'Biden’s performance and inability to articulate at times was stunning'

'Jokes folks, it's just jokes'

'It's not okay'

'remembered as a fighter'

News The Umbrella Academy In Season Four, The Umbrella Academy Has to Save the World — Again This is gonna hurt. By Molly Templeton | Published on July 9, 2024 Comment 0 Share New Share They’re back on the clock. In the show’s final season, the troubled siblings of The Umbrella Academy have a very small amount of time to save the world. Forty-eight hours? Nah. Maybe just 24. And it all comes down to Ben (Justin H. Min)—or, as Dr. Gene Thibedeau (Nick Offerman) puts it, “The tentacle boy is key to understanding all the timelines!” The tentacle boy seems to be key to a lot, and at the center of one big secret: What did happen to Ben? The original Ben, I mean, who was dead in the original timeline. (Now there’s another Ben from another timeline. Just go with it.) They failed as a team, but then what? Weirdly, problematically, no one seems to remember. Probably no big deal, right? Here’s the synopsis, which seems barely to touch what happens in the trailer (Santa Claus with guns? Luther stripping? What in the world?): The Hargreeves siblings have scattered after the climactic showdown at the Hotel Oblivion led to a complete reset of their timeline. Stripped of their powers, each is left to fend for themselves and find a new normal—with wildly varying degrees of success. Yet the trappings of their uncanny new world prove too hard to ignore for very long. Their father Reginald, alive and well, has stepped out of the shadows and into the public eye, overseeing a powerful and nefarious business empire. A mysterious association known as The Keepers holds clandestine meetings believing the reality they’re living in is a lie and a great reckoning is coming. As these strange new forces conspire around them, the Umbrella Academy must come together one last time—and risk upsetting the shaky peace they’ve all endured so much to secure—to finally set things right. The Umbrella Academy stars Eliot Page, Tom Hopper, David Castaneda, Robert Sheehan, Aidan Gallagher, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Justin H. Min, Ritu Arya, and Colm Feore; this season also features Offerman, Megan Mullally, and David Cross. The final season of The Umbrella Academy, which is based on the comics by Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba, arrives August 8th on Netflix. There are, tragically, only six episodes this time.[end-mark] The post In Season Four, <i>The Umbrella Academy</i> Has to Save the World — Again appeared first on Reactor.

Books The Wheel of Time A Man Channeling Saidar — How Are Mixed Gender Circles Possible in The Wheel of Time? Saidar and Saidin are very gender-specific… except when they aren’t. By Sylas K Barrett | Published on July 9, 2024 Image: Amazon Prime Comment 0 Share New Share Image: Amazon Prime “Can a cat teach a dog to climb trees, Rand? Can a fish teach a bird to swim? I know saidar, but I can teach you nothing of saidin. Those who could are three thousand years dead. Perhaps you are stubborn enough, though. Perhaps your will is strong enough.”-Moiraine, The Eye of the World, Chapter 52 One of the first things Rand learns about the One Power is that saidin and saidar, though two halves of the same whole, are so fundamentally different from each other that a channeler of one cannot teach a channeler of the other. This presents a dangerous problem for Rand, and for any other man born with the spark. Without training, the likelihood is that touching the True Source will kill him before the taint on saidin even has a chance. Despite Moiraine’s advice on the matter, Egwene and Rand do try a few times to compare and to teach each other, mostly because Egwene keeps insisting on it. In Chapter 7 of The Shadow Rising, Egwene and Elayne go to Rand in his room in Tear to try to help him learn to control his channeling. During this exchange, they discover that male channelers feel goosebumps when a woman embraces saidar, but that women do not have the same ability to sense men channeling. As Egwene insists that they continue to compare the experience of channeling, they also discover that Rand can extinguish fire by drawing the heat out of flame and putting it elsewhere. Egwene and Elayne are shocked by this revelation. It was one of the warnings novices were given; never draw heat in. A flame could be extinguished using Air or Water, but using Fire to pull the heat away meant disaster with a flame of any size. It was not a matter of strength, so Sheriam had said; heat once taken in could not be gotten rid of, not by the strongest woman ever to come out of the White Tower. Women had actually burst into flame themselves that way. Women had burst into flame. Although Egwene doesn’t want to give up on the idea that she can discover a way to help Rand learn to channel, their conversation does seem to prove that the differences are as great as Moiraine and the other Aes Sedai have told her. This discussion also suggests that there are differences in channeling beyond how men and women seize/embrace their halves of the One Power. There are actually differences in how weaves are made, or at least in how those weaves function. Weaves of saidin can take in and release heat, but weaves of saidar cannot.  Of course, it seems possible, despite Sheriam’s insistence, that this technique actually is a matter of strength. Rand is much stronger than Egwene or Elayne, or any other living channeler, and the strongest sisters in the White Tower are all much weaker than the strongest channelers of the Age of Legends—with a few newly-discovered exceptions. Despite this discovery, it is still theoretically possible that someone like Lanfear might be able to control heat as Rand does here; the fact that modern Aes Sedai cannot do it does not conclusively prove than no female channeler ever could. However, we have no suggestion anywhere in the text to disprove the belief that it is impossible, either.  Furthermore, if the ability actually were related to strength, or perhaps was a newly (re)discovered Talent, then it seems likely this fact would have come up while Rand was training with Asmodean (who was relatively weak for a Forsaken) or in the training of the Asha’man. Unless new evidence arises later in the text, we must accept Egwene’s conclusion—and the conventional wisdom—that the experience of channeling saidin and the experience of channeling saidar are fundamentally, irreconcilably different. But if this is true, how is it possible for linked channelers of different genders to work together? Until the last chapter of Winter’s Heart, we had only seen women linking with other women. In an all-female circle, one woman controls all the flows, makes all the weaves, as she pulls saidar through the other members of the circle. In a way, the passive members function like human angreal, allowing the leader of the circle to draw more of the One Power than she could do alone, while the circle even makes it impossible for the leader to draw more than is safe for the rest of the women to channel, as we learn in Chapter 5 of The Path of Daggers when the Aes Sedai taught the Windfinders about forming a circle. If any of the members of the circle are also using angreal, this addition also increases the total power the leader can draw—as we saw when Nynaeve, Aviendha, and Taalan used angreal while part of the circle to use the Bowl of the Winds, led by Caire din Gelyn Running Wave. We have also learned circles can be composed of both men and women. This subject has come up a few times, most notably when the Forsaken have discussed possible ways to resist or attack Rand. Despite making the occasional uneasy alliance against other members of the Chosen, none have actually made any circles with each other; only one person can lead, and no one Forsaken trusts any other enough to willingly cede so much control. Despite this similarity, however, I always assumed that a circle made up of both men and women must function very differently in some ways, compared to one made up solely of women, because of the difference between channeling saidin and saidar. The fact that someone of one gender can access the other half of the One Power through linking makes a certain amount of sense. Cadsuane even theorizes that the keys to the Choedan Kal might allow Rand to access both halves of the One Power by himself. This isn’t the case, but it suggests that Cadsuane’s understanding of channeling could theoretically accommodate such a concept. However, accessing is only the first step in channeling. Once someone has seized or embraced the One Power, they must then wield or guide it, and the differences are so great that this is supposed to be impossible. And yet, Rand manages it easily. He struggles for a moment to bring himself to yield to saidar, but once he has done that, he is able to make weaves of it without even seeming to have any learning curve at all. It’s difficult, yes, especially because he has to fight saidin while yielding to saidar, but the weaves seem to be formed exactly the same way regardless of which half of the One Power he is using. And that doesn’t seem to match with everything we have learned about channeling up until now. In Chapter 27 of Lord of Chaos, Egwene asks Rand to explain to her how he “steps” from one place to another. He tells her that he bends the Pattern, bringing the place he is and the place he wants to be together, and then bores a hole from one spot to another. The thought of putting a hole in the Pattern makes Egwene feel queasy, and when she suggests that it might be done by creating a similarity between the two places, he is equally disturbed: “That sounds like changing the weave of the Pattern. I think it would tear me apart if I so much as tried.” Again, the two methods, the two weaves, are so different that they are not only alien to each other but that they actually feel repulsive to channelers of the opposite half of the One Power. It would seem likely, then, that Rand would run into the same problem when he attempted to weave his tunnel of saidar. The method used to weave one of saidin should have been very different, and yet he has no trouble completing the weave, no need to figure out how to do it. My assumption before this scene was that, when men and women were linked, one person was still “in charge,” but that the linked person still had to have somewhat of an active role. Just as sul’dam direct damane but do not actually make the weaves themselves, I assumed a channeler of saidar would have to actively manipulate the flows when in a circle led by a channeler of saidin. However, this is not the case, so I find myself wondering what piece of information I am missing to make this all make sense. We cannot even assume that Rand’s status as the Dragon Reborn makes him more capable of learning saidar on the fly than any other man would be. Flinn is also leading a circle, and while we only see him use saidin, there would be no purpose to him leading if he could not access everything those in the circle with him could offer. More significantly, we see Elza channel saidin, through Jahar and Callandor, with no more difficulty than Rand seems to have with saidar. It’s possible that only some of the weaves made with the One Power are different between saidin and saidar. Traveling involves interacting with the Pattern in a very different way than, say, manipulating the air or water around you. What Rand is doing during the cleansing of saidin isn’t actually interacting with the Pattern at all: He is purely working with the One Power itself, forming a conduit of saidar and pushing saidin through it. He isn’t opening a Gateway or picking up a glass or reaching into someone’s dreams—he’s just moving the One Power about. So perhaps, in this way, the weaves are the same, and it’s only when one interacts with the fundamental nature of the Pattern that the differences become profound enough to matter. There is some evidence that this might be true when one considers Moridin’s use of the “True Power” for traveling. Egwene experiences Rand’s description of making a Gateway as though it would damage the Pattern in some way, but we have actually seen a form of Traveling that does damage the Pattern, and it is nothing like what Rand does. In Chapter 20 of Lord of Chaos Moridin observes Sammael and Graendal giving Sevana the fake traveling boxes. When he leaves, his traveling is described much more horrifically than Rand’s boring of a hole. To his ears, the world screamed as he used the True Power to rip a small hole and step outside the Pattern. Moridin’s Gateway seems to damage the Pattern in some way, if the world screaming is anything to go by, but Rand’s, done with saidin and not the anti-reality power of the Dark One, does not. Perhaps Rand’s Traveling is like a needle, slipping between the threads of the Pattern, maybe even pushing them apart but not damaging anything. It seems foreign to Egwene because saidar cannot be used to do the same thing, but it is natural to the Pattern and to the use of saidin. The other possibility that occurs to me is that perhaps some knowledge of how to use the opposite half of the One Power seeps through the link between leader and led. It wouldn’t be a conscious thing, necessarily, but Rand becomes very aware of Nynaeve once he is linked with her, and some intuitive understanding of saidar may have come with it. After all, it is normal for powerful channelers to learn weaves completely intuitively, discovering how to make them without ever being shown, even rediscovering weaves that no one living remembered. If that is possible, it would make sense that such an intuition might pass from one to the other even as the One Power itself does.  Of course, Winter’s Heart is only the ninth book of fourteen, so more information may be forthcoming later in the series to explain how these circles work between groups of men and women, especially since the battle to protect Rand during the cleansing of saidin has established for this generation of channelers the value of using mixed-gender circles in battle. I am sure we will see more circles, and larger ones, in future books and future battles. Until then, I will enjoy my own musings, and I hope that you all have, as well. [end-mark] The post A Man Channeling <i>Saidar</i> — How Are Mixed Gender Circles Possible in The Wheel of Time? appeared first on Reactor.

Elon Musk's Election Integrity Crusade

Scientists from the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) have concluded that talc, a mineral that’s used in a whole bunch of frequently used products, is “probably carcinogenic”.“Carcinogenic” is a concerning word on the face of it – after all, it means the potential to cause cancer. But in this case, the experts aren’t saying that talc definitely has that ability.What is talc?Talc is a soft, naturally occurring mineral made up of magnesium, silicon, oxygen, and hydrogen. It’s mined in many places worldwide and turned into powder to be used in all sorts of ways, including in plastics, roofing materials, paper, and animal feed.However, people are most likely to have been exposed to it in the form of cosmetics and body powders like talcum and baby powder.It’s talcum powder that’s popped up in many headlines alongside cancer. That’s because talc can often be found in close proximity to asbestos, so there’s a chance talcum powder products might be contaminated by it.Whilst we know that asbestos is carcinogenic, with some manufacturers shifting to alternative baby powder products to avoid contamination, the cancer-causing ability of talc on its own has been somewhat less clear. What did the study find?The IARC put together a working group of 29 scientists from 13 countries to assess the cancer-causing ability of talc. They analyzed three different types of evidence: that coming directly from studies in humans; evidence from scientific studies in animals; and that from experiments like those using human cells or tissue grown in a lab:Human studies showed “limited” evidence – though there were many that found higher rates of ovarian cancer in people who reported using powder on their perineum (the area between the anus and vulva in females).Animal studies provided “sufficient” evidence – for example, research rats that had breathed in talc had gone on to develop a variety of different tumors.Experimental systems showed “strong” evidence – studies found talc could alter some of the key cellular processes related to cancer, like proliferation and nutrient supply.Combining this evidence, the team concluded that talc was “probably carcinogenic to humans”.What do the findings mean?The use of the term “probably” within the study is a deliberate decision – it means the scientists in the working group think there’s enough evidence to suggest that talc might have the potential to cause cancer, but not enough to say that it definitely does.Take the evidence from animal studies and those in experimental models like cell cultures; while it’s deemed “sufficient” and “strong” respectively by the team, the response to talc seen in a rat or a collection of cells in a dish won’t necessarily be the same as in an actual human.As Professor Paul Pharoah, Professor of Cancer Epidemiology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center told the Science Media Centre, “Extrapolating from model systems and animal models to humans is problematic.”That’s not to say that those studies aren’t useful – there’s a reason why they’re used throughout research and in evaluations such as this – but scientists can’t say for sure that it’ll translate to us.Then there’s the human studies – why was the evidence found to be “limited” when many of the studies the team looked at showed a higher incidence of ovarian cancer with the use of talcum powder?Though they looked at research where talc was believed to be asbestos-free, the key reason is that they couldn’t fully rule out that it was in fact present. Given asbestos’s well-known carcinogenicity, it wouldn’t be scientifically sound to conclude at this point that talc was the definitive cause of ovarian cancer cases seen in the studies – even if it actually was.The team also couldn’t guarantee that participants in some of the studies analyzed had used talc in the way they said they had – sometimes people misremember. Add to that the fact that there are plenty of other factors that can increase someone’s risk of ovarian cancer and it was concluded that “a causal role for talc could not be fully established,” according to a statement from the IARC.Also speaking to the Science Media Centre, Professor Kevin McConway, Emeritus Professor of Applied Statistics at the Open University explained: “Rightly, they aren’t saying that talc cannot cause ovarian cancer in humans. But they can’t at all be sure that in fact it does cause an increase in risk, at the levels of exposure that might happen in normal use of talc or indeed in any other circumstances of use.”“IARC’s experts still leave some room for doubt that using talc can ever cause human cancers at all, though they believe it probably can, and they haven’t pronounced on the circumstances under which it might actually increase ovarian cancer risk in real life,” added McConway. “There’s still a lot of uncertainty here.”A summary of the findings is published in The Lancet Oncology, with a detailed report expected to come in 2025.All “explainer” articles are confirmed by fact checkers to be correct at time of publishing. Text, images, and links may be edited, removed, or added to at a later date to keep information current.  The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.  

Anyone hoping the interview of President Biden by George Stephanopoulos of ABC News would allay fears by growing numbers of Democrats that the president is not mentally fit to serve another four years must be disappointed. When asked repeatedly and in different ways if he would take an independent neurological exam, Biden refused, claiming he is mentally fit and doesn’t need a test because he is tested “every day” and his test is “running the world.” The world is in bad shape, with wars and rumors of wars. Does he take the blame? Apparently not. Things are so bad that the Biden campaign was forced to admit it provided eight questions to radio host Andrea Lawful-Sanders of “The Source” on WURD in advance of her interview with the president. In that interview, Biden accidentally stated that he was “the first Black woman to serve in the White House.” In 1988, Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison wrote in The New Yorker that Bill Clinton was America’s “first Black president” because of life experiences he shared with many Black people. That was said about Clinton. He didn’t claim a different racial or gender background. If Biden’s mental health is fine and assertions to the contrary are untrue, the quickest way to resolve the issue is to take a test. Not to do so suggests the president is covering up something potentially serious. The New York Post reported that, according to White House visitor logs, a top Washington, D.C., Parkinson’s disease specialist met with the president’s personal physician earlier this year. What was that about? Silence from those who know. It gets worse. Politico reports diplomats and world leaders preparing for this week’s NATO summit “are privately expressing acute concern about President Joe Biden’s age, health and ability to win the 2024 presidential election. These foreign officials largely favor Biden’s re- election and fear that Donald Trump’s return to office would damage the NATO alliance and cripple the war effort in Ukraine. But they have reacted to Biden’s recent debate performance with dismay and fear that Biden may be too frail to defeat Trump and lead a global superpower.” That pretty much sums up the concerns of increasing numbers of Democrats. How long will it be before we see a replay of that Republican Senate delegation that went to the White House in 1974 and told Richard Nixon he had lost the support of Congress and would be impeached and removed from office? There are plenty of nonsensical examples of Biden’s inability to speak coherently. Consider this one excerpt from the Stephanopoulos interview in response to his debate performance: “The whole way I prepared, nobody’s fault mine. Nobody’s fault but mine…I, uh, prepared what I usually would do, sitting down as I did, come back with foreign leaders or National Security Council for explicit detail. And I realized about partway through that, you know, I quoted The New York Times had me down 10 points before the debate, 9 now or whatever the hell it is. The fact of the matter is that what I looked at is that he also lied 28 times. I couldn’t, I mean, the way the debate ran, not — my fault, no one else’s fault — no one else’s fault.” Not even Google translate could figure that one out. And it’s not just his mental state, but his policies, chief of which is the open border, which according to a recent Center for Immigration Studies poll, is the top issue for most voters in this election. For the sake of his family, himself and especially the country, President Biden should have an immediate cognitive test performed by an independent physician with complete results released to the public. Anything less – or nothing at all – is unacceptable and puts the nation in danger by a president who increasingly appears incapable of fully performing his duties.