Clarke's Second Law

 The Only Way to Discover the Limits of the Possible Is to Venture a Little Bit Past Them Into The Impossible. 

Sounds pretty self Explanatory. You never know what you can do until you do it, or try. And I'm not exactly sure how to comment on this one, so...seeya soon. 

Sources Same as Yesterday:

My favorite place to look through these laws, which is a compilation from several places

Statistical Modelling--Columbia University-- Clarke's Laws

Twitter-- Physics in History-- Clarke's Three Laws

Geoff Marlow-- Substack-- Clarke's Three Laws

Ebsco-- Clarke's Three Laws

New Scientist-- Clarke's three laws

Clarke's First Law and Asimov's Corollary

So, this is straight out copy/pasted from my favorite link below, but who it's from is a bit...weird. I've mostly been using it to find a law I want to bring up and googling it to find other sources. 

 Clarke's First Law:

When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.

Corollary (Asimov): When the lay public rallies round an idea that is denounced by distinguished but elderly scientists, and supports that idea with great fervor and emotion -- the distinguished but elderly scientists are then, after all, right.

It should be noted that the 'elderly' scientist is someone in the range of 30-50, because Clarke believed that any scientist past the age of 50 is useful only in board meetings and should be kept out of labs. 

Personally, I'll just say it as a fact of life. If someone knows what they're talking about and says it's possible, probably right. If they say something is impossible, that's probably wrong because anything is possible. 

I think I'm going to leave it at that and come back with the second law tomorrow, because he's fun. 

Sources:

My favorite place to look through these laws, which is a compilation from several places

Statistical Modelling--Columbia University-- Clarke's Laws

Twitter-- Physics in History-- Clarke's Three Laws

Geoff Marlow-- Substack-- Clarke's Three Laws

Ebsco-- Clarke's Three Laws

New Scientist-- Clarke's three laws

Schmidt Sting Pain Index

So, I started a list a while ago of interesting things to tell everyone about and it's...well, not short. And I have a bad habit of finding things a dozen at a time when I'm listening to podcasts or watching QI, or something like that. I also have sections for reminding myself to post about these things during specific points in the year, for things like Pride Month or National Velociraptor Awareness Day. One must always be aware of Velociraptors. 

But that's a different matter. 

Today, I picked from the list and now I'm going to tell you about the Schmidt Sting Pain Index. It's another case of Scientists being...special. 

American Entymologist Justin Schmidt, who died in 2023, got himself purposefully stung/bit by over a thousand insects so he could tell you how painful they are in comparison. To be sure, those thousand+ stings came from 83 types of ant/bee/wasp, so he didn't one-and-done them, and he probably reminded himself of relative pain levels several times so he didn't inflate them in his memory or have a particularly strong/weak bug for the only example. 

Like several other historical scientists, I just have one question. Why? 

Ok, so I actually can answer that kinda. That's information that can actually help later. The scale only goes from 1-4, with one being pretty painless and four being intensely painful. 

The really hilarious part though, is how he describes them. It's not just a number, he's...poetic about it. And hilarious. 

Here's an example of one that I actually know, and I'll disagree. It's not that bad.

2.0 -- Yellow jacket: Hot and smoky, almost irreverent. Imagine W.C. Fields extinguishing a cigar on your tongue.

Going by last time I got bit, I'd say it's more like...a drop of boiling oil that hits your arm when you don't have time to wipe it off. That could be just me though. 

He puts the Bald Faced Hornet at the same level as Yellow Jacket, but my Dad, who has been bit by both, says the hornet is a lot worse. 

I kinda like the description for the Fierce Black Polybia Wasp. Despite it being a 2.5, it's described as 'A ritual gone wrong, satanic. The gas lamp in the old church explodes in your face when you light it.' And I just like that it's not bad, but he called it satanic. He might have been getting that idea from the looks of it though, which you can see in the picture below from the Missoula Butterfly House. 

The highest his scale goes is to 4. After reading his descriptions, I'm more than happy to not go near those dudes. It started with just the Bullet Ant, but it's expanded from there to a few other 4s. 

4.0 -- Bullet ant: Pure, intense, brilliant pain. Like walking over flaming charcoal with a 3-inch nail in your heel.

4.0 -- Warrior Wasp: Torture. You are chained in the flow of an active volcano. Why did I start this list?

If you just want a visual representation of it, try this link to Compound Chem, who have a PDF of it drawn up for those who like bubbles. 

I can think of a lot of things I'd do for science, but...not that. Props to the guy that did, along with a recommendation to talk to a psychiatrist. Or three. 

While you consider this and probably stare thoughtfully at the nearest ant/bee/etc, I'm going to go try not to have nightmares about this. Seeya again soon. 

Sources: 

Entomology Today- Suffering for Science-- Written by Justin Schmidt

National History Museum-- The Schmidt Sting Pain Index

Encyclopedia Britannica-- Schmidt Sting Pain Index

Missoula Butterfly House-- Schmidt Pain Scale

Altschmerz

Today, I figured I'd tell you about another one of those really cool words I've come across. 

Altschmerz is a sense of weariness of the same old problems. The exhaustion from wrestling your anxieties, fears, and flaws into submission every day to just get on with life. 

Examples include imposter syndrome, which is basically the feeling that you're not good enough to be (Blank). Such as, I've almost hit 200 blog posts here, but am I really saying anything that anyone wants to hear? Am I being too opinionated? Missing information you want to know? Is it annoying that I keep linking my sources at the bottom like this instead of trying to do it MLA style or something? These are my demons to wrestle, and they can get tiring, so this resonates with me a lot. Especially right now, but I'll deal with it. I always do. 

Weltschmerz is a similar word, but instead of focusing on yourself, it's the feeling you get when you look at the world as it is and realize that it's not what you think the world should be, and that it will never be what you think it should be. That's one that I can almost guarantee everyone is feeling. 

And now I'm too depressed to want to talk about them more. 

Darn. Well, now you've got a new word to explain why you're tired even when you haven't done anything. 

Go do something fun and tell me about it, so I can look at the world and see more good bits to it. Beyond the purring cat that has decided it needs to try to climb up my nose now. 

Sources:

The Dictionary of Unknown Sorrows-- Altschmerz

Practical Psych-- What is Altschmerz

German Language Blog-- Altschmerz and Weltschmerz

Sea Bunnies

 I think I might accidentally be falling in love with sea slugs, because they're a lot more adorable and interesting than the ones on land. You might see a few more of them in the near future, but that's more because they're adorable than anything else. 

Case in point: Sea Bunnies. 

This image is from The Strange Animals link below. It's a podcast, if you'd rather hear them talk about Sea Bunnies while staring adoringly at a picture of them. I won't, but only because I already decided to listen to the podcast when I get to number 420, later. Going back over something this cute isn't a bad thing, and a reminder to see what new things get learned about them can be good. 

For those interested, you can also buy a plush version of these guys to cuddle. That may or may not be what tipped me off to them. Strangely, the same way the Strange Animals people found a plush version, by going in the day after Valentine's Day and finding them on sale. 

So, the sea bunny is a type of sea slug, also known as nudibranchs, which are a type of mollusk, like oysters. Same family tree, vastly different critters. Sea Bunnies live in tropical waters, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, and have lifespans of a few months to a year. They're covered in a fuzzy coating of protuberances they use to feel the world, and have two black stalks of chemoreceptors on top that look like bunny ears, plus gills on their 'butt' that look like a fluffy tail. Picture below, from A-Z Animals, shows their fuzzy-butts too, but looks a bit less bunny-like. A bit.  

Despite their innocent and fluffy-looking appearance, these guys are actually poisonous because they eat sea sponges that have toxins in them, which the itty-bitty bunny absorbs. That's actually why they don't get eaten much either, because anything that can handle the toxins wouldn't see these tiny, one-inch long creatures as anything near big enough to be worth eating. That's not to say there aren't critters that eat them, like sea-hares and cone snails, but they're pretty off the menu for most. They aren't too picky about what to eat though, so some of them might actually also have jellyfish poison in them too, which means any plans of cuddling one might lead to skin irritation for humans to. So, either stick to imaginary cuddles, get a plush, or I guess we can wear gloves.

Until then, this is my plush sea bunny, named Disco because of the shinies and because the family group for him is Discodorididae. I'll give him cuddles for all the sea bunnies I can't cuddle. Let me know if I need to cuddle him for you too. 

I'll see you again soon, to tell you about something else fun I find. Until then, find some fun for yourself. 

Sources:

Ocean Info-- Sea Bunny

Our Breathing Planet-- Sea Bunny

North American Divers-- 5 facts about the Sea Bunny

Animal Fact Files-- Sea Bunny

Padi-- 10 facts about the Sea Bunny

A-Z Animals-- Pokemon or Sea Creature?

A-Z Animals-- Discover the Sea Bunny

Strange Animals Podcast-- Sea Bunnies

Happy Mardi Gras!

Hi! 

I could (and would) have sworn that I posted again the day before yesterday, but oops. Sorry. But, I'm back again. 

So, today's going to be pretty short because I'm a bit tired after the business today, but I really wanted to post this today, because it's Mardi Gras. 

I'm actually going to skip finding sources here because there are a lot if you want to go looking, and I just want to share what I already know. 

Mardi Gras is also known as Fat Tuesday, or Shrove Tuesday. It's the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the start of Lent. 

For those that don't know it, Lent is the Christian practice of abstaining from something for the period of time that Jesus spent in the Desert. 40 days (minus Sundays). During that time, people are supposed to pick something to abstain from such as no soda, no fast food, or no sugar. In the past, it was a time of giving up red meat, leavening agents, desserts, and sometimes other things. This was meant to be a time of cleansing and being extra religious and whatnot. 

(It might also be a thing about spring being a bit sparse on some foods because the fall harvest is running out and the spring crops aren't ready yet, but that's just a theory from me, so ignore that.)

Mardi Gras was the last day of eating the good food or having a party before Lent, when you had to be good and eat bland foods. Since the start of it all, it's become a giant festival and a symbol of letting go. 

New Orleans has the largest festival and has gotten more than a bit of a reputation from it, but that all makes sense because they're a large, Catholic, city, and a tourist attraction. Because of the tourist aspect and a few other things, I'm not sure how much they still stick to the Lent part of things, and how much has changed because of the festival attracting people who just want to go wild for a bit. 

Today, at my church, my Mother, Brother, and I put together a Pancake Dinner with pancakes and sausages and bacon and fruit salad and all sorts of sugary toppings, to celebrate. Normally, it's not hard to make that as a dinner for my family, but in a different kitchen, making it for 30 people, it was rather chaotic and annoyingly harder. So, I'll make you do the work to look up anything you're curious about for Mardi Gras. 

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow to tell you about Sea bunnies, because those things are seriously adorable and I can't wait to find out more to tell you about them. 

Hellbender

 As promised, Hellbender Salamanders. 

The picture here is from the link below for Marine Sanctuary. 

Also known as Snot Otters, Mudcats, and Devil Dogs. They spend most of their time hiding under large rocks, which is why the picture above. 

This is the largest species of Salamanders in North America, growing to over a foot long and weighing up to 5 pounds. Most of the salamanders I've encountered have been about the size of a finger, so this is a pretty large critter. Not the largest in the world, but I'll cover that one someday too. 

Interestingly, at least to me, these guys need the water they live in to be clear and clean because they breathe through their skin instead of through gills or their mouths or anything like that. Well, they have gills when they're younger, but they grow out of them. If they get covered in mud, like one of the nicknames suggests, or if the water has too much other stuff in it, then they suffocate. That's part of why they are entirely aquatic instead of being able to wander in and out, like a lot of other salamanders. 

You'd probably think that the tiny salamanders only live for a year or two, but they can live up to 10 sometimes. These guys specifically can live for 25 years in the wild, or longer in captivity. 

This picture comes from the Smithsonian link below. This is closer to the image that had me investigating hellbenders first, along with the name. 

Ok, so, this is one of those times where I have problems defending scientists, but please don't hate on them too much. They've done a lot of research into how salamanders, axolotls, and others can regrow toes and limbs and things, which has led to advancements that have helped in humans. These guys don't do that. They were tracked by cutting off toes to mark them. Please don't hate on scientists too much for this. 

Before you get too up-in-arms about them though, they do have teeth that can break through human skin. They also have a defense mechanism to excrete mucus when threatened. Which means, they can bite and are slippery. I'm actually not too surprised that attempts to tag them caused problems. 

One of the really cool things about them though, one that I adore finding out about, is that these guys are apparently the only species left on their particular branch of the Salamander Family Tree. There are fossils of these guys going back over 150 million years, and these are the guys that managed to survive it all. 

Please, Humanity, don't destroy this unique and weird creature. I like them. 

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with something else. I don't know what yet. Any votes?

Sources
Fish and Wildlife-- Eastern Hellbender

Fish and Wildlife-- Hellbenders, Fantastic Beasts of Rivers and Streams

Fish and Wildlife-- Hellbenders, a Song

Marine Sanctuary-- Hellbenders

Smithsonian-- Hellbender

New York Department of Environmental Conservation-- Eastern Hellbender

Wildlife Facts-- Hellbender Salamander

PBS-- 12 facts about the Hellbender

Defenders of Wildlife-- Hellbender

Sorry Again and National Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Day

 Sorry. I didn't mean to disappear for an entire month. Things just got hectic and I really didn't have the energy for this, so I kept saying I'd do it tomorrow. Then I had paperwork hell, but that's a different matter. 

In some ways though, I thought this would be the perfect day to come back because today is National Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Day. So, I'm not going to cry over the days I didn't post or that my break took a lot longer than I had planned it to be. 

One fun thing about that phrase though, is that it's not limited to English. You can check at this blog here, who already wrote up about it. Most cultures have something similar to this phrase, a surprising number of them even include milk specifically instead of just water or juice or something. I seriously expected more variety from this phrase in other languages. 

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow to tell you about Hellbender Salamanders. I haven't investigated them much because I'm bribing myself to get back to this with that, but there's got to be something interesting about them beyond their name and being the largest salamander in North America. And that they're the only member of their branch of the Salamander family tree. And that they're also known as Snot Otters. Or Lasagna Lizards. 

I'm just gonna sign off now before I start diving down that rabbit hole and tell you about them immediately. Tomorrow. Bribing myself with that.