Kudos to a Great Graphic Artist Rubin Bolling: Alternative MAUS Hits Home

-by Ptera Hunter Among the best responses that I have seen to date about the recent mashugana decision by the Tennessee School Board to ban a book about the holocaust (because a cartoon mouse shows a breast) comes from graphic artist Ruben Bolling (a.k.a., Tom the Dancing Bug.) One of Mr. Bolling’s most recent parodies,Continue reading “Kudos to a Great Graphic Artist Rubin Bolling: Alternative MAUS Hits Home”

Tough-Guy Elk

Many species of animals use deception to gain an advantage. The elk that signals dominance with a long bray needs to fight less often than the elk that does not signal a tough-guy attitude. With a good bluff, he can usually avoid a costly fight. Learn more about the art of lying in the naturalContinue reading “Tough-Guy Elk”

Plastics and Their Role in Silent Consent

A recurring theme in Silent Consent by Circa24 is the damage done to the future generations from the plastics that made much of the carbon era so remarkable. Plastics, as we know them, have become rare strategic materials in the Founder’s States of that book. People seek antique plastic products from the 20th century asContinue reading “Plastics and Their Role in Silent Consent”

Some Paint Choices That Can Cut Your Carbon Footprint and Reduce Your Chemical Usage.

Silent Consent looks at a dystopian world where easy access to energy and power has become part of our past.  Although fiction, its prediction of a polarized world is very plausible.   A caste system with a few powerful elites have controlled many of the pre-carbon era civilizations.  The many others, who serve as their energyContinue reading “Some Paint Choices That Can Cut Your Carbon Footprint and Reduce Your Chemical Usage.”

Mimicry in Insects: A Victorian Print signed H. Morin

 Mimicry in  Insects (19th century; restoration by Ptera Hunter, 2020). This plate contains different mimicking insects. Plates like these challenged the 19th century reader to find as many of the creatures as possible, thus discovering their various deceptions.  Check it out and see how many you see before scrolling down to the key. challenged theContinue reading “Mimicry in Insects: A Victorian Print signed H. Morin”

Population and Violence?

Spite is a natural behaviour among organisms, just like mutualism and parasitism. Behaviourists define war as a loose-loose interaction in which each party is harmed by the exchange. Among humans, war is typically fought to gain control of resources.  The Nazis’ moved against the Soviet Union and waged war in North Africa primarily to gainContinue reading “Population and Violence?”

On Track for a Societal Collapse Soon

One of the things we look for in good science is the ability to make predictions. In 1972, an MIT team modeled twelve different possible scenarios for the future based upon different responses to the environment. Since then, we have followed the BAU2 (Business as Usual) scenario. Based upon our desire for continued economic growth,Continue reading “On Track for a Societal Collapse Soon”

Wasps!

Most of us have an innate suspicion that wasps are ill-tempered beasts that hunt you down like a dog. Not true. Most wasps will not wasp harm you. Many are helpful creatures, and most are beautiful. Many attack crop pests. Only a fraction of wasps are the social wasps that defend themselves with venom. MostContinue reading “Wasps!”

How many slaves do you have?

The first national remembrance of Juneteenth has come and gone in the United States. But, if you thought that slavery ended with the Emancipation Proclamation or with the condemnation of slavery by the United Nations, think again. Mauritania had legal slavery until 1981, and after its abolition, it imposed no penalties for it until 2007.Continue reading “How many slaves do you have?”