history, links, medical, natural history, nudism, science

Monthly Links

Behold, this month’s collection of links to items you may have missed. Let’s dive straight in as there’s quite a bit of science-y stuff this month.

Science, Technology, Natural World

Astronomers have been seeking the so-called Planet 9 for decades, but still can’t even agree that it is likely to exist.

Deep within Earth there are two giant mystery blobs. What do we know about them?

We all happily talk about the average this or the average that, but what do we mean by average, and why isn’t it always, well, average?

Now to the animal kingdom …

Many animals, including our pets, have a third eyelid, so why don’t we?

Try to get your head round this … Alan Turing’s pattern-generating mechanism for spots and stripes on animal coats; and how the mechanism is modified. [LONG READ]

Despite their size, gorillas have extremely small penises, and it turns out that the genetic mutations which cause this may also help human male fertility.

group of sperm whales

Scientists have been investigating the vocalisations of sperm whales for years, and some now think that they may be the elements of a language, with dialects.

A new to Britain exotic jumping spider has been found in Cornwall, and it isn’t the only one.

And on the subject of foreign arrivals, the Guardian has a sensible and thoughtful piece about the invasive Asian Yellow-Legged Hornet (Vespa velutina) which has invaded continental Europe and is trying to get a foothold in the UK. [LONG READ]
Here’s the BBC article which triggered my recent blog post on these hornets.
STOP PRESS: The Asian Yellow-Legged Hornet has now been discovered in a southern state of USA (Georgia to be precise)!

face of an Asian yellow-legged hornet

Still with wasps … It seems that many parasitic wasps have tamed viruses so they can use them to help subdue their prey. [LONG READ]

From hornets to their forest home … there’s a theory that trees are social and communicate with each other across the “wood wide web” of fungal filaments. But it is only a theory and some are arguing it is fantasy. [LONG READ]

Treat with extreme care … Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) is quite a pretty American Spring flower. But don’t go messing with it as the roots contain a blood red alkaloid, sanguinarine, which will shut down and kill any cells it comes in contact with, and more.

We all contain vestiges of our evolutionary past like goose bumps, extra nipples and the ability to waggle our ears. [££££]

Which brings us to several items about Neanderthals …
So what is the difference between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens? We interbred so there can’t be a lot, right?
There’s still debate about Neanderthals ability to talk.
Some aspects of our health seem to depend on DNA we inherited from Neanderthals.
And most weirdly, apparently the Neanderthal Y chromosome (which codes for male) has been lost, suggesting that human/Neanderthal hybrid males were infertile (in some form).

Health, Medicine

So is the menopause like puberty in reverse? Well, yes, and then again no. [LONG READ]

Most of us guzzle diet drinks and other low calorie goodies, but research is now indicating that the sweeteners are actually harmful to our gut and its microbes.

Archaeological research is now suggesting that (red) squirrels were instrumental is spreading leprosy and transmitting it to humans.

Sexuality

What is the art of lasting sexual connections?

History, Archaeology, Anthropology

Egyptian Goddess Nut

One astrophysicist has been exploring the connection between the Milk Way and Nut, the ancient Egyptian Sky Goddess.

There’s a rare and very strange, apparently Roman, object (below) which was found at Norton Disney, Lincolnshire. The trouble is no-one knows what it is, or was used for, and there are a number of theories.

mystery Roman dodecahedron

A 1,700-year-old Roman shipwreck found on the coast at Mallorca was loaded with fish sauce when it sank.

We know there was a thriving, early medieval Norse colony in Greenland, but why did it suddenly vanish in the 13th century?

On fake medieval devices for torture and sex.

So what was going on in London during the English Civil War (January 1642 to April 1646). [LONG READ]

London

Specifically now to modern London … London’s Royal Parks have their own plant nursery in the middle of Hyde Park, and IanVisits went to look.

Lifestyle, Personal Development, Beliefs

Bhutan, the Dragon Kingdom, strictly limits visitors in order to protect its environment and heritage. But what is it like when you do go there?

Bhutan

Kate Lister asks how you know when you’re in love, and when you’re falling out of it. [££££]

A growing number of women are choosing to not have children. Here some tell what that’s like.

And finally on one of my hobbyhorses … the need to normalise and desexualise nudity if we are to achieve a well balanced society.

history, memes

What Happened in 1224?

Here’s our next instalment of things that happened in ..24 years of yore.

Notable Events in 1224

Spring. Falkes de Bréauté, English high sheriff and a rival of Henry III, refuses to relinquish his castles and starts a rebellion. Cardinal Stephen Langton and forces under Hubert de Burgh deal with Falkes and the castles are handed over. Falkes is found guilty of 16 counts of Wrongful Disseisin; both he and his brother William are excommunicated by Langton.

June-August. The garrison at Bedford Castle, belonging to Falkes de Bréauté, refuses to surrender to Henry III. The castle is badly damaged and surrenders when the keep is undermined. The garrison who surrendered the castle are all hanged by order of the king. Falkes is allowed to leave the country but forfeits all his possessions.

environment, natural history

Asian Hornet Warning

1 Comment

People in the UK, and especially the South-East, are asked to be especially alert for the presence of yellow-legged Asian Hornets (Vespa velutina), following a record number of sightings last year.

These hornets are invasive and a major predator of honeybees. They’re slightly smaller than our native European Hornet (Vespa crabo) but about twice the size of a common wasp or honeybee (see below). Over the last decade or so they’ve spread across mainland Europe from an original accidental introduction in the south of France.

Hornet and wasp size comparison
[click the image for a larger view]

As the graphic shows, the Asian Hornets are dark coloured, with a broad yellow/orange band across the fourth abdominal section, and yellow lower legs. I’ve only ever seen a mounted display specimen but I was struck by the dark colour. By contrast European Hornets are slightly larger, more likely to be brown rather than black, with much more yellow on their abdomen and dark legs; they look more like an oversized common wasp.

Unless their nest is disturbed, Asian Hornets are not normally aggressive to people. However they are prolific and invasive; which with their ability to predate honeybees and wipe out complete hives, makes them a serious pest. They find beehives and pick off the workers as they come and go; I’ve seen it estimated that a single Asian Hornet can catch and kill 50 honeybees a day! They have few, if any, natural predators in Europe.

If you think you’ve seen one, you must report it via the Asian Hornet Wasp app (available for both Apple and Android smartphones) or online via the UK CEH Non-Native Species Alert website. If possible try to get a photograph of the insect. If you can safely capture the offender so much the better – emphasis on your safety. But please do not go killing any captured insect unless you are very sure you have an Asian Hornet.

Note that these are not the so-called “Murder Hornets”, the Asian Giant Hornet (Vespa mandarinia), which have recently invaded the NW USA. Vespa mandarinia are larger, even more alien-looking, equally as predatory and much more aggressive.

Find more on Vespa velutina at:
Defra Asian Hornet Sightings page
NNSS Alerts page
EU LIFE Programme
Wikipedia.

amusements, quotes

Monthly Quotes

And it came to pass in this land that the time was accomplished for this month’s periodic collection of quotes.

Why is public nakedness considered sinful or evil? What is so bad about the human body that you have to hide it away from the gaze of others? Why is the slut shaming against naturist women? Is it just because God is a prude? For most of humanity’s history people have gone naked in public all or part of the time. Going naked in the company of others doing the same is a liberating and enjoyable experience. There is nothing intrinsically wrong about the naked body.
[Dr Vian Aziz; https://twitter.com/VIANAZIZFRCOGUK/status/1781845174596886874]

Being in a redwood forest is like going to mass. It’s a genuinely awe inspiring experience that makes so much room in your brain you can’t really contain it all. They’re spaces full of fractured light and dappled spaces, that make you think God might be real after all. There is a strong sense of time out of time.
[Katy Wheatley; https://katywheatley.substack.com/p/road-trip-2]

I do not have ducks. I do not have a row. I have squirrels and they’re at a pagan rave.
[unknown]

Anyone who believes in indefinite growth on a physically finite planet is either mad, or an economist.
[David Attenborough]

A dress makes no sense unless it inspires men to want to take it off you.
[unknown]

Only a few know how much one must know to know how little one knows.
[Werner Heisenberg]

Love is a lot like a backache. It doesn’t show up on X-rays, but you know it’s there.
[George Burns]

To any artist, worthy of the name, all in nature is beautiful, because his (or her) eyes, fearlessly accepting all exterior truth, read there, as in an open book, all the inner truth.
[Auguste Rodin]

It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.
[Leonardo Da Vinci]

The simple act of opening a bottle of wine has brought more happiness to the human race than all the collective governments in the history of earth.
[Jim Harrison]

And malt does more than Milton can to justify God’s ways to man.
[AE Housman]

amusements, memes

May Quiz Answers

Here are the answers to this month’s five quiz questions. If in doubt, all should be able to be easily verified online.

General Knowledge

  1. Which long distance train had its first run in October 1883?  Orient Express
  2. With 158 separate stanzas, which nation is considered to have the longest national anthem in the world?  Greece
  3. Which of the following sauces is NOT traditionally vegan: Hoisin, Worcestershire, Mustard, Wasabi?  Worcestershire
  4. Over 500 million of the Flying Pigeon PA-02 bicycles have been made, many times more than any other bicycle. But what country owns the Flying Pigeon brand?  China
  5. The Goodwin Sands is a large sandbank off the coast of Kent. What game was played there, at low tide, every year until 2003?  Cricket

Answers were correct when questions were compiled in late 2023.

medical, personal, photography

Monthly Self-Portrait, May

We’re staying with the medical for this month’s self-portrait. As long-time readers will know I have Obstructive Sleep Apnoea, which means I can stop breathing when asleep. To counteract this, I have a CPAP machine which pumps air into my airway overnight to keep the airways open. It isn’t invasive, just a nuisance, and it does cramp one’s style somewhat. As you’ll appreciate from the image, us users are sometimes colloquially termed “hoover heads”. This is my usual sleeping attire!

CPAP mask in use
Hoover Head
[Click the image for a larger view]
amusements, memes

May Quiz Questions

Each month we’re posing five pub quiz style questions, with a different subject each month. As before, they’re not difficult, but it is unlikely everyone will know all the answers – so hopefully you’ll learn something new, as well as having a bit of fun.

General Knowledge

  1. Which long distance train had its first run in October 1883?
  2. With 158 separate stanzas, which nation is considered to have the longest national anthem in the world?
  3. Which of the following sauces is NOT traditionally vegan: Hoisin, Worcestershire, Mustard, Wasabi?
  4. Over 500 million of the Flying Pigeon PA-02 bicycles have been made, many times more than any other bicycle. But what country owns the Flying Pigeon brand?
  5. The Goodwin Sands is a large sandbank off the coast of Kent. What game was played there, at low tide, every year until 2003?

Answers will be posted in 2 weeks time.

history, memes

May 1924

Our look at some of the significant happenings 100 years ago this month.

4. Died. Edith Nesbit, British author (b. 1858)

11. Mercedes-Benz is formed by the merging of companies owned by Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz

12. Born. Tony Hancock, English comedian (d. 1968)