Unhappy tree logs

So, I won't talk about deforestation, much like . I won't really delve into how discoveries like this newfound "gecko-bat" species wouldn't be possible anymore, if forests disappear. Also, I won't say anything more about cultural significance and indigenous people, nor relevance for medicine (Mark Plotkin's (wiki) quote "every time a shaman dies, it is as if a library burned down", see also (2), (3)).

I actually just thought it would be nice to store this photo somewhere.
So here you go.

(1): Source of pic: Got it from Carla, on FB: link here.

(2): Shamanism, By: Mark Andrew Ritchie. I use it as a source of the quote. Found by google.

(3): This book seems interesting: Tales of a Shaman's Apprentice: An Ethnobotanist Searches for New Medicines in the Amazon Rain Forest; Mark Plotkin (Amazon).

(4): This one is also actually pretty scary/cool: face on the side of the tree trunk.

Enough is enough, Sir David Attenborough!

Sometimes, even the most steadfast intellectuals "lose" it.

This is David Attenborough, the face of modern naturalist documentaries, such as Life on Earth series, Planet Earth and Life (you could consider watching the Secret Life of Plants, it's really fascinating) saying that he's had it with denial in US:

[it is] extraordinary that one of the wealthiest, materially advanced societies in the world can support irrational myths in that way,” he said. “That they should do it privately is up to them but since what they do effects that whole world it’s pretty serious that they should not accept that humanity has been responsible for these changes that are absolutely evident to everyone else.”

From: Sir David Attenborough: Enough With the Creationists and Climate Change Deniers! | The Daily Beast, 11.2.2014, link here.

Now, I'll just quote the same source: 'Attenborough has made a career of resisting controversy, often describing himself as “a reporter” with no views of his own.'

Though to be honest, one thing is for sure: changes can be seen (or is part of it also the Baader-Meinhof effect as we talk about them more?), but the causes and the extent of those drivers is still debated. And debate is generally good.
  But if the debate is potentially artificially generated by those who stand to lose the most, or when the "debate" and the controversies encourage the stalemate, then well, you do need a change.

Because, you see, it's not about the butterflies anymore. It's about us. All of sentient and non-sentient (?) beings on this planet that were "raised" in a certain climate, with certain food sources and certain living environments. When all of these what used to be certainties change ... you've got yourselves a problem humanity.
  And I am saying humanity, as 'life [on Earth] will find a way'. It just may be that the Earth of tomorrow will be w/o the human species.
Meh. I'll just go eat my sandwich, pray excuse me.

[Addendum] {funny}
Sir David Attenborough's describes Olympic curling, in his signature voice & approach. This is golden.

Read more at http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=777_1392789840#OwKmCtFhm93oPcPl.99

O laikih, "lifestyle-u" ptic in ekonomskem smislu vetrnih elektrarn

Gasper, tole se strinjam: "da se tovrstne investicije delajo cim bolj javno, da se kar se da najvec vé kdo pije in kdo placa."

  Volovja reber: ko pravis 'Do zdaj me se nihce ni preprical, da bo par vetrnic na Volovji Rebri oz. drugje na primorskem blazno vplivalo na naravno okolje. Tisti argumenti o pticih, ki bojo morali zaradi par vetrnic totalno spremenit svoj lifestyle, se mi zdijo bolj buce kot pa kej drugega.'
Ja, sej. Zdijo.

Dve stvari sta pomembni, v mojem pogledu, pri vsej sagi z Volovjo rebrijo:
  a) dejanski vpliv na krajino, na lokalno bioto in na poembne in zascitene vrste ptic (ki tam lovijo, letijo in v blizini vzgajajo potomce, beri zgoraj)
  b) BOLJ KOT TO, pa je pomembno, da se je s tem primerom zaustavila blaznost postavljanja vsepovprek. Ker se je Elektroprimoska toliko casa dajala s tem primerom, so se morda drugi investitorji (in obcine) ustrasli. Kar je dobro, v smislu, da bi lahko do sedaj imeli precej "degradiranega" okolja iz znj novih vetrnic, ki bi stale naokoli.
  Torej, ne da sem proti "napredku", ampak fino je, da se je vgradil pomislek v cel proces.
In vzpostavil legalni oz. sodni precedens, na katerega se lahko sklicujejo bodoci '-varstveniki'.

Kar se tice argumentov: ... vedno je tezko, biologu govorit 'navadnim' ljudem. In to velja verjetno za vsako stroko: pogovori med strokovanjaki in laiki so ... se lahko zakljucijo v floskulah. Ker jaz ti takoj recem, lej, nisem kemik in to je res stvar kemikov. In se bos strinjal, ker npr. ves, da nisem kemik in ker je kemija specificna znanstvena disciplina.
  No, z biologijo je, ceprav je prav tako znanstvena disciplina, drugace: vsi smo zivi (ja, ja, tud vsi smo iz "kemije"). Ampak, ker je biologija (in podaljsek oz. sestricna ekologija) veda o zivem in interakcijah z nezivim okoljem, ima vsak neko mnenje. Vsakemu se zdi, da nekaj vé. In je res.
  Moj oci vé nekaj o cebelah. Samo ni pa cebelar. Pa tudi ni entomolog, ki bi se specializiral preko let samo na cebelah. Torej, kot jaz vem nekaj o kemiji, ne morem govorit o L-kiralnih aminokislinah na nivoju (in s kompetenco), ki jo ima diplomirani kemik, se vec, kak doktor, ki je na tej temi delal doktorat.
Govorit, da bodo ptice...

(kere, tocno? Katere vrste so tam, katere so zascitene oz. katere so bolj naravovarstveno pomembne kot druge, recimo po definicijah evropske unije? So prisotne v razlicnih stevilkah preko let, preko enega leta? Katere ptice prezimujejo, katere so 'stalnice', katere samo preletijo podrocje? Kaj pa druge zivalske (in rastlinske!) vrste?)

... spremenile "lifestyle" in svojo smer leta, v smislu 'kva, sej so se mogle ze prej prilagajat', ... to je laicno posplosevanje.

Recimo en aspekt, o katerem nismo govorili zgoraj (vsi mi), je obodna hitrost elipse (glej spodaj). Ptice roparice, ki so K-strategi (kratek odgovor na Yahoo.Answers ali daljsa razlaga na Wikipediji), in ki imajo torej manjse stevilo potomcev (prim. 6 z nekaj tisoc od rib ali zuzelk) in zavzemajo vecji teritorij, so na vrhu prehranjevalne verige... Njih nihce ne napada. Torej, tudi ne pricakujejo nevarnosti od zgoraj (OK, drzi za najvecje ptice roparice kot so morda orli ali jastrebi, ki so prisotni na Volovji rebri in o katerih je tukaj govora). Njih lazje zadene rotor vetrnice. In tudi v literaturi je moc zaslediti prevladujoce prepricanje, da so kadavri vecjih ptic lazje najdeni s strani raziskovalcev (in traja dlje casa, preden jih kak mrhovinar odvlece ali preprosto, poje).

Pozornost velja nameniti tudi tehnicnim specifikacijah in ucinkovitosti.
  Vecina vetrnic ima podane minimalne, optimalne in ne-vec-delujoce vetrne hitrost, ki se gibljejo ponavadi med 3 in 4 m/s (cut-in speed), okoli 13.5 (optimum) in do 20-25 m/s (cut-out speed). To je podatek za 2 MW vetrnico podjetja Vestas za majhne in srednje vertne pogoje (V90-2.0 MW GridStreamer™) (1) s premerom d=90m.
  Hecno, vetrni potencijal po Sloveniji ni bas ne vem kaj. Pac nismo Danska, NISMO na obali Severnega morja ali na njegovi sredi in tako pac je. Imamo veter v sunkih, ki je tretji problem.
Ce primerjamo zgornje hitrosti s pregledom potencialno ustreznih območij za izkoriščanje vetrne energije (povezava, 2), pridemo do tega, da se na najboljsih lokacijah veter giblje med minimalno hitrostjo, potrebno za obratovanje vrtnic in med optimumom, torej se gibljemo v sub-optimalnih pogojih delovanja.
  To pomeni tudi, da energetski izkoristki na vetrnico (2 MW, 1.8 MW, kolikor koli ze kW) ne bodo taksni, kot jih promovira a) brosura, b) investitor, c) ime vertnice.

Tretji problem je dobava in ne-kostantnost dobave elektricne energije s stalisca distributerjev elektrike in s stalisca drzave oz. obcin. Z to se pojavi problem peak-hours, ur, ko je veliko povprasevanja po elektriki (zjutraj, zgodaj zvecer) in loceno ali povezano s tem (priznam, si se nisem cisto na jasnem, kako to deluje), problem odkupnih cen.
Zaradi perspektivnosti (razvoj tehnologije, izčrpanje fosilnih virov) države, tudi Slovenija, podpirajo izgradnjo VE. Pri nas velja sistem zagotovljenih odkupnih cen. Na strani "Center za podpore Borzen" najdete podatke o sedanjih odkupnih cenah. Za VE je zagotovljena odkupna cena 95 €/MWh, kar je precej več kot trenutna tržna cena, ki je okoli 50 €/MWh. Dejansko je tržna vrednost vetrne energije še nižja, saj navedena cena velja za neprekinjeno dobavo, česar pa VE ne morejo zagotoviti. Vir (2).

(1) http://www.vestas.com/en/wind-power-plants/procurement/turbine-overview/v90-1.8/2.0-mw-gridstreamer™.aspx#/vestas-univers
Za brosure, tukajle: http://www.vestas.com/en/media/brochures.aspx
(2): Gospod M.T. iz IJS-ja mi je predlagal dokument in povezavo na Wikipedijo, tukajle.
Prav tako mi je napisal tele vrstice:
"Na vprašanje VE na Volovji rebri da ali ne je moj odgovor bil tedaj in je sedaj: če pričakujemo okoljsko škodo (minus) in ker VE itak niso gospodarne, potem ni razloga, da bi jih silili "v vsako vas" oz. na vsak hrib.
Je pa smiselno sodelovati pri tem gibanju, za vzorec. To zaradi tega, ker Slovenija ni posebno ugodna s stališča vetrne energije; naj gredo naprej drugi."

Toliko na kratko o argumentih. Kaj vec pa drugic oz. v kaki literaturi.

Piflar

Nikol si nisem mislu (OK, prejšnji teden si nisem mislu), da bom (ta teden) kdaj napisal tale stavek:

D-tubokurarin je kompetitivnih inhibitor ACH-ju na nikotinskih receptorjih v postsinaptični membrani motorične ploščice.

Nicotine - nikotin

Nicotine, alkaloid obtained from the tobacco plant Nicotiana tabacum is TOXIC to many animals, because it mimicks the action of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACH) at NEURO-MUSCULAR junctions (motorične ploščice na stiku živca in skeletnih mišic). (//Eckert animal physiology)

Ni čudn, da si mal počasen, če kadiš.
Še sreča, da se nanaša na živali, kar pa ljudje itak nismo, anede.

Lol, tole pa piše na wikipediji, pod njegovo toksičnost.

The LD50 of nicotine is 50 mg/kg for rats and 3 mg/kg for mice. 40–60 mg (0.5-1.0 mg/kg) can be a lethal dosage for adult humans.[55][56] Nicotine therefore has a high toxicity in comparison to many other alkaloids such as cocaine, which has an LD50 of 95.1 mg/kg when administered to mice.

No, pa da bom fer: "It is unlikely that a person would overdose on nicotine through smoking alone, although overdose can occur through combined use of nicotine patches or nicotine gum and cigarettes at the same time.[57] Spilling a high concentration of nicotine onto the skin can cause intoxication or even death, since nicotine readily passes into the bloodstream following dermal contact."
in še:

Though the teratogenic properties of nicotine may or may not yet have been adequately researched, women who use nicotine gum and patches during the early stages of pregnancy face an increased risk of having babies with birth defects, according to a study of around 77,000 pregnant women in Denmark.
    The study found that women who use nicotine-replacement therapy in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy have a 60 percent greater risk of having babies with birth defects, compared to women who are non-smokers, the Daily Mail reported. The findings were published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Ljubezen - skoraj isti učinek kot heroin! (part 2)

Nadaljevanje iz prejšnjega dela, "O ljubezni in drugih boleznih", dostopno tukaj.

...
No, pravite, kaj pa navezanost! (Če se izognemo neprijetnemu oksitocinu s svojimi ... "intoksikantnimi" učinki.) Kaj pa to, ko mi srce poskoči, ko vidim svojega lubija ali pa čebelico in občutek, da bo skoraj konec sveta, če se nekaj časa ne vidiva? Hm, v besedi: withdrawal.

This is down to dopamine, the brain’s pleasure chemical. When nerve cells squirt small amounts of this into a brain region called the nucleus accumbens it produces sensations of euphoria and satisfaction.

Nadalje pa sem marca ali aprila lani poslušal iPod brata kolegice, ki mi je dal misliti - v bistvu je bil Podcast the naked scientists, ki se je ukvarjal ravno s to tematiko. Podcast, ki je ustvaril pričujoči članek.

Internetni članek (glej tudi spodaj) navaja, da je dopamin v telesu v uporabi, da se ojačajo nagrajujoča vedenja: ko se nekaj naučimo ali naredimo nekaj dobrega za nekoga ali ... vzamemo heroin ali kokain, ki delujeta na iste živčne končiče kot dopamin - vsi nam dajo občutek zadovoljstva.
  Torej, ko delujeta oksitocin in vazopresin, ko so njuni kemični signali prisotni in aktivni v telesu (možganih!),

they trigger the release of an addictive surge of dopamine in order to consolidate their effects. So you are, quite literally, getting hooked on your partner. 

Svoj sestav avtor zaključuje z nasvetom in mislij, da je sicer fino, da znamo razčleniti ljubeznesko dogajanje v telesu na peščico kemikalij, da pomaga znanstvenikom in zdravnikom, da lahko ljudem, ki ne morejo navezovati stikov, na primer avtistom, pomagajo pri tvorbi odnosov .. Svari pa tudi, da se dá taka znanja krepko izkoristiti in da sedaj, zaenkrat še nedolžna fraza v prihodnosti: "A lahko samo tole malce poduhaš?" morda ne bo več tako nedolžna.

 Ta in prejšnji del sta povzeta po članku na internetni podstrani The Naked Scientists, 'What is love?' Chrisa Smitha.

O ljubezni in drugih boleznih, part 1

Za to, da nekatere kemikalije močno vplivajo na to, kako doživljamo soljudi - predvsem partnerje - sem slišal že v prvem letniku biologije, ko sva s tedanjo punco za pozabljivost in "hojo v oblakih" krivila oksitocin.

Oxytocin is released in the brain during orgasms, during childbirth and by breast feeding, which has led scientists to suspect that it may be linked to mother-baby bonding and that perhaps this, “love” and partner attachments are all a manifestation of the same process.

Nadalje je mojo pozornost pri predavanjih biokemije pritegnil seminar kolegice z naslovom: "Ljubezen po biokemijsko", kjer sem slišal tudi za vazopresin in podobne 'reagente" ...
  But trust also usually demands monogamy, the mediator of which is vasopressin. Studies on voles have shown that a polygamous vole species known as the meadow vole can be transformed into behaving like its monogamous prairie vole cousin either by adding extra vasopressin to its brain or by increasing the brain’s sensitivity to the substance.  
  Pa da ne ostanemo zgolj pri nekih glodalcih v savani ali preriji, evo vam nadaljevanje: 

The same seems to apply to humans: a study carried out last year in Sweden found that individuals with one variant of a gene used in the brain to detect vasopressin levels were twice as likely to report a recent marital crisis, and only half as likely to be married in the first place, compared with individuals not carrying that form of the gene.  

 Administering vasopressin to volunteers also produces changes in behaviour. Men adopt a more aggressive posture including looking more menacing and also becoming much more protective of their partners. And when shown photographs of other peoples’ faces they tend to rate them as looking less friendly than they did before vasopressin was given.

No, pravite, kaj pa navezanost! (Če se izognemo neprijetnemu oksitocinu s svojimi ... "intoksikantnimi" učinki.) Kaj pa to, ko mi srce poskoči, ko vidim svojega lubija ali pa čebelico in občutek, da bo skoraj konec sveta, če se nekaj časa ne vidiva? Hm, v besedi: ...

O dopaminu, njegovih učinkih, kokainu in heroinu ter zaključku ... v naslednjem delu.

 Ta in naslednji del sta povzeta po članku na internetni podstrani The Naked Scientists, 'What is love?' Chrisa Smitha.

DOPPS je včeraj vložil tožbo proti okoljevarstvenem soglasju za VE Volovja reber

Ljubljana, 9. 12. 2010

Včeraj je odvetnik Tomaž Petrovič, ki v prizadevanjih za ohranitev Volovje rebri zastopa DOPPS, na Upravnem sodišču vložil tožbo zoper Agencijo RS za okolje (ARSO), in sicer za razveljavitev Okoljevarstvenega soglasja za Vetrno elektrarno Volovja reber.

V skladu z zakonom o Varstvu okolja ima Upravno sodišče zdaj 3 mesece časa, da o tožbi razsodi. Gre za zadnjo pravno inštanco v Sloveniji.

DOPPS opozarja, da gre v »primeru Volovja reber« za precej več, kot le za ohranitev same Volovje rebri. Gre za precedenčen primer varstva območij Natura 2000, saj je to prvi primer velikega škodljivega posega v Natura območja v Sloveniji. Velik problem je, da sta ARSO in Ministrstvo za okolje v tem primeru uvedla prakso dela, ki močno odstopa od zahtev evropske naravovarstvene zakonodaje in posledično onemogoča varstvo Natura območij v Sloveniji.

več (vir: http://www.volovjareber.si/).

Območje razširjenosti rjavega medveda

Zdravo!

Za vse, ki vas ta tematika zanima oz. vas mora zanimati, pa bi raje, da vas ne (skratka, da živite v območju medveda - torej dobršen del Slovenije;), so na spletni strani Medvedi.si objavili karto razširjenosti rjavega medveda, ki je nastala v sodelovanju Biotehniške fakultete, Lovske zveze Slovenije in Zavoda za Gozdove Slovenije. Karta je dostopna na tejle strani od Medvedi.si, tukaj pa še slika (klik):

Ljubezen gre skozi želodec

"Ljubezen gre skozi želodec, pravijo." Kolikokrat smo to že slišali?
  Pa zdaj ne vem, ali sem jaz bolj počasen (oz. ne razmišljam kot ostali) ali pa ljudje to tako napačno predstavljajo in razumejo, da se skvari podoba o reklu, rečenici ali frazi. Dobro, obstaja tudi tretja možnost, da vsi vedo, kako je prav, ampak da se hecajo, češ, da gre za hrano. Talk for the babies, so to speak.
  Tako kot, vzemimo na primer, rek "v tretje gre Rado." Kam gre Rado? No, ampak res - vsi si predstavljajo, ponavadi vsaj tako izpade, da ljudje rečejo kot nekaj, kar nočeš, da se zgodi - češ, "ne izzivaj usode, če ne se bo nekaj zgodilo". Eeeeee, ravno obratno je: "v tretje se rado posreči" je mišljeno. (Vsaj tako mi je nek modrec enkrat razložil. Srečal sem ga visoko v gorah in imel je dolgo brado ... pa par slavistov mi je že to reklo, that's why.) Tako recimo, če mečeš laso na štor na drugi strani potoka (ok, morda slab primer ... ne vem za vas, ampak jaz to počnem vsako sredo in soboto, včasih pa še prvi ponedeljek v torku) in ti dvakrat ne rata, se reče: "V tretje gre Rado" in laso, kakopak, z imenom Rado, se zadrgne okoli štora. Jeeee!
  In ljubezen?
  "Lovaah! A trechearous thing!" (Davy Jones, Pirates of the Carribbean) Jah, ljubezen gre skozi želodec se mi je šele ravnokar pokazala v pravi luči (pa ne zato, ker bi jo čutil, sem pa razmišljal tako, malo jezikoslovno). Po mojem pomeni, da če je prava ljubezen, potem jo zagotovo čutiš tudi v želodcu - saj veste: metuljčki. Iiiiiiii. Ja, ok, calm down. Kajti tako močnih kemičnih reakcij, izgube spomina, spremembe metabolizma, povečana stopnja bazalnega metabolizma, hormoni levo in desnogor, svašta se dogaja in najmanj, kar je, je, da jo lahko/bi jo morali, če je prava, čutiti tam spodaj.

Ne, malce višje sem mislil. V želodcu, vi pokvarjenci.

Babies ... yuck! (Or is it?)

Jah, ne. Dojenčki. Backi. Dojenci in packi.
Poleg uvodne rime, ki dejansko odslikava resnico, se skriva v besedi še veliko več. V bistvu se iz besede zrcali prihodnost, upanje, sanje, spokojnost, smeh, ..., pa tudi razočaranje, jok, potrebe in podobne lepe besede.
Zakaj sem se naenkrat tako raznežil? Jah, valda. Po dolgem času sem šel na blog sošolke, ki je postala mamica ... In človeka kar prevzame. (Lahko jo poiščete med blogi prijateljev spodaj desno.)

How they get to be so cute? Gee whizz, I dunno. Because they Rrrr;)

Ah, hotu sem napisat nekaj nenadkriljivo bistroumnega in humoroidnega, pa mi je ušlo, ko sem iskal slikice, kot je tale zgoraj. Sem pa našel spodnji link do Xkcd.comics ... sem o tem že pisal.

In tudi tole pride na pamet (oz. je prišlo na pamet temu tipu, ki dela tele stripe): http://xkcd.com/441

Maid of honour, made of honour

Life's funny, ain't it?
You think you have it all figuered. Alright, not ALL of it, but hey! - nobody's perfect. (I'm Nobody.)
You think you know your heart and it/he/she proves you wrong, ... every once in a while. I guess, then, that Paolo Coelho was right. Definitely. He said that true power comes from knowing your heart. Truely knowing. That means all the fears and desires, ..., it's to get to know YOU and who you really are, what you want in life.
It gives you strength and renders your foes, so to say, weaponsless. It also leaves them defenseless, in a way, since they know naught something you DO: one's own heart. (Reminds you of Brisingr, doesn't it?)

I'm sort of ship-wrecked right now. Why? Well, I can't really tell what my heart is trying to tell me. I know, actually, but for the time being, I'll refuse to believe it. He's tellin' me to pull back, to the starboard side and wheel the whole ship about. Somehow.
But I for one know that this would be a ... wrong thing to do. Why? Because if you stand still in this world, you're dead. If you're not dead physically, you ARE. Mentally, or otherwise. "You gotta keep on moving!" So that's exactly what I'll do.
I'll keep on moving, onto Al Araf, onto the Bridges of my heart, the ones I don't see an end to. I'll just .. sort of drift along, like in a jam session (yes, with a lot of jam and strawberries, yes, that's the one;). I'll improvise a bit, with an actual plan in progress, but I'l sincerely try to neglect it. Really. It will only work if I don't plan it anymore.

If anyone understood what I'm on about, well - good for you. Hope to meat ;) you someday. (Don't worry - I'm on the verge of becoming a vegetarian.)

Kloniranje ljubljenckov

Očitno ljubezen do ljubljenčkov ne pozna niti smrti več. Berite priložene povezave oz. google it.
Zanimivo pa je, kako različni viri predstavljajo neko novico: npr. ameriški timesONline se je odločil z nami prijazno deliti CELOTNO zgodbo (vsaj tako zgleda, nisem bral) O Napadu in Rešitvi, tele tete Ms McKinney, ki je bila očitno nekoč tudi lepotna zmagovalka ... em, pardon - zmagovalka lepotnega tekmovanja.

Tale vir, na BBC-jevi strani od RSS feeda uspe biti bolj nevtralen in tudi pove enega ključnih stavkov in misli, ki pa jo je - vsaj dozdevno - veliki The Times "kar" spregledal:

the best way Dr Lee explained it is we can give him his body, you are going to give him the love and environment to recreate the original Booger's personality."
Professor Lee Byeong-chun, who was part of the team that created the world's first cloned dog - Snuppy the Afghan hound - in 2005. (google search)

No, tale dohtar se mi je ravnokar odkupil.

In v razmislek (ipak je že pozna ura, jutri pa delam): izraz segregacija in diskriminacija bo postal očitno še očitnejši (I just love me;) - a najprej ljubljenčki, then the world, Binky! Ne, a resno: naročite si otroka, z genskim inženiringom, z toliko in toliko IQ-ja, lasmi, "tan-om", muskulturo, itd. Super. Vzgojite ga. Kul (ja, valda). In čez 10, 5 let imate spet keš za novega. Ampak ... trg je "napredoval": zdaj lahko za isti dnar dobite dvakrat pametnejšega, dvakrat bolj atletskega, lepšega, super-otroka. Kul? In če bi bili vi tisti prvi otrok, sedaj vedoč, da ste bili kupljeni in da je vaš brat nova verzija windowsev oz. Linuxa?!!! Halooo? Am I the only one who's bothered by this?! (Stvar je nekako povzeta po dokumentarnem filmu Life running out of control, o GSO-jih. Glejte.) (Mind you, there's a Slovenian version as well.)

Za tiste, ki vas živi svet dejansko zanima, pa še tale, morda zanimiva, a morda tudi spregledana novička:
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) -- A U.S. scientist said Sunday he has discovered the globe's tiniest species of snake in the easternmost Caribbean island of Barbados, with full-grown adults typically stretching less than 4 inches (10 centimeters) long. Vir.

Ophrys sphegodes - Orchidaceae

Just something to brag and boast about. And to make you drool - one of my photos (the better ones) I took on the Mljet 2008 "spring biology camp" on ... well, Mljet. (The Croatian island. Link.)

So - post your comments or not, use the photo (or not:) link it to this blog or tell whose is it (that would be nice).
Have a great one (night, sex, party, pissing out with mates, weekend, whatever)!

Save the RAINFOREST?

SLAP! I love ads like this one on the World Wildlife Fund page. Wicked. Thanks, Lara.

Then again - every decent (morbid/resignated) biologist will tell you that evolution just has its own path and that - THUNK - every minute a couple of species die and every day a couple -THUNK- new are discovered. The problem is - how many incredible and wonderful species have already diminished, without us even knowing?

A question of debate or morale? See, If people want to conserve the species just because of the gain (in medicine, myriads of plant species from the rainforests are used and new drugs obtained, ...), than we are, to say, a sorry lot indeed. THIS IS and should not be the question, but for some it is. But think: WE ARE MAKING STATEMENTS, every day, every minute. By what clothes we wear (who made them, how FAR they were transported, which materials used), what we eat, who we buy electricity from (from more "greener" companies or not?), what we go to work, school, cinema, ..., with.

Here's one unverified source, saying:

Experts estimates that we are losing 137 plant, animal and insect species every single day due to rainforest deforestation. That equates to 50,000 species a year. As the rainforest species disappear, so do many possible cures for life-threatening diseases. Currently, 121 prescription drugs sold worldwide come from plant-derived sources. While 25% of Western pharmaceuticals are derived from rainforest ingredients, less that 1% of these tropical trees and plants have been tested by scientists.

See the page.

So, biologists and conservational biologists and ecologists (if we deem the term appropriate) have decided: "Huh, right. Save the wales by saying yachts are in danger of being sunk? A bit of a far stretch, but OK, I'll buy it!"


And for the last moral: Most medicine men and shamans remaining in the Rainforests today are 70 years old or more. Each time a rainforest medicine man dies, it is as if a library has burned down.
When a medicine man dies without passing his arts on to the next generation, the tribe and the world loses thousands of years of irreplaceable knowledge about medicinal plants.

Indy!

Oh, well ... v četrto gre rado, pravijo? Ja, če bi šel Rado v četrto ali pa v mestno četrt, bi še šlo, ampak tokrat ga je po mojem mnenju Spielberg malce mimo udaril. Saj film ni slab in dobro nadaljuje tradicijo sage (?) dr. Jonesa, ampak - nekajkrat pa je le pretiraval.

Predvsem so mi kot nekomu, ki mu je malce bližje narava, šle na živce nerealistično prikazane živali - zopet s podcenjevalnim odnosom. (Ok, roko na srce - ostalih kraljestev oz. phyla oz. carstev itak niso upoštevali - ampak zakaj bi jih? Saj so bila prisotna povsod;) V totalni številčni premoči ...

Gifts for a LIVING planet

WWF ali World Wildlife Fund je mnoge (vsaj mene) navduševal že kot otroka. Se še spomnite tistih zelenih albumov, v katere smo lepili sličice z redkimi in ogroženimi vrstami? For me, one of the first steps to conservational biology (and sadly, still one of the only ones I made thus far. (Have to pass my first year, first;)

Well, the reason for this post is quite obvious: something quite coolishly conservational and eco-doh-logical: Gifts for a living planet
The point is - you can give someone say, a "Give a goat to-a-localfarmerinorderforthemtostophuntingthesnowleopard and save a snow leopard".
Quite a cool gift, If you ask me (someone who got it, actually;) "I" sent a turtle to rehab. Aaww, don't you just love your girlfriend? Over and out.

Regakwaaak

Aaahhh ... danes je očitno moja noč! Noč, ko bom nadoknadil 6 mesecev nedejavnosti na blogu in noč, ko očitno, če bo šlo tako naprej, ne bom več spal;)

Gre za Zeleno rego (Hyla arborea); foto: Martin Turjak.

Dvoživke na Večni poti

Pozdravljeno, občestvo!

Danes smo postavljali ograjico za dvoživke na Večni poti - tam, pri ljubljanskem živalskem vrtu, saj veste.
Na spodnjem blogu, imenovanem DVOŽIVKE NA VEČNI POTI, lahko najdete dodatne povezave in informacije. Za vse, ki si želijo sami doma postavljati ograjo, pa naj si pozorno ogledajo fotogalerijo;)