Watch Live Coverage of NASA Astronauts Return from Space Station on SpaceX Commercial Crew Test Flight – SciTechDaily

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The International Space Stations two newest crew members, NASA astronauts Bob Behnken, left, and Doug Hurley, are pictured having just entered the orbiting lab shortly after arriving aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. Credits: NASA

NASA will provide live coverage of activities leading up to, during, and following the return of the agencys SpaceX Demo-2 test flight with the agencys astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley from the International Space Station.

The duo arrived at the orbiting laboratory on May 31, following a successful launch on May 30 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NASA and SpaceX are targeting 7:34 p.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 1, for undocking of the Dragon Endeavour spacecraft from the space station and 2:42 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 2, for splashdown, which will be the first return of a commercially built and operated American spacecraft carrying astronauts from the space station.

Coverage on NASA TV and the agencys website will begin at 9:10 a.m., Aug. 1, with a short farewell ceremony on station and resume at 5:15 p.m., with departure preparations through splashdown and recovery at one of seven targeted water landing zones in the Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida.

In March 2020, at a SpaceX processing facility on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, SpaceX successfully completed a fully integrated test of critical crew flight hardware ahead of Crew Dragons second demonstration mission to the International Space Station for NASAs Commercial Crew Program; the first flight test with astronauts onboard the spacecraft. Behnken and Hurley participated in the test, which included flight suit leak checks, spacecraft sound verification, display panel and cargo bin inspections, seat hardware rotations, and more. Credit: NASA

All media participation in news conferences and interviews will be remote; no media will be accommodated at any NASA site due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. To participate in the briefings by phone or to request a remote interview with the crew members, reporters must contact the newsroom at NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston at 281-483-5111 no later than two hours prior to each event.

NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 return coverage is as follows (all times Eastern):

Wednesday, July 29

A media phone bridge will be available for this event.

Friday, July 31

A media phone bridge will be available for this event.

Saturday, Aug. 1

9:10 a.m. SpaceX Dragon Demo-2 Farewell Ceremony aboard the International Space Station (ceremony begins about 9:15 a.m.)

5:15 p.m. NASA TV undocking coverage begins for the 7:34 p.m. undocking (NASA Television will have continuous coverage from undocking to splashdown)

Sunday, Aug. 2

A media phone bridge will be available for this event.

Tuesday, Aug. 4

A media phone bridge will be available for this event.

These activities are a part of NASAs Commercial Crew Program, which has been workingwith the U.S. aerospace industry to launch astronauts on American rockets and spacecraft from American soil to the International Space Station for the first time since 2011. This is SpaceXs final test flight and is providing data on the performance of the Falcon 9 rocket, Crew Dragon spacecraft and ground systems, as well as in-orbit, docking, splashdown and recovery operations.

The test flight also is helping NASA certify SpaceXs crew transportation system for regular flights carrying astronauts to and from the space station. SpaceX is readying the hardware for the first rotational mission, which would occur following NASA certification.

The goal of NASAs Commercial Crew Program is safe, reliable and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station. This could allow for additional research time and increase the opportunity for discovery aboard humanitys testbed for exploration, including helping us prepare for human exploration of the Moon and Mars.

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Watch Live Coverage of NASA Astronauts Return from Space Station on SpaceX Commercial Crew Test Flight - SciTechDaily

NASA astronaut shares stunning photos of sunrise on the space station – The Indian Express

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By: Trends Desk | New Delhi | Published: July 28, 2020 5:52:03 pm In a series of pictures, NASA astronaut Bob Behnken captured breathtaking first moment of a sunrise as seen from space. (Twitter/ Bob Behnken)

After sharing a breathtaking video of what lightning looks like from space, NASA astronaut Bob Behnken has now shared pictures of what a sunrise looks like.

In a series of pictures, the astronaut has captured breathtaking images of what a sunrise looks like in space.

Since being shared, the post has received over 58,000 likes with more than 90,000 people reacting to it. Heres how people reacted:

The International Space Station (ISS) orbits the Earth every 90 minutes and sees 16 sunrises a day.

Behnken, along with Doug Hurley travelled to the ISS in SpaceXs first manned flight in May. They are expected to return to Earth on August 2, spending two months in space.

The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Trending News, download Indian Express App.

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How to see the International Space Station this week including the latest weather forecasts – Nottinghamshire Live

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After some remarkably bright passes across the sky so far this month, the International Space Station will once again be visible from Nottinghamshire this week.

Travelling at a speed of 17,500mph - relative to the Earth - the ISS is typically seen as a bright light passing across the blanket darkness of the night sky.

Despite lockdown easing in recent weeks, pollutant levels from vehicles and light sources remain lower than usual, providing even those with little experience a staggering view.

The lockdown period has proved a positive experience for stargazers, who have managed to capture some stunning sights - including comet Neowise and an assortment of planets and their moons.

Due to its speed, the ISS completes an orbit roughly every 90 minutes and travels through 16 sunsets and sunrises, meaning it can be seen on multiple occasions in the space of 24 hours.

These are all the times to spot the ISS next week.

Monday, July 27

9.43pm: The first sighting of the night. The ISS will appear 15 above W and vanish into 11 above ESE around six minutes later. Max height 52.

11.19pm: The second sighting of the night. It will appear 10 above W and leave 18 above SSW around three minutes later. Max height 18.

Tuesday, July 28

10.31pm: There will only be single passes later in the week. On Tuesday it will appear 11 above W before leaving at 16 above SSE. It will be visible for four minutes.

Wednesday, July 29

9.43pm: The ISS will pop up 11 above W, will be visible to the naked eye for six minutes, before vanishing 11 above SE. Max height 33.

Thursday, July 30

10.33pm: Thursday's pass will last for three minutes. It will appear 10 above WSW and disappear into 10 above S. Max height 13.

Friday, July 31

9.45pm: The last pass of the month will last five minutes. The space station will appear 10 above W and lave sight at 10 above S.

Weather forecast:

Monday will start off very wet and cloudy, the Met Office suggests, but clearer skies will return towards the end of the day when visibility becomes 'very good'.

The clouds and rain will recede at around 9pm, providing the perfect conditions to see the space station in orbit.

Tuesday will start off cloudy will sunny spells. However, towards 9pm the clouds may recede once again.

Wednesday looks to be the worst day to see the ISS make its pass, with clouds predicted throughout the entire day and into the night.

Conditions on Thursday look slightly better according to the Met Office, with sunny spells into the evening. Clouds will recede come 10pm.

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Friday may be the best day to see the space station this week, with sun predicted all day and 'very good' visibility, as well as temperatures reaching 26C.

The Met Office says: "Cloudy, with rain becoming persistent through the morning and with a strengthening breeze. Some heavy rain in places during the afternoon before mostly clearing away into the evening. Fairly cool. Maximum temperature 19 C.

"Fairly cool and breezy on Tuesday with sunny spells and showers. Windy at first on Wednesday, but dry with sunny spells. Dry with more sunshine on Thursday and feeling warmer."

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How to see the International Space Station this week including the latest weather forecasts - Nottinghamshire Live

Jordan in 2020: Protests and Pandemic – The Media Line

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Date and time: Wednesday, August 5, 2020, 10 am Eastern Daylight Time (UTC-4)

Register on Zoom here.

The start of the new decade in Jordan has been marred by unrest. In January, thousands of Jordanians took to the streets to protest both US President Donald Trumps Middle East peace plan and the gas deal signed between Israel and Jordan. This wave of dissent came on the heels of the 2019 protests against increased austerity measures, a follow up to the 2018 movement that saw the resignation of Hani Mulkis government. Though Jordan quickly adopted stringent measures to combat the virus, the economy will suffer a huge blow, exacerbating Jordans existing development challenges and popular discontent. Furthermore, the pandemic prompted troubling restrictions on freedom of speech, with an April decree stating that sharing anything that may cause panic about the pandemic is punishable with up to three years in prison.

How have protest movements in Jordan been impacted by COVID-19, and what do recent protests over honor killings and gender-based violence portend for progress in this area? How do these long-standing grievances meet the current moment of the impending Israeli annexation? What will be the long term impact of the pandemic on Jordans economy and human rights, especially for the countrys millions of refugees?

This event is part of a series on human rights in the MENA region in the face of COVID-19.

Speakers:

For more information: Programs Department, events@mei.edu, +1 202-785-1141 ext. 202.

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Jordanian police beat and arrest protesting teachers – ABC News

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July 29, 2020, 7:11 PM

2 min read

AMMAN, Jordan -- Jordanian anti-riot police clashed with protesting teachers in the capital Amman on Wednesday, with several demonstrators being beaten with clubs and arrested.

Hundreds of protesters headed toward the prime minister's office were met by hundreds of riot police who pushed the crowd back as they chanted peaceful, peaceful, and called for the prime ministers resignation.

Clad with clubs, police beat some of the protesters, several of whom fell to the ground after the clash. Dozens were arrested, according to an Associated Press video journalist at the scene.

The journalist, Omar Akour, was also beaten on the head with a club, despite telling police he was a journalist, a declaration that was ignored. Akour fell to the ground after being struck, where another policeman kicked him. Police smashed his cellphone, destroying the footage he filmed of the clashes.

Police had blocked off the area leading to the prime ministers office and authorities had warned before the protest that any gatherings of over 20 people, in violation of coronavirus restrictions, would draw a stern response.

The protesters turned out to oppose the arrest of 13 members of their syndicate. The arrests came after Ammans deputy attorney general suspended the members of the Jordan Teachers Association council from service and ordered the closure of the syndicate and its branches for two years over criminal and corruption charges.

The members were arrested after threatening to stage protests over a salary dispute.

The Jordanian government had agreed to increase teachers salaries by 50% after a month-long strike in September of last year. But after restrictions related to the coronavirus outbreak hit the economy, the government postponed the salary hikes, drawing scorn from the teachers. They accused the government of failing to honor the agreement.

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Here’s Your First Look at the Union x Air Jordan 4 Retro "Guava Ice" – HYPEBEAST

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Following the first look at the Off Noir colorway, we now get our first full look at the Union x Air Jordan 4 Retro Guava Ice.

Set to be exclusive to Union, the Guava Ice/Light Bone-Brigade Blue-Light Fusion Red looks to reverse the Blue-Light and Fusion Red colors found on the Off Noir colorway. Additionally, the shoe utilizes a brighter tone with a Light Bone nubuck base complemented by the translucent wings and off white netting. The shoe is similarly elevated by a yellowed sole unit for a bold vintage element.

While information is rather limited at the moment many are noting that it could be based on one of Tinker Hatfields original sketches. It is expected that the collaborative release will also feature a matching Union x Jordan Brand apparel collection.

Priced at $250 USD, the Union x Air Jordan 4 Retro Guava Ice is set to release August 15 exclusively at Union locations alongside the Off Noir that will see a wider release.

For more footwear news, Nike SBs Dunk Low Sashiko pays tribute to the Japanese art of decorative stitching.

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Here's Your First Look at the Union x Air Jordan 4 Retro "Guava Ice" - HYPEBEAST

You Can Now Own This Championship Champagne, Signed By Michael Jordan Following The 1991 NBA Finals – Forbes

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SALT LAKE CITY, UNITED STATES: Dennis Rodman (L) of the Chicago Bulls gets beer and champagne ... [+] poured on his head by teammate Michael Jordan (R) and others 14 June after winning game six of the NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, UT. The Bulls won the game 87-86 to take their sixth NBA Championship. AFP PHOTO/Mike NELSON (Photo credit should read MIKE NELSON/AFP via Getty Images)

The night was still young in Los Angeles on June 11th, 1991. Champagne (California sparkling wine, technically) was flowing in the visiting locker room of the Forum. The Chicago Bulls had just defeated the Lakers, 108-101 to clinch the NBA title in 5 games. Series MVP Michael Jordan was clutching the championship hardware close to his chest. It was the first of six he would collect on his way to one of the most storied careers in sports history.

But one enterprising young ball boy was unmoved by the scene. He was under the employ of the losing home-team, after all. Ignoring the history unfolding before him, he had his gaze fixed upon a few bottles of bubbly squirreled off to the side of the celebration.

After the final game of any professional sport season, the victors locker room is lined with the liquid. Typically it sprays all over everyone and everything until available supply is entirely extinguished.

And yet by the time this particular rumpus was winding down, just before midnight, a few labels of uncorked glass remained in-tact. Thats when this unnamed interloper sprung into action. Seizing a favorable set of circumstances, he grabbed one of the 750ml bottles of Domaine Chandon Brut (of indeterminate vintage), procured a felt-tip marker and mustered up the gumption to ask His Airness to sign the would-be memorabilia.

Fast-forward 29 years and that fateful keepsake is hitting the auction block, fully authenticated. The anonymous ball boy, now well into middle age, is finally ready to part ways with itfor a hefty financial return, of course. Yesterday it was listed on the website of GA Goldin Elite Auctions, with a minimum bid of $1500. It will be up for grabs until 10 p.m. EST on August 22nd. If youre looking to beat the buzzer, you can enter the game here.

Michael Jordan-signed Chandon Brut from the 1991 NBA Finals

Just how valuable is this carbonated curio? Well, it is a rather esoteric slice of sports history. But anyone that grew up enthralled by the gravity-defying antics of Air Jordan might place quite a nostalgic premium on the touchstone.

I distinctly remember when MJ won that championship; I even watched a few of those bottles being poured on his head, recalls Mike McGrath. He was just an 8-year-old Bulls fan on the night in question and is now a sports industry professional. Anything the GOAT [Greatest of All Time] signs is cool. And thats a priceless item...To the person it happened to. But Im not going to pay $1,500 for someone elses awesome memory.

Hes not alone. As of this morning the minimum bid seems overly ambitious. Shockingly theres been no action after almost a full 24 hours under the hammer. Presumably theres a few deep-pocketed Knicks fans, at least, who wouldnt mind literally placing the bottle under a blunt object.

Of course theres still plenty of time left for it to grab more headlines. Like weve seen with so many other adult beverages placed under auction lately. So perhaps this wont be the last you hear of this obscure artifact before its fully lost to the locker room of history. The auction could also benefit from a rare hour-long interview with the NBA legend set to air this Thursday. Recently resurfaced, the clip showcases a 2017 conversation between Michael Jordan and Cigar Aficionadoeditor and publisher Marvin R. Shanken. You can watch it here beginning at 7 p.m. EST on July 30th.

In the meantime, maybe the ball boyball man, more accuratelywill step up his game and sweeten the deal. Absent a vintage or even a bonafide champagne pedigree, $1500 might be something of a long shot.

Its a $50 dollar bottle of California sparkling wine so Im probably not paying $1,500, adds McGrath. Unless I got to sit down and drink it with the man himself.

He does not mean the ball boy.

SALT LAKE CITY, UNITED STATES: Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls enjoys a cigar in the locker ... [+] room 14 June after winning game six of the NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, UT. The Bulls won the game 87-86 to win their sixth NBA Championship. AFP PHOTO/MIKE NELSON (Photo credit should read MIKE NELSON/AFP via Getty Images)

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You Can Now Own This Championship Champagne, Signed By Michael Jordan Following The 1991 NBA Finals - Forbes

Jim Jordan tries and fails to get Fauci to say protesters should be arrested for gathering during pandemic – Yahoo News

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Dr. Anthony Fauci wants to make it clear he's got nothing to do with the justice system.

Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, appeared before Congress on Friday for a hearing on the federal government's coronavirus response. That's where Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who's been skeptical of restrictions meant to stem the virus' spread, tried to get Fauci to distinguish between protests against racism in the U.S. and bans on businesses reopening amid the pandemic.

Because science indicates crowds exacerbate the spread of coronavirus, Jordan asked Fauci on Friday if the government "should limit the protests." "I'm not in a position to determine what the government should do in a forceful way," Fauci responded. So Jordan kept pressing: "The government is stopping people from going to church," claiming that's something "the five liberals" on the Supreme Court had decided. But Fauci continued holding out, saying he does not "judge one crowd versus another crowd" and would not "opine on who should get arrested or not. That's not my position."

Jordan then went so far as to claim Fauci had said "protests increase the spread" of coronavirus. "I said crowds, I didn't say specifically, I didn't say protests or anything, " Fauci firmly responded. "You're putting words in my mouth," Fauci continued before saying he had no data showing the nationwide protests had spread the virus. Watch the whole exchange below.

More stories from theweek.com5 brutally funny cartoons about Bill Barrs brand of justiceThe housing crisis is hereCould America split up?

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Jim Jordan tries and fails to get Fauci to say protesters should be arrested for gathering during pandemic - Yahoo News

Gordon Monson: Mike Conley and Jordan Clarkson are integral parts to a new Jazz discovery – Salt Lake Tribune

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The NBA has returned, as have the Jazz, after 141 days away from real games, weathering through a pandemic, as well as significant calls for proper social justice across the country, basketball commencing once more with a 106-104 Utah win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday in a bubble in Florida.

Theres so much that has happened, said Quin Snyder, afterward, it felt like more than a singular game.

Whatever it was, it was far from perfect, the Jazz struggling over long stretches with iso ball, turnovers, poor shooting and loose defense. But they gathered themselves with just enough to get what they wanted victory.

Without the help of Bojan Bogdanovic, the Jazz started anew with a refreshed perspective, a view that required and will go on requiring more from everyone else. Aside from team stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, two players who made big plays down the stretch, the others upon whom a heavy portion of the Bogdanovic absence will fall are Mike Conley and Jordan Clarkson.

Not that they will play the same role as Bogdanovic, and not that the Jazz will forsake their share-the-ball methodology at the offensive end, centered on Mitchell. Rather, as was evident against New Orleans, scoring from the veteran point guard and shooting guard will be counted on to provide the production and leadership necessary for the Jazz to close within shouting distance of expectations for a season of promise that transformed into an undulating season, then into a lost season, and now into a strange one, picked up as it has been from where it skidded to a halt in March.

Mitchell and Gobert will do their things, be dominant, but theyll need help the kind Clarkson and Conley brought against the Pelicans. Clarkson got 23 points off the bench and Conley went for 20.

Rudy Gobert recently said of Conley: Hes going to be a huge part of what we do.

Said Conley: Im super clear on what I have to do.

On Thursday, the point guard directed the Jazz in the second half, finishing with the teams best plus-minus number: a positive 12.

It was much ballyhooed when Conley arrived in Utah last summer. The 12-season vet had ascended to great heights in Memphis, becoming a foundational figure for the Grizz, not just in the numbers he produced, the points he scored, the assists he collected, his strong performances in the playoffs, but also by way of his effect on an entire team. Conley earned his reputation as the best teammate in the league.

In the weeks ahead, hell have to continue rolling all his collective powers into a force for the Jazz, not just because of Bogdanovics unavailability, but on account of the fact that, without or without Bojan, the Jazz have been crying out all along for Conley to finally do what he can do.

That call has only been answered sporadically.

Some nights he sang, some nights he sagged.

At first, the excuse was that while Conley was smart and crafty and experienced, he had gotten so rutted in a specific way of playing along with Marc Gasol that the move to Snyders attack was jarring to him. He was thinking too much, and too often in an extra nanosecond, a pass, a shot, a play would break down as Conley did his deliberating. He couldnt find his place.

Next thing, he got injured, sitting out a flurry of games, then came back, then got dinged again, then came back again.

Now Conley is whole again.

A lot of things have taken time, he said. But everythings really comfortable right now.

He had his moments against New Orleans, but admitted improvement is still needed.

Hes had time to heal, to rest, to ruminate, to process the offense and the defense. Hes had time to understand and recognize where Mitchell likes to get the ball, from where Gobert is most effective, how the moving parts are supposed to flow.

Even after missing 23 games, Conley had still played in 41 now 42 enough to set and reset in his mind what the Jazz want and need, what he wants and needs to do, along with Mitchell and Gobert, to cut a star-tipped threat that should be sharp enough to carve out what the Jazz carved only erratically over the first 64 games.

Ive got to be better, he said.

As for Clarkson, the Jazz are pleased to have him, having swapped away Dante Exum in trade. He immediately boosted the bench, months ago, upon arrival, and, specifically, the Jazz badly needed his scoring in the back half of the return game.

When Jordan has space to work, hes difficult to guard, Snyder said. Thats what you saw in the second half. JC was able to create and get to the rim.

As is, Mitchell and Gobert are the names on the marquee, and Conley and Clarkson will be necessary names for the Jazz to find their best form.

Snyder said it on Thursday night: This is a team thats going to have to find itself.

C and C will be integral in the discovery.

GORDON MONSON hosts The Big Show with Jake Scott weekdays from 2-7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM The Zone.

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Gordon Monson: Mike Conley and Jordan Clarkson are integral parts to a new Jazz discovery - Salt Lake Tribune

PFF says TE Brevin Jordan still has plenty to prove in 2020 – 247Sports

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Analytics website Pro Football Focus rates Miami tight end Brevin Jordan as one of the top tight ends in the country going into the 2020 season.

But PFF still wants to see him make improvements to his game.

PFF ranks Jordan as the third best tight end in the country, amongst players that are eligible for the 2021 NFL Draft, behind Floridas Kyle Pitts and Penn States Pat Freiermuth.

Heres what PFF has to say about Jordan going into this year:

At this point in time, Jordan is more a big athlete than he is a real tight end. Listed at 6-foot-3, 235 pounds, Jordan is quite firmly an H-back body type and decidedly not an inline blocker. What he does have, though, is athleticism you cant teach.

Hes unfortunately not close to the two guys above him in the ball skills department. There are body catches all over his tape, and he caught only two of his 11 contested catch opportunities last season. That screams the type of tight end teams would use on crossers or flat routes, but I wouldnt count on him to make plays on third down or in the red zone.

During his two seasons at Miami, Jordan has totaled 782 yards and six touchdowns.

PFF wants to see him make more plays in the red-zone this season:

Theres a lot we still want to see from Jordan, as outlined above. Besides getting his weight up, we desperately need to see his ball skills improve to warrant a top-two round grade from us. While athleticism is a prerequisite at tight end nowadays, and Jordan certainly has that, it will only get you so far.

LINK: Check out the full article on PFF here.

At 6-feet-3 and 235 pounds, Jordan is the size of a tight end. He plays with the speed of a bigger receiver and has the balance and shiftiness of a running back.

As a freshman in 2018, Jordan caught 32 passes for 287 yards and four touchdowns.

In 2019, Jordan led all Power Five tight ends that had a minimum of 45 targets in yards after catch per reception. Jordan averaged 8.9 yards after catch per reception.

The new spread offense that Rhett Lashlee is installing figures to feature the tight end prominently.

Lashlees spread offense may not ask the tight ends to be in-line blockers as much, but thew new offensive coordinator does view the position as a versatile weapon that can dictate things to an opposing defense.

To me, tight end is a versatile position because they flex out, put their hand in the dirt, and they play off the ball, Lashlee said while at SMU. We will play to their strengths. They are important in our offense even when they arent catching the ball.

In 2019at SMU, tight end Kylen Granson was targeted 63 times and caught 43 passes for 721 yards and nine touchdowns.

They can be weapons and because of the defensive players that line up on the outside, some times tight ends can get better match-ups, Lashlee said earlier this year.

Jordan (and Will Mallory) will have plenty of opportunities to produce in 2020.

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PFF says TE Brevin Jordan still has plenty to prove in 2020 - 247Sports

COVID-19 fake news: how to spot it and what locals are doing to stop it – LocalNews8.com

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POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - There's an entire Wikipedia page with 634 listed sources just about COVID-19 misinformation.

The spreading of false information was already an issue before the pandemic, but now it's become a big problem for public health.

In all the planning that weve done for a pandemic of some sort, we didnt really factor in the influence of social media and how much misinformation would be circulating on social media, said Southeastern Idaho Public Health district director Maggie Mann.

Bogus research is being disguised as legitimate findings by physicians in order to influence public policy, and now social media giants are taking down the fake news.

Maygan Layson, who has her master's degree in public health education from Walden University, created the Pocatello CoVid 19 Community Support Facebook group back in March. She wanted to provide a place for locals to get accurate information and resources during the pandemic.

After a debunked conspiracy video was shared on her page, she spent an hour and a half researching the claims in the video and the source's reliability. She found no other research to support the information and took the post down.

Because I wanted it to be accurate. I really really considered everything those doctors had to say. I researched it, I looked for scholarly articles that would support or negate their claims, Layson said.

Public health officials wish more people would do their own research when they see coronavirus news.

If youre just seeing something thats being shared by a friend on social media, or even something that sounds like a professional organization but maybe dont have a ton of credibility, I would be very leery of buying into things that are being promoted by that type of organization, Mann said.

Now more than ever, public health officials are having to fact check false information.

People have sent us questions about things theyve heard on the internet, and theyre very sincere in wondering what theyre hearing is accurate, Mann said.

But with so much information--much of it changing because of how new COVID-19 is--it's hard for people to weed through the news.

Mann suggests reading and watching media with a critical eye, like Layson.

You research those (claims), you dont just take it on their account. You go find the scholarly articles that theyre saying this research is based on, Layson said.

Here are some tips to be more critical in your news consumption:

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Shipments of Belarusian ammunition to USA dismissed as fake news – Belarus News (BelTA)

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MINSK, 30 July (BelTA) Belarus has not shipped ammunition to the USA, BelTA learned from the website of the State Authority for Military Industry of Belarus.

The source noted: An attempt to make a scandal by claiming Belarus ships arms to the USA has turned out to be yet another case of fake news. Blatant lies, which used to be the mark of tabloids, are now copied by respected Internet mass media.

On 27 July the website of the Russian-speaking Internet mass media Eurasia Daily (EADaily) published an article claiming that Belarus had started exporting ammunition to the USA. The article refers to a report of the Export Controls Directorate of the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and claims that in January-March 2020 Belarus shipped 1.42 million worth of ammunition to the USA in transit via Romania.

As the government agency in charge of developing and implementing the main directions of the government policy on military technology cooperation with foreign countries and on export control the State Authority for Military Industry of Belarus would like to officially state that the Republic of Belarus has not shipped any ammunition to the USA in 2020, including ammunition for hunting weapons and sport weapons, BelTA learned from the website of the State Authority for Military Industry of Belarus.

The agency noted that even if such shipments had been arranged, they would not have contradicted bans and prohibitions on arms trade, which are introduced by the UN Security Council and which Belarus unfailingly observes. As far as we know, the UN Security Council has not introduced any sanctions against European Union member states and the USA, the State Authority for Military Industry of Belarus noted.

The Belarusian side supplies arms and military technology in strict compliance with Belarusian laws and international commitments. A reliable export control system has been created in Belarus. It allows effectively preventing any attempts at illegal shipments of weapons and military technologies, including light arms and small arms.

Belarus supplies military products only to legal governments provided they present internationally recognized end user certificates. We would like to note that in Belarus even shipments of civilian products intended for law enforcement agencies of another country have to be authorized by the interagency commission on military and technical cooperation and export control under the Security Council of the Republic of Belarus, the source pointed out. This is why the information leak by Eurasia Daily resembles an attempt to find a black cat in a dark room when there is no cat there.

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Shipments of Belarusian ammunition to USA dismissed as fake news - Belarus News (BelTA)

Dont bank on Britains foppish, lazy elites to save us from deep fakery – The Guardian

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Technological advance is updating the motto of the 12th-century Assassins. Whereas the Ismaili sect said: Nothing is true, everything is permitted, the malicious, embittered, mentally disturbed and pornographically minded will soon make every truth a lie and every lie true.

We did not reach fake news saturation with the Brexit referendum and the Trump presidential campaign. We have barely tipped our toe in the dark waters. Artificial intelligence will allow smartphone users to generate synthetic voices and images that reach a Hollywood level of special effects at next to no cost and with minimum effort. If your enemies have video of you, they can make you appear in a porn scene so authentic only you will know its false. If they have a recording of your voice, they can have you mouthing racist slogans that could get you fired. Some are already doing it. Deep fake tools, such as FakeApp, are the beginning of an explosion in online lying that makes fake news indistinguishable from real.

Because we trust video as the most reliable part of our shared reality, we are likely to believe fakes initially or if it suits us and will go on believing until trust in a shared reality finally shatters. Jordan Peterson may not be a thinker all readers reach for, but when he launched a legal action in 2019 against a website that allowed users to generate believable audio of me saying absolutely anything they want me to say, he gave a warning thats worth remembering. How are we going to trust anything electronically mediated in the very near future? What do we do when anyone can imitate anyone else, for any reason that suits them?

Many women can explain the future because they have already confronted deep fakery in their private lives

To give you a bearing on where we are heading, watch the wriggles of the US right as it manoeuvres to downplay the death of George Floyd. At the end of June, one Winnie Heartstrong, a Republican candidate in Missouri, produced a dossier alleging that the video of his killing was a deep fake made up of composites and face swaps. Although Twitter and Facebook, the truths willing executioners, have found an audience for fantasies that George Floyd is not dead or that George Soros is behind the Black Lives Matter protests , its fair to say that even they could not make Heartstrongs heartless conspiracism take off.

Nina Schick invites you to imagine the world in five years time. By then, we will be so used to synthetically generated propaganda that millions will find any claim plausible and it will seem no more than sensible scepticism to refuse to acknowledge the real.

Schicks Deep Fakes and the Infocalypse is a short, sharp book that hits you like a punch in the stomach. She witnessed first hand the ability of Vladimir Putins Russia to manufacture reality during its invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and understands the consequences of the triumph of the Putin worldview. Unlike their 20th-century predecessors, dictatorial forces do not try to fool their peoples that they are creating a paradise on Earth the workers state, the 1,000-year Reich. Putinism in its broadest sense convinces the people that it doesnt matter if strongmen lie because everything is a lie, the system is rigged, democracy is a sham and all the news you hear that makes you doubt is a fraud. We may be liars, they concede, but so is everyone else and at least we lie for you. They offer hell on Earth instead of heaven on Earth and insist that only fools believe that the Earth can be made better.

Deep fake technology gives not only Russia but China, which is moving into information warfare as it tries to cover up its culpability for Covid-19, their most powerful tools yet. Advertisers will turn to it. So will criminals as they impersonate CEOs and persuade companies to hand over fortunes.

Many women can explain the future because they have already confronted deep fakery in their private lives. Even Hollywood stars have found they lack the resources to stop the distribution of synthetically generated pornographic films depicting them. Its a useless pursuit sighed Scarlett Johansson after her lawyers had tried and failed to protect her image. She went on to warn that any woman could become a target of amateur pornographers as the web became a vast wormhole of darkness.

The foppish laziness and abject cowardice of the British elite exceeds anything on offer in Washington

Traditional defences of freedom of speech that I have long subscribed to are inadequate. You can say that war, colonialism, fascism and communism happened without the help of the web and we should calm down. Unfortunately, the speed of technological change is an argument against complacency. There were almost four centuries between the invention of the printing press in Europe and the development of photography in the 1830s and societies could adjust. There are 29 years between the oldest web page going up in 1991 and 4.57 billion people being online in 2020.

The need for government to adopt radical policies is obvious. But there is the urgent question of whether we can trust government and not only in dictatorships, where the state is the major source of fake news. Schick, like so many writers, concentrates on Trumps America and I cant find it in myself to blame them for being drawn to that moronic extravaganza. Yet I think we should be more frightened of the British elite. Its foppish laziness and abject cowardice exceeds anything on offer in Washington. A country whose security services were too frightened to investigate Russian interference in the Brexit referendum, whose civil service is stuffed with political appointees and whose TV regulators tear up their own impartiality rules to allow Putins propaganda station a licence, cannot protect the individual or society from the coming age of deep fakery.

As phoneys themselves, they will pretend to, of course. But theyll be faking it.

Nick Cohen is an Observer columnist

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Dont bank on Britains foppish, lazy elites to save us from deep fakery - The Guardian

Watch Skip Marley And The School Of Rock All-Stars Perform Bob Marleys Three Little Birds – uDiscover Music

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Skip Marley has partnered with School of Rocks All-Stars program partnered to cover Bob Marleys anthem Three Little Birds.

The recording comes at a time when the world needs the reminder the most, that every little thing gonna be alright. The collaboration highlights the inspirational message of Bob Marleys music combined with the hopes of the new generation including his own grandson, Skip. You can check the collaborative performance out below.

School of Rock is the worlds largest and most widespread music school, educating youth on all things music through hands-on experiences. School of Rocks All-Stars are the schools top performance musicians, and due to social distancing, they virtually created this video performance from the comfort of their own homes.

This video is meant to spread a message of positivity during a pivotal time of historic disruption, said Rob Price, CEO of School of Rock. Our All-Stars, the very best School of Rock artists from around the world, typically tour across the United States each summer. But when COVID-19 disrupted those plans, we knew we needed to keep the music playing and inspire others with optimism. Having our students join Skip to record the music and vocal tracks of this iconic song is poignant, and reminiscent of how moving the message of Three Little Birds was when first released.

At the end of the performance, students at School of Rock explain what this song means to them, especially during turbulent times such as these. There is always hope, even in the darkest of times, and that, better things will come in the future, and its important to have faith in that.

This cover of the iconic Three Little Birds comes during Bob Marleys 75th celebration what would be the artists 75th birthday year. His legacy lives on through his grandson Skip Marley, who is now a label mate of his late grandfather on Island Records.

Listen to the best of Bob Marley on Apple Music and Spotify.

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Girls soccer gets ready to take the field again – Sedona Red Rock News

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The Sedona Red Rock High Schools girls soccer team halted its summer practice schedule after only a few weeks following the second COVID-19 spike.

But with the estimated return of fall sports getting closer, the Scorpions are hoping to get back on the pitch soon.

Coach Juan Carlos Aguilar is planning on resuming practices on either Thursday, Aug. 6 or Friday, Aug. 7.

Thats what my intentions are, Aguilar said. Registration starts this week, so Ill have more of an idea of how many girls I have. Thursday or Friday well start.

Of course, like all fall teams, the Scorpions are also in a waiting period to see if the fall sports season will even happen. The present plan is for official fall practices to begin on Monday, Aug. 17, the same day Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey plans to have schools reopened for in-person learning. While Duceys latest announcement on Thursday, July 23 did not change that, things are still subject to change.

Additionally, some individual schools have already chosen to cancel their seasons due to COVID-19, something the Arizona Interscholastic Association has said that it will not fine schools for doing.

Even if the season does go forward, Aguilar added that the present AIA regulations pose a number of challenges.

It cuts your purpose of training in half, he said. This is a sport of contact. If we just play it safe with the kids we will be OK. They just need to be aware of where they go after practice, when they go home. Thats the only challenge separation and the use of masks. You know that you cant run with masks.

The Sedona team is coming off of a 5-7-1 season during the 2019-20 year, though this season will bear little resemblance to that one. The 2019-20 soccer team played in the winter. This years Scorpions will play in the fall. Soccer was initially a fall sport at SRRHS but has been a winter sport for the entire time that Aguilar and any of the players have been there. But in January, the decision was made to move it back to fall.

That will be a challenge for Aguilar. Page High School recently decided to cancel its fall season. Thats relevant to the Scorpions, as the Sand Devils were the only fall soccer team that Aguilar had experience coaching against. Now, Sedonas team will be playing against an entirely new group of opponents.Despite that and the challenge of getting a team ready for fall after an abbreviated summer practice season, Aguilar is excited for the change.

For the size of the school and how many kids are involved, its a good fit, he said. Its going to be new. Its going to be really interesting with the other schools and how they do it. I like it the warmer weather for me and the players. Playing in 20-degree weather is kind of tough for everybody.

The coach said that hes understanding of any hesitancy that parents may have with allowing their kids to play. Despite that, he hopes the season will go on.

We have to ask them how they feel and if theyre going to allow their kids to play, Aguilar said. Everybody is scared. Thats totally understandable. But at the same time, we cant just hide under a rock all the time. Weve got to keep living.

Right now more than ever as a community the schools, parents and coaches we need to stay together and help each other, he said. Weve got to come together and find ways to keep the kids occupied.

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Girls soccer gets ready to take the field again - Sedona Red Rock News

Tracks of the Week #113 – God Is In The TV

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Who? Jerry Joseph

What? Sugar Smacks

Where? Portland, Oregon

What they say? Jerry Joseph releases his new single, the politically charged, Sugar Smacks, from his upcoming album, The Beautiful Madness. Produced by Patterson Hood with Drive-By Truckers as his band, the album will be released August 21, 2020 on Dcor Records.

Why we love it? Informed, partially at least you might suspect, by Jerry Josephs last trip to Northern Iraq/Kurdistan, Sugar Smacks sees the American singer, songwriter, and guitarist looking at the modern world through the prism of oppression, hate and violence, be it domestic, national or global. The song can barely contain Josephs rage, fear, guilt and indignation and makes for what is this years most powerful and rightly uncomfortable of listens. Make no mistake, this is absolute dynamite. (Simon Godley)

FFO: Drive-By Truckers, Steve Earle & the Dukes, Jason Isbell, Son Volt.

Who? Wolf Solent

What? Shades of Mind

Where? York, England

What they say? Shades of Mind reflects three years in solitude for Wolf Solent since 2017 Sea Records release EP // 4. The track is taken from a forthcoming collection of songs about loss. A hazy Herman Hesse smoked out Spiritualized cacophony it was written, recorded and performed in his home studio Spiral Attic in Feb 2020.

Why we love it? Danny Trew is Wolf Solent and in between his other musical commitments with Cowgirl, The Illness and more besides he continues to drive this project forward. The journey is one where Trew distils despair and delight into an often blissed-out exposition of life as he knows it. Shades of Mind continues that cosmic expedition into future space. (Simon Godley)

FFO: Spiritualized, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Warlocks, Spacemen 3

Who? Davy Boi

What? do myself better

Where? LA

What they say? Do Myself Better is a pledge to take self-care more seriously. Its about looking at Imposter Syndrome in the face and confronting daily anxiety in a tongue & cheek manner. I know other people are experiencing feelings of not being the best versions of themselves, so I wanted to give a voice to that and say, Hey, youre not alone. Same here.

Why we love it? A positive, motivating anthem about self-care that acknowledges our inner-saboteur but looks beyond it into the future and begins a process of healing. Perfectly crafted with a mixture of classic soul, a vibe of old Hollywood, and alternative R&B. The track subverts your expectations in all the right ways with attention to detail in the production that adds layers to the listening experience. I say this without a doubt in my mind: this is Davy Bois best offering to date and the future is bright for this rising star. (Lloyd Best)

FFO: Jill Scott, Kali Uchis, Khalid

Who? Body Double

What? The Floating Hand

Where? Oakland

What they say? The Floating Hand is generally about competition and your options for reacting to it. I grew up in a few different countries because my dad was a Marine, and each move felt interplanetary: the language changed, what was good and bad changed, even the bugs crawling on the ground changed. I felt at odds with conservative military culture and run-of-the-mill high school viciousness and fantasized about one day finding a safe haven in punk and underground music. It turns out that even amongst weirdos youll still see people undercut each other, and you might be a maladjusted alien regardless of scenery. I wrote this song about a musician I thought was particularly nasty, and it ended up being about myself, which is what happens whenever I try to write a dis track.

Why we love it? Ghostly new wave delivered with dollops of menace by front lady Candace Lazarou and her accomplices. The taught baselines and nagging guitars slither through the divides of post-punk and gothic paranoia, feeding into an unsettling feeling of being out of place. A seriously impressive slab of artful noise, a glimpse of whats to come from the Body Doubles debut album Milk Fed. (Bill Cummings)

FFO: Roxy Music, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Breeders

https://bodydoubleusa.bandcamp.com/track/the-floating-hand

Who? 0171

What? Photograph

Where? East London

What they say? Photograph is inspired by looking at a photo of an ex, the band said. A photo that records a moment when everything seemed perfect, but now its a lie, and it makes you feel strange like you cant really remember who you were in that photo when you loved that person. Like a life that never happened. Weve all picked up old photos like that we find in our bedroom, that make you sit down and feel sad for a time that is lost, even if you dont regret the relationship ending. Im (Joe) definitely someone who spends a lot of time thinking about my past, and the feelings that Ill never get back. Georgies there in this song to tell me to get over it ffs.

Why we love it? Experimental alternative pop with unusual synths, samples and beats juxtaposed with a soft vocal tinged with sadness that yearns for resolve. 0171 takes us on a journey through heartache and personal exploration to a soundtrack of electronic excellence. (Lloyd Best)

FFO: No Rome, Easy Life, Georgia

Who? Wuh Oh

What? Softstyle

Where? Glasgow

What they say? What would the ultimateWuhOh video game look like? This has been the question permeating many of our discussions for months. Turns out it looks less like real video games and more like the games of our dreams. Combining an eclectic mix of our favourite pop culture, film, and anime influences, Softstyle is untethered by stylistic limitations, representing a reality where anything is possible and where goblins run riot.

Why we love it? High energy and delightfully motivating. This relentless barrage of synths, beats, and attitude-filled vocals is a marvel for the ears and is an instant mood-lifter if you need it, as many of us do these days. Hands down, the best song Wuh Oh has released thus far and a fantastic showcase of their talents and their dynamic, progressive art. (Lloyd Best)

FFO: SONIKKU, SOPHIE, Zedd

Who? Tired Runner

Who? Port Song

Where? England

What they say? The shipping forecast issued by Tired Runner, on behalf of a fractured heart, at every hour and minute of the day and for the period now until never again on this day and every day here after.

The general synopsis at midnight and beyond midnight, into the smallest hours, is:

Low emotive atmospheres west of Rockall expected many miles west of a song sung by midnight tonight. Low Fair Isle glacially moving away rapidly northwards and losing its identity.

Why we love it? Slow motion majestic isolation, as the ship pulls away from the shore. Dont save yourself dont think of anyone elsesings the mysterious singer amidst mournful organs and minimal electronic textures. A moment of wistful departure. (Bill Cummings)

FFO: James Blake, Bon Iver, Olafur Arnalds

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Tracks of the Week #113 - God Is In The TV

Cyborg (comics) – Wikipedia

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DC comics character

Cyborg is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Marv Wolfman and artist George Prez and first appears in a special insert in DC Comics Presents #26 (October 1980).[1] Originally known as a member of the Teen Titans,[2] Cyborg was established as a founding member of the Justice League in DC's 2011 reboot of its comic book titles.

Lee Thompson Young portrayed Cyborg in the television series Smallville. Ray Fisher portrays the character in the DC Extended Universe films Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017). Joivan Wade also portrays Cyborg in the Doom Patrol television series on DC Universe and HBO Max.

Victor Stone is the son of Silas Stone and Elinore Stone, scientists who use him as a test subject for various intelligence enhancement projects. While these treatments are ultimately successful and Victor's IQ subsequently grows to genius levels, he grows to resent his treatment.

Victor strikes up a friendship with Ron Evers, a young miscreant who leads him into trouble with the law. This is the beginning of a struggle in which Victor strives for independence, engaging in pursuits of which his parents disapprove, such as athletics and abandoning his studies. Victor's association with underage criminals leads him down a dark path in which he is often injured, but he still lives a "normal" life in which he is able to make his own decisions. However, this rebellious path does not bury Victor's conscience considering that he refuses to participate in Evers' grandiose plans of racially motivated terrorism.

Victor's situation changes radically when he visits his parents' lab where experiments in inter-dimensional access are done. At that moment of his entry, an aggressive gelatinous creature was accidentally pulled through and Victor's mother is killed by it. It then turned on Victor and he was severely injured by its attack before his father was able to send it back to its native dimension.

With his wife dead and his son mutilated, unconscious and near death from the incident, Silas is driven to take advantage of prototype medical prosthetic research he has access to in order to treat Victor. Unfortunately, Victor only regains consciousness after the extensive artificial limbs and implants were installed in his body without his consent. Victor was horrified at the discovery of the metallic components, which involve most of the left side of his head and face, and raged that he would rather have died than be such a victim of his father's manipulations.

Although his bitterness remained for some time, Victor eventually calmed down enough to successfully adjust to his implants physically. He found himself rejected by the public because of his implants, including his girlfriend, who would later thoughtlessly blurt out that she would prefer he had died instead of being in that state. However, Victor's conscience was unbowed, as evidenced by the fact that when Evers tried to manipulate him into participating in a terrorist attack on the United Nations, Victor decided to equip himself with his weaponized attachments and stop him on the top of United Nations Headquarters.

When Raven assembles the Teen Titans, Victor joins initially for the benefit of a support group of kindred spirits and freaks, and has remained with that group ever since.[2] Fortunately, Victor eventually finds additional new civilian friends of better character such as a group of juveniles who are adjusting to their own prosthetics and idolize him because of his fancy parts and his exciting adventures. It also turns out that their beautiful teacher Sarah Simms, who has often assisted Cyborg and the Titans, admires him as well.

Another person who sees past the cybernetic shell is Dr. Sarah Charles, a S.T.A.R. Labs scientist who helps him to recuperate after having his cybernetic parts replaced. Cyborg and Dr. Charles date for some time and she, along with Changeling, keeps trying to reach him when he is seemingly mindless following the severe injuries he incurs during the "Titans Hunt" storyline.

Although Cyborg's body was repaired by a team of Russian scientists after the missile crash he had been in, albeit with more mechanical parts than previously, his mind was not. Eventually, his mind was restored by an alien race of computer intelligences called the Technis, created from the sexual union of Swamp Thing and a machine-planet when Swamp Thing was travelling through space. Cyborg, however, had to remain with the Technis both to maintain his mind and because, in return for restoring him, he had to teach them about humanity. He took the name Cyberion, and gradually started becoming less human in outlook, connecting entirely to the Technis planet.

Eventually, Cyberion returned to Earth, establishing a Technis construct on the moon and a smaller base on Earth. With Vic's consciousness dormant, but his desire for companionship controlling the actions of the Technis' planet, it began kidnapping former Titans members, his conscious mind so suppressed that he was not only searching for deceased Titans, but even sent one probe looking for himself as Cyborg. He ended up plugging them into virtual reality scenarios, representing what he believed to be their "perfect worlds"; for example, Beast Boy was back with the Doom Patrol, Damage was spending time being congratulated by the Justice Society as a true hero, and Nightwing was confronted by a Batman who actually smiled and offered to talk about their relationship. Although the Titans were freed, there was a strong disagreement between them and the Justice League over what action to take; the League believed that there was nothing left of Victor to save, whereas the Titans were willing to try, culminating in a brief battle, where the Atom and Catwoman (who had followed the Justice League to investigate) sided with the League while the Flash fought with the Titans. While Vic was distracted trying to aid his friends, a Titans team consisting of Changeling and the original five Titans were sent by Raven to try making contact with Vic's human side, while Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, the Martian Manhunter, Power Girl, Captain Marvel, and Mary Marvel moved the moon back to its proper place. Eventually, thanks primarily to Changeling's encouragement, and Omen and Raven holding Vic together long enough to come up with a plan, Vic's consciousness was restored, and "downloaded" into the Omegadrome, a morphing war-suit belonging to former Titan Minion. In the wake of this event, the Titans reformed and Vic was part of the new group.[2] However, he felt less human than ever before.

Shortly after this, Nightwing revealed he had cloned Vic's body, and by flowing the Omegadrome through the clone, Vic regained his human form, but still had the abilities of the Omegadrome. He often used the Omegadrome to recreate his original look in battle. With his newfound humanity, Vic took a leave of absence, moving first to L.A. with Beast Boy and then to Central City. While in Central City, Vic was involved in one of the Thinker's schemes, helping Wally hack the Thinker's attempt to plug himself into the minds of Central City's population so that Wally could outthink his opponent, though Vic lost the abilities of the Omegadrome in the process.

Vic mentored the new incarnation of the Teen Titans, consisting mainly of sidekicks, most of whom have taken over the identities of former members (i.e. Tim Drake, the third Robin, instead of Dick Grayson, the original Robin and Titans leader), as well as stalwarts such as Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy, where they have fought enemies such as Deathstroke, Brother Blood, Doctor Light, The Titans Tomorrow, and a brainwashed Superboy and Indigo during a team up with the Outsiders in the Insiders storyline. In the end, Cyborg was the only one capable of standing up to Dr. Light, thanks to his solar shields, although he makes it clear that he only won the fight because the rest of the Titans had softened Light up first.

During the 20052006 storyline "Infinite Crisis", Cyborg joined Donna's New Cronus team that went to investigate a hole in the universe that was found during the Rann-Thanagar War. He left Beast Boy in charge of the Titans while he was gone. They arrived at the reset center of the universe and with the help of assorted heroes aided in the defeat of Alexander Luthor, who was attempting to recreate the multiverse and build a perfect Earth from it.

According to 52 Week 5, Cyborg was fused together with Firestorm after returning to Earth. This was caused by the energy ripples caused by Alexander Luthor Jr. which altered the Zeta Ray Beams the heroes were going to use to return home.

After being severely damaged during the events of "Infinite Crisis", Cyborg was rebuilt over time in thanks to Tower caretakers Wendy and Marvin. He awoke a year later to find a wholly different Teen Titans being led by Robin, the only member from the team he formed prior to going into space. He is still a member of the team, but feels that Kid Devil and Ravager are hardly worthy Titans, and thus is attempting to find a way to reform "the real Titans".

After the team along with the Doom Patrol defeated the Brotherhood of Evil, Cyborg asked Beast Boy to rejoin the Titans, but Gar refused, saying that his skills were needed with the Doom Patrol. After returning to Titans Tower, Cyborg began reviewing the security tapes during the last year, in which it appears that he was looked to by all the Titans of the past year for a shoulder to lean on, despite being in a coma-like state.

It appears that although Cyborg has returned to the team, the role of leader is now in the hands of Robin. He does however retain the position of statesman amongst the team and occasionally plays second-in-command.

In Justice League of America (vol. 2) #3, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman agree that Cyborg should be offered membership in the new Justice League. However, following a battle against Amazo, Green Lantern and Black Canary take over the formation of the JLA, and Cyborg is not amongst the roster.

In the Teen Titans East one-shot, Cyborg gathered together a new team of Titans. During a training exercise, the group was attacked by Trigon, and Cyborg was blasted by a giant energy beam. He was last seen in a crater, with only his head and torso remaining.

In the aftermath of Trigon's assault in the Titans East one shot, Cyborg has been placed into a special hoverchair while he recuperates. Cyborg's body is completely repaired in Titans #5. Soon after, the resurrected and unbalanced Jericho enters Cyborg's body, using him to manipulate the defenses at Titans Tower to kill the Teen Titans. Jericho's plans are foiled when Static, the newest Teen Titan, uses his electrical powers to overload the Tower's systems, causing feedback that knocks Jericho out of Cyborg.[3] After recovering, Cyborg pretends to still have Jericho inside of him, in order to draw out Vigilante, who was currently targeting Jericho. The plot works too well when Vigilante appears and shoots Cyborg in the head.[4]

In an unspecified time during the Teen Titans comics, a man with enhancements similar to Cyborg's attacks Dr. Sarah Charles on the day of her wedding to Deshaun, a young scientist. Cyborg rushes in for the save, discovering how Deshaun, connected to Project M, has sold the technology used to turn Stone into Cyborg to the military. He also finds that the enhanced man was Ron Evers, once Vic's best friend now turned terrorist, who was seeking vengeance for the soldiers used as test subjects. After Cyborg manages to calm down his friend and discovers the truth: Mr. Orr, revealed as the mastermind behind Project M's cyborg research, brings his Stone-derived best subjects: the current Equus, an armored form of the Wildebeest, and a cyberized man sporting enhancements even more powerful than Stone's current ones called Cyborg 2.0.

Cyborg 2.0 turns out to be the Titans Tomorrow Cyborg 2.0, snatched from his proper timeline and cajoled by Orr into fighting his younger self for the possession of their shared technology and Orr's permission to use it in the battlefield. Cyborg is soon forced to fight simultaneously against the Phantom Limbs, an elite force of soldiers crippled in the Middle East and restored by his tech, and the Cyborg Revenge Squad, a broader formation composed of the Fearsome Five, Magenta, Girder, the Thinker, and Cyborgirl. Although the Cyborg Revenge Squad soon gains the upper hand, with the help of his fellow Titans Cyborg is able to hold his own in combat, reverse engineer on the fly some of the future technology used by Cyborg 2.0, and enhance his own body enough to win against Mr. Orr. He later decides to get a new lease in life, forgiving Deshaun and Sarah Charles on their wedding day for abusing his technology, resuming dating Sarah Simms and having the Phantom Limbs fitted with new, non-military, prosthetics. It is however implied the Phantom Limbs, unwilling to see Stone's offer as a sign of good will, are trying to get back their weaponized prosthetics and wait for a rematch.

During the events of Blackest Night, Cyborg joins with Starfire, Beast Boy, and several other heroes to form an emergency team to fight off the army of dead Titans who have been reanimated as Black Lanterns. He later joins in the final battle at Coast City.

Following the dissolution of the current JLA after Justice League: Cry for Justice, Cyborg is invited by Donna to join Kimiyo Hoshi's new Justice League.[5] He befriends Red Tornado, and claims that he has come up with a plan to make him indestructible.[6]

After a battle with Doctor Impossible's gang, Cyborg is forced to take a leave of absence from the team in order to not only help rebuild Red Tornado, but also help Roy Harper, who had his arm severed by Prometheus.[7] During this time, Victor leads Superboy and Kid Flash to the city of Dakota to rescue the Teen Titans, who had been defeated and captured by Holocaust.[8] The Titans emerge victorious from the battle after Kid Flash uses his powers to send Holocaust plummeting into the Earth's inner core.[9]

Despite apparently being written off the team, writer James Robinson explained that Cyborg will continue to have a presence on the JLA, and will even be given a co-feature in the back of the book for Justice League of America #4850.[10] In the co-feature, Cyborg battles Red Tornado after he has been driven insane by the power of the Starheart. In the midst of the battle, a flashback reveals that Victor had rebuilt Red Tornado using self-replicating nanites similar to the ones that Prometheus infected Roy with after cutting off his arm, thus making the android indestructible.[11] Cyborg manages to free Red Tornado his power matrix.[12]

Cyborg briefly appears in Justice League: Generation Lost, where he is shown helping Wonder Woman and Starfire search for Maxwell Lord after his resurrection.[13]

Following an adventure in another dimension, Static is left powerless, and Miss Martian is rendered comatose. Cyborg stops the powerless Static from returning to Dakota, and instead tells him that he and a scientist named Rochelle Barnes will be taking him to Cadmus Labs to find a way to get his powers back and awaken Miss Martian. As Static packs up his belongings, Cyborg and Rochelle have a conversation which reveals that they are lying to Static, and have an ulterior motive for taking the two Titans to Cadmus.[14]

He later appears in the final two issues of The Return of Bruce Wayne, where he helps his former teammate Red Robin in his attempt to stop Bruce Wayne from inadvertently unleashing an apocalyptic explosion of Omega Energy.

Cyborg and Red Tornado later travel to the moon alongside Doctor Light, Animal Man, Congorilla, Zauriel, Tasmanian Devil and Bulleteer as part of an emergency group of heroes gathered to assist the Justice League in their battle against Eclipso. Shortly into the battle, Cyborg and the others are taken over by Eclipso and are turned against their JLA comrades.[15] The reserve JLA members are all freed after Eclipso is defeated.[16]

As of August 2011, Cyborg is featured as one of the main characters in a new Justice League ongoing series written by Geoff Johns and drawn by Jim Lee as part of DC's The New 52 relaunch. Johns has said of Cyborg, "He represents all of us in a lot of ways. If we have a cellphone and we're texting on it, we are a cyborgthat's what a cyborg is, using technology as an extension of ourselves."[17]

The first storyline takes place five years in the past and details the revised origin of the original Justice League. Victor Stone appears as a high school football star who is heavily sought after by a number of college scouts, but apparently has a distant relationship with his father, Silas. After winning a big game, Victor is shown calling his father and angrily telling him that he broke his promise and missed yet another one of his son's games.[18] Later Victor appears at S.T.A.R. Labs where his father works. The scientists appear to be working on the Mother Box that Superman came in contact with from the Parademon. Victor engages in another argument with his father and tells him that the scouts were there to give him full scholarships to college. When asking if his father will ever appear at any of his games, his father replies "No." Just then the Mother Box explodes, killing the other scientists and destroying most of Victor's body while Victor's father looks on in horror.[19] Silas does everything he can for Victor's survival. He along with Sarah Charles, and T. O. Morrow go in "The Red Room" in S.T.A.R. labs which contains every piece of technology from around the world. Silas attempts to treat Victor with something that has never been attempted before and he is seen injecting Victor with some type of nanites and having Dr. Morrow put the robotic pieces on Victor (devices such as: a Promethean skin graft, Doctor William Magnus' responsometer, Anthony Ivo's A-maze operating system, The classified and prototypical B-maze operating system and Ryan Choi's White Dwarf Stabilizer). Vic's life is saved and the energies from the Mother Box are incorporated into his new form as Cyborg. This allows Victor to access the vast New Gods data library and discover Darkseid's true invasion plans.[20]

In the following issue we see Victor as Cyborg. As the issue opens Victor cannot feel his hands or legs. He sees himself for the first time with his robotic parts and is panicked by his new body. Suddenly, Parademons burst into the red room and leap toward Sarah Charles. However, Cyborg's defense systems react, automatically weaponizing his arm into a sound cannon from which he fires his powerful white noise cannon, disintegrating the two Parademons and blasting a gigantic hole in the Star Labs building. After saving Sarah's life Victor asks his father what has happened to him, his father tells him that he couldn't let him die. Cyborg obviously distraught exclaims, "You did this to me." and flees, despite Silas' plea for him to wait. Later in the street Cyborg sees a woman being set upon by a group of Parademons. He leaps to the woman's aid, punching the parademon. However, in ensuing scuffle Cyborg inadvertently absorbs some of the Parademon's components giving him access to Boom Tube technology. This new ability automatically transports or teleports Victor to where Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, and Aquaman are fighting the Parademons, moments before Darkseid arrives. Cyborg fights alongside the other heroes against Darkseid and his Parademons, but despite their best efforts Darkseid proves to be too strong. Cyborg is able to reverse engineer the alien boom tube technology and with a considerable amount of stress on his systems he is able to teleport all the invading aliens including Darkseid off the planet, saving the Earth. After sending Darkseid back where he came from, Cyborg helps to found the Justice League.

Victor has not begun any process of reconciliation with his father, who is primarily concerned with Victor's mechanics rather than his humanity. Cyborg primarily focuses on his super-heroics, aiding Batman and others when he can and monitoring crime through his cybernetics. After the villain David Graves makes an attack against the Justice League, Cyborg and his teammates travel to the Valley of Souls. There he learns that he walks the line between life and death. He sees a false apparition of his human self that tries to convince him that Victor Stone is dead and Cyborg is just an imitation. Victor quickly sees past this ruse, and he and the rest of the Justice League defeat Graves. We learn through a conversation with Flash, that Cyborg questions his humanity now that he is part machine and that he lives on the Watch Tower, the Justice League's headquarters.[21] Flash cracks a joke in an attempt to lighten the mood and assure Cyborg he is still human. During the Throne of Atlantis storyline, Cyborg at first rejects an upgrade his father has that would allow him to operate underwater at the price of his remaining lung which to him would mean sacrificing more of his humanity.[22] However following the capture of the rest of the Justice League by Orm who sentenced them to the bottom of the ocean, Cyborgas he calls in reserves to hold off Orm's forcesreluctantly accepts the upgrade.[23] This allows him and Mera to rescue the others.[24]

During the "Trinity War" storyline, Cyborg gets a visual of Shazam heading to Kahndaq, to which Batman assembles the Justice League with the help from Zatanna to meet in Kahndaq to stop Shazam.[25] Following the supposed death of Doctor Light in Kahndaq, Batman tells Superman that Cyborg and Martian Manhunter are doing an autopsy to prove his death was not Superman's fault.[26] As Wonder Woman leads the Justice League Dark to go look for Pandora, Cyborg is among the superheroes that remain at A.R.G.U.S. while Batman, Flash, Aquaman, Shazam, Steve Trevor, the Justice League of America, Zatanna, and Phantom Stranger go to stop Wonder Woman.[27] Cyborg was present when Atom tells him, Superman, Element Woman and Firestorm the true purpose of the creation of the Justice League of America and that she was spying on the Justice League which is how the Justice League of America ended up in Kahndaq.[28] When the Crime Syndicate arrives on Prime Earth, Cyborg's old prosthetic parts combine to form a robot called Grid (who is operated by a sentient computer virus).[29] During the Forever Evil event, after Batman and Catwoman drop Cyborg off to his father in Detroit,[30] he makes the choice to willingly receive a new cybernetic body and helps his father and Dr. Morrow create one that is slimmer in appearance so Cyborg could look more human.[31] Working together with the Metal Men created by Doc Magus, Cyborg succeeds in shutting down Grid.[32]

Afterwards Cyborg helped newcomer to the group Shazam fit in with the league as the rest set out to find Power ring's missing accessory which flew off after the death of the former wearer.[33] While on monitor duty he and Shazam experiment with some of his magical powers to aid in finding the ring after joking of having an Xbox in his left shoulder; only for the young ward to conjure up a ping pong table, which they play while having spare time on their hands.[34] Eventually the call goes out and everyone in the league mobilizes to secure the new rampaging Power Ring before the Doom Patrol does.[35] After coaxing Billy into action against Jessica Cruis, Victor moves in to interface with the ring itself, finding out a great deal about the ring of Volthoom and his current host, only to be forcefully thrown out after the ring entity rejects him by causing his systems to short circuit, removing him from the battle.[36] He is last seen recovering at S.T.A.R. Labs, after Shazam rushed him to the med bay, following the power ring crisis. Cyborg wondered what he saw within the ring, after his dad warned him interfacing with it again could trap him in it forever.[37]

An incident involving Batman's son, Damian Wayne, during the "Robin Rises Alpha & Omega" story arc in Batman, led up to most of the justice League battling against Glorious Godfrey and a Parademon horde from Apokolips when they captured the chaos shard and the sarcophagus of Damian, before retreating back home.[38] All the league members present, Cyborg included, state to an adamant Bruce Wayne that running headlong into unmarked X-factor territory for a suicide mission was less than ideal, considering the consequences that could befall earth. This eventually culminates with Batman hijacking Cyborg's teleportation systems, to zip up to the Watchtower in an attempt to retrieve an experimental and highly dangerous combat suit, in order to mete out his agenda; But Cyborg manages to block his administrative access so that he, Shazam, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Lex and Cold could physically restrain him, causing Batman to begrudgingly give up and retire to the batcave.[39]

After the Bat left, the rest of the Bat Family turned up asking Victor for help with some digitized doppelgangers of baddies that Bruce initially set up in order to distract the League, destabilize watchtower security to secure the Hellbat, and eventually use a personal Mother Box (secured from a Parademon kept in cold storage) to vacate to Apokolips.[40] After making his way to the Batcave to meet with them, he's directed over to a console which enabled him to directly access the Batcomputer's more sophisticated systems. However, it was all a ruse utilizing a preemptive countermeasure devised by Batman tailored to Cyborg's specific weaknesses. Cyborg was temporarily incapacitated and was set into a VR simulation where he relived his more peaceful days in college, while Batgirl went to work on his Mother Box in order to secure a path towards Apokolips and chase after their father. But Victor eventually snapped out of his dream haze and followed them through, angered that they used him in such a way.[40] Cyborg traveled along with Titus, who hitched a ride on his leg, to catch up with the rest of the Batman Family. They all then have a run in with the scavengers of Armegeddo who quickly vacate after some Apokoliptian Hunger Dogs make their way onto the scene. They eventually catch up with the armor-clad Dark Knight ripping his way through a sizable chunk of Apokolips's forces singlehandedly. Jason Tim and Barbara show Batman the Robin Medals Alfred gave them in order to remind him of his purpose, causing him to snap out of his berserker rage and note that Cyborg had reluctantly accompanied them to Hell itself. Having made their way into Darkseid's citadel where Kalibak was readying his Chaos Cannon to fire again, the caped crusaders kept Darkseid's forces occupied while Cyborg made short work of the massive war engine, literally tearing it in half. But when he went to set a timed self-destruct sequence within the Apokoliptian computers, Vic suffered a catastrophic feedback that fried most of his internal systems leaving him inoperable just as Darkseid himself made his appearance.[41]

While Batman fought and held Darkseid off, Cyborg ran Batgirl through a crash course on how to hot wire his own Mother Box. Since Darkseid smashed Batman's Boom Tube generator, Cyborg was their only chance off Apokolips. After successfully jury-rigging his internal systems, Cyborg and the rest of the Bat rogues made a hasty exit stage left as Bruce powered his recovered fragment of the Chaos Shard with Darkseid's Omega Effect, blasting Darkseid against a wall to cover their escape.[42] In the aftermath, Cyborg, who is still unable to facilitate himself, wonders what is going on as Damian Wayne is successfully revived, however a second anomaly cranks out of the Boom Tube that was opened and Kalibak comes charging through it. With Kalibak occupied by the rest of the gang, Vic tries his best to reestablish his downed systems. He is successful and gains control over the still-open tube as Batman readies the Batplane. As Batman rams his jet into the evil New God sending him careening back to Apokolips, Cyborg closes the portal banishing Darksied's first born for good. With the threat over, Cyborg heads back topside to inform the rest of the league of what all transpired and stating he has JL business to attend to.[43]

An eponymous ongoing series, by writer David F. Walker and artist Ivan Reis, debuted in July 2015.[44]

This article needs to be updated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (August 2017)

As of Rebirth, he is a part of the relaunched Justice League bi-monthly series as well as his own solo monthly series. It is unclear whether he has the ability of flight in Rebirth.

During Dark Nights: Metal, he is captured by the alternate Batmen of the Dark Multiverse, who attempt to hack him in order to learn the secrets of his teammates. As the crisis escalates, Cyborg is confronted by the controlling consciousness of other Mother Boxes, who claim that he will only gain the power to overcome the Dark Batmen if he fully surrenders to the Mother Box that powers his body at the cost of the transformation deleting his old personality. He is nearly tempted to give in to this transformation, but the appearance of Raven's soul-self convinces him to hold on to himself while partially succumbing to the transformation. This allows him to free his teammates and 'hack' the multiverse as they travel to find new allies in the battle against the Dark Batmen.

Following this and the Justice League: No Justice miniseries, the Justice League series was cancelled after 43 issues and was relaunched into a new monthly series and Cyborg will also be featured as part of a separate Justice League faction that is part of the new Justice League Odyssey series. In addition, Cyborg's own solo monthly series was also cancelled and ended in June 2018 with the release of Issue 23.[45]

Large portions of Victor Stone's body have been replaced by advanced mechanical parts (hence the name Cyborg) granting him superhuman strength, speed, stamina and flight. His mechanically-enhanced body, much of which is metallic, is far more durable than a normal human body. Cyborg's internal computer system can interface with external computers. Other features include an electronic "eye" which replicates vision, but at a superhuman level. His mechanical parts contain a wide variety of tools and weapons, such as a grappling hook/line and a finger-mounted laser. Perhaps his most frequently-used weapon is his sound amplifier (often referred to as his "white sound blaster" in the comic books; the Teen Titans animated series calls it a "sonic cannon") which can be employed at various settings either to stun the ears of his foes or to deliver concentrated blasts of sound potent enough to shatter rock or deform steel.[46]

Cyborg is consistently depicted as tinkering over time with his cybernetic parts, enhancing his functions and abilities to levels beyond those set by his father, which has allowed writers flexibility in adding new powers that suit the needs of a given story over time. Following DC's New 52 reboot in 2011, Cyborg's origin story was changed so that his enhancements were the product of alien technology, specifically that of a Mother Box from planet New Genesis. His cybernetics are now seen as a living extension of his body, and a host of new skills such as EMP blasts, technology absorption, and underwater adaptation were added to his powerset. Most significantly, he was given the ability to generate boom tubes powerful teleportation tunnels that are used by the New Gods to travel across infinite distances due to this Mother Box connection. Elements of Victor's original backstory were re-established following DC's Trinity War storyline, when his father rebuilds systems following extensive damage to them.

In addition to his mechanical enhancements, Stone possesses an "exceptionally gifted" level of intelligence; his IQ has been measured at 170.[47]

In the Flashpoint event, the timeline is greatly altered. In this alternate version of events, Cyborg is America's greatest superhero (occupying the role held by Superman in DC's standard timeline). He attempts to put together a group to stop the war between Aquaman and Wonder Woman's forces. However, the heroes he approaches all refuse, after Batman declines.[48] Cyborg connects the resistance member Lois Lane to spy on the Amazons for any information.[49] Cyborg rescues people in the subway station from arsonist Heat Wave.[50] Abin Sur crashes on Earth; he is subsequently taken into custody by Cyborg and the US government to be questioned about his reasons for being on Earth. When Abin Sur is recovering, he is on a mission to retrieve the Entity, however Cyborg convinces him to join with Earth's heroes.[51] Afterwards, Cyborg is seen talking with the President in his headquarters in Detroit. The President states that Steve Trevor sent a signal to the resistance but was intercepted by a traitor among the heroes that Cyborg tried to recruit and suspicion leads to the Outsider. For Cyborg's failure, he is relieved of duty as the Element Woman sneaks into the headquarters. Later, Cyborg is called by Batman and the Flash for help in tracking down "Project: Superman", the government branch responsible for 'raising' Kal-El after his rocket destroyed Metropolis upon its arrival. Cyborg and them agree to join the cause to stop Wonder Woman and Aquaman, but only if Batman gets to choose whom to recruit, and Cyborg agrees as long as he comes with them. The three sneak into the government underground bunkers, and the group comes across a giant vault door bearing the Superman logo. Cyborg opens the door and sees a weakened Kal-El, with the arrival of guards. Forced to escape, Kal-El's powers begin to manifest and flies off leaving them at the hands of the guards.[52] While they are fending off the guards, they are rescued by Element Woman. Later, Cyborg and other heroes arrive at the Marvel Family's place helping the Flash from drastically forgetting his memories. After the Flash is recovering, he asked to stop the Atlantean/Amazon war from casualty, although Cyborg and the heroes are not willing unless Batman wants to join them, because Cyborg explains to him that they believe Batman was invincible. However, the Flash convinces him that no one is invincible and the group of heroes are agreeing to join the Flash. The heroes arrive at New Themyscira to stop the Atlantean/Amazon war, and the Flash tells Cyborg to find Aquaman's ultimate bomb to dispose of it.[53]

In the Titans Tomorrow storyline, a future version of Victor Stone called Cyborg 2.0 is a member of Titans East. He is shown having similar plating as the animated Cyborg from the Teen Titans animated series.[54]

An alternate version of Cyborg appears as part of the Justice League of Earth-23 in the DC Multiverse.[55]

Cyborg appears as the third Robotman as part of Superman's Justice League. Robotman is now completely liquid metal. He is petrified by the nuclear blast.

Cyborg appears as a character in the prequel comic to the game, where he joins Superman's Regime to force peace on the world. He serves as Superman's eyes and ears over the world, offering insight on any activity deemed disruptive. At the end of Year Two he discovers someone is trying to hack into the Regime's system during a war with the Green Lantern Corps (Oracle) and goes to the Watchtower to locate her. Jim Gordon follows and corners him, managing to rip Cyborg's metallic face plate off and knock him unconscious, stopping the locating sequence. Cyborg spends most of the next year a prisoner of the Insurgency until he is released when the two groups collide in a battle that nearly destroys them when Trigon and Mr. Mxyzptlk get involved. In Year Four he and the Regime are confronted by the Greek Gods, who want Superman to step down as ruler. While the Regime is forced to go underground, they come together to defeat the gods once and for all. During Year Five tension grows among the Regime because of Superman's growing hostility and controversial decisions, such as enlisting the aid of villains to help the Regime. Cyborg is especially disgusted when he discovers that during a rally with supporters of the Joker who reject Superman, the Man of Steel killed over two hundred defenseless protesters in anger. Batman and Batwoman later go to the Hall of Justice to kidnap Cyborg because he is the only one aware of this and has the information stored in his data. He is incapacitated and taken underground to the ruins of Metropolis where Batgirl works to find the data and reveal to the world. While they succeed in finding it, Raven casts a massive blackout over the world to prevent the video from being seen, and the Insurgency is forced to retreat before Flash comes to get Cyborg. Superman has Cyborg erase any data containing information on his killings so the incident will not repeat itself.

Cyborg appears in a prequel comic to the sequel game. He remained in prison with Superman, even after the League of Assassins and impostor Batman's Suicide Squad raid the Ryker's Island to free only Damian Wayne/the current Nightwing.

Cyborg appears in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), played by Ray Fisher. He first appears in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in a brief sequence of footage that is viewed by Wonder Woman. The footage depicts Cyborg's origin story. Cyborg, played by Fisher, makes a full appearance as one of the main characters in Justice League, released on November 17, 2017. Fisher is scheduled to reprise the role in upcoming DCEU films a stand-alone Flash film and a sequel to Justice League. A stand-alone Cyborg film was initially scheduled for a release date of April 3, 2020, but it has since been delayed.[61][62] In the films, the effects for his cybernetic parts are achieved using CGI.[63] Cyborg, played by Ray Fisher, will appear in Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021).[64]

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Victor Stone (New Earth) | DC Database | Fandom

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Victor Stone is a Cyborg. Kept alive by Prometheum plating and cybernetic enhancements, he feared of becoming an outcast, until he found a new family - the Teen Titans.

Victor Stone was the son of a pair of scientists, Silas and Elinore Stone, who decided to use him as a test subject for various intelligence enhancement projects. However, Victor grew to resent this treatment and fell in with a young miscreant named Ron Evers who led him into trouble with the law.[1] This was the beginning of a struggle where Victor strove for his own life engaging in pursuits his parents disapproved of such as athletics. In addition, Victor still kept bad company that led him into incidents such as when he was talked into participating in a street gang fight in which he was wounded. For the most part however, Victor still had a largely normal life under the circumstances where he also refused to follow his best friend's grandiose plans of racially motivated terrorism.

All that changed one day when he visited his parents at work at S.T.A.R. Labs. Coincidentally, an experiment in dimensional travel went horribly awry when a massive gelatinous monster crossed over an experimental portal and killed Victor's mother. The creature then turned on Victor and severely mutilated him before his father managed to force the creature back through the portal. To save his son, who was unconscious at this time, Victor's father outfitted him with experimental prostheses of his own design. However, the equipment could not be worn inconspicuously, and thus Victor was horrified upon regaining consciousness to see much of his body, including part of his face, replaced with sheer metallic limbs and implants. Although Victor wanted to die at this shock, he adjusted enough through his resulting physical therapy to control his implants with suitable skill.

Upon release from medical care, he found his life was seriously inconvenienced with the fearful reactions of the public at his implants; even his girlfriend rejected him. In addition, he was also disallowed his participation in athletics not only for his implants but for his poor grades which were further exacerbated by his long convalescence. However, when his old friend attempted to use Victor's troubles to manipulate him into attempting a terrorist attack on the United Nations, Victor found a new purpose as he equipped his weapons attachments and stopped his friend in a pitched battle on the UN building.

He joined the Teen Titans, initially for the benefit of a support group of kindred spirits and freaks and has remained with that group ever since. In addition, Victor found new friends who saw past his disfigurements to his own nobility such as a group of children who were adjusting to their own prostheses and idolized Victor with his fancy parts and exciting adventures as well as their beautiful therapist who took a shine to him herself.

Throughout his association with the Titans, Victor has been destroyed, reconstructed, assimilated by an alien race, and had his humanity restored. He later went on to mentor a new Teen Titans group, consisting mainly of sidekicks, most of whom have taken over the secret identities of former members (i.e. Tim Drake, the third Robin, instead of Dick Grayson, the original Robin and Titans leader), as well as stalwarts such as Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy, where they have fought enemies such as Deathstroke, Doctor Light, The Titans of Tomorrow and Superboy and Indigo during the Insiders storyline with a team up with the Outsiders.

Cyborg always had a problem with his humanity. Since he had lost most of his body in that horrible accident which turned him into a hero; he had always been challenged to maintain his human-side along side living with his robotic body. After a while Cyborg began to upgrade his body with new powers, weapons, and abilities. He became more of a robot; his voice changed and his mannerisms were more technical. Although he maintained he was still human not much was left. Eventually during the event of the Technis Imperative a robotic life form named Technis came to earth during it's universal search for knowledge and cataloging. When it tried to assimilate Earth the Titans stopped it, but Technis singled out Cyborg as he was practically a walking computer. Cyborg's one main crave was his humanity back to it's original level so he could be the athlete he always wanted to and Technis sought to serve this purpose. Technis was not one single being he was a mass of hundreds of them; beings who had a linked minded aptitude to collecting. So Cyborg joined their group in exchange for his soul, essentially. He became Cyberion and Technis became his family, but in the search and cataloging that spanned the universe Cyborg decided to ask Beast Boy to help him on his journey. Beast Boy accepted and Cyborg, now called Cyberion Technis, travelled around the universe until the day Technis was destroyed in a battle. This utterly changed Cyborg as he now lost his second family which shook loose his humanity again and he began to remember his old self and longed for it's return.[2]

After this entire event Beast Boy lost faith momentarily in his best friend and fled back to earth. Now entirely alone, Victor Stone, lost all sense of humanity in a matter of days. Without a team of Teen Titans on earth and with members spread across the globe Cyborg eventually came back to earth in a big way. He became Planet Cyberion and on his cascading trip back to earth he began assimilating and collect everything in his way until he became as big as the moon and when he returned to earth he overcame the moon and with it the JLA Watchtower. The Justice League was angered at this hostile takeover and attacked Cyborg not knowing the man within. Cyborg began to take every single Titan ever on the roster at all (including Green Lantern Kyle Rayner and Atom Ray Palmer. But since the Justice League attacked Cyborg his actions started to affect the Earth and it's atmosphere (he was riding on the moon). Horrible natural disasters and terrible technological threats and shut downs afflicted the earth plant-wide. All the Titans were brought in pods to Titan's Island in New York City. Once all of the Justice League, Young Justice, JLA Reserves, Titans and Teen Titans were brought together a massive fight broke out over the destruction of Cyborg vs. the savior of the world. This fight distracted Cyborg's programming and allowed a team of Leaguers and Titans to break off and head towards the moon where the main central power core of Cyborg's being as held. The Titans (mostly Beast Boy) succeeded in bringing the human out of Cyborg by manipulating his virtual reality environmental programming and using it on Cyborg himself; this produced an image of Victor's father that said only pleasant things to Victor. Victor's soul was finally free and Raven herself brought his soul to try and upload it into the Titan's mainframe computer. However Victor's soul rejected the computer programming and Beast Boy suggested putting his soul in the Omegadrome Suit and she did. Cyborg then became Omegadrome; the golden suit, shape shifting Cyborg.[3]

During Infinite Crisis, Cyborg joined Donna's New Cronus Team that went to investigate a hole in the universe that was discovered during the Rann-Thanagar War. He left Beast Boy in charge of the Titans while he was gone. They arrived at the re-set center of the universe and with the help of assorted heroes, aided in the defeat of Alexander Luthor, who was attempting to re-create the Multiverse and build a perfect Earth from it.

Cyborg was fused together with Firestorm after returning to Earth. This was caused by the energy ripples caused by Alexander Luthor Jr. which altered the Zeta Ray Beams the heroes were going to use to return home.[4]

After being severely damaged during the events of Infinite Crisis, Cyborg was rebuilt over time in thanks to Tower caretakers Wendy and Marvin. He awoke one year later to find a wholly different group of Titans led by Robin, the only member from the team he formed prior to going into space. Cyborg felt that members such as Kid Devil and Ravager were hardly worthy of being Titans, and thus was attempting to find a way to re-form "the real Titans".

After the team along with the Doom Patrol defeated the Brotherhood of Evil, Cyborg asked Beast Boy to rejoin the Titans, but Gar refused saying that his skills were needed with the Patrol. After returning to Titans Tower, Cyborg began reviewing the security tapes during the last year, in which it appears that he was looked to by all the Titans of the past year for a shoulder to lean on, despite being in a coma-like state.

Although Cyborg did retain the position of statesman amongst the Teen Titans and occasionally played second-in-command to Robin's lead, he no longer operated as a Titan in any official capacity.

Shortly thereafter, Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman agreed that Cyborg should be offered membership in the new Justice League. However, following a battle against Amazo, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) and Black Canary took over the formation of the JLA, and Cyborg was not included among the roster.[5]

Cyborg began putting together a new branch of Titans East which consisted of Anima, Dove, Hawk, Lagoon Boy, Little Barda and Power Boy. During a training exercise, the team was attacked by an unknown foe and Cyborg was severely injured.[6] This incident inspires the original members of the "New" Teen Titans to regroup and investigate the situation.[7]

Cyborg's new team didn't work out and when the new Teen Titans formed after his Titan's East's destruction he played second in command again. Although not officially on the roster he helped them on their investigations; he later joined officially and headed the new team of Teen Titans. They had many adventures together when their numbers started to grow and the founding members started to move on to bigger things. Wonder Girl began to lead this new team and they moved to Titans Tower in San Francisco, California. Soon the old founding members joined an unofficial team called the Titans to work as a family and a place to relax from their all overwhelming lives. But the peace didn't last when lives started to overlap and intersect and fewer members started showing up.

When the Titans fell apart again, Cyborg joined the JLA alongside Dick (as Batman) and Donna Troy. Officially on the team, he did not enter the field of battle much. Instead, he devoted his time to helping improve the Red Tornado's android body.

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Victor Stone (New Earth) | DC Database | Fandom

‘A Late Chrysanthemum’: A short story collection full of pathos and maturity – The Japan Times

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There is something discernibly old-school about this anthology of short stories. In this solid introduction to Japanese literature of the 20th century, translator Lane Dunlop includes the work of literary giants such as Osamu Dazai and Yasunari Kawabata, and there are none of the felons, sociopaths, shut-ins or cyborgs that stalk the pages of most contemporary literature. The dialogue is muted but expressive, the inner emotions of characters are held in check and inference prevails over explicit description. When there are shocks and revelations, they are released in the fullness of time, like depth charges.

A Late Chrysanthemum: Twenty-One Stories from the Japanese, by various authorsTranslated by Lane Dunlop178 pagesTUTTLE PUBLISHING

In the aptly named Infatuation, Naoya Shiga traces the course of a mans extramarital affair. The spouse compares his partners drab and pathetic appearance to that of his young lover, a woman whose flesh was like the pure white meat of a crab caught in northern seas. While showing that he has no affection for her, he derives pleasure from the torment he inflicts on his long-suffering wife. Shiga gives little indication of his own position on infidelity, but hints at the psychological damage wreaked on marriages by male narcissism.

We remain in the morally dubious world of sexual fixation with The Wagtails Nest by Shiro Ozaki. Here, a man enjoying a long sojourn at a country inn begins to take an interest in an orphaned adolescent living in a nearby temple. Again, the imagery draws analogies between the delectably edible and the human body, descriptions that are likely to make many contemporary readers flinch. The narrator, in this instance, compares changes to the girls complexion to conditions during the rainy season when a loquat takes on the color of ripeness day by day. Any reservations we might have to read or, in an act of unconscious complicity, allow such retrogressive attitudes to women, are moderated by the craft demonstrated by these masters of the short story form. Even with the hapless characters that appear in Kobo Abes surrealist entries, the entire collection reminds us of the Japanese sensitivity for revealing details.

Toward the latter half of the collection, an intimation of twilight, of the denouement of life and beauty, settles on the book. In the title story, A Late Chrysanthemum, Fumiko Hayashi, the only female writer in the book, gives us a poignant and meticulously detailed portrait of a woman in her late 50s waiting for the arrival of an ex-lover she has not seen for many years. The character, who believes her retreating beauty can still be saved with a thorough regimen that involves the application of expensive creams to her face and thighs and a drop of sake to flush the cheeks, resolves that she must look even more youthful than she had that time when they parted. It would be a defeat if she let him feel her age.

Its a poignant ending to an anthology that resonates with pathos and resigned maturity.

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'A Late Chrysanthemum': A short story collection full of pathos and maturity - The Japan Times

Getting gene therapy to the brain | Penn Today – Penn Today

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A lone genetic mutation can cause a life-changing disorder with effects on multiple body systems. Lysosomal storage diseases, for example, of which there are dozens, arise due to single mutations that affect production of critical enzymes required to metabolize large molecules in cells. These disorders affect multiple organs including, notably, the brain, causing intellectual disability of varying degrees.

Gene therapy holds promise to address these conditions, but the brains own protective mechanismthe blood-brain barrierhas been a formidable challenge for researchers working to develop one.

In a new study published in the journal Brain, a team led by John H. Wolfe, a researcher with Penns School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine and the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, successfully applied a gene therapy platform to completely correct brain defects in a large animal model of a human genetic disease.

This is the first example of a large-brain mammal with a bona fide human genetic disease that has intellectual disability as part of the human syndrome where weve been able to correct the biochemistry and pathologic lesions in the whole brain, says Wolfe.

Wolfe has worked on models of human genetic diseases that impact the brain for many years. With gene therapy, a delivery vehicletypically a viral vectoris used to provide the normal version of a mutated gene to correct a condition. Wolfe and other scientists working in this area have made steady progress to treat neurogenetic diseases in rodents. However, applying the same treatment to the much larger brain of higher mammals has only been able to produce partial corrections.

Theres been a lot of excitement for the last 10 years or so that specific vectors can be injected into the blood and enter the brain, says Wolfe. They do cross the blood-brain barrier. One such treatment with restricted distribution has been effective in treating a disease that primarily affects the spinal cord.

And while scientists have shown these therapies can reverse the pathology throughout the brains of mice, its been hard to judge what effect it would have in patients, as the rodent brains have a much smaller cerebral cortex than larger mammals, like humans.

In the current study, the team used an animal model with a brain more similar to humans, cats, to assess the effectiveness of a gene-correcting therapy for one type of lysosomal storage disease: a condition called alpha-mannosidosis, which naturally occurs in cats and results from a mutated copy of the alpha-mannosidase gene.

Having refined the gene-delivery technique during many years of work, the researchers selected a specific vector that they showed, in mice, was capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier to reach sites throughout the brain.

They next delivered the vector, containing a reporter gene, to normal cats. Several weeks later, they were able to find evidence that the corrected gene had distributed to various parts of the brain, including the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, and mid-brain.

Finally the research team assessed the therapy in cats with alpha-mannosidosis, using either a low or high dose of the vector. They injected the therapy into the carotid artery, so that it would go directly to the brain before traveling to other parts of the body. Compared to untreated cats, treated animals had a significant delayed onset of certain neurological symptoms and a longer lifespan; those that received the higher dose of the vector delivered through the carotid artery lived the longest.

Its a big advance, says Wolfe. Nobody has been able to treat the whole brain of a large-brained animal before. Were hopeful that this will translate into clinical use in humans.

Wolfe cautions, however, the findings dont amount to a cure.

These were significant improvements, but they were only just improvements on a serious condition, Wolfe says. The cats werent cured, and we dont know what impact this has on mental ability. However, since the pathology is found throughout the brain, it is thought that complete correction will be necessary.

As alpha-mannosidosis is a childhood-onset disease with no cure, however, any improvements that lessen the severity of symptoms are welcome. The approach the researchers developed may potentially be employed to treat many other diseases that affect the whole central nervous system.

In future work, Wolfe and his collaborators hope to refine their methods to achieve the same outcomes with a lower dose, making an effective treatment safer as well as more affordable. And they will continue to work to understand the details of why their treatment works, including precisely how the vector travels through the brain, a line of investigation that could shed light on additional strategies to address these serious disorders.

John H. Wolfe is a Stokes Investigator of the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute, director of the Walter Flato Goodman Center for Comparative Medicine Genetics at the School of Veterinary Medicine, and a professor of pathology and medical genetics in Penn Vets Department of Pathobiology and in the Perelman School of Medicines Department of Pediatrics.

Wolfes coauthors on the work were Sea Young Yoon, Jacqueline E. Hunter, Sanjeev Chawla, Dana L. Clarke, Caitlyn Molony, Patricia A. ODonnell, Jessica H. Bagel, Manoj Kumar, Harish Poptani, and Charles H. Vite.

The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (grants DK063973, OD010939, TR001878, and NS007180).

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