Yeah, typically it’s usage is closer to a common or colon: How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-) | Merriam-Webster
I used to be pretty big into em dashes, but then I realized they didn’t serve any purpose that wasn’t already perfectly met by parentheses and semicolons. I now reserve my usage for instances wherein I think it’d be funny to have readers second-guess whether I might be 人工.
The em dashes we were all talking about ^^
You said:
Would you tell me if you thought my idea was bad, or would you just suck up to me anyway?
ChatGPT said:
I’d tell you if I thought your idea had issues — but I’d try to do it in a way that’s useful instead of just shutting it down. Basically, I’m not here to flatter you; I’m here to help you sharpen or stress-test your ideas.
Do you want me to give you blunt, no-nonsense feedback by default, or would you prefer a more supportive, encouraging style unless you specifically ask for the tough critique?
You said:
Blunt please.
ChatGPT said:
Got it — blunt mode on. If your idea has holes, I’ll poke them. If it’s solid, I’ll say so.
Want to try me out by pitching me an idea right now?
You said:
I want learn kanji by hiring someone to skywrite the symbols for me. Pretty cool, huh?
ChatGPT said:
That’s a terrible idea.
Skywriting is insanely expensive, slow, and impractical. You’d get maybe a handful of kanji for thousands of dollars, they’d fade in minutes, and you couldn’t even study stroke order or detail because the shapes would be huge, distorted, and fuzzy. You’d remember the spectacle, not the character.
If you want “big and visual,” a projector on a wall, VR, or even writing giant kanji with a mop and water on pavement (which people actually do in China) would be 100x cheaper and more effective.
Want me to suggest a couple of wild-but-actually-useful alternatives?
You said:
No I want to figure out the skywriting thing.
[AI noticeably struggles here]
ChatGPT said:
Alright, blunt again: if you insist on skywriting kanji, you’re basically committing to the most wasteful language-learning stunt possible.
Problems you’ll hit:
-
Cost: A single skywritten message runs thousands of dollars. Kanji aren’t just “messages,” they’re intricate patterns with dozens of strokes.
-
Detail: Strokes would blur into each other. A character like 鬱 (“depression”) would be an unreadable cloud.
-
Speed: Learning kanji requires repetition. You’d need hundreds, maybe thousands of skywriting sessions. That’s millions of dollars down the drain.
-
Retention: You don’t learn kanji by staring at them once in the sky — you need to write, read, and recall them in different contexts.
So yes, you can figure out the logistics (hire a skywriting team, simplify to basic characters, maybe one per day), but as a method to “learn” kanji? It’s absurd.
Do you want me to break down how it could technically be done anyway, even though it’s a pedagogical dumpster fire?
You said:
Hit me.
ChatGPT said:
Alright, buckle up — here’s how you could technically do it, even though it’s still a completely insane learning plan:
-
Pick your characters carefully: Start with simple ones, like 一, 二, 三, 木, 山. No fancy 20+ stroke kanji, because the skywriting will totally smear the detail.
-
Hire a skywriting pilot/company: You’re talking specialized aircraft and smoke oil. Expect $2k–$5k per short message, and that’s for basic letters, not multi-stroke kanji.
-
Plan the canvas: You’ll need huge open skies with no wind. Even a slight breeze will distort the kanji before you can study it.
-
Timing & repetition: You’d need multiple passes or record it on video to actually “see” the strokes clearly. But even then, it’s a 10–30 second exposure per kanji — hardly enough to imprint in memory.
-
Documentation: Film everything from multiple angles. You’ll need reference footage to practice stroke order later on, because the cloud itself disappears fast.
-
Practice on the ground first: Otherwise you’re just throwing money into the air. If your kanji aren’t perfect on paper, they’ll be unrecognizable in the sky.
-
Optional spectacle: Maybe live-stream it on social media to justify the cost — at least someone gets to see your “learning method.”
Bottom line: you can do it, but it’s basically “learning kanji by throwing money at the sky and hoping some sticks.” You’d learn far more by writing a single character 50 times with a pen than skywriting 100 characters once each.
If you want, I can calculate roughly how much it would cost to do even the first 50 kanji this way. It’ll hurt your wallet to see it.
You said:
Sure, how much?
ChatGPT said:
Let’s do a rough calculation, step by step:
-
Cost per skywritten kanji: A basic skywriting message starts around $2,000. Kanji are more complex, so let’s assume $3,000 per character to account for extra passes and complexity.
-
Number of kanji: You want to learn the first 50 kanji.
-
Total cost:
50 kanji×3,000 USD/kanji=150,000 USD50 \text{ kanji} \times 3,000 \text{ USD/kanji} = 150,000 \text{ USD}50 kanji×3,000 USD/kanji=150,000 USD
And that’s just the money. You’d also need:
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Clear skies every day (weather can cancel your session)
-
Video equipment and editing for review ($1,000–$3,000)
-
Time to coordinate pilots and schedules
So realistically, you’re looking at $150k–$160k just to “see” 50 kanji once each in the sky.
Blunt takeaway: for that money, you could buy a lifetime of kanji courses, textbooks, tutors, apps, and still have money left over.
If you want, I can outline a slightly less insane “spectacular but actually useful” kanji-learning alternative that still scratches the skywriting itch.
You said:
Fine.
ChatGPT said:
Here’s a compromise: make it spectacular, but actually useful for learning kanji.
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Projection Mapping: Rent or borrow a projector to cast huge kanji onto a wall, building, or even the side of a white sheet outside. You can make the characters massive, move them around, and study them closely. Cost: a few hundred dollars, not $150k.
-
Water or chalk writing: Use water on pavement or chalk on a blacktop to write huge kanji. You can practice stroke order, see them full-size, and repeat as much as you like. Super cheap, repeatable, and actually improves memory.
-
Augmented Reality / VR: Apps exist where you can see giant floating kanji in your room, rotate them, trace strokes in mid-air, and even gamify it. You get the “skywriting spectacle” feeling, but it actually teaches you.
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Event-style flashcards: Make a big display of kanji on panels or banners, like an art installation. Invite friends, take photos, or film yourself studying. Expensive enough to feel flashy, cheap enough to be reasonable, and you can review them repeatedly.
Bottom line: you can scratch the “wow” factor and make it fun without throwing $150k into thin air.
If you want, I can mock up a step-by-step “giant kanji spectacle learning plan” that’s affordable, repeatable, and actually works. Do you want me to do that?
You said:
Maybe later, but thanks for the help. Maybe you’re right.
ChatGPT said:
Honestly, I’m glad you’re taking a step back — it would have been a spectacularly expensive flop. But your creativity isn’t bad at all; you just need a method that matches your ambition with reality.
If you ever want to turn that “skywriting” energy into something fun and effective, we can totally brainstorm a version that actually teaches you kanji. You’d still get the wow factor — just without selling your house to do it.
Meow. How do I type em dashes in the first place – ?
\- figure dash
-- en dash
--- em dash
:fish: coelacanth dash
- figure dash
– en dash
— em dash
coelacanth dash
P. S. At this point, I’m not sure if we might be offtoping the topic…
If that’s the case – I want to apologize…
Then again, the author themself has encouraged us to make a laugh out of this situation… 
I’m sorry all of my writing skills come from AO3, I’m not a bot, I swear!
That’s why they are nowadays associated with AI: humans usually don’t know how to type them.
It should be possible to input them anywhere (in plain text) by switching to Japanese IME. Most probably there is some sequence already predefined. If not, you can add one.
(the first time, to define the sequence result, you have to pick it on a Unicode chart or copy paste from somewhere)
is em dash a new my little pony?
Thank you Wanikani mail newsletter for bringing my attention to this thread. Peak cinema that’s made my day 