#Ive been here more than a decade yikes

[ladyofthelake]

I wonder what it's like to be popular and get your posts and edits and fests noticed 😔

[homenecromancer]

man so. ive been interested in Titanic since i was a child, in an off-and-on sort of way -- like, once a decade or so, it suddenly comes back to my mind for some reason and then for a couple months i just cannot control myself.

and so that happened again last week, and i was like. well, okay, my first big Titanic phase i was too young to really go any deeper than “this IMAX movie is really cool :)”. then in my teens i saw the movie and thought it was good. this time around i’ve been actually reading some of the books that are out there (there are more than you might expect, but also somehow fewer -- you have your pick of cheap cash-ins that recycle the same 20 facts over and over, but if you want actual scholarship, or books by guys like Ballard who are actual explorers/found the wreck, there’s not quite as much).

which is all to say yeah, like, last monday i checked the news and was like “they lost a sub Where” before going back to reading, like, a coffee-table book about the Titanic from the 90s

...also i read a book where the wreck is super haunted, and boy is it painful to read something that feels like a thriller writer who thinks they invented horror/ghosts. “oh word? these explorers saw something weird down there? but they never see the same weird thing twice? damn, it’s almost like the wreck is haunted by the ghosts of everyone who died on Titanic and they’re psychically tormenting people based on their own individual greatest fears.” and this was indeed the case but i had to slog through 350 pages to get there. with the grim highlight that, since the book was written in like 1990, carbon fiber was the miracle substance of choice for the author to make the protagonists’ underwater-exploration suits out of. which. yikes in retrospect

(the book in question here is Something’s Alive on the Titanic by Robert J. Serling. i do not recommend it but i just had to know what was going on with that title, and didn’t see any detailed reviews on the internet)

[sobsicles]

Fic of the proper empty deal chat where jack was like wait a minute what made him happy that we were robbed of in 19. I just wanna know if it was a sammy been knew or an oblivious sammy moment

this could go either way, because i feel like we have options here. cause you got:

option one:

jack: wait but if he was about to die, what made him happy?

sam: yeah. that makes, like, zero sense. people don't just Get Happy out of nowhere, dean. this isn't adding up.

dean: well, he was. um. apparently in love. with me. and telling me made him Very Happy. so there's That.

sam: you didn't KNOW?!

dean: ??? of course i didn't fucking know! it's cas. im garbage??? why would he even—wait you knew?! sam, what the f—

sam: no shut up. you told him you loved him back, right? like, you at least gave him that, right? dean, tell me for once in your life you actually spoke the hell up and told him that you loved him back.

dean: what

sam: so anyway, i wish chuck had snapped me out of existence too because suddenly i don't wANT TO BE HERE ANYMORE

dean: do—do i actually—

sam: OVER A FUCKING DECADE OF YOUR BULLSHIT, YOUR REPRESSED NONSENSE, ALL THE LOOKS AND BEING STUPID, AND OHHH DEAN I ONLY ANSWER YOUR PRAYERS, SAM WHO? AND DON'T EVEN GET ME FUCKING STARTED ON—

dean: oh. oh no. this suddenly just got Much Worse.

jack: poor cas :(

option two:

jack: wait but if he was about to die, what made him happy?

sam: yeah. that makes, like, zero sense. people don't just Get Happy out of nowhere, dean. this isn't adding up.

dean: well, he was. um. apparently in love. with me. and telling me made him Very Happy. so there's That.

sam: cas was gay???

dean: what a plot-twist, am i right?

sam: i just thought he liked you more than me because i am forever trying to remove the permanent stain i have on me as both an abomination and a Freak. because you are pure in a way i will never get to be. so, so, it turns out we really were friends and he was just in love with you? oh god, this is—i mean, this is terrible. i never got to tell him that he was one of the only friends i had and deep down i worried that i could never make up for my mistakes and the destiny i have tied intrinsically into who i am as someone who is tailor-made for lucifer and was once drinking demon blood for power among many other things and i thought cas knew that about me and possibly Saw My Stains and simply treated me differently from you because of that. but it turns out he was just in love with you, and now... dean, now ive lost a friend. truly. this is awful.

dean: yeah sam. this is just. so awful for you. really, you'll never recover. you've lost a friend, and that's clearly the Most Tragic thing here. for sure.

sam: i know. losing a friend like this, dean, it really sucks, doesn't it? you know. you're going through the same thing.

dean: yes because this is Exactly The Same for me as it is you. definitely. excuse me, im just going to go find the closest fucking nail to impale myself on.

jack: poor cas :(

option three:

jack: wait but if he was about to die, what made him happy?

sam: yeah. that makes, like, zero sense. people don't just Get Happy out of nowhere, dean. this isn't adding up.

dean: well, he was. um. apparently in love. with me. and telling me made him Very Happy. so there's That.

sam: oh. Yikes.

dean: yup.

jack: poor cas :(

[realwizardshit]

oh man it’s been a while since ive seen some lolita drama but here it is. i got invited to a “big sisters of lolita” fb group which is for like. experienced peeps to give advice to new people. this person made a post that was like hey, ive never actually worn lolita but i wrote this article introducing people to it, and linked to the article, and was like is there anyone here who i can interview? but.

the article. is so bad. because this person is as stated an outsider, they dont fucking know anything, and they did NOT do a lot of research. everything is rather ignorant, as if everything they know about Japan is from their 2008 high school history textbook, tinged with a little bit* of racism, and this is nitpicking but for a Professional Researched Article the grammar is like, high school level.

*actually a lot

some highlights as i read it:

“We know Japan’s strictness with their way of life in terms of day-to-day life. The way of the Samurais, [...]”

“[...] the World War ending barely two decades before with the falling of the nuclear bomb. This led to America throwing millions of dollars to help Japan get back on its feet” HEY PAL???? WHO DO YOU THINK DROPPED THE BOMBS??????????????????

this is a whole sentence: “Resistance by reading manga (comics) instead of University books.”

they go on to explain in basic detail how lolita came from harajuku streetwear which is fine nothing wrong with that

a picture of Gwen Stefani dressed in a gaudy ass mismatched outfit that’s too small for her standing in front of three Asian girls in matching outfits which seems a bit yikes(tm)

“But as a Lolita, they can be young forever and disregard all these norms and rules put forth by society.”

OF COURSE mentioning the Nabokov novel because we can’t have nice things on this earth

“Because why not have some guy on the internet with no background in the field talk about it?” why not, I wonder?

*takes a shot because the author got racist again* “[...] let’s get scientific a bit.” then goes on for 2 paragraphs talking about, i shit you not, the genetic condition known as neoteny and how, quote, “most East and Southeast Asians carry this gene which gives them that childlike look.” an ignorant as fuck pseudoscientific, vaguely eugenics ish paragraph about selective breeding and what Humans find attractive

“So you can say Cuteness/kawaiiness is built into the mind, body, and soul for over 35,000 years for the Asian people.”

more talk about genetics why is this the hill you want to die on oh my god

author is from India and probably not a native english speaker. i retract my roast about their grammar its not that big of a deal, up to now i thought they were american

talking about big sisters of lolita. is this the only community they know about?

they also wrote a Starter Guide to Lolita and Ouji Fashion, let’s take a look....

wrote “J*p” instead of “Japanese” or “JP”

“Also, I’m not the right person to ask about every word in the Lolita dictionary.” Why the fuck did you write this then?

calling Taobao pieces from resellers [Reseller] Brand

a weird obsession with the military lolita substyle, like mentioning it more and before than sweet/goth/classic which is a little 🤔

on ouji (the boyish counterpart to lolita, literally translates to “prince”): “But they have more of a shota feel to the whole set.” OP I DONT KNOW IF YOU KNOW WHAT THAT WORD MEANS 

"Since Lolitas is to make oneself doll-like, [...]”

“How to act as a proper Lolita (TLDR)” two paragraphs on how you’re supposed to Act Girly and Proper which has absolutely not existed in any of my experience and really undermines OP’s half-assed attempts to characterize lolita as feminist (it is, but neither of these articles do a very good job of showing this)

“When going to tea parties, remember to carry a cupcake. It’s customs.” What?

“The guy who wrote this and the previous article is someone who has zero experience in Lolita fashion and culture and the studies of genes.” WHY DO YOU KEEP BRINGING UP GENES IT’S CLOTHES??? WHAT DO CLOTHES HAVE TO DO WITH GENETICS??? YOU FUCKING CREEP????

anyway i’ve taken lethal psychic damage. everyone in the comments is rightly roasting this guy.

[ossseous]

hello!! hope you're well! just saw ur response to the "properly formed society" comment on the carrier bag theory ursula post, i felt like the way u answered was so gentle but firm and informed. was wondering if u could maybe share some recommendations for texts to read more about this? cos i agree w/ the idea but its hard to find books like that. for example i think yuval's book ultimately has this kind of idea behind it (havent read it but from what ive read OF it, thats the vibe). thank u!!

sorry the word limit probably didn't help me express that right, i meant more books about anthro that focus on exploring human nature and our beginnings with a less "man is violent. man is the best supreme species. progress greatest invention. colonialism good because progress" yadda yadda yadda kind of deal, does this make sense? thank you again. also i think im obligated now to ask u your garbage ship of the week 

I’m much more of an article person than a book person because I can only take so much dry jargon filled writing for so long, but I do have some suggestions.

The biggest one is probably Questioning Collapse. For context, Jared Diamond is a man (not an anthropologist) that shares all his theories on how past civilizations, such as the Greenland Norse, or the Rapa Nui, or the Maya, collapsed, in the terribly titled book Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (yikes). Let's get some things straight though. Jared Diamond proved in his book Guns, Germs, and Steel, that he is a white supremacist who exploited the people of Papua New Guinea and believes that euro imperialism was just , bound to happen because europeans were more "civilized." So it was no surprise when all his favorite themes, that people, especially "uncivilized" ones, are violent and selfish, showed up in Collapse. 

Unfortunately, many of these theories have become very popular and many people assume them to be correct when they aren't. Some examples: Diamond posited that the Rapa Nui (Easter Islanders) essentially destroyed their own natural resources which lead to warfare, cannibalism, and eventually their own demise. This ignores the fact that the island was ravaged by european expeditions, which included Fuck Boy Supreme James Cook (of the botched kidnapping and eventual killing by Hawaiians fame). Of course these encounters with Europeans led to the enslaving of the Rapa Nui, as well as the introduction of diseases that had a devastating impact on the population numbers.

Anyways, Questioning Collapse, edited by McAnany and Yoffee, is a collection of essays written by different people in the scientific community to dispute the theories Jared Diamond lays out in his book Collapse.

Ancient Civilizations by Fagan and Scarre, specifically chapter 2 “theories of states”

Another one would probably be Almost Human: A Journey into the World of Baboons written by Shirley C. Strum. I cant quite remember if Strum ever addresses this because it has been a few years since I read it, but: some of the earliest "man is just naturally violent and animalistic" ideas actually come from the surveying of baboon (and other primate) behavior and comparative anthropology. However, this came early in the field of primatology when observation methods weren't pinned down. Long story short, the male baboons that were being observed weren't actually being "naturally" violent--they were agitated and scared because the people observing them were literally observing them from a big ol scary unfamiliar jeep/atv thing that they drove up right next to the baboons' band. That was decades ago, and a lot of changes have been made since to how fieldwork is done. Anyways, Strum was one of the earliest groups of people to go out and observe baboons and she continued to do it for decades. Almost Human is essentially a look at her field notes/diary during the time. I have a couple other primatology book suggestions if you are interested. Here a couple: Gorillas in the Mist or anything else by Dian Fossey. Manipulative Monkeys by Susan Perry.

The next book I recommend is Farmers, Traders, Warriors, and Kings: Female Power and Authority in Northern Igboland, 1900-1960 by Nwando Achebe. From what I remember, Achebe isn't terribly fond of the anthropology field, (which is interesting because much of the book is ethnographic), but what can I say, I personally do not like historians myself so 🤷‍♀️ (also I might be thinking of someone else)

My personal loathing of historians aside, this is a great book that explores the ways in which women... well... navigate power and authority. You get to learn all about Female Kings and how the Igbo do not fit in with eurocentric gender norms--as well as the impact that European colonization eventually has on the Igbo culture and the role women and men play within their families and society.

Some articles that discuss the effects of colonialism, structure of prehistoric societies etc etc from an anthropological perspective:

State Formation: Anthropological Perspectives by Krohn-Hansen and Nustad

Different Types of Egalitarian Societies and the Development of Inequality in Early Mesopotamia by M Frangipane

Change in the Lives of Brazilian Indigenous People: To Pluck Eyelashes (or Not?) among the Canela by William and Jean Crocker

Gender Dynamics in Hunter-Gatherer Society: Archaeological Methods and Perspectives by Brumbach and Jarvenpa

Economy, Ritual, and Power in Ubaid Mesopotamia by Gil Stein

I have a lot of these articles (and more lol) as PDFs. If you would like to read them and cannot access them, let me know, I can put them in google drive or something.

also my garbage ship right now is still beth/borgov from the queens gambit lmao

[lassieposting]

Hey so I'm pretty new to this fandom and was just wondering why is there so much hate for Valista? I thought at first it was just a ship war thing but it seems like there's a bigger issue I'm missing?

welcome to the fandom, anon! im sorry you only found it after it all went to shit

for me personally it’s not a ship war thing. i ship both ghanith and tanguine, and i have other ships for skug and val even if valdug is my otp. if i liked the ship, and thought they had chemistry, there’d be nothing stopping me from shipping valitsa and valdug. i live in a multishipper’s paradise.

but honestly? 

- i hate militsa as a character (along with most of the phase 2 characters, tbh). she has no personality outside of “really annoying boundary stomper”. all the phase 2 characters are flat, one dimensional and have very poor character development. i dont even remember most of their names or who has what power.

- almost every militsa fan/valitsa shipper i’ve ever come across has been some godawful little early-teens nuisance starting shit in the valdug tag, which makes me dislike her more. i’m totally okay with people not shipping what i ship or even shipping things i hate - i have my fandom sandbox and you have yours, and we don’t necessarily have to build the same castle - but if you deliberately seek out shippers of a thing you hate in order to fling abuse at them or start fights, then I have a problem with you, and it doesn’t make me like their ship very much either. 

- i don’t like bi!val. Dirty Laundry wrote her as an obnoxious thirsty straight girl for a decade, and then randomly decided to change that to get Representation Points and look progressive. what he’s actually done is make her seem totally ooc and force a badly written, awkward as hell, rushed “romance” he didn’t think through with someone she actively told to leave her alone to begin with and who then totally ignored that and steamrollered her anyway. if he wanted to give someone a girlfriend and show a f/f relationship, china and tanith are right there, have both been canonically bisexual for years, and are both single rn. either one of them would be better than going back on 10 years of how he’s written val. 

- ive seen so many lgbt friends/people in the tag expressing disgust/discontent with valitsa and how it’s written and how forced/awkward/ooc it is, along with bi!val in general. and it seems really shady that dick just? doesnt care. like surely if you’re wanting to be more diverse and do it well, you should listen to the groups you’re trying to represent when they say “this isn’t what we want”. the militsa fans seem to be more of the opinion that any rep is good rep, but they’re also all like 14 years old and don’t know any better. 

- im actually really bitter china didn’t get a girlfriend you dont even know i will fight landy, she developed so much over phase 1 and i would’ve been so here for her falling for someone and instead we get this mess that i cant even think about without feeling nauseous and ughhhhhhh

- the “chemistry” is….non-existent. the pet names?????? “pETAL”?????? i actually threw up in my mouth a little im not gonna lie it’s disgustingly ooc for val to let people call her shit like that and all their interactions are so forced and stiff and its just. yikes. i cant even read that shit. it’s like reading a preteen’s bad sp fanfic ft. their annoying oc, like some ffnet circa 2008 type shit. 

so like. long story short, idk what other people’s reasons are but tbh me shipping valdug does not stop me from also shipping val and skug with other people, so it’s not a shipping war thing. i just don’t like militsa, valitsa, or val/female love interest in general. and the “bigger issue” you mentioned, at least for most people i’ve talked to, is the shitty writing/how forced and ooc it is. 

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[meggie-moos]

2018 👏👏 YEAR REVIEW (sorry)

Rules: answer the questions about your 2018 and tag some people!

Tagged by: @blueberry-my-hero-macadamia @turtlestd (wow so popular)

Top 5 Movies You’ve Watched in 2018:

Most of these movies star Paul Dano, because I’ve kinda been going through a phase oops!! I could’ve put more but I didn’t, so be thankful.

Love and Mercy

Ruby Sparks

Okja

Incredibles 2

Coco

Top 5 TV Shows You’ve Watched in 2018:

You know I gotta put my boy Josh Groban at the top!! Other than that I haven’t really been watching many TV shows, I mainly watch Youtube tbh...

The Good Cop

The Great British Bake Off

Parks and Recreation

The Office

My Brother, My Brother, and Me

Top 5 Songs You Listened to in 2018:

According to Spotify, my top 5 songs this year are all Beach Boys songs (I’ve actually listen to them for 57 hours this year yikes), so I’m gonna save y’all the trouble and do 1 song per artist.

Cabinessence || The Beach Boys (Picking one Beach Boys song was too hard lol)

Put Your Records on || Corinne Bailey Rae

Symphony || Josh Groban

Run Away With Me || Carly Rae Jepsen (aka my queen)

First Burn || Lin Manuel Miranda

Top Five Books You’ve Read in 2018:

I’m kinda disappointed that I haven’t read many books this year, but I’m pretty sure that’s because I usually read super long books and books they’re making me read in school are pretty trash atm.

War and Peace

The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins (Not finished this one but so far so good)

5 Good Things That Happened to You in 2018:

I went to my first concert in over a decade with @turtlestd (We saw Josh Groban). I was kinda scared it would be too much for me since loud noises and being surrounded by strangers make me anxious, but it was actually super calm and personal. Totally one of the best days of 2018.

I discovered that The Beach Boys existed after the early 60′s and have become such a stan that I actually debated going to a Brian Wilson concert this December (character development)

I’ve challenged myself by taking a lot of honors classes and two English classes this year. It can be really stressful, but I know that I’m going to thank myself in the future because I’m improving so much (especially as a writer)

I went to Disney World over the summer (probably my last time for awhile) and it was amazing as always

I got a new dog!! Her name is Danni and she’s super cuddly and big!!! I’m trying to spend much more time with her and my other dog because I haven’t really done that in the past.

So, like, I don’t interact with people on this sinking ship of a website and that means I don’t have anyone to tag. But, hey, if someone comes across this and wants to do it, feel free.

OK SOME OTHER BEACH BOYS SONGS IVE LISTENED TO WERE GOOD VIBRATIONS, WOULDNT IT BE NICE, DISNEY GIRLS, HEROS AND VILLAINS, GOD ONLY KNOWS, I JUST WASNT MADE FOR THESE TIMES, FEEL FLOWS, BREAK AWAY, HELP ME RHONDA,CAROLINE, NO,  SURFS UP, I KNOW THERE’S AN ANSWER, TAKE A LOAD OFF YOUR FEET, WILD HONEY, STUDENT DEMONSTRATION TIME, DARLIN, DO YOU LIKE WORMS, I CAN HEAR MUSIC, SLIP ON THROUGH, TILL I DIE, LONG PROMISED ROAD, DAY IN THE LIFE OF A TREE, AND A LOT MORE SORRY I COULDNT HELP MYSELF

[testifytime]

im more or less alright its been vague memory time over here n i also just didnt want to bother you too much uhh my minecraft skin is Very Much Spidey bc its the closest i can get to kinnie on main and i definitely wouldnt call myself a rap god or anything that was p much my first attempt at freestyling i just saved it bc i thought youd get a kick out of it i mean ive done a lot of poetry but its mostly just existential crisis stuff and the occasional passive aggressive sestina -tg

honestly my five timeline wasn’t even very canon divergent the umbrella academy is just inherently yikes a lot of the time but i just have the curse of remembering a good bit of the decades i spent in the apocalypse alone which is not fun nor fresh and does not spark joy uhhh i have a klaus that im chill with but i havent found any canonmates from that timeline and i don’t have any that i know of from my dave tl either which kinda blows bc i have a lot of gaps in what i remember from it -tg

My Minecraft skin is hella kinnie on main for another kin I have but it’s so unknown nobody recognises it, so that’s a highkey fucking mood. And I definitely got a kick out of it, I’ve got it saved and reread it every now and then. You’re also legally required to show me the passive aggressive sestina, bro. Sestinas? Fuck yes. 

Shit, yeah, I get that feel. I have confusing as shit memories from one of my John timelines, it’s a fucking mess that I’ve lowkey given up on trying to understand. HS memories are always weirdly hard to come across. Either you remember everything in explicit detail or the Kin Gods just dangle scraps for you like you’re a hungry seagull eyeing up the world’s thickest fucking chip behind a glass container. I’m glad you’ve got the Klaus, at least. Even if you’re not canonmates, it feels a lot better to know you’ve got someone rather than no-one. 

[mystlnewsonline]

New Post has been published on https://www.stl.news/milestone-year-gene-therapy-finds-place-medicine/57634/

In a milestone year, gene therapy finds a place in medicine

HOWARD/December 28, 2017  (AP)(STL.News) —After decades of hope and high promise, this was the year scientists really showed they could doctor DNA to successfully treat diseases. Gene therapies to treat cancer and even pull off the biblical-sounding feat of helping the blind to see were approved by U.S. regulators, establishing gene manipulation as a new mode of medicine.

Almost 20 years ago, a teen’s death in a gene experiment put a chill on what had been a field full of outsized expectations. Now, a series of jaw-dropping successes have renewed hopes that some one-time fixes of DNA, the chemical code that governs life, might turn out to be cured.

“I am totally willing to use the ‘C’ word,” said the National Institutes of Health’s director, Dr. Francis Collins.

Gene therapy aims to treat the root cause of a problem by deleting, adding or altering DNA, rather than just treating symptoms that result from the genetic flaw.

The advent of gene editing — a more precise and long-lasting way to do gene therapy — may expand the number and types of diseases that can be treated. In November, California scientists tried editing a gene inside someone’s body for the first time, using a tool called zinc finger nucleases for a man with a metabolic disease. It’s like a cut-and-paste operation to place a new gene in a specific spot. Tests of another editing tool called CRISPR, to genetically alter human cells in the lab, may start next year.

“There are a few times in our lives when science astonishes us. This is one of those times,” Dr. Matthew Porteus, a Stanford University gene editing expert, told a Senate panel discussing this technology last month.

It’s a common path for trail-blazing science — success initially seems within reach, setbacks send researchers back to the lab, new understandings emerge over years, and studies ultimately reveal what is safe and effective.

Here is a look at what’s been achieved and what lies ahead.

A STRING OF FIRSTS

The year started with no gene therapies sold in the U.S. and only a couple elsewhere. Then the Food and Drug Administration approved the first CAR-T cell therapies, which alter a patient’s own blood cells to turn them into specialized cancer killers. They’re only for certain types of leukaemia and lymphoma now, but more are in the works for other blood cancers.

Last week, the FDA approved Luxturna, the first gene therapy for an inherited disease, a form of blindness. People with it can’t make a protein needed by the retina, tissue at the back of the eye that converts light into signals to the brain, enabling sight. The therapy injects a modified virus containing a corrective gene into the retina so the cells can make the protein.

Children who received the treatment told what it was like to gain vision.

“Oh yikes, colors. Colors are super fun,” said 13-year-old Caroline Carper of Little Rock, Arkansas. “And the sunshine is blinding.”

Gene therapies also showed some promise against a variety of diseases including haemophilia, a blood clotting problem; “bubble boy” disease, where a flawed immune system leaves patients vulnerable to fatal infections, and sickle cell disease, a serious and painful blood disorder common among black people.

It’s not all good news, though. The therapies don’t work for everyone. They’re shockingly expensive. And no one knows how long some results will last, though scientists say the aim is a one-time repair that gets at the root cause.

“The whole promise … is to cure diseases. It’s based on the rationale of fixing the problem,” not just improving treatment, said Dr. Carl June, a University of Pennsylvania scientist who pioneered CAR-T therapy.

A NEW FRONTIER: GENE EDITING

In mid-November, Brian Madeux, a 44-year-old Phoenix man with a metabolic disease called Hunter syndrome, had just become the first person to try an experimental gene editing treatment.

“I believe in science,” he texted The Associated Press after doctors sent viruses containing a corrective gene and an editing tool through an IV into his body. The hope is that the gene and the editing tool would enter some of his liver cells and insert the instructions needed to start making an enzyme he lacks.

It’s not known yet if it worked. Sangamo Therapeutics is testing its therapy in several studies, and independent monitors will help decide when results are released.

“It’s a pretty exciting milestone,” Collins said because it shows a way to treat more diseases than ones that can be addressed now by altering blood cells in the lab or injecting genes into the eye.

“You can imagine having a scalable approach to thousands of genetic diseases,” he said.

WHAT’S NEXT

Top of Collins’ list: muscular dystrophy and sickle cell.

There’s been so much progress that the NIH has modified an oversight panel that just a few years ago reviewed every gene therapy experiment in the U.S. Most are considered safe enough to go ahead without the Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee’s review. The panel hasn’t even met for a year.

When the panel was formed decades ago, “there was a lot of concern that a graduate student could take some of this home and create a monster in his basement,” said one-panel member, Boston scientist Dr. Howard Kaufman.

Those fears have eased, he said.

“There’s no monsters that have materialized from this.”

By MARILYNN MARCHIONE,  Associated Press, published on STL.NEWS by St. Louis Media, LLC (JS)

[ernest-k-fabian-blog]

CORY MICHAEL

Ernest K Fabian Presents:

Pro Wrestling Profiles:

Profile of "Old School Cool" Cory Michael

Introduction.  Cory Michael should serve as inspiration to the "adventurer" in every person reading this article because to Cory, wrestling is an adventure.  Cory started in the business because he wanted to try an extreme sport before he got too old.  Is there a better sport for a former semi-pro break-dancer to try other than wrestling?   The answer is probably not.   Although he has started in the business later in life than most people, Cory has the athletic ability to succeed in the king of sports.  Cory's dance spots before his matches are always entertaining for the fans & Cory generates positive energy in the ring as a fan favorite, good guy wrestler.  I found Cory to be an excellent interview subject.  Cory is honest, humble and respects wrestling & the wrestlers that have come before him.  Cory gives due credit to the people who have trained & inspired him.  This is not a quality shared by every wrestler working in the business but it is a quality that "Old School Cool" has in great quantity.

I started this interview by asking Cory the usual basic questions, such as; vital stats, height weight etc.  I asked where he received his training, how long he has been wrestling & what inspired him to become a wrestler.  Here are Cory's answers.

"Alright, Well I'm Cory Michael Fazio, I'm 5'11 190 lbs, billed as two solid sheets of cardboard. I started training at the Pro Wrestling combine under Kevin Landry, but I'd also credit a lot of the guys in both PVP (Pioneer Valley Pro) and Blitzkrieg Pro for furthering that education.  I got into wrestling a bit later in life than most. I had been living with the cousin of Matthew James while in living in Springfield, Massachusetts. The more we hung out, the more wrestling we watched, the more I thought I could get in the ring. I had been break-dancing semi-professionally for over a decade and figured this could be my last chance to try something as extreme as pro wrestling."

My next set of questions pertained to wrestlers who have inspired Cory & his favorite wrestlers in both the pro & indy ranks.  I also asked if he had a personal favorite match or match he was especially proud of.  Here is how Cory answered:

"I really liked Rick Rude and Bobby Heenan. He was super audacious with his style and microphone skills.  I'd also say the Brett Hart VS Shaun Michaels rivalry always had me watching WWE.  The feelings between those two made me care about what was happening.  I won't say who I supported.  I don't really have a favorite match or something that makes me feel accomplished, I think I have a long way to go before that."

(Cory's indy wrestling inspirations) "I have really enjoyed watching AJ Styles go from New Japan to WWE and Ive been a Jericho fan for a long time.  I have much respect and love for all my peers in the indies." (#respect)

My next set of questions pertained to Cory's in-ring style & ability.  The questions I asked are as follows:  What is your signature move?  What would you most want to improve in your wrestling?  What was the hardest thing for you to learn as a student, or did it all come easy for you?

Cory answered, "My signature move is a 1990 leg drop.  I want to innovate and get better technically. Wrestling is a lot about maintaining control over your opponent and too often I rely on athleticism and a mashup of skills to get through. I want to bring the control of wrestling and put it with my body style. That's how I want to change the game."

(Cory talked about the impact of wrestling on his body.)  "So far the hardest part of wrestling has been the toll of the ring. Sprains and strains happen all the time and nothing really prepares you for the impact of the ring. My background in break-dance and capoeira has made learning moves easy, but learning moves is not the same learning how to wrestle."  (TRUE STATEMENT, Just because you are a great athlete does not mean you can be a great wrestler.)

My final block of questions were more general.  I asked about Cory's goals in wrestling.  I asked him to share some stories and give some advice to neophyte wrestlers just starting out.  Here is how I actually worded those questions:  What advice would you give someone starting out?  What is your funniest or most embarrassing moment in the ring?  What indy promotions do you dream about working for?  What are your long term goals?

Cory answered, "For anyone starting out, Id say slow down in the ring. Its hard to apply the lessons learned when your flying. Also, you gotta get out there when your ready to do matches, reach out to promoters and lend a hand. It takes time to get out there and it doesn't happen without the leg work. P.S I'm not a vet, there are better people to get advice from." (Honesty!  Refreshing honesty!)

In regard to in-ring stories Cory answered: "I was in a tag match with the "Dirt Dawg" Jeremy Leary against "Acey Baby" Ace Romero and Xavier Bell. Acey was taking it to me and at some point I'm out on the ground. I come to and look up to see Acey in the air, and as my vision gets eclipsed, I think I should try to brace myself. Problem was that I put my arms straight in front of myself and ended up super punching myself in the crotch. Sometimes the worst wounds are self inflicted." (Yikes!)

Cory answered my question about Indy promotions he wants to work for.  "When you ask me about indy promotions I'd like to work for or future plans, Its hard to say as I hadn't really planned beyond getting to my first match. I had the opportunity to help out at Chikara and really enjoyed it. I like what Limitless is doing up in Maine. But mostly I am looking to travel and expand in the New England area."  

And finally, Cory discussed his long-term goals.  "I mean, for the long term, I'm just working on bettering myself in the ring and athletically in general. When I started this, I kept the goals small, so I could focus on it (learning to wrestle) and not get distracted by looking too far down the line. For the future, Id just like the opportunity to travel and wrestle.  I'll see where it takes me."

Thanks again for a fine interview Cory, See you at the matches!