Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Elsewhere on the Web

I can't COMPLETELY quit referal- blogging!

Roseann sent me this hilarious-- if ultimately dismaying-- story: a party of Forest Service workers demanded evacuation by helicopter because they heard wolves howling!

From Matt-- ancient giant dromedaries and camel hunters. I find this particularly interesting because I thouught dromedaries to be more "derived" and later than Bactrians. What say you, Darren?

A new mouse has been discovered on Cyprus, the last of the surviving Mediterranean endemic island species.

Elephants are suffering social and mental crackups in both Asia and Africa, killing humans, terrorizing villages, even raping rhinos. This excellent and serious New York Times magazine article explores some reasons. Read and weep for the elephants.

Will there be a statue of Genghis in Washington? "Mongols Say Leader Is Misunderstood".

Some rather original 'doom & gloom' thoughts from a scientist.

Crunchy Conservative Rod Dreher writes movingly and at length on his conversion to the Eastern Orthodox Church. Reactions have been mixed. I think this is an essay by a brave and honest man who knew he would get a lot of grief but chose to follow his conscience. Rod is also father to a new baby girl-- congratulations Rod!

A little late: the legendary Colonel Jeff Cooper, firearms instructor, warrior, writer and contrarian, died a few weeks ago. 'Armed Liberal' gives him the best of memorial tributes, affectionate but clear- eyed, here. Cooper could be difficult-- I once had an exchange of about six letters with him trying to convince him, with photos, that trained eagles could kill wolves, but he seemed insulted by the thought. The world will not see his like again. The Alpha Enviro used to say that he should have perished in the Cretaceous Extinction Event.

2 comments:

Darren Naish said...

WRT these giant dromedaries, as yet I know very little about them (though, incidentally, they are far from the first giant camels that we know of). I will blog when something technical appears.

Did you know that camels were endemic to North America until just a few million years ago? They really should be regarded as 'American' mammals.

Steve Bodio said...

I did know that-- and that they hung on until relatively recently.

I'd have to go look but I think it was Kingdon who told me that two humps were an 'older' condition than one.