@Kurarita

Well so far we havent actually made it a rule, all languages are welcome, and we may never.

The issue isnt so much about tolerance as it is about our ability to moderate and build a community. We dont have moderators who can read every language and it has made it impossible to mediate many instances in the past.

On top of that we arent a general instance, we are an instance for STEM collaboration, a community can only thrive if they communicate with each other. General instances are more suited for multi-language.

Finally, the discussion around language is one that the entire community has a voice in. We hae a discourse forum where any user can either support or object the idea and ultimately will shape what decision has been made. So far not a single user in our community has pressed us to keep all languages open.

@dyvulgativa

@freemo @dyvulgativa

Ok. Doc

...looking for instance with linguistic tolerance

@Kurarita

At the moment we are still tolerant of all languages, so that shouldnt be an issue. But it is a topic that is being discussed and I cant garuntee it will remain that way. Regardless we will not delete established accounts in another language if/when the rule passes.

@dyvulgativa

@freemo @dyvulgativa

👏👋

@freemo @Kurarita @dyvulgativa I know I'm a nobody, but I can testify and endorse Dyvulgativa. It's an account meant to divulge scientific content in threads. :)

@beckermatic

thank you but im not worried about his account at all. I just wanted him to be aware of the situation since it would effect him and so he can voice his opinion on it if he wishes.

His account is welcome here.

@Kurarita @dyvulgativa

@Kurarita

The full post and discussion about our language restriction (or at least the potential for it) can be seen here. As you can see 8 of our users have voices an opinion over 55 replies. So far there have been no objections.

Any user who doesnt like the policy still has a chance to voice their opinion, this isnt a dictatorship:

https://discourse.qoto.org/t/final-proposal-restricting-posts-on-qoto-to-english-only/226?u=freemo

@dyvulgativa

@Kurarita

Also, if we do decide to restrict accounts to english only we will likely make an exception for any established active accounts at the time the language restriction is put in place.

@dyvulgativa

@dyvulgativa Please add your comment to the discourse thread, so it can be considered.

For now we are holding off enforcing any language restrictions.. Its been considered but we decided not to enforce it unless and until it creates an actual problem... We welcome your input in the thread:

https://discourse.qoto.org/t/final-proposal-restricting-posts-on-qoto-to-english-only/226?u=freemo

@freemo thanks, I will leave my comment there.

Since you took the time to explain the issue here, let me add a couple of ideas

- The interface detected my location and spoke to me not only in Spanish, but with the specific slang we use in Argentina. That's cool, and implies that there are people from my country collaborating with QOTO. I am sure that, if needed, you can find enough moderators in Spanish among your community.

- Technical scientific discussions must me made in a common languaje to all the participants, and that's usually English. If you wish to restrict the instance only to such kind of exchanges, then the proposed languaje restriction would not be a problem. But popular science and discussions on scientific politics have a wider scope, and restrict them to English would be a waste.

- English is the languaje of scientific exchange not due to a constitutive feature, it is not "better" in any sense. It's use is just a consequence of the fact that the countries that are investing the most and producing most of scientific publications are English speakers. But that may change, and will certainly change in the years to come. Let me remind you that the most important paper in the history of physics was published in German. A community restricted to one languaje could not follow such changes.

- Finally, languaje restrictions are usually a way of self distinction, a way in which a group of people separate itself from the rest. It is a way to say "we are special, we are different from the others". The history of the "big vocalic shift" that made English into the orthographic and phonetic mess that it is today is an example of that. "Inclusive languaje" is another example. As a scientist who contribute to popularization of science in social networks for more that 15 years, I do not agree with any choice that identifies scientists as any kind of special elite.

I will improve and publish this ideas in your discussion thread, in case they could be useful.

@dyvulgativa We a should at least tag the other moderators here since they play a large role in this discussion. Though they will prefer to comment in discourse as would I since that is where we keep a more official record of it all

@arteteco @design_RG