Quantum and Voids and Intentions, Oh My!
Sometimes, words can be a bit much, especially when you have no clue what they mean or the context in which they are being used. And the verbiage in r/randonauts is no different. No, seriously, as soon as I read the word ‘quantum’, my brain collapsed in on itself. However, after using the subreddit for a while (and with the help of some of the users), I was able to get a hang of the language that is used there.
So Many Words, but What Do They Mean?
As soon as you open r/randonauts, there is a very high chance that you will see posts that include buzzwords, such as ‘intention’, ‘void’ and ‘quantum’. Since many users like to post about the aftermath of their Randonautica endeavors, there is a high concentration of these posts with these particular words. However, these words are only used within a certain context pertaining to the app, Randonautica, itself. For example, user u/Lunastra posted about how they set their intention to “hidden” along with a picture of a strange man-hole in the middle of a forest with the cover removed (which I think is a huge safety concern, whoever did that really dropped the ball).
As I mentioned before, setting your intention is similar to manifesting a theme, or rather, a lens you would like to view your destination through and these intentions can range from scary/creepy to cute and wholesome. However, without this previous knowledge it can be kind of tricky to figure out what exactly is going on. It also seems like the word ‘intention’ is only used in reference to when a user is discussing where Randonautica sent them and how well they think it aligns with their intention and not in any other way.
Enter the Void
Another buzzword you may run into is ‘void’. This word is a term that has been officially used by the creators of Randonautica. Honestly, the explanation for it is kind of long and I think it would be best if you were to hear about it from an actual user of r/randonauts.
As user u/Funny_Horsie says, voids are areas that do not have a high concentration of quantum points, which are coordinates that are randomly generated by a quantum random number generator (jeez, that’s such a mouthful). The opposite of a void would be an attractor, where there is a high concentration of quantum points. An example of someone using the term ‘void’ would be user u/Disastrous-Altered’s post. In this particular post, they are talking about how they discovered a place that they did not know existed near them until after setting their intention to be “peaceful” and choosing to go to a void. Attached is a picture of a little area that is right near a lake, and, truth be told, it does look peaceful.
Pass on the Knowledge
Just like how you and I understand that all of these terms can be confusing, the users of r/randonauts understand this as well. Whenever a new user of Randonautica joins the subreddit and asks questions about the vocabulary that is being used, many veteran users flood the post and answer their questions. There is no gatekeeping and everyone always has a great attitude and is very willing to help. As Gretchen McCulloch states in Because Internet, although the internet did not create informal writing, it has made it much more common to see. This is extremely evident in r/randonauts. Essentially, these strangers are reaching out to each other asking various questions about experiences, terminology, and app mechanics, but you would not be able to tell that they are strangers due to the way they interact with each other and their informal way of communicating. For example user u/OneGreasyBoy made a post asking how do they set their intention and, sure enough, at least a dozen users came to the post and answered their question. By doing this, many r/randonauts users have been able to pass on vital information to other users who in turn pass it on to someone else. It is really interesting to see how their use of language is building and molding the community.
In the End
At first glance, r/randonauts is a place filled with words that no outsider really knows the meaning of. However, if you would like to know the meaning of the terminology used, all you have to do is make a simple post asking and lots of users will answer you to the best of their ability. Not only that, but their happy-go-lucky attitudes and informal way of writing will make you feel like you’ve made a friend along the way.
