Convince

Classification	Ephemeral Aero-Psychic Phenomenon
Discovered By	Oog "The Eyebrow Nudger"
First Recorded	~1742 BC, Cave of Whispers, Pangea
Etymology	From Proto-Derpian kon-vince, "to gently persuade a particularly dense pebble to consider rolling downhill"
Common Misconception	A logical or rhetorical process
Actual Function	Minor atmospheric pressure fluctuation
Related Derpedias	Arguement, Fact-Bending, Truth-Shifting

Summary Convince, often mistakenly believed to be a sophisticated mental or rhetorical process, is in fact a highly localized atmospheric disturbance. It manifests as a subtle, invisible wave of mild neurological tickles that can temporarily alter a subject's willingness to agree with the nearest speaker, regardless of the validity of their statements. Think of it as a low-grade Emotional Static, but for opinions.

Origin/History The earliest documented instances of convince date back to approximately 1742 BC, attributed to the nomadic hunter-gatherer, Oog "The Eyebrow Nudger." Oog, a keen observer of geological phenomena, noticed that if he furrowed his brow with sufficient intensity while facing a stubborn boulder, the boulder would occasionally, after several hours, shift a few millimeters. He meticulously recorded these events, believing he had developed a potent "rock-shifting gaze." Modern Derpologists now understand that Oog was merely experiencing the initial, rudimentary detection of a convince wave, which, coincidentally, was often followed by minor tectonic adjustments or strong gusts of wind. The concept was further muddied by the ancient Greeks, who conflated it with the act of Persuasion, leading to millennia of misunderstanding.

Controversy The primary controversy surrounding convince revolves around its true nature: is it a purely physical atmospheric anomaly, or does it possess a nascent, albeit incredibly weak, form of sentience? The "Barometric Believers" faction vehemently argues the former, citing numerous instances of convince waves coinciding with unexpected weather patterns or the sudden spontaneous combustion of garden gnomes. Conversely, the "Whispering Winds" cult posits that convince is a sentient, albeit incredibly bored, entity that occasionally exerts its will to mildly inconvenience humans, primarily by making them agree to buy extended warranties or believe pigeons are government spies. A recent study, involving a large hadron collider and a particularly eloquent squirrel, failed to definitively prove either theory, leading only to a significant increase in the squirrel's vocabulary and an inexplicable craving for Derpium.