Wow...

Wreckless Pelicans!

1. Pelican swallows pigeon in park
2. Diving pelican slams into swimmer's face in Gulf off Florida

Conan the 'praying' chihuahua

"I think he saw me doing it all the time and got the idea to do it too."

1. 'Praying' dog at Japanese temple

Panda pornography unsuccessful

. . .

Their encounter is filmed by one of the keepers. And scientists at the Chengdu Research Base for Giant Panda Breeding now play this mating tape to other pandas in the hope that it will encourage them to do the same.

"Here you can see the female is very co-operative," says reproduction specialist Hou Rong - who is known here as the Goddess of Fertility. She watches the video closely.

The two pandas writhe about for a bit longer. Then they untangle. It may be best to stop male pandas from watching what comes next.

"The female is not co-operative," says Dr Hou laconically.

That is an understatement.

The tape shows the female, Qing Qing, attacking the male, Ha Lei. He runs off to the corner, looking sheepish.

. . .

Female pandas are only interested in reproducing for two or three days a year. For males it is the same.

Luckily for the survival of the panda species, these days of interest happen to coincide.

Scientists here have to make the most of this brief mating season. There are only around 2,000 pandas left in the world - including about 250 in captivity.

So the trick for everyone here at the Chengdu reserve is to get their pandas together on the right days, and then nudge them along a bit by playing them the video of Qing Qing and Ha Lei.

No one here can remember who came up with the idea - it was possibly a behaviour specialist from abroad, they say.

And there is one problem - no one is sure whether or not the mating tapes make any difference.

"We don't know if its useful for pandas or not," says Dr Hou. "Some pandas are interested. Others are not interested. They prefer to eat or rest - and not pay attention to the video."

Headache?

We get together a small monitor and some loudspeakers, put some plastic bags onto our shoes and head into a small enclosure.

One panda lies on its back among piles of bamboo leaves. Another is asleep. It does not look like they have mating on their minds.

We set up a small TV screen in front of a seven-year-old female panda called Shu Qing. She is busy crunching her way through an apple.

We play her the tape of Qing Qing and Ha Lei. Shu Qing shows no interest. She is much more concerned about finishing her apple.

After a couple of minutes she glances over at the TV monitor. Then she seems lost in thought. She vaguely waves a paw, but nothing more.

So the video does not appear to work. Perhaps Shu Qing has a headache, or perhaps she just prefers apples to adult videos.

So the reserve lets us play the video to the pandas ourselves.

1. Sex videos fail to engage pandas

Peanut butta

A dose of silliness

I'll get around to writing an actual post before long——until then I'll top off my YouTube spree:

This world of ours 5

(For optimal effect, listen to this while reading.)


Recently, a man in the Ukraine celebrated the completion of his 116^th year upon this Earth. That is 42,340 days, 1,016,834.3 hours, or 61,010,058 minutes.
1. Ukraine's 'oldest man' turns 116

Meanwhile the days in Darfur remain just as dismal:
2. Hopes fade for solution for Darfur
3. Sudan defiant on Darfur suspects
4. Darfur 'was worst abuse of 2006'
5. Kansas Senate Approves Sudan Divestiture

As do the prospects of curbing the earth's spiking warmth:
6. 'Now or never' for climate action
7. Wrangling delays climate report
8. Ethical Man's top ten tips for ethical living

Don't fret, though— that kills brain cells:
9. Stressful event kills brain cells

We still have reason to be happy, or at least reasons for it. So be happy: socialize, be kind, exercise, roll in the dirt, or be a Dutch child.
10. Path to true happiness 'revealed'
11. Dirt exposure 'boosts happiness'
12. Why are Dutch children so happy?

If you're a Chinese teenager, though, you're going to have to find other roads to happiness than MMOs:
13. China seeks to 'limit game hours'


Oh, and abstinence-only sex education DOESN'T work. ("[T]he US federal government spends $176 million on them annually...") If it's any consolation, you can still take your kids to a newly-built anti-evolutionary-science museum.
14. US sex-abstinence classes queried
15. Sex Abstinence Programs A Waste Of Time And Money
16. Creationist museum challenges evolution


Lewis Black, who—for whatever improbable reason—had a show in Salina, Kansas recently, has some thoughts pertaining to the latter (#16):

Whenever someone says they believe the earth was created in 7 days, I grab a fossil and say, "Fossil." And if they keep talking, I throw it just over their heads.

There are people who believe that humans and dinosaurs co-existed. And what this is, plain and simple, is a psychotic reaction. These people are stone-cold-f***ing nuts. I can't be nice about this, because these people are watching the Flinstones as if it were a documentary.

[Can't think of a segue]:


17. Japan anger at US sex slave bill


And is the media's depiction of women as sex objects good for the mental health of young girls? In case you can't already guess:
18. Sexualisation 'harms' young girls


Meanwhile, I have my fingers crossed for peace in Northern Uganda, although I'm doubtful:
19. Uganda rebels sign new ceasefire

I'm also hopeful for Iraq, although I have little or no reason to be:
20. Bush, Democrats trade accusations in war stand-off
21. Iraqi deaths survey 'was robust'
22. Payouts reveal Iraq civilian toll¹
23. In pictures: US war artist

But of course, as Obama says:

There are no good options in Iraq. At this point there are bad options and worse options.

Speaking of Mr. Obama, the 2008 presidential campaigns are looking to be pricey (as in "record-breaking" pricey):
24. Obama fundraising rivals Clinton


Also in the news:
25. Office workers 'risk blood clots'

26. Autism gene breakthrough hailed
27. Clear obesity gene link 'found'

28. When exercise becomes an obsession [too much exercise can be bad for mental health]

29. Danish protests turns flowery

30. Bed sharing 'drains men's brains'


And hot off the press (what the fuck?):
31. Sudan man forced to 'marry' goat



¹

One file records a payment of $35,000 made to a family in Hib Hib, Iraq, after US forces "accidentally discharged 155 mm rounds", killing three children aged five, 16 and 18 and damaging their home.

I was thinking, you know, I'm spending something upwards of $55,000 on college, and the compensation for three lives and a home is only $35,000. We're also spending some $165 million annually on abstinence education.

---

Just a castaway
An island lost at sea
Another lonely day
With no one here but me
More loneliness
Than any man could bear
Rescue me before I fall into despair, oh.

I'll send an S.O.S. to the world
I'll send an S.O.S. to the world
I hope that someone gets my (x3)
Message in a bottle. (x2)

A year has passed since I wrote my note
But I should have known this right from the start
Only hope can keep me together
Love can mend your life
But love can break your heart

I'll send an S.O.S. to the world
I'll send an S.O.S. to the world
I hope that someone gets my (x3)
Message in a bottle (x4)

Walked out this morning
Don't believe what I saw
A hundred billion bottles
Washed up on the shore
Seems I'm not alone at being alone
A hundred billion castaways
Looking for a home

I'll send an S.O.S. to the world
I'll send an S.O.S. to the world
I hope that someone gets my (x3)
Message in a bottle (x4)

Sending out an S.O.S. (x24 ¹/₂)


11/16 update:

Two significant happenings:
32. US university shooting kills 33
33. Sudan agrees to UN peacekeepers

"Fearless feline strikes terror into treebound bear"

Hot off the press (as of yesterday):

1. Tabby cat terror for black bear