still have it in my collection: Marie Curie processed literal tons of pitchblende during her research. I have a small specimen the size of my thumb. Also, while it is radioactive, its form of radioactivity (alpha decay) makes the main concern internal exposure (breathing in particles, ingesting it), rather than external exposure (just being in close proximity to it). Basically, it doesn’t give off much radiation anyways, and what little it does isn’t as hazardous as you might think.

(Not to mention, it was actually part of one of those mineral collection kits that you can like, just buy online or in a store. Pretty sure that if it was seriously dangerous to my health, it wouldn’t be available for easy purchase. Also, at undergrad I literally sat next to a cabinet that set off a Geiger counter because it had so much pitchblende in it, but the professors weren’t concerned at all.)

HOWEVER

Out of an abundance of caution, I keep my chromite and my pitchblende in a sealed container (as of this morning, a nice glass jar that used to house a Bath and Bodyworks candle) and store said jar not in my bedroom. I’m 100% sure that my samples aren’t actually dangerous for me to have, but I like to take precautions anyways. Blame my microbiology and chemistry background for that.

Bonus: I mentioned a few other minerals in the tags of my post about my Danger Jar. Namely, cinnabar and orpiment.

Cinnabar is a beautiful red mineral that is also incredibly toxic because it’s mercury sulfide.

Orpiment is a beautiful orange-yellow mineral that is also incredibly toxic because it’s arsenic sulfide.

There are actually two other arsenic sulfide minerals that I would also like for my collection, in addition to orpiment.

Realgar

Arsenopyrite

All of these I have handled in mineralogy (I think...I can’t remember if I handled cinnabar or not). And all the professor said was “Wash your hands before you eat, because these have mercury and arsenic in them.”

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