I don't want to be pessimistic

But this could be the most catastrophic application of Hultgreen-Curie Syndrome in human history:

Scientists managed to capture the very first direct image of a black hole - and it was all thanks to a graduate at MIT. Three years ago Dr. Katie Bouman, now 29, created an algorithm that collects data from telescopes across the world to stitch together a photograph of the phenomenon which is 55million light years away.

Her work, which essentially turned Earth into a virtual telescope, has been praised across the political spectrum by First Daughter Ivanka Trump, Kamala Harris and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and by A-listers including Sophia Bush and Olivia Munn.

Without her groundbreaking work, the supermassive black hole would be simply impossible to capture because it would need a 10,000-kilometer wide telescope dish to even attempt it. The largest telescope dish in the world currently is just a 1,000ft in diameter.

It's a magnificent scientific achievement, no doubt about it. But it's a first, a very big first, and that's precisely what makes me nervous about the whole thing.

Hultgreen-Curie waits

The RAF foolishly decides to defy Hultgreen-Curie Syndrome:

First woman to command an RAF fast jet squadron named as Wing Commander Nikki Thomas. Wg Cdr Thomas is expected to lead bombing missions over Iraq this summer.  A woman who has become the first to command an RAF fast jet squadron is expected to lead bombing missions over Iraq this summer.

​Wing Commander Nikki Thomas​, who took charge of the newly reformed No 12 Squadron at RAF Marham in Norfolk​ ​on Friday​, flew a daring low mission to help foil a deadly rocket attack on a UK base in Afghanistan. The 36-year-old is a weapons system operator with extensive experience of combat operations, clocking up more than 35 missions in Afghanistan within three months alone. 

One wishes the Wing Commander the best of luck, but let's face it, the odds are not on her side. It's a daring move, especially after the first female Royal Navy captain lasted all of three months.

In not entirely unrelated news, the Marines are finding it hard to find a single woman who can pass the officer course:

Two female Marine officers who volunteered to attempt the Corps’ challenging Infantry Officer Course did not proceed beyond the first day of the course, a Marine Corps spokesperson confirms to the Free Beacon. The two were the only female officers attempting the course in the current cycle, which began Thursday in Quantico, Virginia.

With the two most recent drops, there have been 29 attempts by female officers to pass the course since women have been allowed to volunteer, with none making it to graduation. (At least one woman has attempted the course more than once.) Only three female officers have made it beyond the initial day of training, a grueling evaluation known as the Combat Endurance Test, or CET. Male officers also regularly fail to pass the CET, and the overall course has a substantial attrition rate for males.

The Marine Corps spokesperson, Captain Maureen Krebs, told the Free Beacon that the two officers, “did not meet the standards required of them on day one in order to continue on with the course.” Fifteen male officers also did not meet the standards. Of the 118 officers who began the course, 101 proceeded to the second day. 

It's mildly amusing to see that the reporter feels the need to point out that men have been known to fail the course as well, although at least he's honest enough to provide the statistics that demonstrate show 13 percent of the male candidates failed CET, compared to 100 percent of the female candidates.

The Marines are under tremendous pressure to water down their standards. One hopes, for the sake of future Marines, they will stand firm nevertheless. And we can be all but certain that if a woman ever does pass the course, she'll be a strong candidate for Hultgreen-Curie Syndrome.

Mr. Hobbes has the answer

When a suspension simply isn't enough:

Heather Cook, the first female bishop of the Episcopal Church in Maryland, has been suspended following a hit-and-run accident on Saturday in which she reportedly hit a bicyclist on Roland Avenue.  The bicyclist, Thomas Palermo, later died at the hospital.

According to a report from Baltimore television station WBAL, the motorist left the scene of the accident, but then returned a short time later.  Her car was heavily damaged, with a hole in the windshield on the passenger side.  The bicycle was destroyed.

Cook, 58, was elected in May 2014 as Bishop Suffragan, second in command in the Maryland Episcopal Diocese, under Bishop Eugene Sutton.

It's just like the Good Samaritan. Only the complete opposite. It's an interesting twist on Hultgreen-Curie Syndrome, however. Usually female firsts kill themselves, not others.

Flirting with Hultgreen-Curie

On the plus side, at least she didn't manage to get herself killed while sinking the ship. Compared to the average female pioneer, the soon-to-be ex-commander is practically a success story:

The first female commander of a Royal Navy warship has been sent home after allegedly having an affair with another officer. Commander Sarah West, 42, took charge of the frigate HMS Portland in May 2012, but has been sent home from duty after claims she was having a relationship with a male officer on the same ship.

This would breach the Armed Forces’ Code of Social Conduct, which prohibits personnel from having relationships with subordinates if they compromise ‘operational effectiveness’. While the Royal Navy is investigating the affair, Cdr West, from Grimsby, Lincolnshire, retains her position as commander of HMS Portland. It is not known whether the male officer is married.

It's certainly an interesting idea to have warships commanded by women. It poses a fascinating question: does the entire ship stay in port when the captain pulls the common Navy trick of getting herself pregnant right before a scheduled deployment? Since Commander West was "sent home from duty" but "retains her position as commander of HMS Portland", I suppose we have our answer. This may prove a whole new front of 4GW.

"Mr. Lee, this is your mission. You are ordered to seduce and impregnate Captain Mary Wettlaufer, commanding officer of the USS Stennis. Our informants report that her carrier group is being sent to the South China Sea. Under no circumstances can the Stennis be permitted to leave Bremerton!"

"Yes, sir. This agent will do his duty, sir. But what is in this bottle, suicide pills?"

"Viagra, Mr. Lee. I fear you will need it, as Captain Wettlaufer is said to put the "dog" into "running dogs of capitalism"... your sacrifice in this regard will be noted by the Party and the Central Committee."

A Hultgreen-Curie near miss

Frankly, I'm surprised the woman didn't somehow manage to trip, fall, break her neck, and expire on the field during the tryout:

It was always a long shot that Lauren Silberman would wind up impressing an NFL team so much during a regional combine that they wound up signing her for a chance to compete to become their kicker this summer.  It’s a much longer shot after her day at the New York/New Jersey Regional Scouting Combine, held at Jets headquarters in New Jersey, ended early because of an injury. Mike Garafolo of USA Today reports that Silberman landed awkwardly after her first kickoff, which traveled just 16 yards, and then asked to see a trainer after a 14-yard kick on her second try.

To put those distances into perspective, Ender was kicking 20-yard field goals when he was eight years old. Video of this epic and historic kick, which marks a major step forward in the long march towards Fempire, is below.