Lost in a Lost World (Page 14) Zanjan: You know what's creepy? Science fiction. I've always been fond of that genre - in movies, not the books. I grew up on increasingly stunning special FX that hooked me into watching every scifi film made, even the hilarious bombs. The thing about this category is future sight. Generations before their time, they sported laser and stun guns, submarines, space rockets, holograms, trips to the moon, computer screens and microchips, synthetic voice recognition, visa vis phone communication, microwave ovens, cardlocks, robots, drones, flying cars and backpacks, etc. All these visions eventually became a reality. To balance out the fun, there were near extinction level disasters. Deadly nuclear accidents, outrageous clustered weather phenomena, cities swallowed by the sea, falling space debris, destruction of the atmosphere, chemical warfare, Identity theft, earth's magnetic field corrupted, the sun's overheated violence, deadly virus, globally pandemic etc. These eventually became a reality. Makes one sit up and note them as warnings. Waiting for the asteroid......  ghostgeek: There's always one coming along: A newly discovered car-sized asteroid just made the closest-known flyby to Earth without hitting our planet. On Sunday (Aug. 16), the asteroid, initially labeled ZTF0DxQ and now formally known to astronomers as 2020 QG, swooped by Earth at a mere 1,830 miles (2,950 kilometers) away. That gives 2020 QG the title of closest asteroid flyby ever recorded that didn’t end with the space rock’s demise. It’s the closest known, non-impacting asteroid, NASA officials told Space.com [ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/asteroid-makes-the-closest-earth-flyby-a-space-rock-has-ever-survived/ ] ghostgeek: Don't worry if you missed it. Like buses, another will be along shortly: An asteroid discovered in 2018 will fly very close to Earth on Nov. 2 according to The Center for Near Earth Objects Studies at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Astronomers spotted the object from Palomar Observatory in San Diego County in 2018 followed by a 13 day observation arc and has not been detected since. Asteroid 2018VP1 is currently projected to come close to Earth sometime during the day before the 2020 presidential election on Nov. 3, according to NASA. [ https://www.whio.com/news/trending/asteroid-predicted-pass-close-earth-day-before-presidential-election/7NTEFU5YVVGFXMGT3ADBXNZ7BQ/ ] ghostgeek: As for science fiction becoming fact, I'm waiting for those pop-in modules for the brain that'll take some of the heft out of thinking. ghostgeek:
If you’re hiking in the wilderness, stay away from warm, stagnant bodies of fresh water, no matter how thirsty you are. These inviting little ponds often play host to Naegleria fowleri, an amoeba species with a taste for human brain tissue. N. fowleri can spend long spans of time just hanging around as a cyst, a little armored ball that can survive cold, heat, and dry conditions. When a cyst comes into contact with an inviting host, it sprouts tentacle-like pseudopods and turns into a form known as a trophozoite. Once it’s transformed, the trophozoite heads straight for the host’s central nervous system, following nerve fibers inward in search of the brain. Once it’s burrowed into its host’s brain tissue — usually the olfactory bulbs — N. fowleri sprouts a “sucking apparatus” called an amoebostome and starts chowing down on juicy brain matter. As the amoeba divides, multiplies and moves inward, devouring brain cells as it goes, its hosts can go from uncomfortable to incoherent to unconscious in a matter of hours. The symptoms start subtly, with alterations in tastes and smells, and maybe some fever and stiffness. But over the next few days, as N. fowleri burrows deeper into the brain’s cognitive structures, victims start feeling confused, have trouble paying attention, and begin to hallucinate. Next come seizures and unconsciousness, as the brain loses all control. Two weeks later, the victim’s most likely perishes — although one man in Taiwan managed to stick it out for a grueling 25 days before his nervous system finally gave out. [ https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/meet-the-parasites-that-control-human-brains ] Zanjan: Maybe you should have posted that in the Nightmare topic. Possibly, you've solved the mysterious case of a herd of Elk suddenly dying near Santa Fe. They tested for anthrax, a virus, and algae bloom toxins; all came up with nothing. There were no lightning strikes anywhere near the area. They settled on UFOs because one guy spotted a UFO lifting up an Elk to its ship. Zanjan: Just saw a video of a black bear approaching a jogger on a country trail. She had stopped to do something on what looked to be a cell phone. The bear quietly approached and tapped her on the leg. News people used the term "swatted". She jumped back then skipped around the bear and continued jogging down the trail as the bear retreated into the bush. Well, wildlife authorities set out to trap the bear because they felt it was dangerous, having no fear of humans. The guy who took the video pleaded to authorities not to put the bear down as it seemed like it only wanted the jogger to share what it thought might be food. In what world do we kill an animal because some human once gave it food? (Edited by Zanjan) Zanjan: Not if a bird drops a little gift into them. You shouldn't drink rainwater. The other day, I washed my bed pillow and set it out in the sun to dry. A bird crapped on it twice. Had to rewash and dry inside. I'll go over it well with a handheld UV sterilizer. I knew that thing would come in handy one day - thank you Covid. (Edited by Zanjan) ghostgeek: It seems some people are doing very well from Covid-19: The U.S. government has chosen short-term economic recovery over the health of its citizens during a pandemic; giant corporations have received billions from an aid bill designed for small businesses; and Congress has had trouble agreeing to extend unemployment benefits for tens of millions of Americans. According to the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive think tank, between March and June, U.S. billionaires saw their wealth increase by more than $584 billion, even as Americans saw $6.5 trillion in household wealth disappear. [ https://www.hcn.org/issues/52.9/south-climate-change-extreme-heat-is-here-and-its-deadly ] ghostgeek: It's a truism: Tragedy and disaster hurt many, but can profit a few. Nature's fury, war and terrorism will always make some fortunes and boost returns for investors. Disease may sicken and kill us, but benefits hospitals, drug companies, insurers and those who invest in them. Author Naomi Klein coined the phrase "disaster capitalism" to summarize the rush for profits amid catastrophe and war. In The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, she compares disasters and conflict with IPOs that set the stage for revenue. The declaration of war in Iraq meant money for support, security and reconstruction efforts contracted to private companies, many of whom lobbied for invasion leading to the ongoing conflict. [ https://www.thestreet.com/personal-finance/insurance/how-they-and-you-make-money-disasters-12789663 ] ghostgeek: A man has blown up part of his house in France while trying to swat a fly. The man, who is in his 80s, was about to tuck into his dinner when he became irritated by a fly buzzing around him. He picked up an electric fly swatter and started targeting it - but a gas canister was leaking in his Dordogne home. A reaction between the device and the gas caused an explosion, destroying the kitchen and partly damaging the roof of the home in Parcoul-Chenaud village. According to local media, the unnamed man had a lucky escape, sustaining just a burn to the hand. However, the fate of the fly is not known, news outlet Sud-Ouest notes. [ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-54051423 ] ghostgeek: I can certainly relate to his irritation of having a fly buzzing about when it's dinner time. Fortunately, one rarely sees the pesky things any more. ghostgeek: Army ants will sometimes walk in circles until they die. The workers navigate by smelling the pheromone trails of workers in front of them, while laying down pheromones for others to follow. If these trails accidentally loop back on themselves, the ants are trapped. They become a thick, swirling vortex of bodies that resembles a hurricane as viewed from space. They march endlessly until they’re felled by exhaustion or dehydration. The ants can sense no picture bigger than what’s immediately ahead. They have no coordinating force to guide them to safety. They are imprisoned by a wall of their own instincts. This phenomenon is called the death spiral. [ https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/09/pandemic-intuition-nightmare-spiral-winter/616204/ ] This makes me wonder what is guiding the lead ant.  Fractured fairy tale: ""disaster capitalism" hey Has A cretain ring to it , Isuppose Climate change or Global warming whatever its called , Gets serviced in the Same Garage  ghostgeek: Somebody has to make a killing out of other people's misfortunes, so I suppose it might as well be the rich. They at least know how to blow a fortune in the appropriate manner. With utter selfishness and without regard for anyone else. ghostgeek: Scientists have produced gene-edited animals they say could serve as "super dads" or "surrogate sires". The pigs, goats, cattle and mice make sperm carrying the genetic material of donor animals. The researchers used a hi-tech gene editing tool to knock out a male fertility gene in animal embryos. The animals were born sterile, but began producing sperm after an injection of sperm-producing cells from donor animals. The technique would enable surrogate males to sire offspring carrying the genetic material of valuable elite animals such as prize bulls, said a US-UK team. This would be a step towards genetically enhancing livestock to improve food production, they added. [ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-54155152 ] Zanjan: That sounds like a very complicated and expensive way to go about breeding, especially considering that elite males never reproduce spitting images of themselves anyway. | Politics Chat Room 58 People Chatting Similar Conversations |