"Paradise State Of Mind" out now: https://fosterthepeople.lnk.to/paradisestateofmind
"Lost In Space" out now: https://fosterthepeople.lnk.to/lostinspace
Credits:
Director: Rupert Höller @ruperthoeller
Production Company: Glia Productions @glia_prod
Executive Producer: Sofie Warshafsky @sofiewar
Producer: Jami Arceo @jamiarceoo
Producer: Evan Thicke @evanthicke
Director of Photography: Jay Swuen @jayswuen
Production Designer: Cody Fusina @codyfusina
Choreographer: Teresa "Toogie" Barcelo @toogiesaurus
Video Commissioner: Trevor Joseph Newton @trevjoseph
Atlantic Video: Claudia Chiossone @claudiachiossoner
Atlantic Video: Derec Dunn @derec_dunn
Atlantic Creative Operations: Annie Moorhead @anniemoorhead
Production Coordinator (Glia): Lucy Tamarkin @lucytamarkin
1st AD: RJ Collins @rj.collins
2nd AD: Landon Watford @watfordlandon
1st AC: Ben Hernandez @ben3k1
2nd AC: Saori Kinai
Gaffer: Vatche Giragossian @giragossian.cine
Best Boy Electric: Moe Al-Kayed
SLT: Serge Svetnoy
Key Grip: Edgar Aragon @edgarwxsk
Best Boy Grip: Luis Ernesto Romero
Grip: Dennis Pires
Set Decorator: Emmett Tekstra @banchisimo
Lead: Ethan Kankula
Stylist (FTP): Illaria Urbinati @ilariaurbinati
Stylist Assistant (FTP): Kendall Spina
Stylist Assistant (FTP): Marlee Loiben
Groomer (FTP): Johnny Stuntz @ stuntzbeauty
Wardrobe Stylist: Parker Harwood @parkerharwood
HMU Combo: Julie Dinh @julieeedinhh
Dancer: Charissa Kroeger @charissakroeger
Dancer: Alyson Van @alysonvan
Dancer: Eric Schloesser @ericschlo
Dancer: Camila Arana @camilaaranaa
Dancer: Orlando Agawin @orlandonod90
Dancer: Clarys Biagi @myegotrip
Dancer: Adrian Hoffman @adrian.hoffman
Dancer: Malachi Middleton
Dancer: Courtney Darlington @courtdarlingt0n
Dancer: Owen Scarlett @owenscarlett
Dancer: Baylie Olsen @baylie_olsen
Dancer: Anna Chorneyko @annachorneyko
Medic: Paul Uhl
Production Assistant - Truck: Jahaziel Castaneda Arias
Production Assistant - Set: Isaac Friedenberg
Production Assistant - Set: Kris Wade
Editor: Rupert Höller
Colorist: Manuel Portschy @manuport
VFX: Rupert Höller, Rainer Maly
Beauty Retoucher: Luke Sargent @lukesargentdp
Director’s Agent: Jennifer Herrera / Las Bandas Be Brave @lasbandasbebrave
BTS Videographer: Joe Desantis @mrjoedesantis
BTS Photographer: Omar Gomez @omarfilmzz
Mark's Suit by Gucci
Special Thanks to Natalie Rawling, Sogol Akbary, & Sabato de Sarno at Gucci, Matt Pollack, Gary Walker, Maddie Case, Julia Galvin, Jenna Rosenberg, Mark Obriski, Rob Gold, & Wes Teshome
Lyrics:
I was a trapped inside a glass heart
Shattered by the lights that were bouncing off the walls inside
And I’ve been drifting in a daydream
Fantasies that keep me in my bed and awake at night
Floating and drifting and flying through the open sky
And I’m lost without you
I’m lost in space
Turning through the sky around a screaming ball of fire
Love when I’m with you
a warm embrace
the more we give ourselves the more we have to give away
I was a flowering young angel
hungry for the wisdom that the animals held in their hands
I let the darkness in to teach me
I learned more than I wanted when I tried I couldn’t look away
Floating and drifting and flying through the open sky
And I’m lost without you
I’m lost in space
Turning through the sky around a screaming ball of fire
Love when I’m with you
a warm embrace
the more we give ourselves the more we have to give away
just look for the signs of glowing afterlife
Cause they’re all around us
just look for signs of glowing afterlife
Cause they’re all around
I want to follow you there
you know I’ll follow you anywhere
Cause I’m lost without you
I’m lost in space
Turning through the sky just looking for a sign
Love when I’m with you
a warm embrace
the more we give ourselves the more we have to give away
Cause we are in the search for glowing afterlife
Cause we are in the search for glowing afterlife
Tuesday, March 31, 2026
Foster The People - Lost In Space [Official Video]
Going for the burn! Kate Beckinsale shows Chelsea Handler some of her sexy yoga moves in talk show skit
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| https://prettycharmhf.blogspot.com/2013/03/going-for-burn-kate-beckinsale-shows.html |
Kate Beckinsale is famous for her fabulous legs. And the star certainly didn't get that killer body by sheer magic - as she recently showed her pal Chelsea Handler. Kate, 39, made an eye-opening appearance on E!'s Chelsea Lately, where she gladly instructed the out-of-shape talk show host how to firm up those limbs.
The English actress practices yoga at least five times a week, and often with yoga expert Mandy Ingber who also works with Jennifer Aniston. So Kate definitely has a leg up on Chelsea in that department. In the hilarious skit, the pair are shown doing some lunges and stretches in what looks like Chelsea's studio office.
Kate and Chelsea are standing on their mats with feet braced four feet apart and bending from the waist down to the floor. While Kate has no trouble putting both palms on the ground, Chelsea manages to touch the polished floor with her fingertips while grimacing. Kate is wearing dark red leggings paired with two camisoles, one pink, the other brown. She easily displays a proper half moon lunge with arms stretched out.
The sweat is gathering on Kate's face but thankfully she has put her long dark hair up high in a ponytail. Chelsea, meanwhile, is seen slouching in a pink camisole and black leggings. The ladies became good friends after the Underworld star appeared on Chelsea's chat show in early 2012.
'Kate is so funny. Wickedly funny. No one even knows how funny she is,' Chelsea told Howard Stern. When she's not doing yoga, Kate sweats it out by hiking or cycling with 12-year-old daughter Lily. Kate had an eight-year relationship with Lily's father, actor Michael Sheen, but it ended in 2003. The leading lady of Total Recall has been married to director Len Wiseman for nine years and they live in Los Angeles.
Sunday, March 29, 2026
Friday, March 27, 2026
Fisetin Benefits: Dosages and How to Take It
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| https://thenutritioninsider.com/learn/fisetin-benefits/ |
Scientists have known about fisetin for almost 200 years, since it was first isolated from the Venetian sumach plant in 1833.
But fisetin didn’t come into the anti-aging and longevity scene until 2018 when it was recognized for use as a senolytic or senotherapeutic—a substance that destroys senescent cells.
As senescent cells are a leading contributor to accelerated aging and age-related disease, many researchers have entered the race to create safe yet powerful senolytics as an anti-aging tool.
In addition to its senolytic effects, fisetin’s health benefits include antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and brain-boosting action, making it a top contender in the longevity supplement space.
What is Fisetin?
Fisetin is a flavonoid—a broad category of compounds that give plants their vibrant hues and support health with potent antioxidant activity.
In this case, fisetin contributes to the yellowish tint behind several fruits and vegetables, including strawberries, onions, apples, and grapes.
Like all flavonoids, fisetin scavenges for free radicals and fights oxidative stress—the buildup of inflammatory and reactive compounds that damage cells and DNA.
What Are the Benefits of Fisetin?
Although the first published study on fisetin in 1966 boasts its antibacterial activity, the flavonoid is now most known for its contributions to fighting cellular senescence, boosting brain function, and slowing cancer cell growth.
1. Fisetin As a Senolytic
One of fisetin’s most celebrated properties is its activity as a senolytic.
Cellular senescence is a state of irreversible growth arrest—essentially, cells stop dividing and lose their function.
However, while senescent cells lose function, they don’t completely die and leave the body—they enter a zombie-like state that damages neighboring cells and tissues.
This inflammatory damage that comes with senescent cells is thought to contribute to tissue and organ dysfunction and various age-related diseases.
Therefore, researchers have started testing and implementing the use of senolytics as a way of entirely destroying and removing senescent cells from the body.
In one landmark 2018 study, researchers tested a panel of ten potential senolytics in aged mice, finding that fisetin was the most effective, clearing senescent cells and extending the lifespan of the mice by over 10%.
Fisetin even outperformed resveratrol, quercetin, and curcumin—three popular antioxidant compounds that have been used for decades.
Although the majority of studies on fisetin and senescence are done using animals or cells that were treated or cultured in the lab, clinical trials with older adults are underway to determine how the flavonoid can support healthy aging.
This is why several anti-aging supplements use fisetin in their formulations, including Qualia’s Qualia Senolytic—a twice-a-month regimen designed to clear senescent cells.
2. Fisetin Supports Cognition
Fisetin is linked to better brain function by reducing neuroinflammation, fighting oxidative stress in the brain, and clearing senescent cells.
In a study published in Molecular Neurobiology, mice with Alzheimer’s disease who received fisetin supplements had markedly improved memory, with reductions in neuroinflammation and suppressed degeneration in the hippocampus—the brain region most associated with memory and learning.
Other research has found that fisetin supports the aging brain by inducing autophagy—our body’s internal recycling program that removes old, damaged, or toxic cells and cell parts to make way for healthy ones.
Similar to fisetin’s senolytic qualities, we don’t yet have clinical research in humans backing up these brain-boosting claims—but so far, the data is promising.
3. Fisetin Has Anti-Cancer Properties
Although fisetin isn’t approved for cancer prevention or treatment, cell-based and animal studies have pointed to its potential future use in slowing growth in cancer cell lines.
Fisetin induces apoptosis—programmed cell death—in various cancer cell lines, including lung, liver cancer, prostate, and laryngeal cancers.
In a study with mice, supplemental fisetin inhibits lung tumor cell growth by 67%, which was increased to 92% when combined with a chemotherapy drug.
Other studies showed that fisetin suppressed tumor growth by 66% in mice with melanoma.
These potential anti-carcinogenic effects likely occur primarily due to fisetin’s senolytic qualities, as some senescent cells can contain cancer-promoting mutations.
Can Fisetin Reverse Aging?
With its combination of senescent cell-clearing, autophagy-boosting, and cancer-fighting abilities, fisetin is a top contender for slowing the aging process.
Experiments with smaller species clearly show that fisetin can extend lifespan—demonstrating a lifespan extension of 55% and 23% in yeast and flies, respectively.
Fisetin also lengthens healthspan—the number of years lived without developing disease—by reducing the risk of several common age-related diseases.
Fisetin’s potential anti-aging effects are exciting, but we will need to wait and see if they can be confirmed in human trials.
Frequently Asked Questions About Fisetin
Now that we know how fisetin works, let’s answer some FAQs about fisetin supplements, fisetin toxicity and adverse effects, and how to take it.
What Are the Side Effects of Fisetin?
As fisetin has not been studied for very long as a supplement, researchers aren’t entirely sure about its long-term effects.
However, animal studies have not found any evidence of fisetin toxicity—even at very high doses.
There has been one clinical trial from the Mayo Clinic looking at fisetin’s effects on humans, which found that people with colorectal cancer who took 100mg of fisetin for seven weeks had no significantly different side effects than the control group.
Due to the current lack of available safety data, pregnant women and children should avoid fisetin supplements.
Fisetin may also increase the effects of blood-thinning drugs or medications that lower blood sugar, so check with your doctor before starting fisetin.
What Is The Best Source Of Fisetin?
Fisetin is found in many fruits and vegetables, with strawberries, onions, apples, persimmons, kiwi, and grapes being the most prominent.
However, fisetin only naturally occurs in these plants in low concentrations, leading many people to take fisetin supplements instead.
The average daily intake of fisetin from food sources is estimated to be only 0.4mg, while most supplements contain much more than this.
For example, Qualia’s Qualia Senolytic contains 1400mg of fisetin in their formulation, which is designed to be taken only two days out of every month.
Fisetin Dosage: How Much Fisetin Should I Take?
Since all clinical studies with fisetin have been conducted with animals, there is no established recommended dosage.
Most fisetin supplements range from 100-500mg per day—including the clinical trial with cancer patients, which used 100mg per day.
In the ongoing clinical trial looking at the effects of fisetin in older adults, fisetin is used at a higher dose of 20mg per kg of body weight for two consecutive days.
This would be around 1,400mg per day for an average-sized person of 155 pounds—identical to the dose found in Qualia’s Qualia Senolytic.
However, taking these high doses every day is not recommended, leading us to our next question.
Can I Take Fisetin Every Day?
You could likely take fisetin daily at smaller doses of about 100-500mg.
With higher doses of 1000mg or more, fisetin is not designed to be taken daily—as with Qualia Senolytic, supplementing only for a couple of days per month is recommended.
However, we will need more clinical data in humans before the ideal doses and timing of fisetin supplements are known.
How Should I Take Fisetin?
Although you could certainly gorge on strawberries and persimmons to boost your fisetin intake, opting for fisetin supplements is an easier option.
Unfortunately, fisetin is notoriously poorly absorbed by the body.
Researchers have found that taking fisetin with fats can increase its bioavailability, leading many supplement manufacturers to add certain oils to their formulations.
If you’re unsure if your fisetin supplement contains oil, having it alongside a fat-containing meal could do the trick.
And, be sure to recognize what type of fisetin supplement you have—for example, it may be a “hit-and-run” type designed to be utilized only two days out of the month, like Qualia’s Qualia Senolytic, or it could be formulated for daily use.
Key Takeaways
- Fisetin is a plant-based flavonoid found in several fruits and vegetables, including strawberries, apples, persimmons, onions, and grapes.
- Fisetin is a senotherapeutic that may extend lifespan and healthspan; it has potent senolytic effects that destroy senescent cells that accelerate aging and disease.
- Fisetin has also been studied for its role in fighting oxidative stress and inflammation, supporting brain health, and preventing cancer cell growth.
- As it is relatively new to the supplement scene, we need more clinical data in humans to determine the proper dosage and timing of taking fisetin to safely support its anti-aging potential.
The Star Wars Trilogy Restoration-What Needs To Happen
I discuss the possibilities and what needs to happen with the seemingly in progress Original Trilogy restoration. There has been only a single official announcement which was vague. The potential leaks of in progress working elements are still being analyzed across the Internet. This is a basic discussion video highlighting the important and basic aspects that have to be a part of any OT restoration. If only to highlight the extreme importance of preserving ALL of the original audio mixes.
Star Wars Visual Comparisons: https://starwarsviscomp.wordpress.com/
00:00 Introduction and discussion
03:32 What Needs To Happen
09:18 All three theatrical mixes of each film need to be preserved
10:47 How are Garbage Mattes being handled?
12:57 Original Theatrical Release Variations
13:13 1981 ANH Crawl
14:16 1977 Star Wars print variations-Rebel takeoff and end credits
14:57 ESB variations, 70mm early version
15:58 It would be nice to involve the fan community and end the closed door policy
19:31 What I would like to see on Disc and DCP
19:51 Star Wars
21:15 Explaining 70mm Dolby six track and both 4.0 and 5.1 home forms
21:55 Dolby stereo need 4.0 and 2.0 matrix forms
22:35 The all important mono mix
23:16 Including Legacy Home Video Remixes
25:03 ESB
26:03 ROTJ
26:30 All of this should be done in a restoration project
26:49 Potential Boxset extras-all vintage and legacy extras released and unreleased
29:19 New scan of 1997 Special Edition in a boxset
30:27 Include direct print preservation scans of all formats including 70mm
31:50 Post boxset ideas discussion
32:20 How much effort are they putting in-that’s the question
33:13 Current best official releases are all on Laserdisc
35:26 Why the Original Trilogy NEEDS to be preserved like ANY film deserves
37:11 Final Summary-This needs to be the true “Definitive Collection”
Wednesday, March 25, 2026
Health Benefits of Lutein and Top Food Sources
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| https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/lutein |
Lutein is a type of carotenoid that has antioxidant properties and can provide various health benefits.
The most researched benefit of lutein is related to eye health, but it has also been linked to heart health, improved cognitive function, and reduced risk of certain types of cancer.
This article explores everything you need to know about lutein, including food sources of it, supplements, health benefits, and potential risks.
Lutein is a xanthophyll, or an oxygen-containing carotenoid. Carotenoids are responsible for the naturally occurring yellow, orange, and red pigments found in foods. They are considered an essential nutrient — since our bodies can’t make them, we must get them through food.
There are two types of carotenoids. Xanthophylls, which contain oxygen and usually contribute to yellow pigments, and carotenes, which don’t contain oxygen and tend to contribute to orange pigments.
Lutein is found in the retina of the eye, along with another xanthophyll, zeaxanthin. Because these carotenoids are found concentrated in the back of the eye, they are known as macular pigments and may be beneficial for eye health.
Lutein has antioxidant properties that may also play a role in cognitive function, heart health, and the prevention of some cancers, though more studies are needed.
The Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) is an often-cited study on lutein and eye health. Researchers looked at specific formulations of supplements and their impact on age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
A supplement containing lutein and zeaxanthin reduced the occurrence of advanced AMD by 25% over 5 years in people who already had AMD. In people without AMD, the supplement did not prevent or treat the condition.
Beta carotene, another carotenoid linked to eye health, was originally used in the supplement but was found to increase the risk of lung cancer in people who smoke.
Swapping out beta carotene for lutein and zeaxanthin was just as beneficial for eye health and did not increase lung cancer risk.
Another eye-health plus for lutein is that it’s an antioxidant. Inflammation and oxidative stress are related to eye conditions such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and macular degeneration.
Lutein has antioxidant properties, and studies have found it to be significantly effective in the prevention of these eye conditions.
Additionally, research suggests that lutein is important for babies’ eye development during pregnancy and for vision throughout their lifespan, though more research is needed to determine the optimal dose for pregnant and breastfeeding women.
Lastly, lutein may be an effective treatment for dry eyes, though more studies in this area are needed.
High dietary intakes of lutein, as well as high levels of circulating lutein, have been associated with better heart health.
One study associated lutein and zeaxanthin with improvements in clinical markers in patients with heart disease. Researchers believe the anti-inflammatory properties were beneficial and suggest continued research in this area.
Another study found that daily supplementation of 20 mg of lutein for 3 months was associated with a decrease in cholesterol and triglyceride levels, both of which are known risk factors for heart disease.
However, research on lutein and heart health is mixed overall, and some studies have found no correlation at all. More research, specifically in humans, is needed to determine lutein’s role in heart health.
Lutein, along with other carotenoids, may improve cancer prognosis.
One study found that a high intake of lutein, along with other nutrients found in fruits and vegetables, was associated with a decreased risk of pancreatic cancer.
Additionally, lutein, along with other carotenoids, may be protective against breast cancer as well as head and neck cancer.
Overall, research on lutein and its benefits relating to cancer is promising but not definitive, and more human studies are needed.
Research indicates that a high dietary intake and high circulating levels of lutein are associated with both better cognitive performance and enhanced memory.
One study found that a daily supplement including 10 mg of lutein along with zeaxanthin and meso-zeaxanthin was effective in improving memory over the course of 1 year.
Carotenoids overall may play a protective role in preventing neurodegenerative diseases, too, meaning they may help promote brain health in older age, though the research is still mixed.
Lutein is generally found in dark, leafy green vegetables and yellow-pigmented foods. Because it’s a fat-soluble nutrient, you need to consume some fat to absorb the lutein you eat.
Some lutein-rich food sources are:
- egg yolks (the most readily absorbed source, as a result of their fat content)
- basil
- parsley
- dark leafy green vegetables such as spinach, kale, broccoli, and lettuce
- yellow corn
- red grapes
- durum wheat
- peas
Because lutein is fat-soluble, your body will absorb it best when you eat it with other foods, particularly foods containing fat. However, if you prefer, lutein is available in supplement form, often in conjunction with zeaxanthin or as a part of the AREDS-2 formulation for eye health.
A typical diet contains 1–3 mg of lutein per day, but most benefits have been shown at 6 mg per day, which can be achieved through consuming food sources of lutein.
Most supplements contain 20 mg or more, which is much higher than the amount needed to get the benefits of lutein. However, most studies on lutein have used doses from 10–40 mg per day and have not found any adverse effects.
Lutein is categorized as Generally Regarded as Safe (GRAS), meaning that research has not found a significant link between regular lutein consumption and adverse side effects.
However, high intakes of xanthophylls, in general, have been linked to an increased risk of skin and stomach cancers.
While results from these studies were not found to be significant, more research is needed to confirm safe and optimal doses of xanthophylls such as lutein.
Before adding lutein supplements to your diet, it’s a good idea to talk with your doctor.
Lutein is a type of carotenoid with strong antioxidant properties that have been shown to be beneficial for eye health, cognitive function, and heart health and may even help decrease the risk of some cancers.
However, while some of the research is promising, most if it is not definitive and more studies are needed to confirm some of these benefits.
Foods such as dark, leafy greens and egg yolks are great sources of lutein. While you can find lutein in supplement form, it is possible to consume enough lutein through diet alone.
Sunday, March 22, 2026
Saturday, March 21, 2026
Thursday, March 19, 2026
Vandread DVD Ultimate Collection - Review - Anime News Network
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| https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/vandread/dvd-ultimate-collection |
Boy raised in all-male world is captured and held by a pirate crew comprised of women from an all-female world... You can smell the geek wish-fulfillment on that premise from a mile off. It's one of the peculiar traits of anime, though, that poor premises often yield surprising results. At first glance Infinite Ryvius was a "Lord of the Flies in space" joke, and what was Evangelion but another in a long line of alien invasion stories? Given the dark wit of its opening sequence, during which an interplanetary war is couched in terms familiar to anyone who's had a spat with a spouse, Vandread would appear to be in their company (if less seriously so).
And many of its better qualities seem to bear that out. It establishes its sci-fi credentials early on, setting up social systems and reproductive strategies for the male and female regimes, touching on issues of living machines (which it explores later), and creating a believable—and horrifying—reason for the sexual divide. It doesn't forget its emotional core either, keeping its sights set firmly on the hearts and minds of its protagonists. Nor does it forget that internal strife, be it political or personal, is as dangerous as any organ-harvesting alien. It even manages to use its pulp premise to add a few refreshing twists to romantic comedy tropes. Lead premise, anime alchemy and bang! entertainment gold. Right? Half-right. It certainly pulls the right strings to keep its wish-fulfillment reigned in, but as it turns out, Vandread's premise isn't its problem. Its problem is that it just isn't that good.
The series goes nowhere that isn't fully expected (though the reasons for the sexual divide come close). It clings with dispiriting vigor to established fight structures: the hero faces enemies of escalating power, pulling from within (with the help of comrades) the gumption and pseudoscientific mumbo-jumbo necessary to beat down each successive challenger. The cast doesn't fare much better, with Hibiki (the fiery-souled, constantly shouting teen mecha pilot) leading the pack of irritating stereotypes that range from the ditz to the ice queen to the tough-talking mechanic with the swarthy complexion and penchant for chewing on a stalk of...something. They do grow as the series progresses, though whenever they do someone always has to blurt out "boy you've changed!" like some characterization-heralding foghorn.
Even the series' better qualities come with caveats. Those social systems and reproductive strategies? Give the series props for actually having them, but take them away for relying on broad and often offensive generalizations in their construction. Male society as dunderheaded military dictatorship? Given past propensities, I'll buy that. Women's as an escalating game of "One-up the Joneses"? Some effigy-burning may be called for.
Now none of that necessarily rules out a good time. And indeed the series has its moments, most of them when it is exploring the tentative and surprisingly powerful relationship between Hibiki and his uber-ditz paramour Dita. One episode even manages, by turning the crew into love-triangle addicts, to draw uncomfortable attention to the inherent voyeurism of our own enjoyment of their relationship. Usually, though, the series is at its best when darkening romantic comedy fluff with the painful fallout of the main characters' emotional incompetence (nothing screws up a relationship like being raised to think your significant other is a different species). When combined with some gorgeous mecha mayhem, the mix can be great fun.
The show, however, wants very badly to be more than that. It longs to be about something, and in striving to, fails to play to its strengths. The angst-spiced, action-leavened romantic comedy fun ends up weighted with unwieldy existential coming-of-age gunk and long stretches of dead time during which free will and other subjects are discussed in juvenile terms cribbed from thousands of other anime. Ambitions are great if you're, say Hideaki Anno or RahXephon's fleet of brainiac screenwriters. If you're Takeshi Mori, a guy best known for bishojo behinds, not so much.
Not that I'm knocking bishojo behinds. Say what you will about the digital-happy era it was animated in, they knew how to do fan service then. Sure the mecha look like plastic toys tugged through space by invisible child's hands, and some of those hairdos are now don'ts, but for curvaceous titillation the series is hard to beat. The girls are uniformly attractive, just scantily clad enough, and animated exactly right in exactly the right places. Progressive it ain't, but it's enough to resurrect the teen boy in the hoariest of men. And if the girls don't do it, the explosions of space dust and exceedingly pretty light shows that punctuate the battles will.
Yasunori Iwasaki's score, which dabbles in goof, bombast, and sonic heartbreak with equal journeyman skill, does a fine job of distracting from the duller stretches of dogmatically clichéd philosophizing, and the wonderful dance-beat openers by Aki Kudou and Salia get the mood of the series just right, even when the series itself doesn't.
Funimation's re-release retains Geneon/Pioneer's original dub, which isn't only a financially, but also an artistically sound decision. It's a fine and faithful adaptation, marked by generally intelligent casting, minimal script alterations (mostly for lip-flap), and solid acting all around. Of course a lot of the dialogue comes across as cheesy, but you can't blame the dub for the failure of the original. After all, even brilliant thespians can't make "the real enemy was within" speeches anything but painful clichés. The two "never before released" OVAs aren't dubbed, but as they are compilation films rather than original works (though they have a smattering of interesting new scenes) no one will likely be watching them anyway.
A veritable blast when running on silly romantic complications and pure fan-service, and an irritating drag when regurgitating shonen philosophies in hopes of gilding itself in substance, Vandread is the definition of a mixed bag. Luckily it's been around long enough that most of those interested will know whether the mix trends positive or negative for them. If you don't know, you may want to give Mori's superior Stratos 4 a whirl instead.
Tuesday, March 17, 2026
No, seriously...what is going on with Superman (2025)?
The new “Superman” movie is facing a steady wave of criticism from the right after the film’s director called out a political message he hopes viewers will take away from his reboot of the legendary DC Comics character. Star filmmaker James Gunn, who led the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise and is now trying to recharge the DC brand, angered some conservatives with comments made to British newspaper The Times calling Superman “an immigrant that came from other places and populated the country.”
Asked about viewers who might find a portrayal of the character Superman as an immigrant to be offensive, “Screw them,” Gunn said.
John Broadus Watson (1878-1958)
The American psychologist John Broadus Watson was born near Greenville, South Carolina, and educated at Furman University and the University of Chicago. He later became professor of psychology at Johns Hopkins University, where he developed the school of psychology known as behaviorism. This approach sought to abandon the concept of consciousness and restrict psychology to the study of behavior, with the objective of explaining, predicting, and controlling behavior. Watson made the first systematic studies of rat behavior, and had a major influence on the development of psychological research.
Due to an extramarital affair with a student, Watson was forced to leave Johns Hopkins in 1920. His subsequent career was in advertising, where he sought to apply the psychological principles he had derived. After retiring in 1945, he led a reclusive life on a small farm in Connecticut, drinking heavily. He died in 1958, at the age of 80.
According to Buckley (1989),
More than any other psychologist of his generation, he shaped the image of the profession in the public mind. Moreover, his popularized vision of a science of behavior control stirred the imagination of a new generation of psychologists. It was a young B. F. Skinner who as a student glimpsed the “possibility of technological applications” in Watson's Behaviorism ... (p. 160)
Although his ideas were often contentious (e.g., on the rearing of children and the role of women in society), many psychologists regard Watson as one of the greatest psychologists of the twentieth century. This chapter presents evidence that Watson had Asperger Syndrome.
Family and Childhood
Watson was the fourth of six children of Pickens Butler Watson and Emma Roe. His father was a drinker, brawler, and former Confederate soldier; his mother, a devout Baptist, was regarded as far below her husband on the social scale, with the result that the family was ostracized.
Watson grew up first on a small farm and then in the town of Greenville. His volatile father was absent from the family home for long periods. Watson had difficulty in adjusting to town life and showed aggressive behavior.
Social Behavior
At Furman University, Watson described himself as unsocial and made few friends. He had an aloof, almost shy disposition and in later life became a virtual recluse. One professor remembered him as “bright” but “more interested in ideas and theories than ... people” (Buckley, 1989, p. 11). According to Buckley (1989), his constant striving for achievement and approval was often sabotaged by “acts of sheer obstinacy and impulsiveness” (p. 12).
Not surprisingly, Watson wanted “a place where daily living can be taught” — daily living was clearly what he had difficulty with. After graduating from Furman, he had a brief spell as principal of Batesburg Institute, a small private academy; one of his students later recalled that Watson “kept to himself and avoided the social life of the community” (Buckley, 1989, pp. 13-14).
At the University of Chicago, where he continued his studies, Watson was “an ambitious, extremely status-conscious young man, anxious to make his mark upon the world but wholly unsettled as to his choice of profession and desperately insecure about his lack of means and social sophistication” (Buckley, 1989, p. 39). Like many psychologists even today, he longed for the prestige of an MD degree.
Watson had major interpersonal difficulties at the university. According to Buckley (1989), “When Watson submitted a request for additional laboratory equipment, some ill-considered remarks contained in the request were taken by William Rainey Harper (president of the University of Chicago) to be either an ‘indication of insanity, or intentional impertinence” (p. 51). As a psychologist in World War I, he again had major interpersonal difficulties, describing the experience as a nightmare. His racism and social insecurity were evident: “Talk of putting a Negro in uniform! It is nothing [in comparison] to making a Major or Lieutenant Colonel of most of the Rotary Club men who went in as officers in the American Army (West Point and Naval Academy men excluded)” (Buckley, 1989, p. 106). Harold Ickes, his brother-in-law, claimed that Watson was not liked or respected at the university.
“Laboratory experiments that involved human participants made Watson uncomfortable, and he always acted unnaturally under those conditions, which he described as stuffy and artificial” (Buckley, 1989, p. 40). He turned with relief to the study of animals. After his retirement, his favorite companions were the animals on his farm. It is common for persons with autism to prefer animals to people.
Notwithstanding Watson's professional concerns with order, his personal life was “tempestuous and sometimes chaotic” — he chose women who were “young, impressionable and, initially at least, awed by him,” and married one of his students, Mary Ickes, in 1904 (Buckley, 1989, p. 50). Watson was often a willing mentor to his female students, but he was extremely uncomfortable with women as professional peers. The marriage was disastrous for both parties, and ended sensationally after 16 years.
The cause of the divorce, and of Watson’s dismissal from Johns Hopkins University, was his affair with Rosalie Rayner, a graduate student who was his research assistant. According to Buckley (1989), Watson was convinced that his professional stature would render him impervious to any censure of his private life, and he completely misjudged the sensibilities of the authorities at Johns Hopkins. His chances of securing another academic position were ruined by the massive nationwide publicity that attended his divorce hearing.
Narrow Interests/Obsessiveness
Watson was a very insecure man. He worked extremely hard, very long hours, and was hugely ambitious. Buckley (1989) noted that his obsession with achievement reflected deep anxieties about failure and success, and his driving ambition precluded any compromise with competing ideas. Extreme narrowness and inability to listen to anyone else were typical of him.
Watson became convinced of the notion that a human being is simply a biological mechanism, and produced a theory of emotions whose development depended entirely on external conditioning. He viewed the self as defined by the choice of one’s career. Adolf Meyer, the great U.S. psychiatrist, made a wide-ranging attack on Watson's views and methods. He complained bitterly to Watson about the rigidity of his position: “You would like to see all the psychopathological facts treated under the paradigms of conditioned reflexes, with the elimination of all and every reference to psyche or mental, etc.” (Buckley, 1989, p. 90). Buckley goes on to state, “Meyer thought Watson’s attitude to be ‘immature’ and hopelessly narrow... [he] thought Watson’s position to be ‘psychophobic’ and suggested Watson’s rigidity implied something deeper than a disagreement on principle.” In addition, “Meyer was particularly annoyed with Watson’s use of obfuscating terminology that masked what he considered to be a crude positivism that placed severe limits on the possibility of understanding the complexities of human experience” (p. 91).
Meyer also accused Watson of shutting out everything that might confuse his outlook and thought that Watson needed “a broader human outlook and balance of judgment if he is not to be as much of a danger to the development of psychology as he is a real boon” (Buckley, 1989, p. 117). Watson was completely single-minded: There is little doubt that he was the ultimate mechanical man, who promoted a connection between the development of psychology as a science and its use as a technology. In his promotion of behaviorism he tended, like many persons with high-functioning autism, to be propagandist and evangelistic.
He read huge numbers of western novels and detective stories, just like Ludwig Wittgenstein, who is also thought to have had Asperger Syndrome (Fitzgerald, 2004).
Routines/Control
Watson saw the goal of behaviorism as the gathering of facts necessary to enable it to predict and to control human behavior. He was extraordinarily authoritarian and controlling. According to Buckley (1989), “Watson's preoccupation with the control of emotions reflected his lifelong struggle with strong feelings that constantly threatened to overturn his carefully maintained equilibrium” (p. 120), and “Since Watson claimed to have refuted the idea of the inner world of the self once and for all, behaviorism became ... an instrumental rationality for manipulating the control of emotions” (p. 121). Buckley (1989) pointed out, “William Butler Yeats was not alone among Watson’s contemporaries in seeing the world as a place where ‘things fall apart.’ As an antidote, behaviorism was unambiguous, straightforward, and seemed to offer a hope of certainty for those who so desperately sought it” (p. 123). (Yeats also had high-functioning autism [Fitzgerald, 2004].)
Some aspects of Watson's preoccupation with control can be seen as sinister: He saw behaviorism as providing the tools with which psychologists would become social engineers. Criminals and social
deviants who failed to respond to reconditioning should be “restrained always and made to earn their daily bread in vast manufacturing and agricultural institutions, escape from which is impossible” (Buckley, 1989, p. 146). How psychologists could follow such a man is hard to understand.
Watson said that the measures he envisaged implied the elimination of legal process: He looked forward to the day when “all law books are burned in some great upheaval of nature” and “all lawyers and jurists ... decide to become behaviorists” (Buckley, 1989, p. 165). At such a time, that enforcement would hardly be necessary because his utopian citizens would be conditioned from birth to function in a manner predetermined by a hierarchy of technocrats (Buckley, 1989).
Child-rearing and education were fundamental to Watson's vision: “The success or failure of such a society depended upon the absolute control of an educational process that would function, not as a means of acquiring knowledge, but as the instrument of the individual’s socialization” (Buckley, 1989, p. 166). Watson made outrageous statements about thumb sucking, warning that it bred “introversion, dependent individuals, and possibly confirmed masturbators (Buckley, 1989, p. 152). The uncontrollable child was a result of bad handling through a series of “negative conditioned reflexes.” (As well as being largely untrue, this is extremely simplistic.)
Watson conditioned a 9-month-old infant — Albert B.— to fear animals. It is interesting from the ethical point of view that he made no attempt to recondition Albert afterwards. He even suggested that children could be conditioned by means of a system of electric shocks to avoid objects that they were not allowed to touch.
Watson was uncomfortable with women as professional peers — he could relate only to younger people and was attracted to women who were sufficiently young and inexperienced to be easily controlled. In later life he was obsessed with the pursuit of women.
Not surprisingly, behaviorism had its critics. According to Buckley,
This notion of control in behaviorism disturbed Bertrand Russell. Although he supported Watson in his efforts to demystify the thinking process, Russell saw potential for abuse by a technocratic elite. Exploitation of behavioristic techniques of control, he warned, could result in a society wherein the official class of “thinkers” dominated a passive class of “feelers.” (1989, p. 119)
The psychologist Edward Bradford Titchener stated that “The practical goal of the control of behavior” gave behaviorism “the stamp of technology”: In 'Titchener’s opinion, Watson's wish “to exchange a science for a technology” was out of the question (Buckley, 1989, p. 80).
Watson defined behavior as a biological problem while ignoring consciousness, insisting that psychology was a purely objective experimental branch of natural science, with its theoretical goal being nothing less than the prediction and control of behavior. By implication, Watson was clear about what, in his opinion, psychology was not. It was not a stepchild of philosophy. Speculations about the nature of the mind that could not be tested in the laboratory had no place in an experimental branch of natural science. He wanted psychology to be independent of philosophy.
Also, according to Buckley (1989), “Watson’s preoccupation with being busy suggests something other than a search for pleasure; his constant mechanical motion more resembles a flight into the oblivion of activity” (p. 178). Buckley noted that Watson “steadfastly refused to reflect upon his own life. His scant autobiographical writings are curiously flat and omit much more than they reveal” (p. 179). (They are therefore like the writings of the philosophers A. J. Ayer and William Quine.) It was due to his high-functioning autism that he had problems with autobiography. According to Buckley (1989), he had a “rigid, one-dimensional view of life that could tolerate no ambiguity. What many took to be callousness or indifference was, in reality, an extreme sensitivity to the uncertainties of daily existence” (p. 179).
Watson’s youngest son later remarked that growing up with his father was like a business proposition. Their relationship was “devoid of emotional interchange” (Buckley, 1989, p. 180), but the children were expected to be extremely meticulous in their bodily habits and punctual at meals and at bedtime.
Language/Humor
Watson “minimized the importance of language as a factor distinguishing human beings from animals. Language, he believed, was merely a more elaborate and complex category of behavior” (Buckley, 1989, p. 54). Some of his ideas were extraordinarily similar to those of Wittgenstein.
Watson's own use of language does not appear to have been problematic. He does not seem to have shown a developed sense of humor.
Lack of Empathy
Watson felt that “the psychologist should not be unduly concerned with the individual patient’s interests when conducting experiments” (Buckley, 1989, p. 94). This appears to be an unempathetic and unethical attitude. He was also extremely unempathetic with those around him. At the University of Chicago he was notorious for his lack of tact.
Buckley (1989) noted that “Watson was not bothered ‘in the least’ by hearing his children cry ... his temperament as a father was hardly warm. His daughter recalled that the only time her father was physically affectionate towards her was when he departed for Europe during World War I — and then he merely kissed her on the forehead” (p. 55).
According to Buckley (1989), Robert M. Yerkes thought that Watson, at times, resorted to unnecessary criticism calculated to provoke antagonism. Herbert Spencer Jennings considered Watson's position to be strangely wooden and narrow.
Watson was a misogynist, who believed that a life in the business world made women unfit for marriage, and characterized women who dared to challenge the restrictions of such traditional social roles as maladjusted. His vision of behavioral training for women entailed study of the use of cosmetics, how to stay thin, how to be successful hostesses, and to put on the intellectual attainments that go into the making of a beautiful, graceful, wise woman. As Buckley (1989) pointed out, “all of the wives and mothers in Watson’s utopia were beautiful and graceful because, as he chillingly put it, ‘large women and the occasional ill-favored woman are not allowed to breed” (p. 164). Buckley observed that the function of the “biologically unfit” in Watson's world is unclear.
Watson believed that most mothers begin to destroy their children the moment they are born, and advised parents to treat their children as if they were young adults. Buckley (1989) correctly described the following advice as perhaps his most notorious: “Never hug and kiss them, never let them sit on your lap” (p. 162). This sounds like a recipe for autistic-style parenting. Watson did not believe that affection would efficiently serve societal needs, and even argued that affection could potentially subvert the social order.
Watson didn’t shirk from applying his principles to his own children. In his book Behaviorism, he described how “he subjected his eldest son, Billy (then about three years old), to an experiment to determine his instinct for jealousy by appearing to physically abuse his wife in front of the child. Terrified and confused, Billy “cried, kicked and tugged at his father’s leg and struck with his hand. Yet Watson continued the display of violence until “the youngster was genuinely disturbed and the experiment had to be discontinued” (Buckley, 1989, p. 180). Billy committed suicide in the early 1960s.
Buckley (1989) also noted that Watson had long dreamed of an “experimental ‘baby farm’ where hundreds of infants of diverse racial backgrounds would be the subjects of observation and research. In his ideal world, child rearing would be brought as much as possible under laboratory control. Mothers would not know the identity of their children. Breast feeding would be prohibited, and the children would be rotated among families at four-week intervals until the age of twenty” (p. 163). This proposal is extremely bizarre and echoes the orphanages that the Nazis set up during World War II.
In Watson’s utopia, there would be no mercy: When conditioning failed to cure what Watson termed the “hopelessly insane” or incurably diseased, the physician would not hesitate to put them to death (Buckley, 1989). This sounds much like what happened in fascist countries during World War II.
Naivety/Childishness
William I. Thomas, a friend who took in Watson after his divorce, stated that he was childish. Thomas observed that Watson's fault was that
he expects instant appreciation and help from all who are allied with him and has no consciousness at all of reciprocity. He is like a child who expects petting and indulgence, but has no return ... He thinks people have and must have a perpetual good opinion of him without regard to his behavior ... He has scales on his eyes, and becomes quickly a pest or a comedy to all men who know him intimately ... He is a good case to watch with reference to our question whether there is any age at which habits cannot be changed. (Buckley, 1989, p. 131)
Clearly, what Thomas was describing here was autistic behavior Watson didn’t understand conventional behavior, and had many immature and utopian ideas.
Motor Skills
Watson does not appear to have shown an obvious deficit in this area.
Comorbidity
Watson was a workaholic, who suffered what he called a “breakdown” early in his career: “Weeks of insomnia followed by a period of enforced rest during which he could sleep only in a well-lighted place were the manifestations of what he later described as ‘a typical angst” (Buckley, 1989, p. 44). He also showed evidence of a narcissistic pathology.
Conclusion
Like Charles Darwin, Stonewall Jackson, and Nikola Tesla, John Broadus Watson appears to have met the criteria for a diagnosis of Asperger’s disorder, which is defined more widely than Asperger Syndrome (i.e. neither abnormalities of speech and language nor motor clumsiness are necessary for Asperger’s disorder under the American Psychiatric Association [1994] classification).
- Michael Fitzgerald, Former Professor of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Saturday, March 14, 2026
Ozzy Osbourne Show And Tell
I filmed this video in the beginning of July, before Ozzy passed away. He was my all-time favorite musician, and I will miss him dearly. I hope you enjoy seeing all the great things I have collected throughout the years!
Friday, March 13, 2026
On Robson Street in Downtown Vancouver. Summer of 2016.
Robson Street is a major southeast-northwest thoroughfare in downtown and West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Its core commercial blocks from Burrard Street to Jervis were also known as Robsonstrasse. Its name honours John Robson, a major figure in British Columbia’s entry into the Canadian Confederation, and Premier of the province from 1889 to 1892. Robson Street starts at BC Place Stadium near the north shore of False Creek, then runs northwest past Vancouver Library Square, Robson Square and the Vancouver Art Gallery, coming to an end at Lost Lagoon in Stanley Park.
As of 2006, the city of Vancouver overall had the fifth most expensive retail rental rates in the world, averaging US$135 per square foot per year, citywide. Robson Street tops Vancouver with its most expensive locations renting for up to US$200 per square foot per year. In 2006, both Robson Street and the Mink Mile on Bloor Street in Toronto were the 22nd most expensive streets in the world, with rents of $208 per square feet. In 2007, the Mink Mile and Robson slipped to 25th in the world with an average of $198 per square feet. The price of each continues to grow with Vancouver being Burberry’s first Canadian location and Toronto’s Yorkville neighbourhood (which is bounded on the south side by Bloor) now commanding rents of $300 per square foot.
In 1895, train tracks were laid down the street, supporting a concentration of shops and restaurants. From the early to middle-late 20th century, and especially after significant immigration from postwar Germany, the northwest end of Robson Street was known as a centre of German culture and commerce in Vancouver, earning the nickname Robsonstrasse, even among non-Germans (this name lives on in the Robsonstrasse Hotel on the street). At one time, the city had placed streetsigns reading “Robsonstrasse” though these were placed after the German presence in the area had largely vanished.
Robson Street was featured on an old edition of the Canadian Monopoly board as one of the two most expensive properties.
