By: Rob Ferguson "Provincial Politics," Published on Fri Aug 30 2013
"Police crackdown on law-breaking cyclists could boost pedal power, says Transportation Minister Glen Murray"
A police crackdown on bike riders who ignore traffic rules could boost safety and make getting around by pedal power more popular, says Ontario’s new cycling strategy obtained by the Star.
To be released Friday by Transportation Minister Glen Murray, the 20-year plan is aimed at creating an environment where more people will take their bikes to work, school and on errands to ease smog, gridlock and boost their health.
It also hopes the province can interconnect more bike lanes and trails locally and between municipalities to better cash in on the boom of cycle tourism sweeping the world.
That means more bike lanes — although there is no mention of financial support from the government, which is facing an $11.7-billion deficit it has promised to eliminate by 2018.
“Ontarians have told us they want transportation options that are convenient and affordable,” Murray says in the 42-page document called #CycleON in hopes the title will become a Twitter hashtag.
“They want transportation that uses less fuel, is safer, causes less pollution and requires less expensive infrastructure.”
Murray’s goal is to make bikes the first transportation choice in peoples’ minds for trips of five kilometres or less. In Toronto, for example, about 1.7 per cent of commuters or an average of 19,780 people cycle to work daily.
Toronto has been waiting for the strategy while it mulls a rule requiring motorists to leave at least one metre of space when passing bikes.
On scofflaw riders, the strategy cites a survey in which only 18 per cent of cyclists say their fellow bike riders follow the rules of the road — such as stopping at stop signs and traffic lights.
“This suggests that higher and more consistent levels of enforcement for cyclists and drivers would increase both the reality and perception of cycling as a safe activity,” states the plan.
It was prompted by a 2012 review of accidental cycling deaths in Ontario by the office of the provincial coroner, which counted 129 such fatalities in the four years ending in 2010.
“If we’re telling kids to go ride a bike instead of sitting in front of a TV or computer screen, we all have a responsibility to ensure our roads are safe,” the strategy quotes Ontario Medical Association president Dr. Scott Wooder as saying.
To get Ontario to be one of the premier cycling jurisdictions by 2033, the strategy also calls for:
*Making sure all new laws and planning policies are bike-friendly, from roads to providing space for cyclists and their needs in residential, commercial and institutional buildings.
*Partnering with municipalities to make sure public transit and cycling are better integrated, so bike riders can more easily take their wheels on trains and buses.
*Working with the federal and municipal governments on funding programs to boost cycling infrastructure.
*Better educate cyclists on rules of the road and promote cycling skills, particularly in school classrooms.
*Make roads “complete streets” to accommodate cyclists, cars and pedestrians.
*Develop province-wide advertising campaigns encouraging people to cycle more often.
Read more at "The Star." (thestar.com)
Me at the Pen 2010
© PEN American Center/Susan Horgan. All rights reserved. Please contact media@pen.org for usage and rights.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Roxbury Story
Q: I read in your bio that you grew up in Roxbury. I'm from there too and I'm just wondering if you ever plan to set a story in Roxbury or Massachusetts.
A: Boston was a long time ago . . . I left when I was in the fourth grade, but if I ever do write my life story that period will be one of the main focuses. Lots of good memories. My personality was formed there. My characteristic quirks were all born there. My feelings for the preservation of our planet were born there. Some sections of "Every Boy Should Have a Man" came directly form my adventures there. So yeah, I plan to write that story. The protagonist will be a kid of 6 to 10.
A: Boston was a long time ago . . . I left when I was in the fourth grade, but if I ever do write my life story that period will be one of the main focuses. Lots of good memories. My personality was formed there. My characteristic quirks were all born there. My feelings for the preservation of our planet were born there. Some sections of "Every Boy Should Have a Man" came directly form my adventures there. So yeah, I plan to write that story. The protagonist will be a kid of 6 to 10.
Creative Writing Advice
The following advice will appear on Bridle Path Press's website in September.
Thanks. Preston
______________
Rhyme and Reason in Fiction
In fiction, rhyme can be defined as the form it takes, the sound it makes when it quakes, the taste and shape of the bread it bakes.
Reason, of course, is the tale it tells, the storm it quells when it casts its spell, the sense that it makes.
Let's say you've written a piece that sits on the page dishwater dull. It just doesn't feel right, it doesn't sound right, though it tells the tale you wish it to tell.
Reason is easy, but you already know that; the problem is in the rhyme.
Perhaps you might try writing it as a letter, a diary, a short story, a novel, a song.
Try writing it as a ditty, a screenplay, or even a poem--maybe a very long poem, like Don Juan.
Even if the story is mostly true,
Feel free to lie;
To paraphrase John Dufresne,
Fiction is the truth borne by the lie.
And what words should be used, in the expressing of this most of honest lies?
To find out, experiment with point of view. Change from third person to first. Consider who is telling the story and how.
Is it told in a Northern, a Midwestern, a Southern accent? Or uttered with a shy, embarrassed lisp? Is the teller of the tale wise or foolish? Is the tale told about, or told by, the semiliterate, the genius? Is the teller telling it to you, or do you eavesdrop as she, or he, tells it to someone else?
Remember: What your fiction sounds like is as important as what it means.
You must also consider the time of the story. Does it take place now or back then? Is it told as a memory? Is it told in present or past tense?
Does it start at the rather pedestrian beginning, or at the end retracing its steps? Or even in medias res?
And the pacing, you can feel the time in this too. Is it slow like a leisurely walk or breathless like running?
Finally, for best effect, these rhyme choices must be consistent with each other.
Always remember:
The way the story is told
Must be on one accord
With what is being told
And who is telling it.
Thanks. Preston
______________
Rhyme and Reason in Fiction
In fiction, rhyme can be defined as the form it takes, the sound it makes when it quakes, the taste and shape of the bread it bakes.
Reason, of course, is the tale it tells, the storm it quells when it casts its spell, the sense that it makes.
Let's say you've written a piece that sits on the page dishwater dull. It just doesn't feel right, it doesn't sound right, though it tells the tale you wish it to tell.
Reason is easy, but you already know that; the problem is in the rhyme.
Perhaps you might try writing it as a letter, a diary, a short story, a novel, a song.
Try writing it as a ditty, a screenplay, or even a poem--maybe a very long poem, like Don Juan.
Even if the story is mostly true,
Feel free to lie;
To paraphrase John Dufresne,
Fiction is the truth borne by the lie.
And what words should be used, in the expressing of this most of honest lies?
To find out, experiment with point of view. Change from third person to first. Consider who is telling the story and how.
Is it told in a Northern, a Midwestern, a Southern accent? Or uttered with a shy, embarrassed lisp? Is the teller of the tale wise or foolish? Is the tale told about, or told by, the semiliterate, the genius? Is the teller telling it to you, or do you eavesdrop as she, or he, tells it to someone else?
Remember: What your fiction sounds like is as important as what it means.
You must also consider the time of the story. Does it take place now or back then? Is it told as a memory? Is it told in present or past tense?
Does it start at the rather pedestrian beginning, or at the end retracing its steps? Or even in medias res?
And the pacing, you can feel the time in this too. Is it slow like a leisurely walk or breathless like running?
Finally, for best effect, these rhyme choices must be consistent with each other.
Always remember:
The way the story is told
Must be on one accord
With what is being told
And who is telling it.
More Good Deeds!
Make the world a better place by doing good deeds.
________________
*Bring your old magazines to a hospital waiting room to make patients' waits a little less nerve racking.
*Write a letter or e-mail to a good friend or family member to let them know how much you value them. Can you imagine opening a letter of that sort? Go on, start the trend.
*Volunteer yourself to walk an elderly neighbour's dog once a week. Getting out for a walk isn't overly easy for many elderly folk, so they'd most likely appreciate this gesture.
*Instead of dropping your head and pretending you don't notice (like the rest of the rush-hour crowd) someone struggling to get a stroller down the stairs, take a second and offer to help.
*Offer an elderly person, a pregnant woman, a physically disabled person - or just someone who looks tired - your seat on the bus.
Go to CanadianLiving.com to find more easy good deeds.
________________
*Bring your old magazines to a hospital waiting room to make patients' waits a little less nerve racking.
*Write a letter or e-mail to a good friend or family member to let them know how much you value them. Can you imagine opening a letter of that sort? Go on, start the trend.
*Volunteer yourself to walk an elderly neighbour's dog once a week. Getting out for a walk isn't overly easy for many elderly folk, so they'd most likely appreciate this gesture.
*Instead of dropping your head and pretending you don't notice (like the rest of the rush-hour crowd) someone struggling to get a stroller down the stairs, take a second and offer to help.
*Offer an elderly person, a pregnant woman, a physically disabled person - or just someone who looks tired - your seat on the bus.
Go to CanadianLiving.com to find more easy good deeds.
Friday, August 9, 2013
Good Deeds Are as Eay as . . .
Here Are two good deeds that are quite easy to do. I found them on CanadianLiving.com.
*Put together a basket of treats for a friend who had a death in the family. Deliver it after the funeral has taken place, when most friends have gone back to their day-to-day lives.
*f you're in line at the grocery store with a full cart, let the person behind you who only has 5-10 items go in front of you.
Here is a bonus one that I caught my son doing one day.
*Take your neighbors trash to the curb while you're taking yours. Imagine their surprise when they see that the chore is already done.
*Put together a basket of treats for a friend who had a death in the family. Deliver it after the funeral has taken place, when most friends have gone back to their day-to-day lives.
*f you're in line at the grocery store with a full cart, let the person behind you who only has 5-10 items go in front of you.
Here is a bonus one that I caught my son doing one day.
*Take your neighbors trash to the curb while you're taking yours. Imagine their surprise when they see that the chore is already done.
Quote of the Day 9 August 2013
You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.
--Mahatma Gandhi
--Mahatma Gandhi
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Fred Flinstone Is Asking Mr. Slate: If the Brontosaurus Doesn't exist, Do I get a day off?
I found this on the NPR website. Yeah. If you recall, Fred uses a Brontosaurus as a crane in Mr. Slate's quarry. So yeah. He gets a day off.
________________
It may have something to do with all those Brontosaurus burgers everyone's favorite modern stone-age family ate, but when you think of a giant dinosaur with a tiny head and long, swooping tail, the Brontosaurus is probably what you're seeing in your mind.
Well hold on: Scientifically speaking, there's no such thing as a Brontosaurus.
Even if you knew that, you may not know how the fictional dinosaur came to star in the prehistoric landscape of popular imagination for so long.
It dates back 130 years, to a period of early U.S. paleontology known as the Bone Wars, says Matt Lamanna, curator at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh.
The Bone Wars was the name given to a bitter competition between two paleontologists, Yale's O.C. Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope of Philadelphia. Lamanna says their mutual dislike, paired with their scientific ambition, led them to race dinosaur names into publication, each trying to outdo the other.
"There are stories of either Cope or Marsh telling their fossil collectors to smash skeletons that were still in the ground, just so the other guy couldn't get them," Lamanna tells Guy Raz, host of weekends on All Things Considered. "It was definitely a bitter, bitter rivalry."
The two burned through money, and were as much fame-hungry trailblazers as scientists.
It was in the heat of this competition, in 1877, that Marsh discovered the partial skeleton of a long-necked, long-tailed, leaf-eating dinosaur he dubbed Apatosaurus. It was missing a skull, so in 1883 when Marsh published a reconstruction of his Apatosaurus, Lamanna says he used the head of another dinosaur — thought to be a Camarasaurus — to complete the skeleton.
"Two years later," Lamanna says, "his fossil collectors that were working out West sent him a second skeleton that he thought belonged to a different dinosaur that he named Brontosaurus."
But it wasn't a different dinosaur. It was simply a more complete Apatosaurus — one that Marsh, in his rush to one-up Cope, carelessly and quickly mistook for something new.
Although the mistake was spotted by scientists by 1903, the Brontosaurus lived on, in movies, books and children's imaginations. The Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh even topped its Apatosaurus skeleton with the wrong head in 1932. The apathy of the scientific community and a dearth of well-preserved Apatosaurus skulls kept it there for nearly 50 years.
That Brontosaurus finally met its end in the 1970s when two Carnegie researchers took a second look at the controversy. They determined a skull found in a quarry in Utah in 1910 was the true Apatosaurus skull. In 1979 the correct head was placed atop the museum's skeleton.
The Brontosaurus was gone at last, but Lamanna suggests the name stuck in part because it was given at a time when the Bone Wars fueled intense public interest in the discovery of new dinosaurs. And, he says, it's just a better name.
"Brontosaurus means 'thunder lizard,'" he says. "It's a big, evocative name, whereas Apatosaurus means 'deceptive lizard.' It's quite a bit more boring."
________________
It may have something to do with all those Brontosaurus burgers everyone's favorite modern stone-age family ate, but when you think of a giant dinosaur with a tiny head and long, swooping tail, the Brontosaurus is probably what you're seeing in your mind.
Well hold on: Scientifically speaking, there's no such thing as a Brontosaurus.
Even if you knew that, you may not know how the fictional dinosaur came to star in the prehistoric landscape of popular imagination for so long.
It dates back 130 years, to a period of early U.S. paleontology known as the Bone Wars, says Matt Lamanna, curator at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh.
The Bone Wars was the name given to a bitter competition between two paleontologists, Yale's O.C. Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope of Philadelphia. Lamanna says their mutual dislike, paired with their scientific ambition, led them to race dinosaur names into publication, each trying to outdo the other.
"There are stories of either Cope or Marsh telling their fossil collectors to smash skeletons that were still in the ground, just so the other guy couldn't get them," Lamanna tells Guy Raz, host of weekends on All Things Considered. "It was definitely a bitter, bitter rivalry."
The two burned through money, and were as much fame-hungry trailblazers as scientists.
It was in the heat of this competition, in 1877, that Marsh discovered the partial skeleton of a long-necked, long-tailed, leaf-eating dinosaur he dubbed Apatosaurus. It was missing a skull, so in 1883 when Marsh published a reconstruction of his Apatosaurus, Lamanna says he used the head of another dinosaur — thought to be a Camarasaurus — to complete the skeleton.
"Two years later," Lamanna says, "his fossil collectors that were working out West sent him a second skeleton that he thought belonged to a different dinosaur that he named Brontosaurus."
But it wasn't a different dinosaur. It was simply a more complete Apatosaurus — one that Marsh, in his rush to one-up Cope, carelessly and quickly mistook for something new.
Although the mistake was spotted by scientists by 1903, the Brontosaurus lived on, in movies, books and children's imaginations. The Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh even topped its Apatosaurus skeleton with the wrong head in 1932. The apathy of the scientific community and a dearth of well-preserved Apatosaurus skulls kept it there for nearly 50 years.
That Brontosaurus finally met its end in the 1970s when two Carnegie researchers took a second look at the controversy. They determined a skull found in a quarry in Utah in 1910 was the true Apatosaurus skull. In 1979 the correct head was placed atop the museum's skeleton.
The Brontosaurus was gone at last, but Lamanna suggests the name stuck in part because it was given at a time when the Bone Wars fueled intense public interest in the discovery of new dinosaurs. And, he says, it's just a better name.
"Brontosaurus means 'thunder lizard,'" he says. "It's a big, evocative name, whereas Apatosaurus means 'deceptive lizard.' It's quite a bit more boring."
10 Amazing Things You Didn't Know about Animals
Genesis 7:14
"They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort."
Livescience.com
10 Parrot Talk More than Just Squawking
Credit: © Sandra Mikolasch
Parrot speech is commonly regarded as the brainless squawking of a feathered voice recorder. But studies over the past 30 years continually show that parrots engage in much more than mere mimicry. Our avian friends can solve certain linguistic processing tasks as deftly as 4-6 year-old children. Parrots appear to grasp concepts like "same" and "different", "bigger" and "smaller", "none" and numbers. Perhaps most interestingly, they can combine labels and phrases in novel ways. A January 2007 study in Language Sciences suggests using patterns of parrot speech learning to develop artificial speech skills in robots.
9 Elephants Do Forget, but They're Not Dumb
Credit: Houston Zoo
Elephants have the largest brain — nearly 11 pounds on average — of any mammal that ever walked the earth. Do they use that gray matter to the fullest? Intelligence is hard to quantify in humans or animals, but the encephalization quotient (EQ), a ratio of an animal's observed brain size to the expected brain size given the animal's mass, correlates well with an ability to navigate novel challenges and obstacles. The average elephant EQ is 1.88. (Humans range from 7.33 to 7.69, chimpanzees average 2.45, pigs 0.27.) Intelligence and memory are thought to go hand in hand, suggesting that elephant memories, while not infallible, are quite good.
8 Giraffes Compensate for Height with Unique Blood Flow
Credit: Wikimedia Commons user William Scot
The stately giraffe, whose head sits some 16 feet up atop an unlikely pedestal, adapted his long neck to compete for foliage with other grazers. While the advantage of reach is obvious, some difficulties arise at such a height. The heart must pump twice as hard as a cow's to get blood up to the brain, and a complex blood vessel system is needed to ensure that blood doesn't rush to the head when bent over. Six feet below the heart, the skin of the legs must then be extremely tight to prevent blood from pooling at the hooves.
7 Many Fish Swap Sex Organs
Credit: Massachusetts Department of Fish & Game.
With so many land creatures to wonder at, it's easy to forget that some of the weirdest activities take place deep in the ocean. The strange practice of hermaphroditism is more common among species of fish than within any other group of vertebrates. Some fish change sex in response to hormonal cycle or environmental changes. Others simultaneously possess both male and female sex organs.
6 Baby Chicks and Brotherhood
Credit: dreamstime.
It's a mistake to think of evolution as producing selfish animals concerned only with their own survival. Altruism abounds in cases where a helping hand will encourage the survival of genetic material similar to one's own. Baby chicks practice this "kin selection" by making a special chirp while feeding. This call announces the food find to nearby chicks, who are probably close relations and so share many of the chick's genes. The key to natural selection isn't survival of the fittest animal. It's survival of the fittest genetic material, and so brotherly behavior that favors close relations will thrive.
5 Mole-Rats aren't Blind
Credit: UIC.
With their puny eyes and underground lifestyle, African mole-rats have long been considered the Mr. Magoos of rodents, detecting little light and, it has been suggested, using their eyes more for sensing changes in air currents than for actual vision. But findings of the past few years have shown that African mole-rats have a keen, if limited, sense of sight. And they don't like what they see, according to a report in the November 2006 Animal Behaviour. Light may suggest that a predator has broken into a tunnel, which could explain why subterranean diggers developed sight in the first place.
4 For Beavers, Days Get Longer in Winter
Credit: Tom Smylie, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Beavers become near shut-ins during winter, living off of previously stored food or the deposits of fat in their distinctive tails. They conserve energy by avoiding the cold outdoors, opting instead to remain in dark lodgings inside their pile of wood and mud. As a result these rodents, which normally emerge at sunset and turn in at sunrise, have no light cues to entrain their sleep cycle. The beaver's biological sense of time shifts, and she develops a "free running circadian rhythm" of 29-hour days.
3 Birds Use Landmarks to Navigate Long Journeys
Credit: Robin Freeman
Can you imagine a road trip vacation without missed exits, stubborn drivers, loss of GPS signal or map-folding disasters? Of course not, you're not a bird. Pigeons can fly thousands of miles to find the same roosting spot with no navigational difficulties. Some species of birds, like the Arctic tern, make a 25,000 mile round-trip journey every year. Many species use built-in ferromagnets to detect their orientation with respect to the Earth's magnetic field. A November 2006 study published in Animal Behaviour suggests that pigeons also use familiar landmarks on the ground below to help find their way home.
2 Whale Milk Not On Low-Fat Diets
Credit: Shane Gero
Nursing a newborn is no "small" feat for the whale, whose calf emerges, after 10 to 12 months in the womb, about a third the mother's length (that's a 30-foot baby for the Blue whale). The mother squirts milk into the newborn's mouth using muscles around the mammary gland while the baby holds tight to a nipple (yes, whales have them). At nearly 50 percent fat, whale milk has around 10 times the fat content of human milk, which helps calves achieve some serious growth spurts — as much as 200 pounds per day.
1 Crocodiles Swallow Stones for Swimming
Credit: Steve Zack | Wildlife Conservation Society
The stomach of a crocodile is a rocky place to be, for more than one reason. To begin with, a croc's digestive system encounters everything from turtles, fish and birds to giraffes, buffalo, lions and even (when defending territory) other crocodiles. In addition to that bellyful-o'-ecosystem, rocks show up too. The reptiles swallow large stones that stay permanently in their bellies. It's been suggested these are used for ballast in diving.
"They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort."
Livescience.com
10 Parrot Talk More than Just Squawking
Credit: © Sandra Mikolasch
Parrot speech is commonly regarded as the brainless squawking of a feathered voice recorder. But studies over the past 30 years continually show that parrots engage in much more than mere mimicry. Our avian friends can solve certain linguistic processing tasks as deftly as 4-6 year-old children. Parrots appear to grasp concepts like "same" and "different", "bigger" and "smaller", "none" and numbers. Perhaps most interestingly, they can combine labels and phrases in novel ways. A January 2007 study in Language Sciences suggests using patterns of parrot speech learning to develop artificial speech skills in robots.
9 Elephants Do Forget, but They're Not Dumb
Credit: Houston Zoo
Elephants have the largest brain — nearly 11 pounds on average — of any mammal that ever walked the earth. Do they use that gray matter to the fullest? Intelligence is hard to quantify in humans or animals, but the encephalization quotient (EQ), a ratio of an animal's observed brain size to the expected brain size given the animal's mass, correlates well with an ability to navigate novel challenges and obstacles. The average elephant EQ is 1.88. (Humans range from 7.33 to 7.69, chimpanzees average 2.45, pigs 0.27.) Intelligence and memory are thought to go hand in hand, suggesting that elephant memories, while not infallible, are quite good.
8 Giraffes Compensate for Height with Unique Blood Flow
Credit: Wikimedia Commons user William Scot
The stately giraffe, whose head sits some 16 feet up atop an unlikely pedestal, adapted his long neck to compete for foliage with other grazers. While the advantage of reach is obvious, some difficulties arise at such a height. The heart must pump twice as hard as a cow's to get blood up to the brain, and a complex blood vessel system is needed to ensure that blood doesn't rush to the head when bent over. Six feet below the heart, the skin of the legs must then be extremely tight to prevent blood from pooling at the hooves.
7 Many Fish Swap Sex Organs
Credit: Massachusetts Department of Fish & Game.
With so many land creatures to wonder at, it's easy to forget that some of the weirdest activities take place deep in the ocean. The strange practice of hermaphroditism is more common among species of fish than within any other group of vertebrates. Some fish change sex in response to hormonal cycle or environmental changes. Others simultaneously possess both male and female sex organs.
6 Baby Chicks and Brotherhood
Credit: dreamstime.
It's a mistake to think of evolution as producing selfish animals concerned only with their own survival. Altruism abounds in cases where a helping hand will encourage the survival of genetic material similar to one's own. Baby chicks practice this "kin selection" by making a special chirp while feeding. This call announces the food find to nearby chicks, who are probably close relations and so share many of the chick's genes. The key to natural selection isn't survival of the fittest animal. It's survival of the fittest genetic material, and so brotherly behavior that favors close relations will thrive.
5 Mole-Rats aren't Blind
Credit: UIC.
With their puny eyes and underground lifestyle, African mole-rats have long been considered the Mr. Magoos of rodents, detecting little light and, it has been suggested, using their eyes more for sensing changes in air currents than for actual vision. But findings of the past few years have shown that African mole-rats have a keen, if limited, sense of sight. And they don't like what they see, according to a report in the November 2006 Animal Behaviour. Light may suggest that a predator has broken into a tunnel, which could explain why subterranean diggers developed sight in the first place.
4 For Beavers, Days Get Longer in Winter
Credit: Tom Smylie, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Beavers become near shut-ins during winter, living off of previously stored food or the deposits of fat in their distinctive tails. They conserve energy by avoiding the cold outdoors, opting instead to remain in dark lodgings inside their pile of wood and mud. As a result these rodents, which normally emerge at sunset and turn in at sunrise, have no light cues to entrain their sleep cycle. The beaver's biological sense of time shifts, and she develops a "free running circadian rhythm" of 29-hour days.
3 Birds Use Landmarks to Navigate Long Journeys
Credit: Robin Freeman
Can you imagine a road trip vacation without missed exits, stubborn drivers, loss of GPS signal or map-folding disasters? Of course not, you're not a bird. Pigeons can fly thousands of miles to find the same roosting spot with no navigational difficulties. Some species of birds, like the Arctic tern, make a 25,000 mile round-trip journey every year. Many species use built-in ferromagnets to detect their orientation with respect to the Earth's magnetic field. A November 2006 study published in Animal Behaviour suggests that pigeons also use familiar landmarks on the ground below to help find their way home.
2 Whale Milk Not On Low-Fat Diets
Credit: Shane Gero
Nursing a newborn is no "small" feat for the whale, whose calf emerges, after 10 to 12 months in the womb, about a third the mother's length (that's a 30-foot baby for the Blue whale). The mother squirts milk into the newborn's mouth using muscles around the mammary gland while the baby holds tight to a nipple (yes, whales have them). At nearly 50 percent fat, whale milk has around 10 times the fat content of human milk, which helps calves achieve some serious growth spurts — as much as 200 pounds per day.
1 Crocodiles Swallow Stones for Swimming
Credit: Steve Zack | Wildlife Conservation Society
The stomach of a crocodile is a rocky place to be, for more than one reason. To begin with, a croc's digestive system encounters everything from turtles, fish and birds to giraffes, buffalo, lions and even (when defending territory) other crocodiles. In addition to that bellyful-o'-ecosystem, rocks show up too. The reptiles swallow large stones that stay permanently in their bellies. It's been suggested these are used for ballast in diving.
Holy (Giant) Cow!
Nature is great.
____________
By Lynnette CurtisSPECIAL TO LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNALAMARGOSA VALLEY
Holy cow, that's one big bovine.
We're talking the Mack truck of livestock, with hooves like hubcaps and haunches the size of your car trunk.
He weighs nearly 3,000 pounds and goes by Herman.
The beefy black-and-white Holstein spends his days munching on hay and soaking up sun outside the Longstreet Inn and Casino in lonely Amargosa Valley, at the southwestern edge of Nye County near the California line.
When Herman first got here, eight years ago, he was about 4 feet tall. At last measure, he stood 6 feet, 4 inches from hoof to withers. His owner, Jim Marsh, believes Herman may be the tallest steer in the world.
"He just kept growing and growing," said Marsh, an animal lover and longtime Las Vegas car dealership proprietor known for appearing in commercials with his daughter, Stacy, and his grandson.
Marsh, 78, also is known in small towns and cow counties for being a community booster and historic preservationist. He owns a bunch of rural Nevada properties, including the 60-room Longstreet.
Herman was born at a nearby dairy, where he was briefly kept as a pet by one of the workers. He ended up in Beatty, where a friend of Marsh's was fattening up the animal for slaughter.
"You hate to see a pet steer end up on your dinner table," Marsh said.
So he paid $600 to rescue Herman from the barbecue. Then Marsh had the steer hauled to the Longstreet, built in 1995 on state Route 373 about 95 miles northwest of Las Vegas. There Herman grew. And grew. Soon he was towering over Marsh, who is 6 feet tall.
"I was amazed at how big he got," Marsh said.
Herman shares a corral with Bambi and Jill - both burros - and one nameless goat.
Tourists on their way to and from Death Valley sometimes stop to gawk at Herman. He's good for business.
"It's generally word-of-mouth," Marsh said. "It's good people come to see him."
It's also good Herman's disposition is as sweet as he is large.
"He's very laid-back," Marsh said. "He doesn't have a mean bone in his body."
But Herman doesn't shy away from adventure. He got out of his corral a couple of years ago and "was wandering all over Amargosa," said Monica Chavez, the Longstreet's manager.
Herman likes to eat apples and Saltines. He also shares a bale of hay with his corral mates and downs four bucket-sized scoops of grain each day.
Marsh thought about calling Guinness World Records about Herman, but hasn't gotten around to it.
A Guinness spokeswoman said there is no record holder in the category of "World's Tallest Steer." The famous record-keepers are willing to entertain a proposal if Marsh registers it.
Guinness does have a very tall ox on record. Bellino, a Chianina ox, lives in Italy and measures 6 feet, 7 inches to his withers.
Both steers and oxen are castrated male bovines.
While oxen are known more as work animals, steers are associated with "rodeo and hamburger," said Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins, a well-known local cowboy.
"Think the difference between a draft horse and a quarter horse," he said.
Collins was impressed when he heard about Herman. The commissioner also is 6 feet, 4 inches tall.
Herman "might be setting a record," Collins said.
The steer's mammoth size has brought its share of problems. He has arthritis, and his knees swell from carrying all that weight. He gets regular checkups and medication from a veterinarian who visits from Pahrump.
The steer is loaded into a horse trailer and taken to the dairy to get weighed and have his hooves trimmed.
Herman is not the only bovine at the Longstreet. Marsh also bought the 14-foot-tall fiberglass cow that used to stand on the roof of the Holy Cow! casino and brewery at Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara Avenue. He had it shipped to Amargosa Valley and placed outside the hotel.
A few years ago, a man who belonged to a notorious motorcycle club got drunk, stripped off his clothes, climbed a ladder and rode the cow, Chavez said.
Thankfully, nobody's tried that with Herman.
____________
By Lynnette CurtisSPECIAL TO LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNALAMARGOSA VALLEY
Holy cow, that's one big bovine.
We're talking the Mack truck of livestock, with hooves like hubcaps and haunches the size of your car trunk.
He weighs nearly 3,000 pounds and goes by Herman.
The beefy black-and-white Holstein spends his days munching on hay and soaking up sun outside the Longstreet Inn and Casino in lonely Amargosa Valley, at the southwestern edge of Nye County near the California line.
When Herman first got here, eight years ago, he was about 4 feet tall. At last measure, he stood 6 feet, 4 inches from hoof to withers. His owner, Jim Marsh, believes Herman may be the tallest steer in the world.
"He just kept growing and growing," said Marsh, an animal lover and longtime Las Vegas car dealership proprietor known for appearing in commercials with his daughter, Stacy, and his grandson.
Marsh, 78, also is known in small towns and cow counties for being a community booster and historic preservationist. He owns a bunch of rural Nevada properties, including the 60-room Longstreet.
Herman was born at a nearby dairy, where he was briefly kept as a pet by one of the workers. He ended up in Beatty, where a friend of Marsh's was fattening up the animal for slaughter.
"You hate to see a pet steer end up on your dinner table," Marsh said.
So he paid $600 to rescue Herman from the barbecue. Then Marsh had the steer hauled to the Longstreet, built in 1995 on state Route 373 about 95 miles northwest of Las Vegas. There Herman grew. And grew. Soon he was towering over Marsh, who is 6 feet tall.
"I was amazed at how big he got," Marsh said.
Herman shares a corral with Bambi and Jill - both burros - and one nameless goat.
Tourists on their way to and from Death Valley sometimes stop to gawk at Herman. He's good for business.
"It's generally word-of-mouth," Marsh said. "It's good people come to see him."
It's also good Herman's disposition is as sweet as he is large.
"He's very laid-back," Marsh said. "He doesn't have a mean bone in his body."
But Herman doesn't shy away from adventure. He got out of his corral a couple of years ago and "was wandering all over Amargosa," said Monica Chavez, the Longstreet's manager.
Herman likes to eat apples and Saltines. He also shares a bale of hay with his corral mates and downs four bucket-sized scoops of grain each day.
Marsh thought about calling Guinness World Records about Herman, but hasn't gotten around to it.
A Guinness spokeswoman said there is no record holder in the category of "World's Tallest Steer." The famous record-keepers are willing to entertain a proposal if Marsh registers it.
Guinness does have a very tall ox on record. Bellino, a Chianina ox, lives in Italy and measures 6 feet, 7 inches to his withers.
Both steers and oxen are castrated male bovines.
While oxen are known more as work animals, steers are associated with "rodeo and hamburger," said Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins, a well-known local cowboy.
"Think the difference between a draft horse and a quarter horse," he said.
Collins was impressed when he heard about Herman. The commissioner also is 6 feet, 4 inches tall.
Herman "might be setting a record," Collins said.
The steer's mammoth size has brought its share of problems. He has arthritis, and his knees swell from carrying all that weight. He gets regular checkups and medication from a veterinarian who visits from Pahrump.
The steer is loaded into a horse trailer and taken to the dairy to get weighed and have his hooves trimmed.
Herman is not the only bovine at the Longstreet. Marsh also bought the 14-foot-tall fiberglass cow that used to stand on the roof of the Holy Cow! casino and brewery at Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara Avenue. He had it shipped to Amargosa Valley and placed outside the hotel.
A few years ago, a man who belonged to a notorious motorcycle club got drunk, stripped off his clothes, climbed a ladder and rode the cow, Chavez said.
Thankfully, nobody's tried that with Herman.
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