Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Nest, Julie Cockburn

Share/Save/Bookmark

How the U.S. Almost Became a Nation of Hippo Ranchers


Around the turn of the 20th century, inexpensive meat, a product of American prosperity that had long been available to even the poorest immigrants, was suddenly in short supply. “Meatpackers blamed the grain prices and cattle shortages, butchers blamed the meatpackers, [and most everyone else] blamed the Beef Trust”—a nickname for the nation’s largest meatpacking companies—“for conspiring to profit at their expense,” says Catherine McNeur, a historian at Portland State University. 
The only one way to solve both problems at once, argued Louisiana Representative Robert F. Broussard, was to embrace hippopotamus ranching. On March 24, 1910, Broussard stood before the House Committee on Agriculture to lay out the details of his “American Hippo Bill”.
 He believed importing the hungry herbivores from Africa would rid Louisiana and Florida of the hyacinths smothering their waterways. When the animals were good and fat, farmers could take their inventory to slaughter, revitalizing America’s low-cost meat supply.
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Double ducks, Florentijn Hofman

via
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Manhattanhenge


This week New Yorkers celebrated the first Manhattanhenge of 2023.

Share/Save/Bookmark

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

When Squirrels Attack

Not this squirrel. Photo: Rosario Duva 

 

 On Monday morning, thousands of residents of the Silicon Valley city of Santa Clara were left without electricity. It seems squirrels were the culprit for the power outage.
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

A Moment of Zen


Photo by Maureen McLean/Shutterstock. 
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Louie sings Wellerman

Share/Save/Bookmark

Can humans ever understand how animals think?


Photograph: Régis Duvignau/Reuters

Humanity has traditionally justified its supremacy over all other animals – the fact that we breed them and keep them in cages, rather than vice versa – by our intellectual superiority.
Yet at a time when humanity’s self-image is largely shaped by fears of environmental devastation and nuclear war, combined with memories of historical atrocity, it is no longer so easy to say, with Hamlet, that man is “the paragon of animals” – the ideal that other creatures would imitate, if only they could. Nature may be “red in tooth and claw”, but creatures whose weapons are teeth and claws can only kill each other one at a time. Only humans commit atrocities such as war, genocide and slavery – and what allows us to conceive and carry out such crimes is the very power of reason that we boast about.
In his 2022 book If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal, Justin Gregg, a specialist in dolphin communication, takes this mistrust of human reason to an extreme. The book’s title encapsulates Gregg’s argument: if Friedrich Nietzsche had been born a narwhal instead of a German philosopher, he would have been much better off, and given his intellectual influence on fascism, so would the world. By extension, the same is true of our whole species. “The planet does not love us as much as we love our intellect,” Gregg writes. “We have generated more death and destruction for life on this planet than any other animal, past and present. Our many intellectual accomplishments are currently on track to produce our own extinction.” If human minds are incapable of solving the problems they create, then perhaps our salvation lies in encountering very different types of minds. 

  Share/Save/Bookmark

Monday, May 29, 2023

Cave Canem, Francesco Pergolesi



See more
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

In case no one has told you this lately, Baked Lab

Share/Save/Bookmark

Clarence and his flameless birthday cake, David Zinn

Share/Save/Bookmark

Why we sometimes feel invisible others


As Luke Robertson slogged further into his solo South Pole trek, he had more episodes of "felt presence". 

 Ben Alderson-Day, an associate professor of psychology at Durham University in the UK, is the author of a new book called Presence: The Strange Science and True Stories of the Unseen Other.
 He has found that these experiences are not limited to people in extreme situations. You may well have had the sense yourself at some point that someone is right there in the room with you, even though you can't see them. It's not uncommon after a bereavement or in people who have psychosis. 
As many as a quarter of those with Parkinson's report experiencing it. It can also happen when you're on the cusp of waking or falling asleep. For some the experience can occur as part of sleep paralysis, where you wake up, but can't move. 
People can have the strong sense that someone is in the room with them, or even sitting on their chest, pinning them down. Alderson-Day has found that half the time these experiences involving sleep paralysis involve a very frightening presence. A felt presence feels as though it's there with you in your personal space. It's hard to pin down exactly what a felt presence consists of. It's not experienced via the five physical senses of touch, sight, hearing, smell or taste, so it's not an hallucination. Objectively, in reality, there is nothing there at all. Yet they're not quite delusions either, which involve thoughts. Nor is it the same as imagining someone is there. 
People sometimes talk of something as nebulous as "a thickness in the air". It's almost like a sixth sense, which feels very real at the time. As Alderson-Day puts it: "It's too empty to be a hallucination, but too tangible to be a delusion." In his search for explanations, Alderson-Day turns to a combination of the physical and the psychological. With mountaineers and explorers, a lack of oxygen to the brain may play a part, something which is also known to induce hallucinations.
 But there's also the survival aspect. Is the mind somehow conjuring up a presence that helps us through? 

  Share/Save/Bookmark

12-year-old boy graduates college with 5 degrees


Clovis Hung, a mere 12 years old, has set a new record at Fullerton College in California, becoming the youngest person to graduate — and he didn't stop at just one degree. 
Hung has been awarded five associate of arts degrees in the areas of history; social sciences; social behavior and self-development; arts and human expression; and science and mathematics. 
The precocious scholar, who first enrolled via the school's special-admit program at the age of 9, surpassed the previous record held by 13-year-old Jack Rico. Homeschooled by his mother, Song Choi, who recognized his early intellectual curiosity, Hung started his college career with a single class and gradually added more. Describing him as inquisitive, diligent, and self-disciplined, Choi noted her son's drive for knowledge surpassed what traditional public schools could offer. Faculty, such as Biology Professor Kenneth Collins, initially expressed concern about Hung's ability to relate to his older peers, but found their fears were "unfounded." Hung's next ambition?
 Acquiring a pilot's license at 16 and, one day, going to Mars.
 more
Share/Save/Bookmark

Everything is going to be alright, Martin Creed

Visual - Poetry
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Saturday, May 27, 2023

You are not alone.

“We are still alive”, Thomas Hirschhorn 
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Coral Guards, Jason deCaires Taylor




A new cast of hybrid characters continues Jason deCaires Taylor’s effort to revitalize the Great Barrier Reef. Recently installed off the coast of Townsville, Australia, as part of the Museum of Underwater Art, Ocean Sentinels is comprised of eight figurative sculptures that meld the textures of marine life with the likeness of influential conservationists.
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Guppy, Maud Madsen


via
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Inside the world's longest-running mermaid gathering


Hundreds gathered for the California Mermaid Convention: a three-day celebration of the increasingly popular practice of “mermaiding”. 
Part cosplay, part athletic endeavor, the hobby ranges from casual dress up to certified divers who strap on “monofins” and swim together in a pool or the open ocean.
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Stars could be invisible within 20 years


Summer’s advent had again revealed a curse of modern times: light pollution. The increased use of light-emitting diodes (LED) and other forms of lighting are now brightening the night sky at a dramatic rate, scientists have found. Indiscriminate use of external lighting, street illumination, advertising, and illuminated sporting venues is now blinding our view of the stars.
In 2016, astronomers reported that the Milky Way was no longer visible to a third of humanity and light pollution has worsened considerably since then. At its current rate most of the major constellations will be indecipherable in 20 years, it is estimated. 
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

itsPeteski

Share/Save/Bookmark

Friday, May 26, 2023

Squeeze the Day



Incidental Comics
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Have you ever heard of the Cheerios Effect?


The derivatives of position named snap, crackle, and pop? That time physicists compared the compression properties of Cocoa Puffs vs. Rice Krispies? Cereal has been a toy for physics experiments for some time. You can read about four ways cereal has advanced the science and the teaching of physics at Cracked.
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Check out the new Lego Pac-Man arcade set


New LEGO Icons PAC-MAN Arcade set is a detailed recreation of the classic 80's arcade game. 
 
Share/Save/Bookmark

Neuralink approved for in-human study


Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain-implant company, said on Thursday it had received a green light from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to kickstart its first in-human clinical study, a critical milestone after earlier struggles to gain approval. 
 Musk has predicted on at least four occasions since 2019 that his medical device company would begin human trials for a brain implant to treat severe conditions such as paralysis and blindness.
Yet the company, founded in 2016, only sought FDA approval in early 2022 – and the agency rejected the application, seven current and former employees told Reuters in March. The FDA had pointed out several concerns to Neuralink that needed to be addressed before sanctioning human trials, according to the employees. 
Major issues involved the lithium battery of the device, the possibility of the implant’s wires migrating within the brain and the challenge of safely extracting the device without damaging brain tissue. Thursday’s FDA approval comes as US lawmakers are urging regulators to investigate whether the make-up of a panel overseeing animal testing at Neuralink contributed to botched and rushed experiments. Neuralink has already been the subject of federal investigations.

  Share/Save/Bookmark

Thursday, May 25, 2023

Boris Bućan has died aged 77.

Share/Save/Bookmark

Boomerang, Mikey Yates




See more
 
Share/Save/Bookmark