The Science Thread

[DLC]

Everest is kind of wild.

 

[Louanne Learning]

Everest is kind of wild.

There's a whole lore with "climbing a mountain."

 

[DLC]

In my fantasy story they think it's a spell that stops men from ever reaching the top of the 'great mountain', and I'm still up in the air as to how they overcome it, and do the thing etc. without needing dragons or some nonsense to fly them there.

 

[5thSonCallas]

In my fantasy story they think it's a spell that stops men from ever reaching the top of the 'great mountain', and I'm still up in the air as to how they overcome it, and do the thing etc. without needing dragons or some nonsense to fly them there.

Is it a spell?

 

[DLC]

How about a secret passage inside the mountain, now there's an possibility.

No spells for these guys.

e: you mean a spell that keeps them from going past what we'd call the death zone? No need for one. they're sorta early medieval.

 

[Louanne Learning]

We are awed by the beauty and wonder of nature. Some people say that the randomness of evolution cannot account for the magnificence of the natural world.

What that fails to recognize is that we are products of evolution, too. We evolved in tandem with nature. And those that evolved an awe of the beauty and wonder of nature enjoyed a significant evolutionary advantage.

Nature is beautiful to us because we evolved a perspective of beauty that appreciated it.

 

[DLC]

we evolved a perspective of beauty that appreciated it.

Lots of things did! Why is bird pretty? Why is pretty bird male, and the females are kinda brown (yeah, yeah, not always)? What's up with that? Maybe being pretty means he's disease free, well-fed and therefore good at gathering resources and so on. I mean, guys can spread their seed far and wide and just wander off to the next adventure, but the ladies have to be a bit more choosy. I'm sure lots of people already know this, but it's something really worth looking into.

 

[Zmar]

Lots of things did! Why is bird pretty? Why is pretty bird male, and the females are kinda brown (yeah, yeah, not always)? What's up with that? Maybe being pretty means he's disease free, well-fed and therefore good at gathering resources and so on. I mean, guys can spread their seed far and wide and just wander off to the next adventure, but the ladies have to be a bit more choosy. I'm sure lots of people already know this, but it's something really worth looking into.

This guy is a keeper.

 

[Louanne Learning]

Lots of things did!

This reminds me of something I read about one way in which humans judge if someone is "good-looking" - that we subconsciously judge the symmetry in their face. The more symmetrical are the right and left side of the face, the more attractive that person is thought to be.

 

[Louanne Learning]

@Zmar - I've seen that before - and it is incredible!

The wonder of it is that it is all instinctual. (maybe everything about us is instinctual)

 

[Zmar]

@Zmar - I've seen that before - and it is incredible!

The wonder of it is that it is all instinctual. (maybe everything about us is instinctual)

@Louanne Learning

One of them must have learned it once.

Here is one of my bird friends (this on is Warning, who is a bit more cautious).

She's recently started the habit of pecking on my balcony window when she wants cheese. I've seen this before in other gulls, but she is a new convert to the practice.

It's a nice reminder that we can still develop ourselves beyond our instincts, even as adults.

Note - my windows need a clean. That's the bugger of living by the salt of the west winds.

 

[DLC]

Now, pay attention.

 

[Louanne Learning]

Now, pay attention

What stood out for you from the video?

 

[DLC]

How sharp he still is at that age.

 

[Louanne Learning]

Is Niagara Falls just water pouring over a cliff or is it an example of nature's power, beauty, and majesty?

 

[DLC]

You can't trick me, witch. It's both, isn't it?

 

[Louanne Learning]

It's both, isn't it?

I guess I'm asking about - what is your primary perspective?

Einstein famously said there are two ways to approach life - one as though nothing is a miracle, the other as if everything is a miracle.

I wonder how many scientists fall into either camp.

Does a reductionist approach cast aside the majesty of the whole?

 

[Le gribouilleur]

 

[Louanne Learning]

@Le gribouilleur - thanks for that. Amazing.

Bioluminescence seems a good example in which taking the reductionist approach - explaining it at the cellular level - doesn't capture the wonder of the whole. Or does it?

 

[Hammer]

I saw this in Chichester Harbour whilst rowing back from the pub to a friend's sail-boat. You could see the sea flash with every splash, so I started to hit the water with the flat of an oar - the brightly lit ripples of pressure were amongst the most beautiful things I have ever seen!