What are the small black dots on your windshield? They don't look important, but they are.
Admit it, you've always wondered what they're for.

What are those small black dots?
You’ve probably noticed that every car you’ve ever had—unless you got your license in the ’50s—has had small black dots on the bottom of the windshield. They appear to be meaningless decorations or some kind of dot-matrix-style graphics but they have a very important job that keeps you safe and the windshield attached to the body of your car.
Windshields were originally held in place by metal trim that secured them to the car’s body. In the '50s and '60s, manufacturers transitioned to using an ultrastrong adhesive to keep the window in place.
That’s why, if you’ve ever had to have your window replaced, it’s a pretty simple process. All it takes is for the old adhesive to be removed so the old window can be popped out. Then, the new adhesive is applied and the new window is dropped in place in the car’s body.
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To keep the unappealing adhesive hidden around the edges of the windows, manufacturers created black dots from ceramic paint known as “frits.”
The dots are baked into the window to make an aesthetically pleasing transition from the thick black line that obscures the adhesive to the rest of the window. They are positioned in a halftone pattern so they get smaller as they recede from the black tinted area that hides the adhesive.
This gives the appearance that the black area is slowly fading into the clear windshield.
"This makes the windshield a structural component of the vehicle's body," Richard Reina, product training director for CarID.com, said according to Travel and Leisure. "The frit is black painted enamel that's baked onto the surface of the glass, and it provides a secure point of contact between the glass, urethane adhesive, and windshield frame."
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The frits also play a role in manufacturing the window. They provide temperature control when the glass is being heated. The black painted glass heats up faster than the rest of the glass and the frits evenly distribute the heat to prevent unnecessary warping.
Craig Campbell, an automotive repair expert and founder and CEO at Auto Parts Guideline, says the only thing you should worry about is if the frits appear to wear off.
"This is because the adhesive is what keeps the glass in place," Campbell said according to Travel and Leisure. "Without it, the glass could become loose and fall out of the frame. While this is unlikely to happen, it's still something that you should be aware of. If you're unsure of how to replace the dots, you can always take your car to a professional for help."
Now the next time you’re at a party you can wow everyone with your incredible knowledge of car windshields. If that information goes over well, you can let everybody know what that handle is for on the roof of your car.
Some folks think it’s for holding on to when the driver gets a little crazy. In reality, it’s for helping people get in and out of the vehicle.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."