Hugh Likes Comics: Batmanga
Batman: The Juro Kuwata Batmanga Volunme 1
Written and Drawn by Juro Kuwata
Published by DC Comics
The Skinny: The Other ’60s Batman.
During the height of the 1960s Batman TV show, Juro Kuwata a manga-ka who brought the Dynamic Duo to Japan with his own unique spin on the Caped Crusader.
The resulting collection was not available in English in a complete format until 2014, but it is well worth your time and consideration. The art is a delightful mix of Golden Age DC and classic manga aesthetics, riding high on an international wave of the live-action Batman TV show’s success. The stories are all fairly straightforward and of their time, but also take some interesting swings. Eschewing the Dark Knight’s well-known rogues gallery, Kuwata turned his hand to making his own villains, opening with the very strong and exceptionally well-named "Lord Death Man" and setting Batman and Robin against a super-intelligent gorilla (not Gorilla Grodd) with a fun twist, a powerful mutant that echoes the creation of Marvel's X-Men while looking like a weird space alien, and The Human Ball, which probably sounded less hilarious in the original Japanese.
Kuwata's art is striking and iconic, although the stories feel somewhat poorly served by manga's black-and-white format. Several insert sections also include red tones for a deluxe feel, but one of the key clues for one of the villains includes the fact that his powers were color based. Which came out of left field in this black-and-white comic
Batman and Robin also have a distinct feel to them in this version, with Batman being much more of a man of action rather than a detective, and this Dick Grayson is delightfully sassy.
While not exactly ground-breaking, this collection of 'lost' Batman comics feels both classic and astonishingly different. Kuwata's style is distinct and iconic, while still highly recognizable, and Batman and Robin's adventures don't feel too far removed from his live-action TV Adventures. It is a curious little oddity that is well worth the time of fans of both anime and Batman, if only as a reminder of where the character has gone in his many years of publication history. Batmanga Volume 1 is available digitally from Comixology or in print from your local comics shop.
The Mountain’s Shadow is now available from Amazon and Smashwords!
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Mexican Chemical Engineer: Michael Kaminski
Michael Kaminski is a internationally recognized senior nuclear chemical engineer in the Strategic Security Sciences division of U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory. He is an expert in nuclear chemistry and radiological and nuclear materials with a record of innovation in nuclear waste management, nuclear chemical separations, functionalized microporous and nanoporous materials, and radiological threat response and recovery. His work currently focuses on establishing best practices internationally for preparing for and recovering from radiological and nuclear releases in an urban environment.
Kaminski states, "My mother emigrated from Mexico and my father lived in the Chicagoland area, which is where I was born. When I am not working, I enjoy coaching youth sports, spending time with my friends and family, and staying active through sports and fitness. I am blessed to live very close to many of my family members so I enjoy staying close to my family at parties and events."
“When I visit the younger ones [stidents] and tell them where my Mom is from, their eyes open and they have smiles on their faces,” said Kaminski, whose mother immigrated to the United States from Mexico’s San Luis Potosi. “They can immediately identify and think, ‘Hey, I am kind of like you! My parents were born there and came here.’ Through education, they can see themselves having a career like mine or any of the many powerful careers offered in STEM.”
Education
His journey at Argonne began in the DOE’s Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship program in 1992. He has worked full time at the lab since 1998.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign:
Ph.D., Nuclear Engineering with a Geochemistry Minor; 1998
M.S., Nuclear Engineering/Radioactive Waste Management; 1996
B.S., Nuclear Engineering, Cum Laude; 1994
MAJOR CONTRIBUTIONS/NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS
Kaminski has generated 30 inventions and 10 patents at Argonne, and his work has been highly cited in the scientific literature (more than 22,000 times).
Innovator: Applies broad range of capabilities to create unique technical solutions in chemical separations; materials for biomedical applications; and radioactive materials detection, decontamination, and recovery
Pioneered the use of magnetic, polymeric microparticles for the separation and concentration of metals, producing highly cited papers in extraction of actinide, fission products, and heavy metals (1998-2012).
Led a multi-institutional team to study magnetic, biodegradable polymers and the first descriptions of these for removal of toxins in vivo, which quickly established his worldwide expertise (2001-2012).
First reported paragenesis and properties of radioactive colloids from the corrosion of aluminum-based fuels and uranium metal fuel exposed to ground water. First reported novel synthesis methods and heat transport characteristics for fission product and transuranic waste forms (2005-2016).
Knowledge of nuclear fuel reprocessing schemes and functionalized surfaces led to the development of novel schemes for detection of nuclear–related species that do not rely on radioactive emission for detection, thereby avoiding the confounding problem of intense background radiation and prohibitive detection levels.
Unique expertise in nuclear engineering, chemistry and geochemistry led to development of novel methods to effect the decontamination of the urban environment and his unique international program in urban radiological decontamination including development of unique materials, approaches and tools. Includes the Argonne Supergel (hydrogel decontaminant capable of removing radioactivity from porous building materials), IWATERS (decontamination process that uses common reagents and materials to wash down surfaces and simultaneously recycle the contaminated water), and Radiological Recovery Logistics Tool (RRLT) (computer program that helps organize and recommend equipment assets for an expedited recovery operation following a wide area release of nuclear contamination).
Thought Leader: In global research on radiological decontamination and recovery for urban settings
Highly regarded by US EPA sponsors for his extensive technical expertise and numerous contributions to USG capabilities to prepare for and respond to radiological incidents including tools “to prioritize cleanup efforts, expedite recovery, and optimize resources,” and his ability to combine technical aptitude with to create practical approaches, guidelines and tools.
Worldwide recognition in urban resiliency led to collaborations with Israeli, British, Canadian, Swiss, and Singaporean allies and as the subject-matter expert (SME) for DoD and DHS, resulting in an invitation to serve on the IAEA mission First Experts Meeting in Fukushima, Japan (2016).
Hosted the first of its kind, International Workshop on the Use of Municipal and Commercial Equipment for Radiological Response and Recovery where SMEs from the U.S, the United Kingdom and Switzerland met to discuss the use of existing equipment reserves to compress the response timeline and recover from a radiological or nuclear contamination event in an urban environment (2016).
Launched an initiative to establish an International Technical Working Group for CBRN Mitigation and Recovery. With co-founders, recruited 30 participants representing 13 countries since launch in Nov. 2019. Currently finalizing the first position paper and initial working group structure on this effort (2019).
Mentor: Influences and invests in the next generation of diverse scientists and engineers.
“I hope [the students] see how special we are at the lab, what talent we look for in order to solve the world’s toughest problems, and that they are part of this,” said Kaminski. “They are part of the group of people who need to be involved in order for us to be most competitive.”
Served as advisor for more than a dozen graduate students and post-doctoral appointees and mentored 20 undergraduate students. Current team consists of a Postdoctoral appointee, a Doctoral student and a Doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois (Dept. of Physics, and Dept. of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering), and two Argonne Associates. Includes diverse gender and ethnic minorities.
Kaminski – who is of Mexican heritage – Co-founder (2003), Past Vice President and long-standing President (since 2010) of the Argonne Hispanic/Latino Club (HLC) Employee Resource Group (ERG). Under his leadership, the HLC has grown to approximately 80 official members per year for almost ten years. Initiated program that established five Chicagoland Hispanic youths scholarship programs and distributed more than $40,000 in scholarships.
Speaks at Career Day events held at local grade, middle, and high schools and is initiating a program to help provide minority professionals to local schools to improve community outreach at the Laboratory.
Awards:
Technical achievements awards include: Sun-Times Innovation Award; Council for Chemical Research Collaboration Award; Outstanding Technical Achievement Award (HENAAC -Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Conference); Hispanic Power Hitters in Technology and Business; and “40 under 40 in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics”
Argonne HLC (under Dr. Kaminski leadership) was the inaugural winner of the Argonne WIST Diversity Award in 2011.
University of Chicago Board of Governors Pinnacle of Education Award in 2014.
Nominated for The Richard S. Hodes, M.D. Honor Lecture Award, 2020 at Waste Management Symposia.
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Serves as Program Manager and Principal Investigator under the DOE Offices of Nuclear Energy and Environmental Management, DHS, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the U.S. EPA, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Navy, as well as internally funded seed grants and projects funded by other DOE Laboratories.
Funded by the US EPA for important work in nuclear and radiological response and recovery.
Brought in $24,900,000 of total funding to the Laboratory from his research leadership and innovation ($15,901,000 for his research team alone) (2001-2020).
Program manager and principal investigator for a multi-disciplinary team developing a Logistics Tool for DHS-FEMA that helps understand equipment options and allocate them for an expedited response and recovery following a wide area release of radioactive material. This highly regarded project recently received multi-year funding. (2018-)
Holds an Adjunct Associate Professor position at the University of Illinois in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering; Fellow in the Argonne-University of Chicago Institute for Genomics and Systems Biology; and Laboratory Point of Contact for Water Sensors.
PATENT/PUBLICATIONS SUMMARY
U.S. Patents Issued (8); Inventions Disclosed (32); Publications (247) including journal articles (67), book chapters (3), reports (47), presentations (145), and magazine and news articles (12).
Patent space: radiological surface decontamination, radiological response and recovery, materials for medical therapies.
Over 2300 citations in niche areas of study (H-index = 26, i10 index=56) ranks above the average Full Professors at the top ranked U.S. university departments of Mechanical Engineering and Nuclear Engineering.
Sources: (x) (x) (x) (x)
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HLC react to MC bringing them to a sex shop to find new toys/lingerie???
OMG I love this! I'm gonna have so much fun with this
HLC react to MC bringing them to a sex shop to find new toys and lingerie
Warnings: 18+ topics, the gang is 20+ years old btw, everybody is thirsty, Leander slander
Sebastian Sallow - His jaw is practically on the ground as you approach the shop entrance and he realizes what all the X's above the door mean. He's giggling like a schoolgirl as you drag him to the lingerie section, his head on a swivel trying to take everything in. "MC, babygirl, are we here for something in particular or should we just buy one of everything?" He's winking at you so much you almost wonder if he's having a stroke and there is an undeniable tent in his pants the entire time. As you leave you tell him you’re shocked he didn’t try anything in the dressing room. He admits it was a missed opportunity and will definitely do it next time, part of him wanting to demand you go back so he can correct this unthinkable situation.
Garreth Weasley - He’s shocked at the selection they have, and he follows you around as you try to look for a spicy new outfit. He plays with the thongs displayed on a table, twirling them around his fingers, accidentally sending one flying as he tugs on the straps. He’s much more behaved as you browse the toys, until he sees the jeweled butt plugs. He eagerly digs his hands into the bin looking for one with a red, heart shaped rhinestone, spinning around to face you when he finds one, his brows raised and a wicked grin on his face. “Oh you are so getting this, baby!”
Poppy Sweeting - She’s not quite sure why you brought her here. She feels very uncomfortable, but can’t help looking at the shelves as you slowly wander the aisles. When you make it to the dildo/strapon aisle you notice her falling behind as you keep moving, her shoes squeaking as she stops in her tracks in front of a mannequin wearing a strapon harness with a huge dildo, biting her lip. She eagerly grabs the packages off the shelf and you step close, peering over her shoulder. “Who exactly is that for?” you ask with a small chuckle. “You or me?” She spins around, taking you off guard, gently pushing you up against the opposite shelf. “ME.” Her lips crash onto yours, and you stand there making out as she rubs herself on your thigh.
Imelda Reyes - She is the one insisting you visit the shop. Once she gets inside her cheeks flush at the lingerie displays, desperately biting her tongue to keep from begging you to get some. While you browse the toy selection she complains at every one you pick up, insisting she could do a better job of pleasing you than “a cheap, mass produced toy ever could, MC!” You convince her to try a clitoral suction toy and a few hours later she’s screaming too much to eat her words as she has her fourth orgasm from the toy, squirting all over your face.
Natty Onai - She’s the most eager of everyone, running around the store picking up toys left and right, almost shouting “We’re trying this, MC, I’m not letting you say no.” She’s asking the teenage clerk for advice and info, making you want to hide your face. When she finally makes it to the lingerie section it gets worse. She’s picking out things for both of you, pouting when you say you don’t like the style or color. It takes her three armfulls to unload the cart and the final cost is outrageous.
Leander Prewett - He turns into a cocky bastard when you step into the store. “Oh these are great, MC, we should try them.” You roll your eyes at him, knowing full well he has NO experience with the cockring he’s holding. He gets upset when you pick up a dildo that’s larger than him, insisting “bigger isn’t always better”. When you make it to the lingerie he clams up, running his fingers over a lace teddy as if it’s an everyday object he couldn’t care less about. “Whatever you want, MC, you’ll look spectacular in any of it.” Constantly shifting around and adjusting his pants.
Amit Thakkar - Is so overwhelmed he has to wait outside. You’re about to check out when the door to the shop flys open and he charges inside. “Okay, I’ll give you ten minutes to show me things before I leave again, MC.” He steps close, whispering in your ear. “I’m only doing this because I love you…and I can’t stop thinking about you wearing the blue lingerie set that caught my eye before I ran out earlier.”
Ominis Gaunt - Blushes so hard you’re worried he’s going to pass out as you explain what all the toys do. When you get to the bondage gear his demeanor changes. He insists on holding the leather cuffs and whips as you describe them. He asks you to describe certain items in more detail when you awkwardly trail off, getting excited by his interest. He teasingly asks if you’d like him to use any of it on you, and calls you a naughty girl when you stutter out a soft “yes”. When it comes time to pick out lingerie you know he likes the feel of lace and silk, and pick out a few outfits that leave you modestly covered. He hums his approval of them, wishing he could feel them on your body instead of on a hanger. Once you’ve paid he rushes you out of the store, desperate to try out your new purchases.
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