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stultus

stultus is the online pseudonym of Hrishikesh Bhaskaran. A Latin word meaning stupid or foolish, adopted as a handle across the internet.

🌳 Evergreen Oct 23, 2023 · Updated Nov 17, 2024 · 1 min read
pseudonym personal stultus
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Meaning

stultus is a Latin word meaning “stupid” or “foolish”.

On the internet, stultus is the pseudonym adopted by Hrishikesh Bhaskaran — a software engineer, FOSS contributor, and screenwriter based in Kerala, India. The handle also appears as the root of the domain stultus.in.

Why stultus?

The name is a nod to a Socratic idea: acknowledging what you don’t know is the first step to learning. Calling yourself stupid keeps the ego in check. It’s also just a good-sounding word.

“Genius has limits. Stupidity doesn’t.” — often attributed to Einstein

Usage

I use stultus as a handle across the internet. Common variations:

  • stultus — the canonical form
  • stultusz
  • stultuzz
  • _stultus

You’ll find me as stultus on GitHub, as _stultus on X (Twitter), as stultusz on Instagram, and as stultus.hrishi on Facebook.

“We Need Online Alter Egos Now More Than Ever” — Wired

  • [[Digital Garden]] — the format I use to share what I learn
  • [[Avoid Stupidity]] — the irony of choosing “stupid” as a name while striving to avoid stupidity