My web browser had a story about the relative speed of roadrunners and coyotes! I learned coyotes are much faster than roadrunners.
BB1lrhrC?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=d399df207420488086b1f829636c7fe4&ei=11tpacing the Myth: The True Speeds of Coyotes and Roadrunners Revealed (msn.com)
So was the WB roadrunner nuclear powered? Was Wiley slow due to anvil injuries, or just, well, slow?
We’re on our last day in Seville, going next to Granada for a day and then on to Madrid. A couple more photos, at the risk of boring anyone with vacation photos:
It's going to be a grandbaby filled weekend. Daughter #2's family is coming from Duluth to meet the new babe. We're having a cookout at Daughter #1's house. The weather will be lovely, 69 and sunny. Grammy's heart will be full after this weekend.
I'm glad to see that the House GOP is concerned with cleanliness and coming up with what they think are clever names for their bills:
"Today the House Rules Committee got a new chair as Michael Burgess (R-TX) took the reins from Tom Cole (R-OK). Burgess will oversee his first hearing on Monday as the committee meets to examine six bills that appear to be designed to feed the Republicans’ culture wars by denying the secretary of energy’s power to establish new energy conservation standards. Those bills are the “Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act,” the “Liberty in Laundry Act,” the “Clothes Dryers Reliability Act,” the “Refrigerator Freedom Act,” the “Affordable Air Conditioning Act,” and the “Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act.”
Good morning. Another cold, wet cloudy day. The mothership is reporting on the recent summit between President Biden, the president of the Philippines (Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos) and the prime minister of Japan, and on our defense relationships in the Indo-Pacific.
Today’s special animal friend is the banded mongoose, Mungos mungo. We’ve moved westward from Lake Kariba to Victoria Falls, where these sturdy little carnivores thrive in the wet environment. They have a head-and-body length up to 18” and a tail a little shorter than the body. Their build is kind of hefty in the abdominal area, their fur is rough and gray-brown, and they have attractive vertical stripes that make me think of a 9-banded armadillo.
In the Herpestidae family of mongooses and mongoose-type-things such as meerkats and kusimanse, there are 34 extant species in 15 genera and 2 subfamilies. They’re all very cute, in that cat/weasel/otter way that many small predators are cute. As the moniker “Herpestidae” indicates, the family members are known for eating reptiles. Some species in India famously fight cobras, but the banded carnivore is a generalist, with millipedes and beetles making up most of its diet. They also eat many other invertebrates, small amphibians and reptiles – including snakes – and birds and their eggs.
Like meerkats, but unlike many other mongoose species, banded meerkats live in extended-family groups. The average group size is 20, but it ranges from 7 (dad, mom, and pups) when food is scarce to 40 in extremely well-resourced habitats. These groups get along pretty well with limited heirarchy, although there is some competition within the group for mates. All the females are permitted to mate, but older females have larger litters with a better survival rate. If a group gets too big, young females may be pushed out, often joining an unattached male to start a new group. The group dens together in termite mounds, rock shelters, or thick brush. They move their residence every two or three days, if possible.
There is a high level of aggression between groups. Territories are scent-marked and patrolled, but incursions are frequent, and fights often result in injury or death. Meanwhile, females will sometimes mate with outgroup males during the confusion. I’m sure there’s a species-level genetic advantage to this. Infant mortality is high, with about 50% of pups dying before 3 months of age.
OJ Simpson’s death has me thinking. He was once on top of the world. Heisman trophy, NFL star, Hall of Famer, movies, commercials (remember running through airports?), lots of charisma. But clearly he had some demons if as many people seem to believe he was really a murderer. I find myself wondering how many people realize that he’s also responsible for unleashing the Kardashians on us, who got their big break and entry into the public eye by having their father be on OJ’s legal team. I’m not sure how that explains becoming famous but that’s a different question. In my mind they kicked off a lot of change in our culture and much of it not necessarily positive. Reality TV, being famous without any particular talent, exploiting social media by putting your recorded life online for all to see. Deep thoughts for a Friday.
Good morning. I think Haidt is advocating for a little more support for parents, especially in the form of "no phones in school," rather than just saying, "You're on your own, Mom. Do better."
Speaking of which, "Do better," has become an annoying trope. I saw it all over The Dispatch comments recently when people were (legitimately) saying that an interviewee on a podcast was a Hamas shill.
"Do better" is now on my list of patronizing claptrap, along with "by the way," "just by the way," "for your information," and "just for your information." In fact, I think "just" as an adverb should be eradicated. It can remain as an adjective, as in, "The court's decision was just."
CynthiaW
My web browser had a story about the relative speed of roadrunners and coyotes! I learned coyotes are much faster than roadrunners.
BB1lrhrC?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=d399df207420488086b1f829636c7fe4&ei=11tpacing the Myth: The True Speeds of Coyotes and Roadrunners Revealed (msn.com)
So was the WB roadrunner nuclear powered? Was Wiley slow due to anvil injuries, or just, well, slow?
We’re on our last day in Seville, going next to Granada for a day and then on to Madrid. A couple more photos, at the risk of boring anyone with vacation photos:
The many colorful, narrow streets and alleys fascinate me, probably because it’s so different than I’m used to: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c_vsNSIwb14zhyMvtKW2otWKimBQ38Nu/view?usp=drivesdk
The Plaza de Espana. Gorgeous architecture surrounded by a beautiful park. https://drive.google.com/file/d/11ELHvmqI0MNfDUNQDcdFvKI4E0C2CVeb/view?usp=drivesdk
It's going to be a grandbaby filled weekend. Daughter #2's family is coming from Duluth to meet the new babe. We're having a cookout at Daughter #1's house. The weather will be lovely, 69 and sunny. Grammy's heart will be full after this weekend.
I'm glad to see that the House GOP is concerned with cleanliness and coming up with what they think are clever names for their bills:
"Today the House Rules Committee got a new chair as Michael Burgess (R-TX) took the reins from Tom Cole (R-OK). Burgess will oversee his first hearing on Monday as the committee meets to examine six bills that appear to be designed to feed the Republicans’ culture wars by denying the secretary of energy’s power to establish new energy conservation standards. Those bills are the “Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act,” the “Liberty in Laundry Act,” the “Clothes Dryers Reliability Act,” the “Refrigerator Freedom Act,” the “Affordable Air Conditioning Act,” and the “Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act.”
Exactly.
Good morning. Another cold, wet cloudy day. The mothership is reporting on the recent summit between President Biden, the president of the Philippines (Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos) and the prime minister of Japan, and on our defense relationships in the Indo-Pacific.
Today’s special animal friend is the banded mongoose, Mungos mungo. We’ve moved westward from Lake Kariba to Victoria Falls, where these sturdy little carnivores thrive in the wet environment. They have a head-and-body length up to 18” and a tail a little shorter than the body. Their build is kind of hefty in the abdominal area, their fur is rough and gray-brown, and they have attractive vertical stripes that make me think of a 9-banded armadillo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRzFs39gNOs
In the Herpestidae family of mongooses and mongoose-type-things such as meerkats and kusimanse, there are 34 extant species in 15 genera and 2 subfamilies. They’re all very cute, in that cat/weasel/otter way that many small predators are cute. As the moniker “Herpestidae” indicates, the family members are known for eating reptiles. Some species in India famously fight cobras, but the banded carnivore is a generalist, with millipedes and beetles making up most of its diet. They also eat many other invertebrates, small amphibians and reptiles – including snakes – and birds and their eggs.
They’re creative in finding food sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXW_1i1pA0w
Like meerkats, but unlike many other mongoose species, banded meerkats live in extended-family groups. The average group size is 20, but it ranges from 7 (dad, mom, and pups) when food is scarce to 40 in extremely well-resourced habitats. These groups get along pretty well with limited heirarchy, although there is some competition within the group for mates. All the females are permitted to mate, but older females have larger litters with a better survival rate. If a group gets too big, young females may be pushed out, often joining an unattached male to start a new group. The group dens together in termite mounds, rock shelters, or thick brush. They move their residence every two or three days, if possible.
There is a high level of aggression between groups. Territories are scent-marked and patrolled, but incursions are frequent, and fights often result in injury or death. Meanwhile, females will sometimes mate with outgroup males during the confusion. I’m sure there’s a species-level genetic advantage to this. Infant mortality is high, with about 50% of pups dying before 3 months of age.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAxmAk7woyA
Banded mongooses are a species of Least Concern. They live up to 10 years in the wild and up to 17 years in captivity.
OJ Simpson’s death has me thinking. He was once on top of the world. Heisman trophy, NFL star, Hall of Famer, movies, commercials (remember running through airports?), lots of charisma. But clearly he had some demons if as many people seem to believe he was really a murderer. I find myself wondering how many people realize that he’s also responsible for unleashing the Kardashians on us, who got their big break and entry into the public eye by having their father be on OJ’s legal team. I’m not sure how that explains becoming famous but that’s a different question. In my mind they kicked off a lot of change in our culture and much of it not necessarily positive. Reality TV, being famous without any particular talent, exploiting social media by putting your recorded life online for all to see. Deep thoughts for a Friday.
Good morning. I think Haidt is advocating for a little more support for parents, especially in the form of "no phones in school," rather than just saying, "You're on your own, Mom. Do better."
Speaking of which, "Do better," has become an annoying trope. I saw it all over The Dispatch comments recently when people were (legitimately) saying that an interviewee on a podcast was a Hamas shill.
"Do better" is now on my list of patronizing claptrap, along with "by the way," "just by the way," "for your information," and "just for your information." In fact, I think "just" as an adverb should be eradicated. It can remain as an adjective, as in, "The court's decision was just."