PinnedMember-onlyHello there and welcome to my profile. Scroll down for my latest stories below.Links to my most popular stories in: Human body health and wellness Evolution and Ancient paleobiology Interesting plants and animals Conservation / climate change / endangered species Research organisms /…Biology1 min readBiology1 min read
Published inILLUMINATION-Curated·Sep 9Member-onlyNews From TurtlesWhat turtles can tell us about our planet — Ever since I can remember, turtles have been one of my favourite animals. When I was young and living in a suburban town on Long Island, NY, we often had box turtles wandering in our street or our back yards. …Nuclear Energy9 min readNuclear Energy9 min read
Sep 2The median age in the House is 57.9, and 65.3 in the Senate. That suggests … I don’t know, insanity maybe. Why do we have so many older people mapping out a future they won’t be here for?No Country For Old White Men3.4K68Michelle TeheuxThe problem here isn't so much the age of the people; it's the whole structure of our society.The problem here isn't so much the age of the people; it's the whole structure of our society. …1 min read1 min read
Sep 2In many ways, we humans are spectacularly bad at adapting — unless we’re adapting to something that feels easy or simple in the short-term. We’re especially slow about even considering that we turn around and change courses unless we can see a significant and, more importantly, immediate reward.Endless Pursuit of Profit Kills Progress2.3K28Shannon AshleyYup! Right on target, Shannon!Yup! Right on target, Shannon! People hate to change ANYTHING about their lives. Especially in Western cultures. It's all about feeling good in the moment and the hell with anything or anybody else. They don't have enough to eat? Not my problem. They can't afford a house? Not my problem. They can't afford to get treated for an illness? Not my problem. And let's not even talk about education! They went to college, took all those courses about how to teach kids. So what!~ These are MY kids and they aren't teaching them what I want them to know and they're teaching about stuff I don't want them to know. Doesn't matter what's best for our society and other people. Me, me, me, mine.1 min read1 min read
Published inILLUMINATION-Curated·Aug 26Member-onlyChoosing Camouflage ColoursHogfish can choose which colour they change into — Camouflage is a necessary survival strategy for a variety of living beings including people. Like hunters and soldiers. Many of the animals that employ camouflage, do it to prevent being preyed upon and taken for some other animal’s dinner! …Biology8 min readBiology8 min read
Published inILLUMINATION-Curated·Aug 21Member-onlySuck it up Sponges-Comb Jellies Came First!New data has comb jellies replacing sponges as the closest known living relative of the very first animals that appeared on Earth. — There is a long-standing paradigm which contends that evolution progressed stepwise; from simple to more complex, less sentient to more sentient, and so forth. And for the most part, this is what we observe. But not always. One question that evolutionary scientists have sought to answer is what creatures alive…Evolution12 min readEvolution12 min read
Aug 12No Spin, No BS, No Hype. Here’s How the Economy Is Really Doing — Part 2.1.7K37umair haqueAs always, spot on, umair!As always, spot on, umair! I'm Canadian and I feel it, too. Pre-COVID, a 5# box of blueberries cost me $10. Now it's $20! And my mortgage just increased $800 a month when the Bank of Canada raised it's rates last month! This is not an easy, pleasant time to live in, economically. Yes, I know Trump and his MAGAs are NOT the answer but the Dems are not giving much hope either! At least not in the short term.1 min read1 min read
Jul 25The GOP Is Building a Fascist America, One Step at a Time2.2K39umair haqueAs Jewish person who is only 1 generation down from World War II (my father was a radio operator on…As Jewish person who is only 1 generation down from World War II (my father was a radio operator on a bomber in the war), this is just too close for comfort. It is so hard to believe that the whole effort of tracking down and trying Nazi criminals at…1 min read1 min read
Jun 25The growth of conscisouness is the expansion of empathy, grace, truth, beauty, justice, goodness, wisdom, courage, humility. See any of that happening? Or just the explosive growth of every flavor of folly, every crazed admixture of stupidity, history’…The Acceleration of the Age of the Idiot3.6K56umair haqueNot in the popular media, you won't!Not in the popular media, you won't! And certainly in the crazy Far Right GOP. Because none of those traits will garner power and wealth. And that seems to be all that matters to "the stupids" in America and around the world today. Those positive attributes all require that you…1 min read1 min read
Jun 1…magoguery, scapegoating, Big Lies — they’re…magoguery, scapegoating, Big Lies — they’re not that. They lead people to self-destruction, because in periods of difficulty, societies need investment, cooperation, and long-term thinking, not just burning down your very own institutions to have the cheap thrill of hate and power.Why Are People So Pessimistic About the Economy? Because…It Sucks1.4K18umair haqueThis sounds like solutions to me, @TomWright.This sounds like solutions to me, @TomWright. Whatever happened to philanthropy and anti-trust legislation?! Well, we know what happened and this is the result. A bunch of self-centred, self-righteous egotistical bullies who only care about how much money and power they can obtain and wield. And everyone else can go f@#%k themselves. Sad. Very. Sad.1 min read1 min read