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POPSAre Meerkats Naturally Altruistic?
For centuries, there's been a debate over whether true altruism exists among humans. Helping others at our detriment is risky behavior, evolutionarily speaking. Say you're overcome with an urge to give your last piece of bread to someone else. The other person eats, but you don't. Ultimately, after enough of these selfless acts, you'll starve and die, and your dangerous habit of helping others should die along with you. In the animal kingdom, altruism poses an equally prickly problem to explain. Why some animals exhibit generosity is a real mystery to biologists. It's not like they're thinking about the tax write-off they can get by donating money. Meerkats have one of the most cooperative societies in the animal kingdom. These African desert dwellers are perfect subjects for an investigation into altruism. For one, they live in a harsh habitat, quite a long way from easy street. Danger lurks around every corner because they sit at the bottom of the food chain.
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POPSEnnui from 'To the Reader' by Charles Baudelaire
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POPSSouth Africa's corrupt Government Our government is rotten and putrid with vice and corruption from the head down. Our next president elect, Jacob Zuma, is facing numerous counts of bribery and corruption and yet he has the majority ANC support. He has also been accused of rape. A once affluent country is sliding down to match the rest of Africa. I could scream with frustration and despair.
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POPSEmperor Scorpion Very Good With Children It's an old article, but I thought that last sentence was interesting. Makes me wonder how many parents have bought their little Sally or Billy a scorpion as a pet. Well, I'm sure it'd help with their fear of the creepy crawlies if they met one that didn't hurt them.
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POPSScientists find fossil of enormous bug Jaekelopterus Rhenaniae are Eurypterids, or ancient sea scorpions, are believed to be the extinct aquatic ancestors of today's scorpions and possibly all arachnids. They lived for about 10 million years, about 400 million years ago. these scorpions "were dominant for millions of years because they didn't have natural enemies. Eventually they were wiped out by large fish with jaws and teeth." Braddy's partner paleontologist Markus Poschmann found the claw fossil several years ago in a quarry near Prum, Germany, that probably had once been an ancient estuary or swamp.
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POPSScientists find 8ft bug fossil The ancient sea scorpion, was estimated to have been over 8ft long, by the size of a fossil claw found. They say it was likely to have been one of the largest ancestors of arachnids, almost half a yard larger than any found previously.
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POPSGerman advent calendar includes image of serial killer Reuters reports that an advent calendar being sold by the city of Hanover, Germany contain an image of Fritz Haarman. Haarman was executed in 1925 for murdering 24 young men and boys. The cartoon advent calendar features other Hanover celebrities, including The Scorpions. Haarman is pictured near Santa Claus, holding a meat cleaver while watching the townspeople enjoy the winter day. Interestingly, now that the calendar has gained media attention, people are lining up to buy the calendar, which is expected to sell out of all 2,000 copies. via Super Punch
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POPSSpiders Scorpions found in Manila mail "The scorpions nearly bit the examiner" Isn't that what scorpions do when they've been stuck in a hot bot fighting with spiders for space? Some were still juveniles, and will possibly be used in exhibitions.
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