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script-a-world · 5 years ago

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Hey I have a question about creating countries that are made up of islands, but not have seafood as a staple and vegetarianism is the norm among religious adherents and even among common people vegetarianism isn't unheard of. How can that make sense?

Tex: I don’t know how far back you want to look in order to find an island culture that doesn’t eat seafood or any other type of meat, but for the sake of context I’ll be throwing some darts around the map and see what island cultures typically eat.

I’ll start with Pacific Islanders and list a few of the cultures from the Pacific Ocean:

Polynesian region, composed of peoples such as the Samoans, Māori, Tahitians, Native Hawaiians, and Tongans

Micronesian region, composed of peoples such as the Carolinians, Chamorros, Chuukese, and Nauruans

Melanesian region, composed of peoples such as the Papuans, Moluccans, the Austronesian descendants in Vanuatu, and at a stretch the Torres Strait Islanders of Australia

These groups are roughly divided into two ethnolinguistic groups: the Austronesian peoples who speak Oceanic languages, and the Papuan peoples who speak the Papuan languages. For the most part, both groups are from Southeast Asia (the Papuan first wave was from the Malay Archipelago), and their linguistic origins reflect that.

It should be noted that none of these people ultimately originated from these island regions - they all came from part of a continent that was close to the Pacific Ocean. Ye olde ages ago did their ancestors decide to strike out and immigrate to new areas, and their diet adapted accordingly. Religions that ban the eating of things like shellfish and animals are a comparatively recent phenomenon, because it meant abstaining from an easily-accessible food source.

I’m going to momentarily branch off and list some island cultures of the Atlantic Ocean so my examples are a little more balanced:

Northern: Faroe Islands (Danish, sort of), Iceland, Baffin Island (Canada)

Eastern: Azores (Portugal), Canary Islands (Spain), Madeira (Portugal), São Tomé and Príncipe (Gulf of Guinea)

Western: Barbados of the Lesser Antilles, Prince Edward Island (Canada, a traditional island of the Miꞌkmaq), and Cuba (native lands of the Guanahatabey, Taíno, and Ciboney)

Antarctic region: Tierra del Fuego (Chile, native land to the Yaghan),

Many of these islands were close to nearby continents, and often traded with each other for resources, so there is cultural precedent of eating things other than marine life. A couple examples would be the Taíno, and the Kalinago peoples, both of whom originate from South America. The Yaghan “traveled by canoes between islands to collect food: the men hunted sea lions, while the women dove to collect shellfish”, so still ate some form of meat.

For a couple of Atlantic island examples that did not have indigenous people: the sailors who visited Ascension Island hunted the local birds and turtles for food, and those whole lived on Saint Helena imported livestock, fruit trees, and vegetables for the purpose of colonization.

Many, if not all, of these Atlantic islanders also ate meat of some sort, be it livestock from a continent, birds, fish, or shellfish. Historically speaking, meat of any sort was a cheaply-obtained food in terms of net caloric gain compared to net calories spent obtaining said food.

While the over-consumption of anything is bad, and red meats in particular are often touted as lending an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases - which a 2016 meta-analysis noted frequently occurred with a lifestyle risk factor (Citation 1) - red meat in moderation is fairly healthy (Citation 2, Citation 3). There is evidence that diet affects the activation of different alleles (phys.org), which is indicative of a population’s change toward agriculture (Citation 4), though in particular an overconsumption of carbohydrates can result in metabolic inflammation and obesity (ScienceDaily).

Humans are omnivorous by default, and require 20 amino acids in order to be healthy. The nine that the human body cannot produce must be consumed from an outside source - MedicalNewsToday does an excellent job of breaking this down and informing readers of viable sources of each of these essential amino acids. Unfortunately for those who might have abstained from meat before the invention of supplements, the healthiest diet for them was made with the addition of dairy products (Citation 5, eggs (The Incredible Egg, Citation 6), and fish (Seafood Health Facts 1, Seafood Health Facts 2, Citation 7)

As I don’t know the level of technology your countries, I cannot make the assumption that non-meat amino acids can be created and distributed to your populace in a relatively inexpensive manner. The nutrient density of meat vs non-meat foods is debatable (Citation 8), so I would hesitate to forgo meat entirely in a culture without some reason as to why an otherwise viable source of nutrition cannot be used.

Human nutrition is plainly a complex topic with many sub-specialities, and would take any one of us a very long time to adequately explain even a portion of it, especially in conjunction with anthropological factors such as geographic origin and developed cultural norms. I’ve added some more things to peruse in the Further Reading section below, but please be aware that all of this only starts to scratch the surface of what you’ve asked. If you would like to return with more precise questions, we’d be more than happy to try answering them.

Citations

PDF - Song M, Fung TT, Hu FB, et al. Association of Animal and Plant Protein Intake With All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality. JAMA Intern Med. 2016;176(10):1453–1463. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.4182

PDF - McAfee, Alison J., et al. "Red meat consumption: An overview of the risks and benefits." Meat science 84.1 (2010): 1-13.

PDF - Wyness, Laura. "The role of red meat in the diet: nutrition and health benefits." Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 75.3 (2016): 227-232.

PDF - Ye, Kaixiong, et al. "Dietary adaptation of FADS genes in Europe varied across time and geography." Nature ecology & evolution 1.7 (2017): 0167.

PDF - Rafiq, Saima et al. “Chemical Composition, Nitrogen Fractions and Amino Acids Profile of Milk from Different Animal Species.” Asian-Australasian journal of animal sciences vol. 29,7 (2015): 1022-8. doi:10.5713/ajas.15.0452

PDF - Hoffman, Jay R., and Michael J. Falvo. "Protein–which is best?." Journal of sports science & medicine 3.3 (2004): 118.

PDF - Ralston, Nicholas VC. "Selenium health benefit values as seafood safety criteria." EcoHealth 5.4 (2008): 442-455.

PDF - Bohrer, Benjamin M. "Nutrient density and nutritional value of meat products and non-meat foods high in protein." Trends in food science & technology 65 (2017): 103-112.

Further Reading:

Greater Antilles - Wikipedia

Gulf and sea island of the Atlantic Ocean - Wikipedia

List of Caribbean islands - Wikipedia

Amino acid synthesis - Wikipedia

“Microbial production of amino acids and derived chemicals: synthetic biology approaches to strain development.” - PubMed

Lobster history as prison food - Wikipedia

Religious restrictions on the consumption of pork - Wikipedia

Taeniasis/cysticercosis - World Health Organization

“How Dietary Supplements Work” - How Stuff Works

“Risks and side effects of dietary supplements” - American Cancer Society

PDF - ADVERSE EFFECTS OF NUTRACEUTICALS AND DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS by MJJ Ronis et al.

Dietary Supplements - National Institutes of Health (NIH)

“Evolution of tryptophan and its foremost metabolites’ concentrations in milk and fermented dairy products” by Antonella Bertazzo et al.

PDF - Associations of Maternal Vitamin B12 Concentration in Pregnancy With the Risks of Preterm Birth and Low Birth Weight: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Individual Participant Data by Tormod Rogne et al.

Saphira: A less historical approach would be to analyze why the Vegetarianism is highlighted by Religious pursuit. I would even gamble that the culture was originally focused on seafood, until something changed. Did a new predator enter the seas, making it hard to feed the people? Did they overfish? Who knows.

But something saved them from starvation when the waters rose empty. Things grew on land. Either it was a gift from the Divines that they worship, or a Prophet, or perhaps there’s even a stranger lore more Maoi styled: And so the [Divine] in all their wisdom told [ancient hero] to take the last fish of the sea, and plant it on the highest hill. [Ancient hero] fed their family from the catch, but did not eat the last fish. Hungry and tired, they climbed to the highest peak and planted the fish in the Earth- and the [Divine] blessed his faith and good will. From the fish sprouted the first [main plant food], in such abundance, that [Ancient Hero] ate their fill, and brought down the plenty for the first farmers.Contrived? Yes. Tried and true? You betcha. Consider how the habits and the rituals they serve today serve as tethers, or tangible connections to their heritage, history and culture.

Constablewrites: Writing With Color covered the role of cows in Hinduism here, which might be helpful for framing your thinking. But when religion is negatively impacting the survival of the community, it’s generally more likely that religion sprouts a loophole than that the whole tribe piously starves to death. (See also the Catholic church designating beaver as a fish for purposes of Lent.)

#pylons #island #food #fish #food supply #Anonymous

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mewhenhorrormovies · 5 years ago

Text

You swine. You vulgar little maggot. You worthless bag of filth. As we

say in Texas, you couldn't pour water out of a boot with instructions

printed on the heel. You are a canker, an open wound. I would rather

kiss a lawyer than be seen with you. You took your last vacation in

the Islets of Langerhans.

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worm deserving nothing but the profoundest contempt. You are a jerk, a

cad, and a weasel. I take that back; you are a festering pustule on a

weasel's rump. Your life is a monument to stupidity. You are a stench,

a revulsion, a big suck on a sour lemon.

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the very thought of you. You have all the appeal of a paper cut.

Lepers avoid you. You are vile, worthless, less than nothing. You are

a weed, a fungus, the dregs of this earth. You are a technicolor yawn.

And did I mention that you smell?

You are a squeaking rat, a mistake of nature and a heavy-metal bagpipe

player. You were not born. You were hatched into an unwilling world

that rejects the likes of you. You didn't crawl out of a normal egg,

either, but rather a mutant maggot egg rejected by an evil scientist

as being below his low standards. Your alleged parents abandoned you

at birth and then died of shame in recognition of what they had done

to an unsuspecting world. They were a bit late.

Try to edit your responses of unnecessary material before attempting

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nincompoop will still be available to readers, but they will be able

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created houseflies, cockroaches, maggots, mosquitos, fleas, ticks,

slugs, leeches, and intestinal parasites, then he lowered his

standards and made you. I take it back; God didn't make you. You are

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trout-defiler. You make Ebola look good.

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nasty and profane. You are foul and disgusting. You're a fool, an

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you. You are unreservedly pathetic, starved for attention, and lost in

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You should be promoted to Engineering Manager.

Do you really expect your delusional and incoherent ramblings to be

read? Everyone plonked you long ago. Do you fantasize that your

tantrums and conniption fits could possibly be worth the $0.000000001

worth of electricity used to send them? Your life is one big

W.O.M.B.A.T. and your future doesn't look promising either. We need to

trace your bloodline and terminate all siblings and cousins in order

to cleanse humanity of your polluted genes. The good news is that no

normal human would ever mate with you, so we won't have to go into the

sewers in search of your git.

You are a waste of flesh. You have no rhythm. You are ridiculous and

obnoxious. You are the moral equivalent of a leech. You are a living

emptiness, a meaningless void. You are sour and senile. You are a

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mind in a version 6.12 world. Your mother had to tie a pork chop

around your neck just to get your dog to play with you. You think

that HTTP://WWW.GUYMACON.COM/FUN/INSULT/INDEX.HTM is the name of a

rock band. You believe that P.D.Q. Bach is the greatest composer who

ever lived. You prefer L. Ron Hubbard to Larry Niven and Jerry

Pournelle. Hee-Haw is too deep for you. You would watch test patterns

all day if the other inmates would let you.

On a good day you're a half-wit. You remind me of drool. You are

deficient in all that lends character. You have the personality of

wallpaper. You are dank and filthy. You are asinine and benighted.

Spammers look down on you. Phone sex operators hang up on you.

Telemarketers refuse to be seen in public with you. You are the source

of all unpleasantness. You spread misery and sorrow wherever you go.

May you choke on your own foolish opinions. You are a Pusillanimous

galactophage and you wear your sister's training bra. Don't bother

opening the door when you leave - you should be able to slime your

way out underneath. I hope that when you get home your mother runs

out from under the porch and bites you.

You smarmy lagerlout git. You bloody woofter sod. Bugger off, pillock.

You grotty wanking oik artless base-court apple-john. You clouted

boggish foot-licking half-twit. You dankish clack-dish plonker. You

gormless crook-pated tosser. You bloody churlish boil-brained clotpole

ponce. You craven dewberry pisshead cockup pratting naff. You cockered

bum-bailey poofter. You gob-kissing gleeking flap-mouthed coxcomb. You

dread-bolted fobbing beef-witted clapper-clawed flirt-gill. May your

spouse be blessed with many bastards.

You are so clueless that if you dressed in a clue skin, doused yourself

in clue musk, and did the clue dance in the middle of a field of horny

clues at the height of clue mating season, you still would not have a

clue. If you were a movie you would be a double feature;

_Battlefield_Earth_ and _Moron_Movies_II_. You would be out of focus.

You are a fiend and a sniveling coward, and you have bad breath. You

are the unholy spawn of a bandy-legged hobo and a syphilitic camel.

You wear strangely mismatched clothing with oddly placed stains. You

are degenerate, noxious and depraved. I feel debased just knowing that

you exist. I despise everything about you, and I wish you would go

away. You are jetsam who dreams of becoming flotsam. You won't make

it. I beg for sweet death to come and remove me from a world which

became unbearable when you crawled out of a harpy's lair.

It is hard to believe how incredibly stupid you are. Stupid as a stone

that the other stones make fun of. So stupid that you have traveled

far beyond stupid as we know it and into a new dimension of stupid.

Meta-stupid. Stupid cubed. Trans-stupid stupid. Stupid collapsed to

a singularity where even the stupons have collapsed into stuponium.

Stupid so dense that no intelligence can escape. Singularity stupid.

Blazing hot summer day on Mercury stupid. You emit more stupid in one

minute than our entire galaxy emits in a year. Quasar stupid. It cannot

be possible that anything in our universe can really be this stupid.

This is a primordial fragment from the original big stupid bang. A pure

extract of stupid with absolute stupid purity. Stupid beyond the laws

of nature. I must apologize. I can't go on. This is my epiphany of

stupid. After this experience, you may not hear from me for a while.

I don't think that I can summon the strength left to mock your moronic

opinions and malformed comments about boring trivia or your other

drivel. Duh.

The only thing worse than your logic is your manners. I have snipped

away most of your of what you wrote, because, well ... it didn't

really say anything. Your attempt at constructing a creative flame was

pitiful. I mean, really, stringing together a bunch of insults among a

load of babbling was hardly effective... Maybe later in life, after

you have learned to read, write, spell, and count, you will have more

success. True, these are rudimentary skills that many of us "normal"

people take for granted that everyone has an easy time of mastering.

But we sometimes forget that there are "challenged" persons in this

world who find these things to be difficult. If I had known that this

was true in your case then I would have never have exposed myself to

what you wrote. It just wouldn't have been "right." Sort of like

parking in a handicap space. I wish you the best of luck in the

emotional, and social struggles that seem to be placing such a

demand on you.

P.S.: You are hypocritical, greedy, violent, malevolent, vengeful,

cowardly, deadly, mendacious, meretricious, loathsome, despicable,

belligerent, opportunistic, barratrous, contemptible, criminal,

fascistic, bigoted, racist, sexist, avaricious, tasteless, idiotic,

brain-damaged, imbecilic, insane, arrogant, deceitful, demented, lame,

self-righteous, byzantine, conspiratorial, fraudulent,

libelous, bilious, splenetic, spastic, ignorant, clueless, EDLINoid,

illegitimate, harmful, destructive, dumb, evasive, double-talking,

devious, revisionist, narrow, manipulative, paternalistic,

fundamentalist, dogmatic, idolatrous, unethical, cultic, diseased,

suppressive, controlling, restrictive, malignant, deceptive, dim,

crazy, weird, dyspeptic, stifling, uncaring, plantigrade, grim,

unsympathetic, jargon-spouting, censorious, secretive, aggressive,

mind-numbing, arassive, poisonous, flagrant, self-destructive,

abusive, socially-retarded, puerile, and Generally Not Good.

#oh my word #my friend found this #she said ‘oh my word look at what i found! lets send it to savannah’ so we sid #but i wanted to share it with yall not because i dont like yall but because you could send this to somebody you hate #have at it

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thedcdunce · 6 years ago

Text

Batgirl

“I don't kill... but I don't lose, either.” - Batgirl

Real Name: Cassandra Cain

Aliases:

Black Bat

Kasumi

The Nothing

Gender: Female

Height: 5′ 5″

Weight: 110 lbs (50 kg)

Eyes: Blue/ Green/ Brown

Hair: Black

Abilities:

Peak Human Condition

Martial Arts

Hand-to-Hand Combat (Advanced)

Body Reading Ability

Investigation

Stealth

Weaknesses:

Dyslexia

Over-Reliance on Body Reading Ability

Equipment:

Batgirl Suit

Utility Belt

Shadow Belt

Batcycle

Batarangs

Universe: New Earth

Base of Operations:

Gotham City

Blüdhaven

Tibet

New York City

Hong Kong

Parents:

David Cain; father

Lady Shiva; mother

Marital Status: Single

Occupation: Vigilante

First Appearance: Batman #567 (July, 1999)

Abilities

Peak Human Condition: Through continuous intense training Cassandra represents the greatest fighting weapon ever conceived. She possesses peak level strength, stamina, speed and agility comparable to the finest human athlete.

Martial Arts: Due to her lifelong training Cassandra has a master level knowledge of all fighting arts known and unknown and continues to learn with every new opponent she faces. She has also invented her own styles and techniques.

Dragon Style Kung Fu

The Falling Leaf Technique: A nerve pinch invented by Chinese monks in the 16th Century.

Hand-to-Hand Combat (Advanced): Cassandra is schooled in all known and many unknown assassin techniques such as pressure points, killing techniques and stealth to name a few.

Body Reading Ability: Cassandra has the advanced ability to read body language enabling her to read what people are thinking and tell what they are going to do next before they do it. She has been shown able to read opponents far faster than herself, along with non-humans and even alien lifeforms once she is given a chance to learn their body language. This enables her to identify disguised and transformed people as well.

Investigation

Stealth: Due to her excessive training she is also a master of stealth.

Weaknesses

Dyslexia: Due to her training using the language centers of her brain to read body language, Cassandra has extreme dyslexia, making it very difficult for her to read and write.

Over-Reliance on Body Reading Ability: While a definite strength in combat, Cassandra's ability to read body language can work against her when she can't properly discern the intent of the opponent's actions based on body language. Generally this can be happen when an opponent is very good at disguising their intent, who can keep Cassandra distracted with subtle body language that could hint at many possible actions. In another instance, it could be that an opponent isn't thinking or focusing on their movements as they make them like when Cassandra tried to stop a gunshot from a cybernetically enhanced assassin but couldn't because his cybernetics took over the aiming for him independently of his movements. The last way in which this weakness manifests is when Cassandra is facing an opponent who is mentally unstable or ill. Such an opponent is simply too unpredictable to anticipate.

Equipment

Batgirl Suit

Utility Belt

Shadow Belt: During her time as Kasumi on the Justice League Elite, she wore a belt of Thanagarian origin that allowed her to transform into and travel intangibly as a living shadow. Kasumi mostly used this when the team was on under-cover missions as the metahuman gang member The Nothing, the shadow from covering even her Kasumi disguise.

Batcycle

Batarangs

History

Cassandra Cain is the fourth Batgirl. Born with the assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva as her parents, she was trained to become the perfect warrior. Her father deprived her of speech so she would learn movement and physicality as her first language. Batman adopted her into the Batman Family during No Man's Land, to replace Helena Bertinelli as Batgirl. Cassandra would eventually turn her Batgirl costume over to Stephanie Brown, and become a member of Batman Incorporated as Black Bat.

Birth

The daughter of David Cain and Sandra Wu-San, Cassandra Cain was conceived and trained from birth with the intention of creating the perfect bodyguard for Ra's al Ghul. After many unsuccessful attempts to train children from birth in martial arts to make them inculcate it like a native language, David Cain, then a member of Ra's League of Assassins, decided the right genes were necessary to create this "Who Is All". With Ra's go ahead Cain searched for the perfect mother for this child, finding her in the Wu-San sisters of Detroit, who practiced martial arts with each other nearly every moment of their childhood in a type of sister's language. Cain sympathized with the younger sister, Sandra, when he noticed that she held back out of love for Carolyn. To "help" Sandra reach her full potential, Cain murdered Carolyn, then lured Sandra into an ambush by the League of Assassins, where he defeated her. Cain spared Sandra from death on the condition that she bear his child, and leave her for him to raise. Awed by the potential heights she could reach in her physical talents now that Carolyn was gone, Sandra agreed to Cain's bargain in order that she might go on to become the unstoppable force of nature known as Lady Shiva: creator and destroyer. Shiva's hope for her child was that she might one day grow to be the force that could stop her reign of destruction.

Childhood

Trained by her father to be the ultimate weapon, Cassandra was not taught to speak. Instead, he relied mostly on actions to communicate with her. Also, he cut her off from the outside world, only exposing her to anything or anyone other than him when absolutely necessary. As a result, the parts of her brain normally used for speech and language processing were trained so she could read other people's movements and body language to recognize their thoughts without verbal communication and predict, with uncanny accuracy, their next move in a fight. This also caused her brain to develop learning functions different from most, a form of dyslexia that hampers her ability to talk, read, and write.

When she was 8 years old, Cain decided his experiment had progressed far enough for him to test Cassandra's abilities in the real world and took her to a hit; the target being Faizul, a 'bookman' in Macau. At the time Cassandra had no idea what she was doing and believed it was only a game. After striking a deathblow, she "read" the target as he died, and saw death as he saw it.

In addition to scarring her emotionally, she realized murder, like her father's profession, was wrong, and she ran away.

No Man's Land

Cassandra spent the next nine years homeless, guilt- and fear-ridden as she traveled the world. Entering Gotham City at 17, Cassandra came to be of Oracle's agents in the No Man's Land of Gotham City. After saving Commissioner Gordon's life from her assassin father, she was given the Batgirl costume with the approval of both Batman and Oracle. She became Barbara's ward and in a sense, the Batman's adoptive daughter. As the No Man's Land wore on, the new Batgirl was introduced to the rest of the Bat-Family with varying levels of acceptance. Usually acting as the Batman's watchful eye, she was finally allowed to go on a solo mission when a petrol station needed guarding against a local gang. Near the end of No Man's Land, Batman noticed her death wish and forced her to make a decision between suicidal actions and self-preservation. She opted for self-preservation.

Batgirl

Despite her notable handicap of being unable to talk, read, or write, Cassandra did remarkably well. Capable of understanding others' intentions due to her ability to read body language she was a more than a capable listener, despite the fact she couldn't process their words or reply to them. It was this trait that made her one of the Batman's most loyal and trusted followers and helped her to survive when the Bat-clan became hunted by the Bloodhawks. Although the fact that she couldn't talk frustrated Barbara Gordon, she proved herself useful in other ways during a team with the spectral vigilante Ghost in tracking disappearing corpses. The running successes and final understanding of her mission as Batgirl allowed Batman to give her the privilege of running solo in Gotham City on the condition that she faced no 'costumed criminals'.

From going undercover in Madras with Batman to saving local heroes from the mob, Cassandra continued to impress as the new Batgirl. Especially when, despite Batman's warnings, she went face to face with a meta-human and won. She even managed to, despite her restriction to Gotham City, make it on the reserve member list of Young Justice.

But Cassandra's career was not the only thing that was growing. In the background a rift between Oracle and Batman was slowly emerging, as was the growing image of Batman as a father figure in Cassandra's eyes but the major development was David Cain's intentions to get his daughter back.

Batman learned about Cassandra's past when Cain sent a tape depicting Faizul's death to the Batcave. Nevertheless, Batman continued to accept Cassandra. Things became more strained when a run-away psychic altered Cassandra's mind so that she could understand words. As a side effect, she lost her ability to read body language and thus, her ability to fight properly. After she almost died while trying to protect the psychic from assassins, Batman took away her costume and began retraining her. The training remained ineffective, however, in part due to Cassandra dwelling on her lost ability instead of focusing on learning all over again, and Cassandra wanted to roam the streets, with or without the costume.

It was during of these 'unauthorized' vigilante outings that she encountered her mother. After Shiva attempted to kill a wealthy young girl, Cassandra intervened but was swiftly knocked out. After waking up, she immediately tracked Shiva down, despite having a dead arm, to find out why she spared. Shiva explained that she came to Gotham to lure her out and fight her, and left when she felt Cassandra was no longer a challenge.When she explained why her skills were lacking, Shiva recognized her Cassandra's missing skills and offered to train in a way that will allow her to possess them again. In exchange, they would fight to the death in a year. Knowing she had no chance of winning, but wanting her skills back, Cassandra accepted.

Duel to the Death

Cassandra began training immediately; going after every talented fighter she came across in order to gain more skills. After hearing how notorious the Joker was with the Bat-clan, she freed him in order to apprehend him again in order to gauge just how good he was. Batman and Oracle deduced that Cassandra had not given up her death wish and that it was due to guilt over her murdering Faizul. They began looking into what had brought the death wish back. Her reckless training was interrupted when an officer down was called over the frequencies. Batman's longtime ally and friend, Commissioner Gordon had been shot in cold blood.

It was during yet another training session in the Batcave that Cassandra first met her future friend Stephanie Brown.

It wasn't long until Batman gave her a cave of her own to operate from. Her training continued as she found even more powerful opponents like Bizarro, Supergirl and Shadow Thief during the Joker's Last Laugh, as well as numerous villains during the aftermath of Our Worlds at War. These activities had not gone unnoticed by Batman and Oracle. Knowing about Cassandra's match with Shiva but impressed by her progress, Batman allowed Cassandra to continue -- despite Oracle's protests. When the fateful night arrived that Cassandra had to face Shiva on the rooftops of Gotham City Barbara Gordon tried to talk her out of it. In response, she used a nerve strike to paralyze her, apologized and left to face her fate. Despite her best efforts, Shiva won the battle fairly easily, killing Cassandra with a shot to a nerve cluster near the heart. After the battle, within a temple devoted to her, Shiva brought Cassandra back to life. Shiva's price: A rematch. This time, with her death wish satisfied, Cassandra won and became the first to defeat Lady Shiva in martial combat. However, she spared Shiva's life, who vowed to return to kill Cassandra.

Unfortunately, the victory would be short-lived. Bruce Wayne was in jail on suspicion of murder. Cassandra arrived back at the cave in time to see Batman leave. Cassandra's resulting investigation revealed that Batman and Bruce Wayne were, in fact, the same person. Later she, along with Spoiler and Nightwing, discovered critical clues that pointed to Bruce Wayne's innocence and, eventually, incriminating evidence to the real culprit: David Cain. Her father safely behind bars and no battle-to-the-death with Shiva to train for, Cassandra focused on her crime-fighting career.

Tough Love

Batgirl makes a mistake due to stress, and Oracle insists that they vacation on a cruise liner. Superboy happened to attend the same cruise, and together they stop a terrorist named Black Wind. Superboy gives Batgirl his number, and Batgirl kisses him. Batgirl goes on date with Superboy in Smallville, but they end up deciding to just be friends. Batgirl and Batman work together when Doctor Death tries to auction his chemical weapons in Gotham. They pursue him to Tarakstan, where they're forced to ally with Black Wind. Doctor Death is shot, and Black Wind sacrifices his life to contain the chemical weapons released. Before leaving the country, Cassandra, imitating a local custom, professes her feelings for him and vows to keep it a secret.

Barbara Gordon lends her old costume to Cassandra, who briefly uses it on patrol, but decides she prefers her own costume. Later, Batgirl investigates a new drug called Soul. This leads her to the Lost Girls street gang, whom Cassandra fights, unaware that the leaders are all metahumans. Midway through the fight, she accidentally swallows a Soul pill. Because Soul's effects are determined by whether a person has a good or evil heart, she briefly hallucinates as her inner good and evil wrestle for control. When her evil side wins out, defeats the Girls under the Soul's influence. Later, Batgirl hunts and stops a serial killer named Doll Man. When she tries to stop a white slavery ring, but Batman shows up, angry because she ruined his sting operation. Batman tells Cassandra that she has been making too many mistakes recently, and forces her to suspend her activities as Batgirl. When Barbara tries to console her, Cassandra steals her Batgirl costume and takes to the streets. Investigating Soul again, she leads her to the scientist supplying the Lost Girls, who is revealed to be Doctor Death. Doctor Death doses Batgirl and Batman with concentrated Soul, and they fight to the death. When the effects wear off, Batgirl has a tender moment with Batman, and she explains that her father never let her display affection. Batman asks who she is loyal to, and Batgirl responds that she is loyal not to him but to their symbol. Robin takes Doctor Death into custody. Cassandra begins enjoying her new freedom, and Oracle takes her to a public garden. This garden is revealed to be a plot by Poison Ivy to recreate the Garden of Eden. Batgirl burns down Ivy's Tree of Knowledge, from which the entire garden grew from, stopping her.

War Games

Stephanie Brown became the new Robin when Tim Drake quit, and Batgirl teamed with her to take down the Penguin. Batman had Batgirl stage a public fight with Onyx in the Iceberg Lounge to improve Onyx's street credibility. Batgirl was later sent to protect Tim Drake when Scarab is looking to kill Robin. Later, Batgirl stopped a robot called Project Mars who was trying to destroy the public library. This revealed that her illiteracy was still a problem when she had trouble determining its self-destruct code. When Stephanie Brown was fired as Robin and told to give up crime-fighting, she approached Batgirl to thank her for their friendship.

Gotham became a war zone when the leaders of several crime syndicates were killed, leaving a massive vacuum. Batgirl was sent to deal with the Lucky Hand Triad in Chinatown when Kwan Lin was killed and later she helped Onyx and Orpheus put out a battle between the Hill Gang and the Latino Unified. Batgirl then pursued Alexandra Kosov of the Odessa Mob into an explosive firefight, but lost her. Tarantula fought Batgirl and rejected her offer to bring the Latino Unified under the protection of Orpheus. Batgirl confronted Spoiler and told her to get off the streets, but Spoiler did not listen. Soon after, Batgirl joined Batman and Nightwing to stop a shootout at Louis Grieve High School. This incident was the first time Batman was caught on film, which also revealed Batgirl's existence to the public.

Batman told Batgirl and the Bat-Family to push on when Commissioner Akins declared a curfew, and later he revealed to them that he has discovered that the gang war is one of his own contingency plans. Batgirl protected Leslie Thompkins against an attack by Lynx and the Ghost Dragons. Accidentally, Lynx was deadly injured by her own henchmen aiming at Batgirl.

Batgirl was placed on the perimeter at Robinson Park when Black Mask started a riot while posing as Orpheus. They're forced to fight every criminal in the city until the riot dispersed. Batman sent Batgirl to deal with Killer Croc and Suicide King and before leaving, she told Batman that Spoiler was responsible for the war games, but Batman already knew. Batgirl rescued Onyx, who was being tortured by Croc's henchmen. The final confrontation with Black Mask was at Gotham Clock Tower, where police were told to shoot vigilantes on sight. Batgirl helped put away Scarebeast and then escaped the law.

Fresh Blood

Following War Games, the Gotham City Police Department declared all costumed heroes illegal. Because of this and Nightwing being injured during the War Games, Batman suggested that he and Batgirl move to Blüdhaven, as well as financially supporting them. There, she quickly made a name for herself by defeating the Society of Evil. Deathstroke later took on a contract from the Penguin to kill Batgirl and decided to let his daughter Rose Wilson do the job instead. Cassandra beat Rose by critically wounding her and giving Deathstroke no choice but to get her medical attention. It was during fathers' day that Cassandra became infatuated with knowing who her mother was. Interrogating all the contacts she had she eventually found her mother to be Lady Shiva.

Justice League Elite

Cassandra joined the Justice League Elite, masquerading as an assassin named Kasumi to monitor the team for Batman and participated in several missions with them. Ultimately she helped them save the world from the Worlogog and a psychic impression of Manchester Black that had taken over the team's leader, Vera Black. She revealed herself to her teammate Coldcast to tell him that he was not a bad guy before he was accused of murder. She personally stood by him in clearing his name.

League of Assassins

Returning to Gotham City Cassandra discovered that not only had her adoptive family left on a year-long training trip without her but that Batman had left a recently cured Harvey Dent to protect Gotham in his stead. Despite this Cassandra still retained the Batgirl persona and patrolled Gotham while staying at Wayne Manor under Alfred's care. Due to Alfred's influence, Cassandra would gradually learn to read and write due to her attending ESL classes between her nightly activities. It was during one of these patrols, however, that Deathstroke managed to not only inject her with a controlled dose of his serum but influenced her enough to join him in a plan to form an army involving David Cain's 'daughters'. Slade's influence Cassandra gained control of a part of the League of Assassins, assassinating Nyssa al Ghul in the process, and became a member of his Titan's East. As leader of the League of Assassins she also -- again under Slade's control -- attempted to kill Kara Zor-el and masterminded the escape of David Cain from prison. She was cured when Timothy Drake injected her with an antiserum during a confrontation between the Teen East and the Teen Titans. However, suffering residual effects of the drug, she briefly worked for David Cain in attaining the drug Pheno before fully coming to her senses and returning to the Bat Family.

Redemption

Feeling partially responsible for what happened to her, Batman allowed her to return after a strict detoxification program and gave her a strict curfew. Nightwing, however, was not so accepting, regarding her with open hostility and suspicion. When Cassandra began seeking vengeance upon her father and Slade, she had to do it secretly due to their mistrust. Unfortunately, her activities eventually were found out, resulting in her clashing with Nightwing and stealing a Batwing from the Batcave. However, the ordeal resulted in Cassandra officially adopted as Bruce Wayne's daughter.

Outsiders

With Batman's invitation Cassandra began working in the Outsiders team and, despite some mistrust from some members due to her recent activities, was accepted as part of the team. When Batman suddenly disappeared without word or warning, the Outsiders went looking for him all across Gotham. Cassandra went to the Iceberg Lounge to question Penguin about Batman's whereabouts, but learned nothing from him and instead she was forced to deal with Johnny Stitches. Back at their headquarters, the Outsiders received a message from Batman, but Batgirl noticed that he wasn't the real man. However, she decided to play along with the impostor's plan, allowing REMAC to be injected with a virus that caused him to die in an explosion that left Thunder in a coma. Batgirl was blamed for the disaster and the Outsiders disbanded. Afterward, Batgirl went to the Batcave, where she learned that the attack was part of the Black Glove's plan and she decided to reform the Outsiders.

Batgirl began recruiting heroes across Gotham that matched Batman's unique abilities in order to create a team that could replace the missing Batman and the disbanded Outsiders at the same time, but Batgirl didn't expect that Nightwing would not agree with her plan. Nightwing was having trouble coming to grips with his adoptive father's possible death, but this would eventually sort out their conflict after Alfred intervened in a fight between the two. Cassandra handed over further creation of the Network to Nightwing.

When the third crisis hit, Cassandra was among the heroes responding to an Article X draft to combat the rise of Darkseid. Cassandra has also been seen assisting Supergirl and Wonder Woman fight an incarnation of the villainous Chang Tzu.

Cassandra was summoned along with many other heroes, to Gotham city after Batman's death. Together, they formed the Network, a team designed to maintain order in Gotham during Batman's absence. As part of this team, Batgirl teamed up with Huntress to stop Hugo Strange following Oracle's instructions. However, Batgirl was forced to fight Huntress to stop her from killing a criminal.

Batgirl Rising

Following the Battle for Batman's cowl, Cassandra began to feel emotional about her adoptive father's death, becoming disillusioned and passing her costume on to Stephanie Brown who becomes the new Batgirl. Cassandra leaves via the Gotham Airport, warning Stephanie not to follow her. After Batman's return, it was revealed that Cassandra had handed over her Batgirl mantle to Stephanie, acting in accords with her mentor's order in the event of his death or disappearance and because giving over the role would help Stephanie become a stronger hero. Drake remained in contact with her, implying that she's been working as an anonymous agent in Batman's plans.

Shortly thereafter, Red Robin visited her in Hong Kong to exchange information on cases they were working with, on the crime boss and possible undercover cop Lynx and a mysterious assassin known as Cricket that Cassandra was searching for. Aside from the minor aid they offered each other, Tim had brought her a new costume with a Bat on it to replace the plain black costume she had been wearing ever since she gave her Batgirl uniform and name to Stephanie, telling her that it didn't matter if she called herself Bat-Chick, Knightbat, or Black Robin, she had a family. She thanked him but said that family is not always home as she left, giving no sign she'd use the new costume but taking it with her regardless. Drake noted that despite her not wanting to be Batgirl anymore, there was no sign she was being anything but true to herself and who she had wanted to become.

Batman Incorporated

Cassandra later becomes an operative of Batman Incorporated protecting Hong Kong, using the suit given to her by Tim and calling herself Blackbat. Bruce Wayne has her take a neo-heroin smuggling operation.

Black Bat traveled to Paris following a homing signal to Red Robin to the final site in a tournament of assassins, saving him from being raped by Daughter of Acheron, Ra's al Ghul's half-sister, and defeated the vigilante Promise while freeing Drake. Cassandra then proceeded to take a sword and impale Tim in the chest, triggering confirmation that she had won the tournament, being one of the few in history to do so and activating a system that would 'immortalize' her, by killing her with a laser. Red Robin saved her from the beam, and then revealed they had faked Red Robin's death using a trick sword, blood packets, and a stopped heart to fool the temple's automated systems. They attempted to examine the base, but although Tim conversed with the assassin tournament's creator, a previously unknown centuries old immortal, the base self-destructed before they could learn any close as to his location.

Red Robin came to Hong Kong to assist Black Bat in Cassandra's hunt for Cricket, but they were defeated by the Cricket, badly injuring Tim and promising to fight Cassandra 'For real' next time.

Fun Facts

In 2000, Cassandra Cain became the first Batgirl to get her own ongoing self-titled comic book series.

Cassandra has scars across her back from bullet wounds made by her father during her childhood training.

She tended to keep a rose around during her time as Batgirl.

She possesses high levels of serotonin.

Due to her upbringing, Cassandra was unable to understand words being spoken and used body language to understand what people were saying. Eventually, she gains the ability to process and attach meaning to words.

She possessed a death wish due to guilt over killing that resulted in nightmares and self-destructive behavior.

Her first spoken word was "Stop".

Her favorite flavor of ice cream is chocolate.

Cassandra's birthday is January 26th.

Her favorite tea is Assam.

Cassandra was called Who Is All by Lady Shiva.

Cassandra's first kiss was Conner Kent.

Cassandra was formally adopted by Bruce Wayne and now goes by Cassandra Cain-Wayne.

#batgirl #cassandra cain #black bat #kasumi #the nothing #batman family #batman inc.#batman inc #justice league elite #jle #League of Assassins #outsiders #titans east #Young Justice #dc #DC comics #thedcdunce

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illusionsoffantasy · 6 years ago

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Releasing the various evil creatures into the time stream could have been deemed as catastrophic, though there was one event that came from it that had mixed opinions. In 2019, an event involving one of the various magical fugitives caused the collusion of various Earths from within the Multi-Verse, drawing friends closer together…as well as enemies no one knew.

The various vigilante teams began to work together, one which in time resulted in them getting top of those that meant harm. It soon became a place of prosperity; the medical field was enhanced thanks to the dedication of Lena Luthor, the legal system started to get cleaned up thanks to D.A. Laurel Lance, Alien-Human relations seemed to improve thanks to the hard work of the Supers, and various other items.

However, behind all the good that was being done, the public opinion began to sway. It all started small, various political figures started to appear who opposed the meta-humans and aliens. News Reports started to surface, articles highlighting the dangers and expenses the public has had to pay out. For most, they all believed it would blow over – after all Kara had dealt with the Children of Liberty.

It didn’t, and soon those who were neither a meta-human nor alien began to feel unsafe, policies began to change. New measures were put in place; testing to see who were human, restrictions against the aliens and meta-humans, even the superheroes either became grounded or were forced to aid the government. Finally, despite the best efforts of those who wanted to do good, the crackdown came.

Lyla Michaels was ousted from A.R.G.U.S as she opposed the new way of things, the new head of the Organization overseeing the roundup of Meta-Humans. Lena Luthor’s company was taken over by the government who believed she had tech that could help them again the aliens. S.T.A.R. Labs was also seized by A.R.G.U.S, causing Team Flash to disappear and lay low. Alex was fired from the D.E.O, the organization soon began hunting Aliens and processing them. Things only started to become harder as things went along...

Important Character Notes:

Kara Danvers, Lois Lane (Kent) & Clark Kent are the main reporters who speak out about what is happening.

The Time Bureau is completely government controlled – The Legends were terminated and their own enforcers put in place.

Lena Luthor is making a stand against the government, using what she has left to try and restore what was.

To protect Nora from harm Iris put a power dampener in her daughter and lied to her about her powers.

Astra Danvers, Ella Kent and Jon Kent have had to hide their powers their entire life, their parents keeping the family hidden the best they can.

Jan Danvers works for the D.E.O, however, he feeds information to his mother and aunt to help them protect the aliens.

After a hard labour, Sara gave birth to her daughter Lexie, which resulted in the pair being hospitalized. While they were in hospital A.R.G.U.S. came in and took the young girl, who was positive for meta-human genes. Sara was told she had died, but she knows better.

After losing her job, Lyle and John decided to go into hiding with their family.

Louise Raymond was taken by A.R.G.U.S who triggered the balance within her to become unstable, trigging her parent’s powers to manifest within her – which caused a huge accident to happen. She escaped from A.R.G.U.S and is now on the run.

Max Ramon had her powers suppressed by a power dampener; she is unaware of her powers and is very close with Nora.

Robert Queen returned to Star City, leaving his mother (and maybe father?) in hiding. He returned to make a play at politics and try to restore order as it once was.

Jeanne Palmer’s location is unknown.

#Running A Different Path | DC Verses #I would love to get this going and have multi-people threads/plots

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missaphelion · 3 years ago

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Crack always wins, folks. Here’s a little preview, for anyone interested!

"Are you telling me you were six years old when I took you in?" Bruce asked, and the calm in his voice was a little terrifying.

"No," Dick said at once. "No, of course not. I was seven."

* * * *

Jason was not happy. Dick could tell he was coming out of his skin. It wasn't that he didn't work well with others, it was just that the Red Hood did not usually work with the Justice League.

But the tip that he'd brought them was big enough that Clark, Diana, and Bruce took the mission on.

Dick was only here because Jason had dragged him with them to be a buffer between him and Bruce.

The contact that they were meeting had information on an intergalactic human trafficking ring that seemed set on Earth as its next stop. Still, it was a simple information gathering meeting. It wouldn't be anything out of the ordinary at all, except it was taking place on a space station in another solar system.

"This is the place," Jason said stiffly, nodding towards a bar covered in neon alien language. "You should just stay back. Try not to look so out of place."

Even this far from Earth, the Justice League was recognizable, so they were all dressed closer to Jason's leather jacket than their usual uniforms, though Bruce had made the three bats all wear domino masks, they were otherwise in cargo pants and black shirts or jackets.

He had to admit it was strange seeing Clark and Diana in black.

"Where'd B go?" Jason asked tightly.

"Scoping the exits," Dick said. Not that he'd bothered to give Dick warning he was gonna disappear on them either, but he knew how much Bruce hated missions in space. There wasn't any other reason he'd have left them.

"Well we're not waiting for him," Jason snapped, turning and stomping into the bar.

Clark and Diana just shrugged and followed him, so Dick sighed and moved to join them. He didn't make it very far.

A blue forceshield like a holographic net appeared the moment he stepped into the doorway, knocking him off balance and back into the hall. He looked back at the door in surprise, but the net had already flickered back out.

"What the hell--" Jason snapped, moving back towards him.

"Child!" a high pitched voice shouted, as a pink-skinned alien with bright white hair and a guard's uniform rushed over. "Child, you are not allowed in there!"

The alien grabbed his arm gently, and started pulling him away. Dick was so baffled by being addressed as child, that he was sort of just letting her, until Clark grabbed his other arm.

"Let him go," he said firmly.

"Oh," she said, dropping Dick's arm. "Is he yours?"

"He's mine," a voice growled from behind them. Bruce pushed himself forward, putting Dick safely between him and Clark. "What is going on?"

The guard gave a sigh that sounded exasperated. Dick wondered if maybe that was universal. "Your child was attempting to enter the adult only bar," she explained. "I was going to take him to the authority office. Children are not allowed to be on this space port unattended."

"Why do you think I'm a child?" Dick blurted out in disbelief.

The guard turned back to him, blinking ruby eyes in surprise. "The age net denied you passage. And children are not allowed--"

Bruce held up a hand to forestall her. "What is the criteria?"

"To avoid complications, we go off a planet's highest age of maturity as our standard. For humans, the age of entrance is keyed to 21, which is the age of maturity as we understand. Children under the age of twenty-one are not allowed in restricted areas and must be accompanied on the space port."

"He's twenty-two," Bruce said simply. "It must be malfunctioning."

The guard narrowed her ruby eyes. "It was created by the resident mage, I assure you, there is no way to deceive it."

Clark frowned. "Could it possibly some meta gene? Slowing aging?"

"He's been tested," Bruce said, waving him off.

"When was I tested?" Dick demanded.

"You could do a quadruple somersault at age eight," Bruce said simply. "Of course I tested you."

"We're kinda on a schedule here," Jason reminded them. "Think you could make an exception? Parental permission?" The last part was said with a smirk.

"No exceptions," the guard insisted. "He will be able to pass the net when he is twenty-one, not before."

"But that doesn't make..." Dick started to protest, and then he went pale. "Oh."

Bruce went still, before turning to look at his son. "Oh?" he echoed dangerously.

Dick laughed weakly, and took a step further out of his range. "They're using magic, B," he said. "Who trusts magic? Not us, am I right?"

"You know what's happening," Bruce said, eyes narrowing the lenses.

"Really don't," he said. "Look, Jay's right, you need to go to the meet. I can wait here."

"Children are not allowed in the space port unaccompanied," the guard repeated. Dick wondered pettily if she was a robot.

"Nightwing," Bruce snapped, grabbing his arm.

"Uh, so I may be twenty?" Dick said. "I think."

"You think," Bruce repeated, his voice flat."You're supposed to be twenty three in a few months. Explain. Now."

"Uh, well, it's sort of...identity related?" Dick hedged, glancing at the guard.

Bruce pulled him a few feet away by the grip on his arm. Jason, looking even worse than Dick, stepped close enough to be able to eavesdrop.

"Explain," Bruce snapped.

"Okay well, uh, sometimes venues would decline to host us because they were worried about a six year old working without a net. Haly got hassled marginally less if it was an eight year old performing without a net than a six year old. So they sort of just changed my documentation."

"Are you telling me you were six years old when I took you in?" Bruce asked, and the calm in his voice was a little terrifying.

"No," Dick said at once. "No, of course not. I was seven."

"Wait wait wait," Jason said, horror creeping into his voice. "Are you telling me I'm older than you? I'm the oldest?'

"Only technically," Dick assured him. "I mean, do you really want the job?

"Your birthday is in March. Wait, is your birthday even March? That means you're like seven months younger than me!!" Jason cried, reaching up to pull at his hair. "I wish I was dead again."

"Okay, I think we're all overreacting a bit, it's not a big deal," Dick assured them, but as he glanced across at the four faces staring at him with varying levels of horror, it didn't seem to be calming them down.

"You were out fighting crime when you were a toddler," Clark said, sounding scandalized.

"Seven," Dick corrected, "and come on that's not that much different than nine--"

"You were driving when you were fourteen..." Bruce realized.

"I mean technically I've been driving the Batmobile since I was twelve," Dick said, but that did not seem to reassure anyone.

"Okay, okay, as much as I'd love to have an existential crisis, we are on a schedule," Jason said. "We need to wrap this up, and then we can interrogate Goldie."

"We can't leave him here alone," Bruce said grimly, glancing at the guard.

She took it as an invitation, and stepped back over. "If convenient, we have a facility to safeguard children," the alien offered gently. "You can leave your child there and retrieve him when your meeting is complete."

"Okay, seriously, not a child,” Dick protested. “Still an adult!”

"You can't expect them to understand the intricacies of eighteen versus twenty-one, little wing” Jason smirked.

“I thought you were having an existential crisis!” Dick cried.

“I’m adapting, this may be fun,” Jason decided.

I can't decide what to write next, a crack AU where Dick is actually two years younger than everyone thinks and they find out when he gets rejected from an alien over 21 bar, or a dark Batfam fic where only Dick is still resisting as they take over Gotham. 🤔

They're such opposite ideas you'd think I would be more in the mood for one of them but no I want them both at once and so write nothing.

#dick grayson #bruce wayne #fanfiction #batfam

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ovc-bulletin · 4 years ago

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Celebrating OVC Researchers - February 2021

OVC researchers are constantly discovering, publishing, getting grants, winning awards, building partnerships, and growing their research programs. We are proud of these achievements. Each month, we will highlight four researchers, providing a snapshot of their recent publications, grants and awards, and ‘wins’ for their research program.

In February 2021 we celebrated our two new OVC Research Leadership Chairs, Dr. Dorothee Bienzle and Dr. Jan Sargeant, Dr. Mauricio Seguel, and Dr. Jibran Khokhar.

Dr. Dorothee Bienzle, Pathobiology OVC Research Leadership Chair: Dr. Dorothee Bienzle Professor and Veterinary Pathologist

Three Publications (Read more here):

Meichner K, Stokol T, Tarigo J, Avery A, Burkhard MJ, Comazzi S, Fogle J, Stowe DM, Rütgen B, Seelig D, Wasserkrug-Naor A, Vernau W, Bienzle D. Multicenter flow cytometry proficiency testing of canine blood and lymph node samples. Vet Clin Pathol. 2020 Jun;49(2):249-257. doi: 10.1111/vcp.12843. Epub 2020 Apr 4. PMID: 32246538.

Development of a novel diagnostic technique and assessment of its performance involving 11 veterinary schools in four countries. This was a very collaborative effort I had initiated, which set the stage for ongoing work to refine and improve the technique.

Lee GKC, Tessier L, Bienzle D. Salivary Scavenger and Agglutinin (SALSA) Is Expressed in Mucosal Epithelial Cells and Decreased in Bronchial Epithelium of Asthmatic Horses. Front Vet Sci. 2019 Nov 29;6:418. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2019.00418. PMID: 31850379.

Gary Lee is a current PhD student in my lab who works on equine asthma. Gary follows Paula Katavolos, Janet Beeler-Marifis, Solomon Odemuyiwa, Olivier Côté and Laurence Tessier, who have each contributed valuable pieces to our comprehensive understanding on how the equine lung responds to inhaled challenges.

Asadian P, Bienzle D. Interferon γ and α Have Differential Effects on SAMHD1, a Potent Antiviral Protein, in Feline Lymphocytes. Viruses. 2019 Oct 9;11(10):921. doi: 10.3390/v11100921. PMID: 31600877; PMCID: PMC6832628.

Peyman Asadian has nearly completed his PhD in my lab, and the focus of his research has been a multifunctional molecule important in leukocyte homeostasis and viral infection. Graduate students who have contributed to previous discoveries in feline immunity are Felipe Reggeti, Ryan Dowling, Alex Folkl, Melanie Ammersbach and Beth MacMillan.

Two Grants and Awards:

Prevalence of seroconversion to SARS-CoV-2 among dogs, cats and ferrets in close contact with humans with confirmed or probable COVID-19. Ontario Animal Health Network Grant.

Like many researchers, I wished to contribute to addressing the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in 2020. It was most feasible to do so by assessing infection in animals living with humans that have COVID-19. This research was approved and performed under pandemic research restrictions, and is ongoing in collaboration with Scott Weese, and with the enthusiastic and capable technical contributions from David Marom and Joyce Rousseau.

Does patient-side measurement of KIM-1 in urine predict recovery of renal function in cats with ureteral obstruction? Pet Trust Grant.

This research concerns development and validation of a test for kidney injury in cats. The research is conducted with former graduate student Karlyn Bland, and long-term collaborator Alice Defarges.

Host response to lentiviral infection. NSERC Discovery Grant renewed continuously since 1999.

Funding from NSERC through the discovery grant and many other programs has provided the backbone for operations in my research.

One (or more) Wins:

The successful careers of my trainees - faculty, scientists in industry, veterinary specialists, diagnosticians. Their success makes me very proud.

Dr. Jan Sargeant, Population Medicine OVC Research Leadership Chair: Dr. Jan Sargeant Professor and Veterinary Epidemiologist

Three Publications (Read more here):

Sargeant JM, O’Connor AM. 2020. Scoping reviews, systematic reviews, and meta-analysis: Applications in veterinary medicine. Frontiers in Veterinary Science. 7:11. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2020.00011

Sargeant JM, Bergevin M, Churchill K, Dawkins K, Deb B, Dunn J, Hu D, Logue C, Meadows S, Moody C, Novy A, O’Connor AM, Reist M, Sato Y, Wang C, Winder CW. 2019. The efficacy of litter management strategies to prevent morbidity and mortality in broiler poultry: A systematic review and network meta-analysis. Animal Health Research Reviews. 20: 247-262.

Sargeant JM, Deb B, Bergevin M, Churchill K, Dawkins K, Dunn J, Hu D, Moody C, O’Connor AM, O’Sullivan TL, Reist M, Wang C, Wilhelm B, Winder CB. 2019. Efficacy of bacterial vaccines to prevent respiratory disease in swine: A systematic review and network meta-analysis. Animal Health Research Reviews. 20: 274-290.

Two Grants and Awards:

Sargeant JM. 2020. Salmonella in animal feeds: A scoping review. $57,606 USD. Pew Charitable Trusts.

Sargeant JM, OConnor AM, et al., 2018. Impact of preventive antibiotics and management practices on illness in livestock and poultry. $315,829 USD. Pew Charitable Trusts.

One (or more) Wins:

After defending her MSc, Mikayla Plishka joined our research group in 2021 as a research assistant helping with several systematic reviews and scoping studies.

Dr. Mauricio Seguel, Pathobiology Assistant Professor, Principal Investigator of the Seguel Lab, and Veterinary Pathologist and Wildlife Scientist.

Three Publications (Read more here):

Ezenwa V, Budischak S, Buss P, Seguel M, Luikart G, Jolles A, Sakamoto K. Natural resistance to worms exacerbates bovine tuberculosis progression. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United States of America (PNAS). 118: e2015080118.

Seguel M*, Beechler B, Coon C, Snyder P.W, Spaan J.M, Jolles A.E, Ezenwa V.O. 2019. Immune stability predicts tuberculosis infection risk in a wild mammal. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 286: 20191401.

Seguel M*, Montalva, F., Perez-Venegas, D., Gutiérrez, J., Paves, H. J., Muller, A., Howerth E, Gottdenker, N. (2018). Immune mediated hookworm clearance and survival of a marine mammal decrease with warmer ocean temperatures. eLife, 7, 1–31.

Two Grants and Awards:

Robert C Anderson Memorial Award. Granted to a past PhD student each year in recognition for an outstanding record of research accomplishment during graduate studies at the University of Georgia. Office of the Vice President for Research, University of Georgia

One (or more) Wins:

Presenting “Anthelmintic treatment dampens immunosenescence in a wild mammal with consequences for survival” at the Wildlife and Comparative Immunology Consortium (WACI), an international group of researchers dedicated to the study of wildlife immunology.

Releasing my official lab website.

Dr. Jibran Khokhar, Biomedical Sciences Assistant Professor, Principal Investigator of the Khokhar Lab, and Neurobiologist

Three Publications (Read more here):

Thorpe HHA, Talhat MA, Khokhar JY. High genes: Genetic underpinnings of cannabis use phenotypes. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2021 Mar 2;106:110164. doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2020.110164. Epub 2020 Nov 3. PMID: 33152387.

Hamidullah S, Lutelmowski CD, Creighton SD, Luciani KR, Frie JA, Winters BD, Khokhar JY. Effects of vapourized THC and voluntary alcohol drinking during adolescence on cognition, reward, and anxiety-like behaviours in rats. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2021 Mar 2;106:110141. doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2020.110141. Epub 2020 Oct 16. PMID: 33069816.

Frie JA, Underhill J, Zhao B, de Guglielmo G, Tyndale RF, Khokhar JY. OpenVape: An Open-Source E-Cigarette Vapor Exposure Device for Rodents. eNeuro. 2020 Oct 28;7(5):ENEURO.0279-20.2020. doi: 10.1523/ENEURO.0279-20.2020. PMID: 32859723.

Two Grants and Awards:

A Translational Investigation of the Neurobiology of Alcohol Use Disorder in Schizophrenia: Toward Treatment Development. CIHR Project Grant. Value: $807,076

Rewarding Effects of "JUUL" E-cigarette Vapour: Impact of Age and Neural Correlates. CIHR Vaping Catalyst Grant. Value: $99,990

One (or more) Wins:

Initiation of pre-clinical and behavioural studies with Avicanna Inc.

Welcoming the stellar researcher, Dr. Hakan Kayir, as the lab manager.

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dailynewswebsite · 4 years ago

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Excluding pregnant women from COVID-19 vaccine trials puts their health at risk

Pregnant ladies are routinely excluded from scientific trials for medicine and vaccines. (Shutterstock)

With no efficient treatment and restricted therapy choices, the event of secure and efficient vaccines for COVID-19 is a excessive precedence. Vaccines each defend people in opposition to an infection and cut back neighborhood unfold of the virus by interrupting transmission pathways.

As soon as secure and efficient vaccines for COVID-19 can be found, the problem might be to make sure their truthful distribution throughout and inside nations. Along with world equitable entry, truthful priorities will should be set inside jurisdictions. Quick precedence teams will doubtless embody health-care staff, private care attendants, first responders, adults over age 65 and different high-risk adults with current well being situations. However after that, teams that want consideration embody pregnant ladies.

COVID-19 in being pregnant

Whereas there’s restricted information on the prevalence and severity of COVID-19 amongst pregnant ladies, it’s thought that they could possibly be vulnerable to severe problems from COVID-19. One examine in the US discovered that contaminated pregnant ladies have been 1.5 occasions extra more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit and 1.7 occasions extra more likely to obtain mechanical air flow than contaminated non-pregnant ladies.

On this June 2020 photograph, Astrid Galvan poses for a photograph along with her sonogram for her second baby in Phoenix. (AP Picture/Astrid Galvan)

A systemic evaluation and meta-analysis that included 17 research (2,567 pregnancies) discovered that admission to the intensive care unit was required in seven per cent of instances, whereas the speed of admission for contaminated non-pregnant ladies was 4.2 per cent. This evaluation additionally confirmed an elevated danger of preterm start and supply by caesarean part.

These information, in addition to the probability that pregnant ladies’s entry to drug therapies for COVID-19 could also be restricted (as is the case for many drug therapies throughout being pregnant), recommend that pregnant ladies ought to be a goal inhabitants for COVID-19 vaccine analysis. And but, the default place for each drug and vaccine analysis is to exclude pregnant ladies from analysis participation due to dangers to the pregnant ladies and their offspring.

Two main tragedies — thalidomide prescribed for morning illness in the course of the 1950s and diethylstilbestrol (DES) prescribed to stop miscarriage from the 1940s to the 1970s — cemented the view that pregnant ladies and their offspring have been weak and ought to be shielded from analysis danger. Paradoxically, whereas each these instances concerned hurt arising within the scientific setting as a result of a scarcity of satisfactory prior scientific analysis, the end result has been to systematically exclude pregnant ladies from scientific trials.

The dangers of exclusion

The shortage of proof {that a} vaccine is secure and might provoke an immune response in pregnant ladies undermines efficient decision-making for each clinicians and pregnant ladies, probably leading to the usage of unsafe vaccines. With out analysis, pregnant ladies and their offspring are uncovered to the avoidable dangers of off-label and compassionate use of non-evidence-based vaccinations.

Exclusion from analysis doesn’t dodge the danger of unproven vaccinations; it merely shifts this danger from a fastidiously monitored scientific trial to the privateness of a health care provider’s workplace. Excluding pregnant ladies from vaccine analysis is each unjust and imprudent from a public well being perspective.

In a examine, pregnant ladies with COVID-19 have been 1.5 occasions extra more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit and 1.7 occasions extra more likely to obtain mechanical air flow than contaminated non-pregnant ladies. (Pixabay/Canva)

Final yr, the Being pregnant Analysis Ethics for Vaccines, Epidemics, and New Applied sciences (PREVENT) Working Group issued a Steerage on Pregnant Ladies and Vaccines In opposition to Rising Epidemic Threats: Ethics Steerage for Preparedness, Analysis and Response. This steering is grounded within the perception that “pregnant ladies can’t be ignored because the scientific and biomedical communities proceed to innovate and develop new medicines and instruments to enhance well being.” It supplies a generic “street map for the ethically accountable, socially simply and respectful inclusion of the pursuits of pregnant ladies within the growth and deployment of vaccines in opposition to rising pathogens.”

COVID-19 vaccine trials

Forty-four candidate vaccines for COVID-19 are presently in human scientific trials: 29 in Part 1, 14 in Part 2 and 11 in Part three trials. Part 1 trials concentrate on security and dosage and usually recruit a small variety of analysis contributors. Part 2 trials proceed to assemble details about adversarial occasions and immune response and often contain a whole bunch of individuals.

Part three randomized managed trials contain tens of hundreds of wholesome volunteers the place some are immunized with the candidate vaccine and others obtain a placebo. The aim is to find out if individuals who’re vaccinated are shielded from an infection. If the candidate vaccine proves secure and efficient, then it may be licensed to be used within the normal inhabitants.

Learn extra: Explainer: How scientific trials check COVID-19 vaccines

It’s reported that, so far, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna and Pfizer, all of whom have began Part three scientific trials, have indicated an curiosity in future vaccine trials involving pregnant ladies, probably in early 2021. An issue with together with pregnant ladies within the Moderna or Pfizer trials is that their vaccines use an unproven gene-based expertise.

To attenuate the danger of hurt to pregnant ladies and their offspring, the vaccines examined on this inhabitants ought to be ones that use a extra established expertise. The Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine makes use of the identical expertise as their Ebola vaccine, which has been given to pregnant ladies.

Together with pregnant ladies in trials

Shifting from the overall to the precise, there are at the least two scientifically legitimate choices for the inclusion of pregnant ladies in vaccine trials. One possibility includes standalone Part 1 trials for pregnant ladies that will be initiated following the profitable completion of Part 1 and a pair of research within the normal inhabitants and the beginning of Part three research on this inhabitants.

This method permits for higher readability in trial design and ease in security monitoring in the course of the scientific trial as a result of solely pregnant ladies are included and finish factors may be particularly outlined for pregnant ladies and their offspring. A pregnancy-specific trial may improve the probability of efficient pregnancy-related danger counselling and knowledgeable consent processes, involvement of investigators with related experience and efficient followup.

Alternatively, Part 1 vaccine trials for pregnant ladies could possibly be embedded into Part three trials within the normal inhabitants. This method entails lowered startup prices in comparison with initiating a separate trial, given the primary trial protocols, infrastructure, employees, monitoring association and regulatory approval will have already got been established.

Pregnant ladies and their offspring should not be left behind within the race to develop secure and efficient vaccines for COVID-19.

The authors don’t work for, seek the advice of, personal shares in or obtain funding from any firm or organisation that will profit from this text, and have disclosed no related affiliations past their educational appointment.

from Growth News https://growthnews.in/excluding-pregnant-women-from-covid-19-vaccine-trials-puts-their-health-at-risk/ via https://growthnews.in

#Growth News

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nothingman · 7 years ago

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(Credit: AP/John Flavell)

Even in the world of academia, a punchy headline can be everything.

As subaltern analysis heads from the margins to the center of critical discourse, the kind of post-colonialism that was previously centered on a college campus has been popularized across the left. Within a popular culture shifting to decolonization ideas, someone at the Third World Quarterly likely knew a title like “The Case for Colonialism” was going to gain some traction. The paper, penned by controversial Portland State University faculty member Bruce Gilley, argued that Western colonial expansion into the Global South, specifically Africa, was a net positive, and that the 20th century liberation struggles were a catastrophe that should be reversed. Ignoring the mountains of scholarship that outlines the brutal cruelty of colonial exploitation, slavery and genocide, Gilley has taken an avenue that is popular amongst the academic segment of the radical right: transvaluation. With a mind towards defending white settler colonialism, Gilley did not deny the tragedies, he just decided they were worth it.

While it was shocking to many that a respected Routledge-published journal like Third World Quarterly would publish something so bizarrely angled, there is a precedent for this type of academic literature. While the academy is often viewed as the vanguard of intellectual leftism (a claim that has some merit), this perception hides the fact that far-right — and often openly fascist — political actors also have found a place in the classroom.

Racial science

In the wake of World War II, and the advancements in the physical and social sciences, the idea of race as a meaningful category had not only been largely abolished, but the cruel consequences of racial pseudo-science were undeniable. This did not completely end this false scholarship, however, but it forced a certain coded language that justified racist thinking while abandoning the cultural baggage that open racialism often carries.

Started in 1937 when “racial hygiene” was still a popular concept, the Pioneer Fund was created by industrialist Wickliffe Draper to support scientific research that validated ideas on eugenics, racial segregation and immigration restriction. Their journal, the Mankind Quarterly, has been publishing this race-related research for decades now, and their grants continue to climb off their hefty endowment. In the 1960s, education psychologist Arthur Jensen made a name for himself by arguing racial differences in the capacity of young children to learn, with the term “Jensenism” being coined for his line of thinking. The Jensenist argument was that IQ was largely heritable, and that certain genes found in particular populations were correlative to higher IQs. It was exactly this “hereditarian” concept that drove Richard Herrnstein and Charles Murray’s 1994 touchstone “The Bell Curve,” which mined Pioneer Fund research to support a radically anti-egalitarian vision of human intellect and wealth acquisition.

Evolutionary psychology was plagued by figures like these for decades, constructing the notion that human beings evolved into hierarchical social divisions, and that their abilities were fixed rather than socially malleable. J. Philippe Rushton became one of the most controversial figures in his field when he openly argued for racial differences in innate IQ, using “twin studies” to try and prove that IQ was highly heritable and, therefore, if he could find Black populations with low IQs, they would likewise be deficient as a group. He went on to argue bizarre theories, like Black people have a high predilection for aggression because of their dark skin color, and that penis size is correlative to IQ. Today, scientists like Richard Lynn continue to argue strict racial hierarchies using this logic, arguing that nations have developed more or less wealthy not because of colonial expansion and access to resources, but because of brain size and natural intelligence.

The population bomb

In the same vein of coded language, “population” has been doubly loaded to try and strike at liberal sentiments about the environment for radically illiberal conclusions. The fear of population growth is stationed in modernity by environmental movements that rightly see increased industrialism, development and civilizational expansion as potential for violence on the planet. In the 1970s, we began seeing books looking at the “population bomb,” the coming expansion in world populations that would overwhelm the Earth’s carrying capacity. While this could theoretically have a neutral tone, a large portion of the authors stoking population fears set their eyes on the “Third World,” countries still in the process of development and whose cultural features were looked down on by wealthy white nations.

Many radical environmentalists from movements like Earth First! went in the direction of the population restriction, with people like Dave Foreman settling in with anti-immigrant groups like Californians for Population Stabilization. The argument first sees non-white immigration as problematic for the sustainability of environmental reserves, suggesting that non-white people are less capable of sustaining the environment and, second, blaming the conditions of many highly polluted nations on their people rather than economic conditions.

Inside of the academy, many of these ideas flourished, so much so that when white nationalists took over the journal Population and Environment, few made headlines. From 1989 to 1999, the journal was edited by Virginia Abernethy, one of the most public white separatists in the country. Abernethy focused her career as a sociologist on “population politics,” using coded language about “fertility rates” to argue for both the restriction of non-white populations and for white social control. She served on the board of the white nationalist American Freedom Party, serving as their vice-presidential candidate in the 2012 election. Her main political work seemed to be in Arizona working on the anti-immigration Proposition 200 with Protect Arizona Now.

Kevin MacDonald, who would also join the board of the American Freedom Party, took up where Abernethy left off and edited Population and Environment from 1999 to 2004. MacDonald rocked evolutionary psychology when he released a series of books arguing that Jews used a “group evolutionary strategy” to infiltrate world systems to destabilize and attack white Western civilization. He has since become a prime figure in the world of white nationalism and the “alt-right,” editing the Occidental Observer and becoming a rabid advocate of “white identity.” Today, Population and Environment seems to have been taken back from its racialist contingent and appears to have no white nationalist content.

Deus vult

The world of medieval studies has not been the ripest for controversy historically, largely because its discoveries are often arcane to the general public. The slow progression of the far-right into this world would not have seemed obvious a few years ago, as few see the connection between the “Fuhrer” principle in Eurocentric fascism and the romanticism that some have for a pre-democratic era of European history. Medieval iconography has been a part of fascist movements since interwar Europe, in which fascists try to find heroic images of warriors beset on all sides by invaders who are not like themselves. Over the past several decades, medieval studies has been a stalwart against many deconstructivist trends in academia, focusing heavily on traditional analysis that sees medieval Europe as a place of chivalry, honor and identity.

Over the past several years, as the “alt-right” and “identitarian” strains of white nationalism developed, an obsession with medievalist scholarship abounded. In the circles that celebrated pre-Christian European paganism as a way of essentializing spirituality into race, there was a heavy focus on the social and religious structures that made up Europe. As “traditionalist” forms of Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity gained some traction, veneration of medieval Christian institutions, long thought to be an ugly history laced with repression and witch burnings, found an appeal. Some medieval studies professors were even making their way into open romantic nationalism, with white nationalist cultural journals like Mjolnir appearing under the pseudo-anonymous tutelage of a medieval history academic.

These issues came to a head when the 2017 International Medieval Congress took place and a discussion on “otherness” in the Middle Ages was run by a panel of all white men. After a joke about its monoracial nature, the discussion about the lack of diversity in the discipline and its Eurocentric focus began. The singular lens of the Middle Ages that sees the era as exclusively white and Christian has attracted some from the far right to these departments, which further influences the direction of the scholarship. The presentation of the Middle Ages as a monoracial set of glorious empires is ahistorical: It erases both the horrors of the dominant powers and the actual multicultural diversity that was explicit even in those periods. This is especially true given the late development of race as an essential concept, birthing out of “pre-Adamic” theories about non-white people that did not dominate until after the feudal periods were largely over.

Meta-academics

The primary arguments that are made from far-right scholars honing in on particular disciplines is that their work is intellectual and for inquiry, not politics. This is essentially the “apolitical” argument that fascist cultural figures have made since the Second World War, where the traditional model of fascist party violence was proven a losing formula. Instead, many fascist ideologues abandoned orthodox fascist organizing in favor of cultural struggle as a necessary precondition for politics. This model was coined by French fascist academic Alain de Benoist, who labeled them “Gramscians of the right” after the imprisoned Marxist Antonio Gramsci, who theorized a cultural revolution on the left. De Benoist and his Nouvelle Droite movement looked at reshaping cultural attitudes to make their ethnic politics possible in the future, forcing the white public to see themselves and their society differently so they would be able to shift the Overton Window. For many artists and musicians on the right, this meant developing genres like neofolk as a vessel for romantic nationalism and the veneration of a mythological European past — one that could fill them with the motivating emotions that drive separatist political movements.

This shift was a focus on “metapolitics,” the cultural modalities that are pre-political in orientation, and the academy is a perfect fit for this strategy of influence. Inside the hard sciences, focusing on items like IQ difference can reframe cultural and economic explanations for IQ scores to ones of fixed essential categories, re-establishing the idea that humans are unequal and that races are biologically defined and profoundly different. In the population restrictionist sector, this has been to reframe legitimate fears about climate change and ecological catastrophe to cast blame on poor communities of color, shifting views of “universal human rights” to instead seeing people as suspect and expendable. Medievalism also presents its own pathway to fascist metapolitics, using a mythological reading of Europe’s past as a model for a racialized authoritarian dystopia that creates strictly regulated vertical caste systems. While each of these disciplines is radically different, the motivation that pushed certain far-right people into the classroom was that they found some tract in the study that validated their baser instincts, whether it meant blaming people of color or resurrecting a warrior past that never truly was.

The fascist creep into academia is not a recent development, especially for Europeans, but without a conscious response it will only metastasize unchallenged. The strain of thinking that goes along with these far-right interpretations is fundamentally pseudo-intellectualism: They make spurious claims without meeting the burden of proof, choosing ideology over evidence. The counter to this is, in part, to reinforce the factual consensus while also undoing their argumentation by taking those disciplines further into critical analysis. The European Middle Ages was hardly a bastion of “Ethnostates,” and was instead much more multiracial than many have imagined. At the same time, the reality of those monarchies was brutal feudal enslavement, a fact that is erased in the reconstruction of these empires in the imaginations of white nationalists. Overpopulation may be an issue in some areas of environmental preservation, but that comes from the overproduction wrought in capitalism, not in the families surviving on few resources in the Global South. If population is a concern, then the proven solution is to increase access to education for women and marginalized members of the community, not closing the border and scapegoating the most vulnerable. The ability of fascists to reframe the academic discourse in these disciplines comes from the absence of these facts being disseminated and made useful in political and social work, the disconnect that academia often has from real world application.

The battle over ideas

The threat presented by fascist ideologues hijacking academic courses is more than just the dissolution of facts, it’s the weaponization of educational authority to push their own political vision. Fascist public speech is not just discourse, it is the use of demonstrably untrue narratives under the guise of intellectual rigor in an attempt at expanding a nationalist project. As organizations like Vanguard America, Identity Evropa and the Traditionalist Worker Party double down on campus recruitment, this only becomes more critical as academics who mobilize these distortions are opening up the space for an explosion of racialist activism.

As “The Case for Colonialism” created a public backlash, 15 members of the editorial board of the Third World Quarterly stepped down in protest of the article’s publication. Though the Editor-in-Chief Shahid Qadir insisted that the article had been through a double-blind peer-review process, it was later discovered that it had been rejected by reviewers and the board members who requested copies were not given them. Gilley officially requested to have the article withdrawn as public pressure for him to be fired mounted, though he later rescinded this request and declared that he wanted the article to remain. Gilley’s public CV was updated on September 25, well after the controversy had begun, where he placed “The Case for Colonialism” at the top of his list of peer-reviewed articles. While Gilley may leave academia for a cushy life at a conservative think tank, it will be campus anti-racist organizations that will really determine whether or not the Portland State University community will be supportive of work that voluntarily erases the genocide of colonialism in favor of a white supremacist vision of history.

via Salon: in-depth news, politics, business, technology & culture Salon

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thrivous · 5 years ago

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Reverse aging? That sounds nice! An article in Nature discusses the TRIM study, which was small but exciting. Researchers gave nine participants a combination of growth hormone, the drug Metformin, and the supplements DHEA, Vitamin D, and Zinc. The researchers measured the participants' epigenetic age both before and after one year of treatment. To their surprise, the epigenetic ages of the participants were better than before starting the treatment!

In a previous article, I explained that epigenetic age is an indicator of how well DNA is maintaining healthy body function. Over time, changes in the expression of DNA cause changes throughout the body, such as reduced immune function. This study specifically found improvements in immune function.

In another previous article, I discussed some similarities between Metformin and the supplement Berberine, and their benefits.

Finally, in other supplement science news this week, we learn more about how Omega 3 may enhance our health and contribute to better aging.

Omega 3 may enhance emotional health. Omega-3 fatty acids for a better mental state in working populations - Happy Nurse Project: A 52-week randomized controlled trial. This study looked at potential benefits of Omega 3 supplements in the workplace. Researchers asked 80 female nurses in Japan to take a placebo or an Omega 3 supplement (1200 mg/day EPA and 600 mg/day DHA) for 13 weeks. Data was collected at weeks 13, 26, and 52. Supplementation stopped at week 13. At the end of the supplementation period, participants didn’t rate their job performance any different than previous to the study, but insomnia scores were better in the Omega 3 group. When extended out to 52 weeks, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) total score, anxiety score, and depression score were also improved in the Omega 3 group. Another study, a meta-analysis, showed that Omega 3 supplements needed to be over 2000 mg to affect anxiety scores. With some benefits showing at 1800 mg for 13 weeks, it would be interesting to me to see this study repeated with 2000 mg of Omega 3, supplemented each day for a longer period of time.

Different sources of Omega 3 have some similarities. [Effects of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids from different sources on glucolipid metabolism in type 2 diabetic patients with dyslipidemia]. Researchers compared Omega 3 from fish oil (DHA and EPA) to the Omega 3 from plant sources (linolenic acid). The study involved 180 subjects that received 3 g supplements of either fish oil, perilla oil (a plant source of linolenic acid), or fish oil mixed with linseed oil (a plant source of linolenic acid) for 6 months.

Fish oil resulted in a slightly greater decrease in triglyceride level and greater increase in HDL cholesterol.

Perilla oil resulted in a greater decrease in LDL cholesterol.

Fish oil mixed with linseed oil resulted in a greater decrease in free fatty acids than perilla oil.

Serum glucose, glycated hemoglobin, C peptide, insulin, and insulin resistance were not significantly different among the three groups after 6 months.

The researchers concluded that Omega 3 from both animal and plant sources is beneficial to lipid metabolism. One thing to keep in mind about linolenic acid is that most of its benefits result from conversion to EPA and DHA. And some people may carry a gene variation (FADS1) that restricts how well they can convert linolenic acid to DHA and EPA. So these people may benefit more from taking fish oil. Genetic analysis was not done in this study.

Omega 3 and Vitamin B12 may enhance attention and executive function after pregnancy. Associations of maternal nutrition during pregnancy and post-partum with maternal cognition and caregiving. This study looked at supplementation during pregnancy and cognitive enhancement for the mother. 869 women in Malawi received either (1) a control of iron/folic acid (60 mg iron and 400 mcg folic acid); (2) multiple micronutrients (20 mg iron, 400 mcg folic acid, and 16 other micronutrients including B6, B12, K, and zinc); or (3) a larger supplement stack that included the same nutrients as #2 plus 4.5 g linoleic acid (Omega 6), 0.59 g linolenic acid (Omega 3), magnesium, and other minerals. The supplements were taken from before 20 weeks of pregnancy until 6 months after the baby was born. Tests were done on the mother and her breast milk. For the women who had low hemoglobin, poor iron status, or malaria at the start of the study the larger supplement pack with linolenic acid was associated with improved verbal fluency scores. Higher breast milk DHA and Vitamin B12 concentrations were associated with better attention, verbal short‐term memory, working memory, and verbal fluency scores of the mother. The researchers concluded that "DHA and vitamin B12 status suggest that these are promising nutrients for future research to enhance attention and executive function during pregnancy and post‐partum."

Editor Note

Vitality Geroprotector combines Berberine with Milk Thistle, Blueberry Anthocyanin, and Coenzyme Q10, to enhance metabolic and cellular function. Omega Cardioprotector combines Omega 3 with Garlic and Pycnogenol, to provide complementary benefits. There are high levels of clinical evidence that Omega 3 may support healthy triglyceride levels, Garlic may support healthy cholesterol levels, and Pycnogenol may enhance blood circulation. Thrivous includes both Vitality and Omega in Geroprotector Stack.

Originally published at thrivous.com on September 07, 2019 at 03:23PM.

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littleberry · 7 years ago

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Canine Hip Displasia

The 10 most important things to know about canine hip dysplasia and your Cane Corso

Just like humans, dogs have to suffer from different musculature issues, as they grow older. I don’t know about you, but as I start to get older, I find it harder and harder to get out of bed. These bones, joints and muscles are what they used to be when I was in my 20s. One of the quickly growing disorders in dogs is hip dysplasia. It has recently become a hot topic and doctors have been working for many years to find the cause and solution to this issue that affects millions of dogs, especially mastiff breeds such as the Cane Corso.

Reputable breeders are now trying their best to reduce the production of affected puppies and educate new puppy owners on how to avoid things that can lead to hip dysplasia. Here we have 10 important things that you must know and understand about hip dysplasia issues with dogs.

1-The perfectly normal hip

In the early age, people had the miss conception that puppies were born with hip dysplasia. Scientist have found after studies and long hours of research that the hip dysplasia is not a congenital disease. None of the puppies are born with the disorder in fact of the puppy has to suffer from the disorder the degenerative changes will start after the birth takes places.

They have been able to prove in a publicized study that when a puppy is born he has perfect hips and there are no issues with the puppy. However, with the passage of time, the biochemical reactions start to take place in its body that leads to the issue of hip dysplasia. Puppy should be evaluated and tested as soon as they are born to ensure that they are healthy.

2-Gene Unknown: Hip dysplasia

Some scientists have found that the cause of hip dysplasia can be genetic. Though the gene that could potentially cause hip dysplasia has not been identified in any breed. Scientist and researchers have been trying to find this very gene for years without any success.

There are some breeds of dogs that have more chances of developing the problem as compared to others

In some studies, scientists were unable to find the target gene that was the cause of the issue

It has been noticed that without the identification of the gene the possible treatment of the disorder cannot be formulated

Some traits have been identified by the scientists and they consider them the effective cause of hip dysplasia.

Many genetic solutions are tested every year to find the cause of hip dysplasia

3-Environmental factors

Research has found that a dogs heredity is definitely not the cause of hip dysplasia. There are many breeds that are suffering from the issue due to the non-genetic causes. Studies have shown that 15 to 40% of the dogs are suffering from hip dysplasia due to the genetic causes. It means that rest of the population is suffering due to the non-genetic causes. So, it would not be wrong to say that environmental factors also play an important role in the occurrence of the problem.

If we can understand that environmental factors that are the cause of the issue then the production of hip dysplasia in dogs can be reduced effectively. It will help us to prevent the puppies from all such factors that might lead towards the issues and so their pain and suffering can be reduced. If the environmental factors are controlled then the chances of puppies suffering from hip dysplasia can be reduced. The weight, movement of joints and exercise plan of the dog are the major environmental factors that might lead to hip dysplasia.

4-Joint Laxity

All the puppies are born with the perfect bones and hips. It is important to protect the puppy’s joints from developing laxity if you do not want him to develop hip dysplasia. The major cause of the joint laxity is when the head of the femur is unable to fit into the ball of the acetabulum. The causes of joint laxity are:

Over feeding

Traumatic injury

Lack of muscular strength

Extra force in the adductors

It is the primary factors that cause the issue of hip dysplasia in the dogs. It is important that you take extra care of your dog so that he will not develop joint laxity. Prevent your puppy from all such kind of activities that will reduce the power of his muscles.

5-Control joint stability

The strength of the teres ligament in the puppy is very important. You have to ensure that your puppy does the kinds of activities that will help him to keep the proper balance on his legs so that their stability will improve.

When the dogs cannot stabilize their legs properly, it causes many issues. The head of the femur is easily displaced from the acetabulum that leads to hip dysplasia. When your puppy is learning to walk it is important that you pay special attention towards its step. You should provide it with the required support so that it does not fall while learning to walk. Falling on uneven places might lead to a muscle tear and that would be the primary cause of hip dysplasia. If you are noticing any signs it is important that you take extra care and see a vet.

6-Pay attention towards the body weight

One of the major factors that lead to hip dysplasia is the weight of the dog. The puppies that are overweight will develop the condition at an early stage as compared to those that are normal weight. When the displacement of the femur begins the weight of your dog will affect the joints.

If he is overweight, the bone will not be able to take its place back because of the increasing force and so the dog would have to suffer from more pain. It is important that you control the weight of your cane corso dog. As soon as you notice the signs of hip dysplasia make sure that your dog loses the excessive weight. Keep it on a restricted diet so that he will not consume any fattening substances that might cause issues in the future.

7-Effects of exercise

Most of the people think that exercise is healthy for the dogs and it helps them to develop. However, in some cases, it can be dangerous especially when your dog is at the early stages of hip dysplasia. It is important that you expose your dog to the exercises that are healthy to the legs and the hip joint.

The age from birth to 87 months is very critical for the growth and development of the puppy. Ensure that your puppy is not engaged in such types of exercises that put strain on their joints, such as weight pulling, running for long distance, jumping in and out of cars, specifically SUVs. As the puppy matures their muscles will get stronger and bones will grow properly, the chances of development of hip dysplasia will be reduced.

8-Balanced nutrition

You have to pay attention towards the nutrients that you are feeding your puppy. Ensure that your puppy gets an a great diet at an early age. You have to take care that you do not feed your dog with the unhealthy and fatty products because it would increase their weight. Currently all my Cane Corso dogs are on a natural raw diet. We start our puppies on raw food at 6 weeks old.

You must know the required amount of nutrients to serve according to the age and health of your puppy. Over feeding would lead to digestive issues that will make the bones of your puppy weak. There are also some nutrients that your puppy cannot digest in excessive quantity. So the best solution to this issue is that you get the dietary supplements that are healthy for the dog.

9-Importance of early intervention

Even if you have taken proper care, a single mistake could lead to hip dysplasia. So, it is important that you are aware of all the signs and symptoms of the problems. If you notice any early signs of the issues the best approach would be to take your dog to the vet. If the dog is diagnosed with hip dysplasia, they will start the early treatment.

If your puppy will get the early treatment before the condition can get worse, the chances of recovery are high. Avoiding the issue and not taking your dog to the vet will increase the chances of developing hip dysplasia. Early diagnosis is very important.

10-Reduce hip dysplasia

In order to reduce the hip dysplasia in cane corso puppies, the breeders are working with the scientists. They have developed special meal and exercise plans to ensure that the puppy will have a healthy lifestyle. Starting early the chances of occurrence of hip dysplasia will be reduced. They are increasing the awareness in the breeders to ensure that pets will get the healthy lifestyle that they deserve. It is important that you pay attention and follow the guideline so that your Cane Corso has a healthy life.

A healthy Cane Corso dog

With proper care and attention, we can reduce the ratio of hip dysplasia in any dog, including mastiff cane corso. It is important that you take proper care of your cane corso puppy and avoid all such exercises and factors that might lead to hip dysplasia in the future. As an owner of the dog, it is your responsibility to participate in all the healthy activities that will help to reduce hip dysplasia in dogs.

Resources: AKC: http://www.akc.org/content/health/articles/hip-dysplasia-in-dogs/ PETMD: http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/musculoskeletal/c_dg_hip_dysplasia

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The post Canine Hip Displasia appeared first on Cane Corso Mastiff Dog Breed.

Source: http://italysbeast.com/canine-hip-displasia/

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fredmotorco · 7 years ago

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Canine Hip Displasia

The 10 most important things to know about canine hip dysplasia and your Cane Corso

1-The perfectly normal hip

2-Gene Unknown: Hip dysplasia

There are some breeds of dogs that have more chances of developing the problem as compared to others

In some studies, scientists were unable to find the target gene that was the cause of the issue

It has been noticed that without the identification of the gene the possible treatment of the disorder cannot be formulated

Some traits have been identified by the scientists and they consider them the effective cause of hip dysplasia.

Many genetic solutions are tested every year to find the cause of hip dysplasia

3-Environmental factors

4-Joint Laxity

Over feeding

Traumatic injury

Lack of muscular strength

Extra force in the adductors

5-Control joint stability

6-Pay attention towards the body weight

7-Effects of exercise

8-Balanced nutrition

9-Importance of early intervention

10-Reduce hip dysplasia

A healthy Cane Corso dog

Resources: AKC: http://www.akc.org/content/health/articles/hip-dysplasia-in-dogs/ PETMD: http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/musculoskeletal/c_dg_hip_dysplasia

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The post Canine Hip Displasia appeared first on Cane Corso Mastiff Dog Breed.

Source: http://italysbeast.com/canine-hip-displasia/

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crocutalupus · 8 years ago

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Battling to save the Ethiopian wolf, Africa's rarest carnivore

Claudio Sillero, University of Oxford

Most members of the Canidae family, such as wolves, dogs and foxes, are versatile and opportunistic animals, thriving in many habitats and some even living in urban and suburban settings. In contrast, Ethiopian wolves are highly specialised to life in the Ethiopian highlands. Also called the "Roof of Africa", it encompasses 80% of Africa’s land above 3,000 metres.

The wolves are remarkable rodent hunters, with long muzzles and slender legs. Their tight social bonds help them protect their precious family territories from competitors. For a canid of their size (about 14-20kg – the weight of a medium-sized dog), Ethiopian wolves are unique at surviving on small prey (most highland rodent species weigh less than 100g) and are solitary foragers. With their striking red coats and black-and-white markings, they appear physically distant from their closest relative, the grey wolf.

These qualities made the wolves successful colonisers of an expanding ecosystem as the African glaciers retreated during the end of the last Ice Age, but paradoxically, they have also contributed to their demise.

Due to a warming continent, the tree line has gone up by 1,000 metres in the last 100,000 years, encroaching on open Afroalpine grasslands and meadows. Due to the pressure of humans, livestock and domestic dogs, the wolves are now restricted to tiny mountain pockets on either side of the Great Rift Valley, and are constantly being pushed up the slopes.

Although they were never particularly common, today there are fewer than 500 adult wolves in the mountains of Bale, Arsi, Simien and Wollo, over half of whom are harboured within the Bale Mountains National Park. This makes them Africa's rarest, and most threatened, carnivore species. As an indication, this is ten times fewer than African wild dogs and fifty times rarer than lions.

But there is hope. The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme and its Ethiopian partners continue to put all their strength into fighting the wolves' various challenges through awareness, education and science-led approaches to disease and population management.

The challenges

The challenges they face are diverse.

It's not for lack of food that wolf numbers are small. Their environments harbour a particularly high rodent biomass, up to 3,000kg of rats per km2 in some meadows. The wolves live in large family packs, where all members patrol and scent-mark the boundaries of small communal territories. This protects their rich food patches from neighbouring wolves, and other carnivores such as spotted hyenas and jackals.

The most immediate and real threat to wolves is in fact domestic animals. While many highland wildlife species have been able to coexist with highland shepherds and their livestock, domestic dogs bring an additional challenge.

The dogs not only compete for food but, as dogs and wolves are inexorably drawn to each other and interact, dogs transmit rabies and canine distemper virus to their wild cousins. This has the potential to decimate wolf populations in a short period of time. In extreme cases, dogs may even mate and hybridise with the wolves, threatening the genetic integrity of this rare and endemic canid.

Disease ultimately determines the dynamics of the last remaining wolf havens. Three out of four wolves typically die in populations hit by outbreaks, and may result in local extinctions.

In the last three years, populations in the Bale Mountains have endured back-to-back rabies and distemper outbreaks. Smaller populations are at even greater risk. At the end of last year, disease decimated the smallest wolf population in Wollo, now feared on the brink of extinction.

The other great threat to the wolves is Ethiopia's changing landscape due to farming. Expanding populations and the need for arable land bring about an incessant pressure on natural habitats.

By and large the people that live in the Ethiopian highlands are relatively tolerant of wildlife, but their priority is survival. Unless their livelihoods can be brought into line with sustainable practices, the meadows and moors they need for grazing, to gather firewood and tend their crops will soon be degraded to bare rock.

Bouncing back

Nevertheless, there are reasons to be optimistic about the future of the Ethiopian wolf. In the Bale Mountains, the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme has vaccinated over 80,000 dogs to prevent rabies getting across to wolves. And when the deadly virus strikes, swift interventions to vaccinate the wolves have taken place.

There are early signs that the wolves in Bale are bouncing back. By the end of January, nearly all of 18 local packs monitored – and most recently vaccinated – had bred successfully. As many as seven pups were born to a dominant female and there were over 80 healthy pups located in the Bale Mountains alone. It was also encouraging to see some of the larger packs split, increasing the number of breeding families.

In a shift from reactive vaccination of Ethiopian wolves following outbreaks to a preventive approach, an oral vaccine has been trialled. This will offer protection from future rabies outbreaks.

More to be done

Rare, ecological specialists such as these wolves will continue to be threatened as environments change and human populations grow. That means heavy intervention is needed to secure their survival.

A critical factor in their preservation is the commitment and dedication to finding common ground between the needs of people and wildlife. For example, Ethiopia's long-term conservation view is that there should be no domestic dogs within protected areas. More can be done to facilitate this, such as improved night protection for people's livestock with predator-proof enclosures. This would reduce their dependence on guard dogs and, in time, reduce the negative impact of dogs on wild carnivores.

Another key intervention would be to implement a metapopulation management paradigm under which isolated populations are treated as part of a single (or meta) population, and animals are trans-located between them. This enables recovery and a healthy flow of genes.

In the meantime, our vaccination work brings us closer to the local communities and provides a channel of communication to transmit our environmental education message.

#wolf #wolves #ethiopian wolf #news #article #wildlife #conservation #nature #endangered species #gif

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atrahasis · 8 years ago

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This is Me Rambling about Meta-ethics and Stuff

I'm going to regret this post.

I'm not good with this "effortpost" thing, so i’m going to ramble about this topic, stream-of-consciousness style. I promise confusion.

Disclaimer: I have no formal training in philosophy and did not read much on related subjects prior to writing this. Others have definitely done these subjects more justice.

Content warning: This post may or may not contain bullet biting or uncomfortable ideas. Also, this is a terrible post.

So one of the central questions in meta-ethics is the metaphysics of morality, right? To me, the metaphysics of morality has never seemed to be a difficult problem. That which I call ‘morality’ appears to just consist of individual’s moral preferences. Moral rightness in this sense then refers to either what one intrinsically morally prefers or to conclusions following from said preferences.

Basically, I don’t know what this moral realism thing is about. Like, it appears when normal folk talk about moral rightness/truth, they seem to be talking about a sort of truth akin to empirical truth or mathematical truth. But ‘moral truth’ doesn’t appear to have the same characteristics as these other truths that would make moral truth like these other truths.

You can go ahead and declare moral truth to be all about maximising the number of positive sum interactions or about maximising the timespan of human existence or about minimising neurally-measured pain. But saying moral truth is about X still lacks that truth-aptness of empirical and mathematical truth. How does one even go about proving this truth.

Basically, i’m not even sure what moral realists are trying to convince me of.

I should not be mistaken as saying that morals do not affect outcomes. Different moral preferences may lead to different actions/policies, and different policies would lead to different outcomes.

Don’t know why I felt the need to say this but I did.

So if I were to label my meta-ethics, i’m probably a non-cognitivist.

I’ll anticipate a number of questions/concerns for the non-cognitivist here.

The first is on how intrinsic these moral sentiments are to the individual, which would in turn affect which moral statements the individual accepts as true. Or, how much can one person’s moral makeup differ in said person given different contexts. On this I am agnostic.

The second is about how much should we expect for humanity’s moral preferences to vary, from person-to-person Some have warned against overestimating human moral variance but I don’t know. I think as long as we’re philosophizing here, we may as well consider the most extreme hypotheticals.

The third is the concern that the rejection of ‘moral rightness’ will lead to some sort of moral relativism, an acceptance of all moral stances since their based on these intrinsic preferences anyway. Well i’m not a moral relativist, since I can’t be made to prefer just any moral stance. To be fair, believing in moral non-cognitivism probably has nudged the moral stances of some individuals. That Jonathan Haidt fellow claims to have moved towards the center as a result of his moral psychology studies. Although an alternate response would be to view those morally far from you to be irredeemably evil.

Which brings us to this concern: Wouldn’t this just mean that morality, moral arguments, disagreements, these morality wars, may as well be a zero-sum free-for-all? Hmmmmm. More on this later perhaps?

Moral realism seems popular though. I suspect this is due to folks feeling that moral truth has this sort of nature to it that makes it similar to empirical/mathematical truth.

If I may be allowed to be accusatory: I suspect that a number, perhaps a lot, of moral realists oppose non-cognitivism because they fear of the consequences of such a belief. They fear a slide into moral relativism.

I shouldn’t be the one to point this out but, believing that belief X is wrong because of the psychological consequences of having said belief, is bad justification for X being wrong. That’s belief in belief.

Is this were the case, than i’d just put ‘moral non-cognitivism’ into the same category as ‘atheism’, ‘arguments against free will’, ‘arguments against Dweckian growth mindset’, ‘Darwininan natural selection’ and ‘Charles Murray-ism’ as positions prone to opposition from believers-in-belief.

The thing is, moral conversion is definitely a thing. I’m not sure as to the underlying mechanism for moral conversion. Perhaps it’s a terminal/instrumental values kind of thing, whereby only individuals’ instrumental values change. Or perhaps humans’ terminal values are somewhat malleable.

Perhaps my largest moral conversion was during my religious apostasy. I’m not sure what gives Divine Command Theory this particular power that it has. I do however remember not being comfortable with some of God’s commands so perhaps i’m overestimating this power of DCT.

Regardless, those interested in converting others to their moral side might want to look into the underlying processes of moral conversion.

So, are the moral wars zero-sum. Not necessarily. It’s conceivable that two individuals may come to support the same policies using different moral justifications.

Also, perhaps a collection of individuals with different moral preferences may be able to live somewhat harmoniously. Here’s an analogy: Praying mantis’ (the insect) values differ greatly from my own. However, their existence does not endanger things that I do value and thus, I leave them alone. Should the same praying mantises be human-sized human-eaters, then would I have a problem with their ‘values’. Similarly, other humans with values different from my own, i am okay with, as long they do not threaten things that I do value. It’s when they do threaten things I value, do we have a problem here.

Suppose if a Hitler clone gets his hands on reproductive cloning technology. He then seeks to outnumber other humans by flooding the Earth with Hitler clones. The Hitler population may endanger the population of other humans. From my point-of-view, extinction of non-Hitler humans by way of Hitler-clones is morally equivalent to human extinction by other means. There’s no reason for me to prefer Hitler clones over the grey goo.

All said, the zero-sum idea does somewhat color my view.

I am however somewhat optimistic that my values will live on in future humans, that future humans would not have values wildly differing from my own. I’m not sure what informs this optimism.

It’s entirely possible that some moral modes were more suited to past environments, from an evo-psych point-of-view. I suspect this is the case with conservative values, specifically in-group preference, out-group suspicion. Perhaps conservative values were better suited to the hunter-gatherer era when prisoner’s dilemma scenarios were low in iteration count, perhaps often being one-off. I just don’t see these values being well-suited to societies with more complex organisation.

Perhaps you may think that punishing moral deviants, such as psychopaths, to be tyranny of the majority. I’m not sure I care to be honest.

So far i’ve been suggesting that individuals may differ in their moral makeup.

This is not to say that I believe that an individual’s moral makeup is comprised of a coherent set of moral sentiments. I believe the opposite is true. This fact is implied when people talk about moral dilemmas.

So, an individual’s quest to find out the ‘correct’ moral position in a moral dilemma, is perhaps just the individual trying to find a position that causes the least ‘internal dissonance’, so to speak.

But atrahasis, couldn’t your positions here be used to justify social darwinistic policies of some sort?

Well, i’m against restricting others’ reproductive rights, and against killing others for fear of them breeding, as matters of principle.

We shouldn’t however avoid difficult bio-ethical questions adjacent to these topics though. We’re going to have to answer questions like whether it’s okay to delete psychopathy-linked genes in designer babies, or is reproductive human cloning in pursuit of proliferating one’s values okay?

#meta-ethics

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jesseneufeld · 4 years ago

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The Definitive Guide to Protein

Protein is an incredible essential macronutrient. Fat is plentiful, even when you’re lean, and there are only two absolutely essential fatty acids; the rest we can manufacture from other precursors if required. Carbs we can produce from protein, if we really must, or we can just switch over to ketones and fats for the bulk of the energy that would otherwise come from carbs. Protein cannot be made with the raw material available in our bodies. We have to eat foods containing the range of amino acids that we need.

In other words, protein is incredibly important—which is why today I’m writing a definitive guide on the subject. After today’s post, you’ll have a good handle on the role protein plays in the body, how much protein you need to be eating, which foods are highest in protein, and much more.

First, what roles does protein play in our bodies?

It helps us build muscle.

We use it to construct new cells, muscles, organs, and other tissues.

It’s a chemical messenger, allowing us to turn on and turn off genes.

It forms the fundamental substrates used to manufacture enzymes, DNA, and hormones.

It can even be a fuel source, either directly or through conversion into glucose.

Now, am I saying that the steak you eat directly becomes a thyroid hormone? Does chicken breast turn into DNA?

No. But the strings of amino acids and peptides that make up proteins are eventually broken down and cobbled back together to fulfill all the roles I describe. Every bite of protein you consume contributes toward maintenance of your physiology. And we can’t make new protein. We have to eat it.

What’s the Recommended Daily Protein Intake?

If you go by the official numbers, the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDI) for protein is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight, or 0.36 g protein/lb. That’s what the “experts” say to eat. That’s all you “need.” I disagree, and I’ll tell you why down below, but there’s the official answer.

Sufficient is one thing. Optimal is another. In reality, the amount of protein required for optimal health and performance is different for every population.

Protein Intake for Athletes and Exercisers

Athletes need more protein than the average person, but perhaps not as much as most fitness enthusiasts think (or consume). A 2011 paper on optimal protein intakes for athletes concluded that 1.8 g protein/kg bodyweight (or 0.8 g protein/lb bodyweight) maximizes muscle protein synthesis (while higher amounts are good for dieting athletes interested in preserving lean mass), whereas another settled on “a diet with 12-15% of its energy as protein,” assuming “total energy intake is sufficient to cover the high expenditures caused by daily training” (which could be quite high).1 2 One study even found benefit in 2-3 g protein/kg bodyweight (0.9-1.4 g protein/lb bodyweight) for athletes, a significant increase over standard recommendations.3 That said, I wouldn’t be too quick to discount anecdotal evidence or “iron lore.” A significant-enough portion of the strength training community swears by 1-2 g protein/lb bodyweight that it couldn’t hurt to try if lower amounts aren’t working for you.

Protein Intake During Weight Loss

Weight loss involves a caloric deficit (whether arrived at spontaneously or consciously). Unfortunately, caloric deficits rarely discriminate between lean mass and body fat, while most people are interested in losing fat, not muscle/bone/tendon/sinew/organ. Numerous studies show that increasing your protein intake during weight loss will partially offset the lean mass loss that tends to occur. In obese and pre-obese women, a 750 calorie diet with 30% of calories from protein (about 56 grams) preserved more lean mass during weight loss than an 18% protein diet.4 Another study in women showed that a 1.6 g protein/kg bodyweight (or 0.7 g protein/lb bodyweight) diet led to more weight loss, more fat loss, and less lean mass loss than a 0.8 g protein/kg bodyweight diet.5 Among dieting athletes, 2.3 g protein/kg bodyweight (or a little over 1 g protein/lb bodyweight) was far superior to 1.0 g protein/kg bodyweight in preserving lean mass. And, although specific protein intake recommendations were not stated, a recent meta-analysis concluded that high-protein weight loss diets help preserve lean mass.6

Protein Intake When Injured

Healing wounds increases protein requirements. After all, you’re literally rebuilding lost or damaged tissue, the very definition of an anabolic state, and you need protein to build new tissue. One review recommends around 1.5 g protein/kg bodyweight or close to 0.7 g protein/lb bodyweight for injured patients.7 Children recovering from illness or injury may need up to 2.5 g protein/kg. If you mess this up and undershoot your protein intake during recovery, you will compromise your healing.

Protein Intake for Seniors

The protein metabolism of the average senior citizen is compromised. They need more protein to do the same amount of “work.” The protein RDA is simply not enough for seniors, who lose thigh muscle mass and exhibit lower urinary nitrogen excretion when given the standard 0.8 g protein/kg bodyweight.ref]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11382798[/ref] What’s good for the goose may not be good for the elderly, frail gander. More recent studies indicate that a baseline intake of 1.0-1.3 g protein/kg bodyweight or 0.5-0.6 g protein/lb bodyweight is more suitable for the healthy and frail elderly to ensure nitrogen balance.8 That said, active seniors will do better with even more and evidence suggests that increasing protein can both improve physical performance without necessarily increasing muscle mass and increase muscle mass when paired with extended resistance training in the elderly.91011

How Much Protein on Keto?

What about another population entirely: ketogenic dieters. We’ve got a lot of those around here, so this is important. If you’re on a keto diet, should you restrict protein? I mean, doesn’t extra protein just convert directly into glucose?

Our livers only convert protein into glucose when we—for whatever reason—need more glucose. It’s demand, not the supply. And since keto-adapted people are running mostly on fat and ketones, they have a lower requirement for glucose and are much less likely to trigger the kind of perceived glucose deficiency that necessitates gluconeogenesis.

Extra protein can however impair ketogenesis by contributing oxaloacetate donors to the Krebs cycle. With oxaloacetate, fatty acids enter the Krebs cycle and are fully oxidized and turned into ATP, the body’s energy currency. Without oxaloacetate, fatty acids can’t enter the Krebs cycle and are instead converted into ketones to generate energy.

If you’re dealing with cognitive decline, elevated inflammation, or any other condition that requires or may improve with deep ketosis, aim for a lower protein content (10-15% of calories). Get those high ketone levels, see how it feels, and see if that’s the protein intake for you. Start low, really revel in those high ketone readings, and stick with them if you’re improving.

If you’re losing weight (or trying to), eat closer to 15-30%. For you, the ketone readings aren’t the biggest focus. How you look, feel, and perform are your main concern. Eating slightly more protein will increase satiety, making “eating less” a spontaneous, inadvertent thing that just happens. It will also stave off at least some portion of the lean mass accretion that occurs during weight loss; you want to lose body fat, not muscle.

If you’re trying to gain large amounts of muscle, eat closer to 20-30%.

Understand, however, that everyone is unique. For some, protein is deeply anti-ketogenic—eating too much protein will knock you out of ketosis almost immediately. For others, protein has little to no effect. Or if it has a momentary nullifying effect, you can quickly slip back into ketosis. Unless deep ketosis is medically necessary, don’t worry about protein too much either way. There are studies of “modified ketogenic diets” where protein goes as high as 30% of calories and subjects still get the benefits.12

High Protein Benefits

Beyond supporting the basic underpinnings of human physiology, eating more protein than the RDI offers extra benefits.

Protein Satiety

As a fundamental biological motivator, hunger can’t be ignored forever. Eventually you crack, and the diet fails. Eventually, you’re going to eat. Where extra protein helps is adding satiety. Successful fat loss comes down to managing your hunger; protein helps you manage it without relying on sheer willpower.

Protein For Muscle Gain and Muscle Retention

To increase muscle protein synthesis, you need two primary inputs: resistance training and protein intake. You can lift all the weights in the world, but if you’re not eating enough protein, you won’t gain any muscle. You can’t make extra, it has to come from outside sources.

And then during active weight loss, upping your protein intake will minimize the loss of muscle that usually accompanies fat loss. In women, for example, cutting calories while keeping protein higher than normal led to better lean mass retention than cutting the same number of calories and keeping protein low.13 Simply put, more protein tends to enhance fat loss and preserve muscle.

Protein to Increase Energy Expenditure

Metabolizing protein is costlier than metabolizing fat and carbohydrates: it takes extra energy to process protein than it does to process the other macronutrients. This increases the amount of calories you expend, simply by eating more protein. Thus, higher protein diets increase energy expenditure relative to diets lower in protein.

Higher Micronutrient Intake

While we love our fat-soluble vitamins around here—your vitamin Ds, your vitamin K2s, your retinols, your vitamin Es—we musn’t forget about our B-vitamins and minerals. Those latter two groups come bound in the muscle meat. The more whole food-based protein we eat, the more micronutrients we’ll take in.

Protein Foods: Where to Get Your Protein

The best sources of protein for humans are animal foods. Meat, fish, fowl, shellfish, eggs, and dairy all contain the most bioavailable form of protein: animal protein. Makes sense when you consider that we are animals, and we use the protein we eat to build new animal tissues in our own animal bodies. Of course animal protein will be better and more efficient at doing protein-y things than plant protein.

Following resistance training, soy protein blunts testosterone production in men.14

In both the young and the elderly, whey promotes greater muscle protein synthesis than soy protein.15

Compared to milk, soy protein results in less hypertrophy following resistance training.16

Women who consume animal protein have greater muscle mass than female vegetarians.17

We can also confirm this by studying the Biological Value (BV) of a given protein source. The BV describes the proportion of protein in a food that becomes incorporated into the consuming organism’s tissues, with 100 being best.

Egg protein: 100 BV

Whey isolate: 100 BV

Milk protein: 91 BV

Beef: 80 BV

Casein: 77 BV

And then:

Soy protein: 74 BV

Wheat gluten: 64 BV

Pea protein: 65 BV

Another factor to consider is that animal protein is complete; it contains all essential amino acids—those amino acids which we cannot produce ourselves and must obtain from outside sources. Plant proteins tend to be incomplete. No individual plant protein is complete, except for perhaps potato protein (but the absolute levels of protein in a potato are too low). If you want to go all plant, you have to combine different ones to hit all the amino acids you need.

So in theory you could get your protein from an algorithmically-derived blend of gluten powder, pea protein, rice protein, and fermented free range soy. Or you could just eat 5 eggs for breakfast (30 grams), a Big Ass Salad with a can of oysters (11 grams), some cheese (8 grams), and a can of sardines (24 grams) on top for lunch, and a ribeye for dinner (40-80 grams, depending on size).

I know what I’d choose. I know what’s easier, what’s more delicious.

Collagen Protein

Collagen protein is the type of protein you get from connective tissue in meats. You can slow-cook tougher cuts of meat until they’re tender, or simmer a batch of bone broth to get your collagen.

Collagen is so important that I consider it the fourth macronutrient. It contains amino acids that aren’t as plentiful in muscle meats and other protein sources, so it helps your body complete the amino acid chains that would otherwise be limited. You get more benefit out of the other protein you eat by eating collagen-rich foods or supplementing with a hydrolyzed collagen protein supplement. You can read more about collagen here.

How about you, folks? How do you get your protein? How much do you eat per day?

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References

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22150425

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1763249

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14971434

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17299116

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16046715

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23097268

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/711879_7

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16886097

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22889730[ref][ref]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22889730

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22889730

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22770932

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18175736

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17622289

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24015701

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20368372

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17413102

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19678968

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