The "mundane depiction" of religious figures presents them as everyday individuals who experienced the same trials, emotions, and challenges as ordinary people. In contrast, the "sacred depiction" elevates them to a higher status, highlighting their divine origins, miraculous deeds, and unconventional struggles. 

Jeffland is a farming village living in isolation from the rest of the world. One day, the Almighty Jeff bestowed upon the village a curse: every year, a human sacrifice must be made to ensure good harvest for all. If a human sacrifice is not made, or a year is skipped, the village will be afflicted by harsh floods and famine. The Almighty Jeff is not particular about who the human sacrifices are, except that they must be adults. 

After rigorous discussion, Jeffland's highly respected village elders are proposing one of two ways to satisfy the human sacrifice. One, the human sacrifice is chosen through random lottery of all Jeffland's adult members, regardless of status. Two, the human sacrifice is chosen by election, where all adults vote on the individual to be sacrificed. 

Following the passage of the Act on Promoting Transitional Justice, the Taiwanese government established the Transitional Justice Commission to declassify and centralize over 410,000 pages of surveillance logs, interrogation records, and informant identities. These archives often reveal that surveillance was conducted not just by state agents, but by co-opted friends, colleagues, and family members who acted as informants. Former political prisoners now have the legal right to apply for access to their personal files, which may contain the identities of those who monitored or betrayed them.

The culture of involution (內卷文化) refers to intensifying competition where greater effort yields diminishing returns, driven by fear of falling behind. In this debate, “rejecting” it means opting out of this escalation—for example, refusing unpaid overtime and prioritizing work–life balance over prestigious schools and careers.

The learner portfolio (學習歷程檔案) is a university admissions system introduced in Taiwan in 2019. It requires high school students to build a digital record over three years by uploading a set number of course outputs (e.g., term papers or science projects), records of extracurricular involvement (e.g., club leadership or volunteer work), and required self-reflections. Recently, calls to abolish the system have grown.

“Ghosting” refers to abruptly cutting off contact with someone without giving the other person any warning or explanation for doing so.

“Casual romance” refers to short-term romantic or intimate relationships that upfront do not involve serious commitment or long-term planning. Examples of casual romance include "vacation boyfriends or girlfriends," "summertime romances," or "situationships."

A “deadbot” is a digital avatar, created with artificial intelligence, which resembles a person who is dead. Deadbots can mimic the voices, personalities, and speech patterns of the dead person using digital footprints like text messages, emails, and social media data. 

"Exclusive tribal jurisdiction" is a conceptual legal doctrine granting indigenous tribes the total authority to investigate, prosecute, and punish a crime, without interference or intervention by the state. Under the doctrine, indigenous individuals are to be charged and processed by the tribe's own legal system instead of the state legal system, even if they commit crimes against non-indigenous individuals. 

“Mirroring” refers to a tactic used by some South Korean feminist groups, where they deliberately imitate the misogynistic language and behaviors that men direct at women, aiming to highlight the harmful realities women experience. For instance, they may use derogatory terms about men’s physical features.

A “catastrophe market” is a special type of prediction market where users gamble on tragic events, such as a natural disaster or a politically unstable situation.  Users trade "yes" or "no" shares to bet on the outcome or severity of an event. An example of a public catastrophe market platform is Polymarket. By mid-January 2025 during the Los Angeles wildfire crisis, bets on the wildfires' spread, duration, and fallout on Polymarket were up to 1.2 million USD.

Short-term speculation is a trading strategy focused on profiting from small, frequent price fluctuations. This often involves High-Frequency Trading (HFT), where algorithms execute thousands of trades per second to capture fractions of a cent in profit. Long-term wealth creation is an investment philosophy that prioritises the fundamental growth of companies and the economy over the years or decades.

A "war metaphor" is the use of language that compares individuals who are facing a certain challenge to soldiers or warriors who are fighting a battle.

For the purposes of the debate, "gentle parenting" is a parenting style putting the emotions and needs of the child above all else. Examples of gentle parenting include giving your child unconditional validation, encouraging your child to "let it all out" through emotional expression, and very rarely setting strict boundaries against your child's wishes. 

For the purposes of the debate, (a) there are two approaches in raising children around the use of electronic devices and access to the internet, (b) children are defined as individuals under the age of 16.

Approach A is supervisory. Parents following Approach A allow their child to have electronic devices and independent access to the internet, but will supervise their child's activity through mediation measures (e.g. talking to their child about the websites, content, or functions they should and should not be consuming). 

Approach B is authoritative. Parents following Approach B do not allow their child to independently own an electronic device (e.g. the child must ask their parent to use their phone or tablet and return it once done) and do not allow unrestricted access to the internet (e.g. the parent will impose controls to block certain websites, content, or functions). 

Platonic co-parenting is a non-romantic arrangement where two or more people decide to raise a child together and share the duty of parenting without any romantic involvement.