Absolute Random Nonsense

Nazanin Afshin-Jam is an Iranian-Canadian human rights activist, former beauty queen, and diplomat, born in Tehran in 1979. Her family's experiences during the Islamic Revolution, including her father's arrest and torture, profoundly shaped her perspective on freedom and human rights. After fleeing Iran with her family and settling in Canada, Afshin-Jam pursued higher education, majoring in international relations and political science, and later earning a Master’s degree in diplomacy. She gained international recognition after being crowned Miss Canada in 2003 and placing second in the Miss World competition, which she used as a platform to advocate for human rights issues. "I am Canadian, but I will never lose my Persian heritage. I learned about Iran from my parents’ beautiful stories about our rich culture and contributions to civilization." 

When I was younger there was an older guy named Hasan who had a very deep and froggy voice and liked calling himself High C.He would do this weird slow motion dance and think he was very cool as he sipped on his drink although in reality his entire performance was very cringy. Thankfully after a while he gave up on this persona but only to start a different one which while not as bad but still made people cringe.  

Leah Kateb is a breakout reality TV star best known as the runner-up of Love Island USA Season 6. A fan-favorite often dubbed the "resident cool girl", she captivated audiences with her brutally honest personality, trendsetting style, and her dramatic but highly memorable coupling with Miguel Harichi. After hitting it off in the villa, she and Miguel Harichi left as one of the show's favorite couples. As of last summer, Leah has also firmly planted herself in the beauty industry as the creative director and refounder of clean fragrance brand Skylar (it happens to be a longtime favorite among Cosmo editors). In her new role, she’s deeply involved in reimagining Skylar and focused on weaving personal storytelling into every bottle. With her sophomore launch, that means paying tribute to her Persian roots. Meet her latest scent: Pomegranate Princess. Debuting at Sephora on March 21, Pomegranate Princess is a fruity gourmand that pays homage to Leah’s Iranian heritage—her par...

When I was in kindergarten we sang various songs in class. One of them was a song about Noah and his ark It's chorus line read "Who built the Ark? Noah, Noah Who built the ark? Brother Noah built the ark". We all sang it. I would imagine today parental permission would be needed for kids to participate in singing it. In some places it would probably be flat out banned.  

The music video for Carly Rae Jepsen's 2018 self-love anthem "Party for One" was directed by fashion and music video director Bardia Zeinali. Shot in a hotel in New York City, the cheeky, rom-com-inspired visual features Jepsen and a diverse cast of guests dancing, crying, and celebrating independence in their rooms. Zeinali, who is based in New York, first turned heads with the wildly funny song and video mashups he now posts to 90 thousand Instagram follower. As a proud Iranian creative, he often brings a unique cultural perspective to his projects, appreciating the craftsmanship and high-end aesthetic deeply ingrained in Persian heritage. He has noted in interviews how meaningful it is to represent the Iranian community in the competitive, Western-dominated fashion and television industries. "I am Iranian and my parents are Iranian, but I wasn't born there. I was born in Canada and I grew up in Canada. So I identify with that culture, but I do identify wit...

When I was in middle school I had thoughts about how to run when lying down and when sick (although not both at the same time). I had conversations with others asking for their opinion on how it could be done. Some people gave my tips about how to run when sick but few had any idea how to do so when lying down. I was never able to get complete instructions and as a result I was never able to run when lying down and run when sick.  

Professor Sarah Tabrizi (UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology) has been named in Nature's 10 list, recognizing the people involved in the most influential and important developments this year. Most recently, Professor Tabrizi’s leadership in the early phase clinical trial of the gene therapy AMT-130 has yielded a major step forward for the field - a reported 75% slowing of disease progression over 36 months - marking a monumental step toward a possible treatment for this fatal condition. “I like boxing”, she says, “and used to go about three times a week.” But she quickly lands a more reassuring punch: “Oh, don't worry, it's only pads, no contact! Although now I'm more into sea swimming. Oh, and I love running! You have to get the balance right between life and work; you need time for yourself and the people you love.” And she does take her own advice. “Your email will get no reply on a Saturday unless it's an emergency”, she chuckles. She admits to being more ha...

Many people like pandas. Their main reason is they think they are cute. Another positive is that they consider it extremely diverse as it is black, white and Asian. For the same reason some will hate pandas. It becomes a matter of perspective. I strongly associate pandas with two things. The first is the panda that we always saw on Pan Am literature inside a plane in the 70s. The second is a song that became popular in 2016 where all students at our school were into and when we scheduled a field trip to the Bronx Zoo most of them expressed they would take a selfie with the pandas. There were no pandas at the zoo that day.  

The Gateway Development Commission announced July 29 at the commission’s board meeting that James Starace will join GDC as chief of program delivery in August. Hamed Nejad, who has served as acting chief technical officer since September 2024, will transition into the role of chief engineer.  As chief of program delivery, Starace will oversee the department responsible for design and construction of the Hudson Tunnel Project. He will lead all aspects of remaining design and engineering, construction, interface management, and other technical work areas. Starace will also work closely with GDC’s supporting or executing partners (SEPs) – PANYNJ, Amtrak, and NJ TRANSIT – to identify and proactively mitigate risks that could impact the project’s schedule or budget. Starace will serve on GDC’s executive leadership team and will report directly to the CEO. In his new role as chief engineer, Nejad, reporting to the chief of program delivery, will continue to play a key role overseeing tec...