The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Good Question

Carolina Naturally is read in 192 countries around the world daily.

Oh, my, Auntie! ...

Today is Aunties Day 

Don't forget to visit our sister blog: It Is What It Is

Today we thought we would list all the readers reading this blog as we posted instead of cherry picking a few throughout the day. Turned out to be illuminating. Not only were we being read around the world but in places you wouldn't expect - The best always prevails.

North America

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Nassau, Bahamas

Britania, Mississauga, Thunder Bay, Chatham, Guelph, Templeton, Byward Market, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Toronto, Waterloo, Sioux Lookout, Kingston, Halifax, Kenora, and Chatham, Canada

Zapopan, Mexico City, Tijuana, Naucapan De Juarez, and Tlalnepantla, Mexico

Kingston, Jamaica

Sobieski, Cecero, Trego, Hoschton, Paoli, and Bithlo, United States

Central America

Guatemala City and Santa Lucia Milpas Altas, Guatemala

Panama, Panama

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

San Jose, Costa Rica

Tiptapa, Nicaragua

South America

Valencia, Venezuela

Lima, Peru

Bogota and Medellin, Colombia

Sao Paulo, Rio De Janeiro, Joinville, Fortaleza, Jundai and Curitiba, Brazil

Quito, Ecuador

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Santiago, Chile

Europe

Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bialystok, Warsaw, Gliwice and Lodz, Poland

Zhovtivody, Odessa and Kiev Ukraine

Reykjavik, Iceland

Vilnius and Dainana, Lithuania

Budapest, Hungary

Bristol, Kent, Woking, London and Birmingham, England

Athens, Greece 

Mirkovo, Sofia and Ruse, Bulgaria

Bremen, Rothe Erde, Sulzbach and Bochum, Germany

Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Khabarovsk and Ryazan', Russia

Dublin, Ireland

Laval, Cerny, Rouen and Montpellier, France

Madrid, Cadiz and Malaga, Spain

Rome, Calagirone, Ravenna, Milan, Lucca, Italy

Oslo, Sandsli and Myre, Norway

Nokia, Finland

Bucharest, Romania

Vienna, Austria

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Zurich, Switzerland

Prague, Czech Republic

Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium

Gilleleje and Horsholm, Denmark

Riga, Latvia

Asia

Colombo, Peta Kotte and Sri Jayewardenepure Kotte, Sri Lanka

Karachi and Rawalpindi, Pakistan

Hue, Hanoi and Ha Dong, Vietnam

Bangkok, Thailand

Kuala Lumpur and Puchong, Malaysia

Kuwait, Kuwait

Dhaka, Bangladesh

Ankara and Istanbul, Turkey

Tangerang, Jakarta and Jagirsidosermo, Indonesia

Beirut, Lebanon

Seoul, Korea

Patna, New Delhi, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Karur, Udaipur, Mumbai, Bangalore, Gorakhpur and Trichur, India

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Kathmandu, Nepal 

Tokyo, Osaka-Shi and Fukuoka-Shi, Japan

Rangoon, Burma

Singapore, Singapore

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Rasht, Esfahan, Bandar 'Abbas, Tehran and Hamadan, Iran

Phnom Penn, Cambodia

Guangzhou, China

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Africa

Cairo, Egypt

Cape Town, Sandton, Johannesburg and Durban, South Africa

Rabat, Morocco

Harare, Zimbabwe

Djibouti, Djibouti

Buea, Cameroon

Kampala, Uganda

Kaduna, Nigeria

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Algiers, Algeria

Australia/Pacific

Quezon City, Cebu City, Davao City, Mandaue City, Manila, Bagumbayan, Makati, Olongapo, Cacayn De Oro, Pasig and Mandaluyong City,  Philippines

Papeete, French Polynesia

Homebush, Australia

Today in History

1540		Henry VIII of England marries Catherine Howard; Thomas Cromwell is beheaded on Tower Hill in England.
1615		French explorer Samuel de Champlain discovers Lake Huron on his seventh voyage to the New World.
1794		Robespierre is beheaded in France.
1808		Sultan Mustapha of the Ottoman Empire is deposed and his cousin Mahmud II gains the throne.
1835		King Louis-Philippe of France survives an assassination attempt.
1863		Confederate John Mosby begins a series of attacks against General Meade's Army of the Potomac.
1868		The 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees citizenship to all those born or naturalized in the United States, is adopted.
1898		Spain, through the offices of the French embassy in Washington, D.C., requests peace terms in its war with the United States.
1914		Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, beginning World War I.
1920		Pancho Villa surrenders to the Mexican government.
1932		The Bonus Army of impoverished World War I veterans is violently pushed out of Washington, D.C.
1941		A Japanese army lands on the coast of Cochin, China (modern day Vietnam).
1945		A B-25 bomber crashes into the Empire State Building in New York City, killing 13 people.
1965		President Lyndon Johnson sends an additional 50,000 troops to South Vietnam.
1988		Israeli diplomats arrive in Moscow for the first time in 21 years.
1990		A fire at an electrical substation causes a blackout in Chicago. Some 40,000 people were without power for up to three days.
1996		Discovery of remains of a prehistoric man near Kennewick, Washington, casts doubts on accepted beliefs of when, how and where the Americas were populated.
2005		Irish Republican Army (IRA) announces an end to its 30-year armed campaign in Northern Ireland.
2005		Britain experiences its most costly tornado to date, causing 40 million Sterling Pounds of damage to Birmingham in just four minutes. There were no fatalities.

Non Sequitur

Did you know ...

Did You Know ...

That a former climate reporter alleges Reuters was hostile to publishing global warming stories

A 7-year old sends letter to NASA asking how to be an astronaut; NASA replies

Hey, it's the Goodyear zeppelin!

What 'wingnuts gone wild' looks like in North Carolina

Lunatic Fringe

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (r)

Ezra Klein noted  that some key legislative fights were "down to the wire" in North Carolina, as the state legislative session neared its adjournment. After the show aired, there were some important developments, so let's take a moment to recap -- and explain why this matters in the larger context.
First up are the most sweeping voter-suppression efforts seen anywhere in the United States in generations, which, much to the disappointment of voting-rights advocates, garnered the support of literally every member of the repugican majority in both chambers, who voted to keep more North Carolinians from being able to participate in their own democracy.

As lawmakers rushed to adjourn for the summer, lawmakers gave final approval Thursday to drastic changes in how voting will be conducted in future elections in North Carolina.
After more than two-and-a-half hours of debate, the House voted 73-41 on party lines late Thursday to agree with dozens of changes made by Senate repugicans to a bill that originally simply required voters to show photo identification at the polls. It was approved by the Senate earlier Thursday, 33-14, also on party lines.

As we've discussed, the proposal is remarkable in its scope, including a needlessly discriminatory voter-ID provision, new limits on early voting, blocks on voter-registration drive, restrictions on extended voting times to ease long lines, an end to same-day registration, new efforts to discourage youth voting, and expanded opportunities for "vigilante poll-watchers to challenge eligible voters."
How many North Carolina repugican lawmakers supported these suppression tactics for no apparent reason? Each and every one of them.
State Rep. Mickey Michaux (D-N.C.), who fought for voting rights in the 1960s, told the repugican majority, "I want you to understand what this bill means to people. We have fought for, died for and struggled for our right to vote. You can take these 57 pages of abomination and confine them to the streets of hell for all eternity."
And then, of course, there are the new limits on reproductive rights.
Late last night, they were approved, too.

The state Senate has given final legislative approval to a bill that imposes new regulations and restrictions on abortion providers.
Senators voted 32-13 Thursday evening, sending the measure to Gov. Pat McCrory, a Republican who has said he will sign the measure as it was passed.

For his part, the repugican governor, just six months into his first term, promised voters as a candidate last year that he would oppose any new restrictions on women's reproductive rights in the state. Now, however, McCrory is prepared to sign this bill anyway -- his public vow apparently came with fine print that voters might have missed
The result is a new regulatory measure, known as a TRAP law, that will likely close 15 of the 16 clinics where abortion services are provided.
Let's also not lose sight of the context for this radicalism. For the first time since the Reconstruction era, repugicans control the state House, state Senate, and governor's office, and as we recently talked about, repugican cabal officials had an opportunity to govern modestly and responsibly, making incremental changes with an eye on the political mainstream.
What the state has instead seen is what Rachel described as "wingnuts gone wild." North Carolina repugicans gutted unemployment benefits despite a weak economy; they imposed the most sweeping voting restrictions anywhere in the United States; they cut funding for struggling public schools; they blocked Medicaid expansion despite the toll it will take on the state hospitals and poor families, they repealed the Racial Justice Act; and then they closed nearly every women's health clinic in the state.
And really, that's just a partial list.
It's a microcosm of a national political crisis of sorts -- North Carolina, a competitive state perceived as a burgeoning powerhouse with some of the nation's finest universities, became frustrated with a struggling economy, so it took a chance on repugican rule. The consequences of this gamble are proving to be a frightening step backward for the state.

Koch Brothers Purchase Even More Influence In America Politics Than You Think

Lunatic Fringe 

From Occupy Democrats
 
How nice would it be to be a Koch.  You would have all of the money you could ever ask for.  Laws do not apply to you.  And the ones that do, you can have changed so they no longer will.  The Koch brothers political influence stretches far across the globe.  But, none more damaging than right here in the homeland.  And while we are busy every November thinking that our voting and canvassing will make a difference, the Koch's are spending hundreds of millions to ensure our voices our silenced.  And, although the ways they are funneling their money may be legal, it is not always in the light of day.

Moreover, the Koch's are using their money to fund organizations that can further their self and business interests.  Because of the size and scope of Koch Industries, "the relationship between these for-profit and nonprofit entities is often mutually reinforcing to the direct financial and political interests of the behemoth corporation - broadly characterized as deregulation, limited government and free markets."

"An analysis by the Investigative Reporting Workshop found that from 2007 through 2011, Koch private foundations gave $41.2 million to 89 nonprofit organizations and an annual libertarian conference. Koch Industries and Charles and David Koch contributed $8.7 million to candidates and the Republican Party in the three election cycles between 2007 through 2012. In addition, Koch private foundations contributed $30.5 million to 221 U.S. colleges and universities and $46.3 million to the arts and other more traditionally charitable purposes during this period.  And while Koch Industries' lobbyists were spending $53.9 million to further the giant corporation's federal and state policy agenda, the nonprofits it funded were simultaneously "educating" the public and lawmakers about energy, the environment and other issues in public testimony on Capitol Hill."

Gasland 2, Fracking-Quake Link, Gas Industry’s Use of PSYOPs

They are 'fracking' killing us

It is hard to fathom how much the super-rich want to be even super-richer at the expense of the average Joe - it seems inhuman to me, but then I don't fashion myself as a selfish prick.

From Crooks and Liars

Scientists are warning that the controversial practice of natural gas hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, may lead to far more powerful earthquakes than previously thought. Fracking injects millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals deep into the earth in order to break up shale rock and release natural gas. A new study published Thursday in the journal Science by a leading seismology lab warns that pumping water underground can induce dangerous earthquakes, even in regions not otherwise prone to tremors. The new report comes as Academy Award-nominated director Josh Fox has released the sequel to his highly acclaimed documentary "Gasland," which sparked a national discussion on fracking. The new film, "Gasland Part II," exposes how the gas industry and the government's portrayal of natural gas as a clean and safe alternative to oil is highly suspect. He also discusses how drilling companies have admitted to having several former military psychological operations, or PSYOPs, specialists on staff, applying their skills in Pennsylvania to counter opponents of drilling.

"What's really disappointing about this is that this is a moment when an American president has come forward and spoken about climate change and exhibited his obvious and earnest desire to take on the problem; however, the emphasis on fracked gas makes this plan entirely the wrong plan," says Fox, noting that methane released from fracking sites is more potent than other greenhouse gases. "Moving from coal to fracked gas doesn't give you any climate benefit at all. So the plan should be about how we're moving off of fossil fuels and onto alternate energy."

Richest 300 Persons on Earth Have More Money Than Poorest 3 Billion

The Deck is Stacked

From Truth Out

Trade agreements and global corporate exploitation of international monetary regulations provide resources and cheap labor to developed nations, while leaving poorer countries depleted. Is it possible that rich countries have increased the wealth gap from being 35 times greater during European colonialization to 80 times greater today? The video Global Wealth Equality contends that is the case.

This are just some examples of how the economic cards are stacked by the G-8 and G-20 through the institutional and global corporate creation and manipulation of the financial rules. But when you move to the impact of global wealth distribution to individuals, according to Global Wealth Equality, the richest 1% on the earth have accumulated some 43% of the world's wealth, while the bottom 80% of the planet's inhabitants have just 6% between them. [...]

This skewed economic distribution within the US is reflective of an even worse economic disparity in the world in general.

The post-colonial era has actually accelerated economic injustice on a worldwide basis. What's done in the name of helping the world's poor (by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund) is often really only a process of capturing markets too weak to fight back and indebting them to the masters of wealth without recourse. This has become abundantly clear in the World Bank's policies of "structural adjustment" for the developing world, which might be best phrased as "you pay us the interest on our loans and impose austerity on yourselves. It will be good for you."

Help the Economy With A Summer Vacation

It's The Economy Stupid

Help the Economy With A Summer Vacation

Leisure earns serious money in the United States with national parks bringing in more money than sporting events.

Which of These Neighborhoods Feel Safe to You?

Scientific Minds Want To Know

Quick: which neighboorhoods above feel safe to you? How about iffy?
Paul Salesses, Katja Schechtner, and César A. Hidalgo built an online survey using images from Google Street View and ask study participants to select which neighborhood feels safe just by looking at the picture. They found that little things like trash on the street could act as subconscious cue that people use to gauge the perceived safety of a place:

Have enough people compare paired images of streets in New York or Boston, for instance, for the scenes that look more "safe" or "upper-class," and eventually some patterns start to emerge.
"We found images with trash in it, and took the trash out, and we noticed a 30 percent increase in perception of safety," Salesses says. "It's surprising that something that easy had that large an effect."
This also means some fairly cost-effective government interventions – collecting trash – could have a significant impact on how safe people feel in a neighborhood."It’s like bringing a data source to something that’s always been subjective," Salesses says.

When Salesses compare the neighborhoods that people perceived as safe against crime data, it turns out that these places are actually safer compared to the rest of the city. Emily Badger of The Atlantic Cities has the post: Here | The paper over at PLOS ONE

In The News

Just the News

FBI: We have flown drones inside the US 10 times

In a letter [PDF] to Sen. Rand Paul (r-KY) this week, the FBI disclosed that it has flown drones inside U.S. airspace 10 times since 2006. FBI director of legislative affairs Stephen Kelly said that the agency uses drones in "very limited circumstances" for aerial surveillance, and they're not armed. "Eight of the times the FBI used drones were for criminal cases and two of the times were for national security."

What happened to other Americans who fled to Russia? 

Hopefully, Edward Snowden's sojourn in Russia will go better than most of the historic examples of Americans defecting to that country. 

Cop who pepper-sprayed UC Davis students seeks workers comp

That's Just Not Right

 

Matthew says: "Remember Lt. John Pike, the 'pepper spray cop' from UC Davis? He is appealing for worker's compensation, claiming he suffered psychiatric injury from the incident. He has a settlement conference scheduled for August 13. Occupy will be there."

Teachers open camping kid's sealed letter home; eject kid for confessing to eating chocolate

That's Just Not Right

An 11-year-old girl was sent home from a week-long summer-camp on the Isle of Wight for smuggling in a chocolate bar; a fact that her teachers discovered after they opened a sealed letter addressed to her mother and read it. Her mother, who is unemployed and cares full-time for her autistic son, had to drive 160 miles through the night to pick up the child. She had saved for six months to pay for the trip. Teachers conducted a full search of the child's possessions -- including pulling out her suitcase lining -- to discover the banned chocolates.

"They had been planning the feast weeks before the trip and Holli was in charge of bringing the chocolate,” she said.
"It wasn't even at midnight. They ate the chocolate at about 9.30pm and it only went on for about 15 minutes. It's not like they were having a party or making noise.
"The teachers had no idea about it until they read Holli's letter to me.
"I am furious that they read her letter, it is like being in prison. It's not like she is five - she is 11 and deserves privacy in what she writes to her mum.”
"Holli said she was really upset because they emptied her toiletry bag into the sink and pulled out the lining in her suitcase.
"It was carried out in such a manner you would have thought they were running an international drug smuggling operation from their hotel room.
"I don't see how eating chocolate makes the holiday unsafe. They were not being naughty - they were just having fun."

Child banned from school trip for eating chocolate

Ziggy

Daily Comic Relief

Here's 99 Cool Facts About Babe Ruth

Sports Miscellanea

George Herman 'Babe' Ruth (1895-1948) was an American professional baseball player. Babe Ruth played his first major league game 99 years ago this month, on July 11, 1914. To mark the occasion, here are 99 things you may not know about the greatest player in baseball history, presented in chronological order, as well as a few myths that have been debunked.

A Dress Made from Book Pages

Odds and Sods

Now that's the art of recycling! Redditor jorimoo made this dress from pages of an old thesaurus. It is lined with fabric, for comfort. See more pictures at imgur. More

The truth about procrastination

Miscellanea

David McRaney of You are Not so Smart and You are Now Less Dumb has a piece about why we procrastinate:

The Misconception: You procrastinate because you are lazy and can’t manage your time well.
The Truth: Procrastination is fueled by weakness in the face of impulse and a failure to think about thinking.

The truth about procrastination

You Can't Write Proper English Under Pressure

Miscellanea

Here's a great game for proud grammar Nazis and everyone else, too. How fast can you spot improper word usage and spelling? Really fast? Here's a game to test whether your opinion matches your skills. All you have to do is decide whether the sentence is typed correctly. More

Under The Electron Microscope

Scientific Minds Want To Know

It may be hard to believe but the first electron microscope was developed by German physicist Hans Busch in 1926 with a prototype built by Ernst Ruska and the electrical engineer Max Knoll in 1931. In 1933 Ruska built an electron microscope that surpassed the resolution which could be achieved with a light microscope.

Yet perhaps even Ruska could not have envisioned future developments, which mean that today we can see things such as the zinc oxide particle (above) in more detail than ever before.

Ten Historic European Monarchs Plagued By Mental Illness

Historic Miscellanea

A lot of people fantasize about wearing a crown, living in a castle and having an entire court at their beck and call when they're growing up. The intrigue, power and prestige surrounding royal life can be an intoxicating form of escapism.

On a less fantastical note, despite their power and titles, the following 10 monarchs were not spared from the suffering, confusion and consequences of mental illness. Porphyria, manic depression, mood disorders and even schizophrenia have all severely altered the lives of royals over the ages.

Archaeology News

Archaeology News

Medieval Mansion Found at U.K. Construction Site

The series of buildings dates from the 12th to 14th century, and no documentary records exist that show the mansion ever having existed on the site.

Viking Jewelry Unearthed in Denmark

Several pieces of Viking jewelry have been uncovered at a farm site in Denmark that dates as far back as 1,300 years.

Astronomical News

Astronomical News

When the Moon Becomes Earth's Nemesis

In a few billion years, the Earth-moon gravitational tug-o-war could end in tears.

Sharp-Eyed Solar Telescope Snaps First Photos

The first super-detailed images have been captured by NASA's brand new solar observatory -- and it's already turning up some surprises.

Centaurs: Cross-Dressing Comets That Go As Asteroids

The objects found between the orbits of Jupiter and Neptune appear to be living a double life, parading as asteroids when, in fact, they are most likely comets. 

Saturn's Pandora Flirts with 'Death Star' Moon

NASA's Cassini mission has captured a stunning view of Saturn moons Mimas and Pandora passing in the night.

Full Moon 'makes it harder to sleep'

The least desirable addresses in the Universe 

Can I interest you in a summer home on COROT-7b? Sure, the estimated surface temperature is 4,580 degrees F, the year is only 20 hours long, and it's probably just lousy with volcanoes. But, when it rains on COROT-7b, it rains rocks. No takers? Just in case, you should check out Lee Billings' slideshow on fantastically horrible planets. 

Humming, Sleeplessness and Invisible Glaciers

Scientific Minds Want To Know

Mysterious Hum Driving People Around the World Crazy

It creeps in slowly in the dark of night, and once inside, it almost never goes away.

Can't Sleep? Blame It on the Moon

Researchers say that poor sleep during a full moon is more than a myth.

Invisible Glaciers Seen From Space

Three infrared views of glaciers that are invisible to human eyes -- until now. 

Ecosystems and Climate Economics

It's Only The Environment After All

Bee Decline Threatens Entire Ecosystems

When one bee species is removed, others practice promiscuous pollination.

Arctic Thawing Could Cost $60 Trillion

A warming Arctic carries far greater economic costs than previously calculated, says a new study.

It's Not Like We Don't Have Another One

Rescued labradoodle helps Army vet cope with PTSD in ways drugs and therapy could not

Animal News

by Steven S. Harman

At The Tennessean, there's a beautiful video profile of a young Iraq War veteran who was paired up with Skip, a dog rescued from a shelter, to help with PTSD. "Before I got Skip about a year ago, I didn't leave my room, and i thought about killing myself every day," Alex Brown says in the interview, as the dog licks his hand.
"I tried every therapy the VA offered, every medicine, and it only got worse. With him, the first night he was with me there was a thunderstorm and he woke me up from a nightmare, and my life hasn't been the same since."
Where would he be without the dog?
"I'd be dead. One hundred percent certain."
More in the accompanying article:

Brown, who lives in Louisville, met the dog through K9s for Warriors, a program that pairs veterans with highly-trained dogs. The canine companions, which mostly come from animal shelters, serve as bodyguard, therapist, and friend to soldiers grappling with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The program has a 95 percent success rate, according to Sandi Capra, director of development for K9s for Warriors. Because of what it does for them, the vast majority of its participants have either scaled back pharmaceutical treatment for PTSD or cut it out entirely, she said.

The organization's website is here: k9sforwarriors.org. Below, another happy team of survivors, paired up by the nonprofit: Chris and Jake.

The Annual Chincoteague Pony Swim

Animal News

The coastal island of Assateague is partly in the state of Virginia and partly in Maryland. The island is home to a herd of feral ponies, with a fence dividing the ponies into each state. On the Maryland side, they belong to the National Park Service. On the Virginia side, they belong to the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company, which thins the herd in July every year with a fundraising auction. But first they have to get the ponies off the island.

Every year the department's "saltwater cowboys" round up the island's feral equines for a low-tide swim from Assateague to Chincoteague, where the ponies are herded down Main Street and corralled for a later auction. The first foal to make it to shore is crowned King or Queen Neptune and made the prize of the festival's raffle drawing. The remaining ponies are later auctioned, either for personal ownership or as "buybacks," in which case the pony will be returned to its island home for another year of feral roaming.

But how did the ponies get on the island in the first place? No one knows for sure, but you can read about the legend behind them at Atlas Obscura.

Raccoon-Bit Rabid Dead Man Indirectly Kills Another

Animal News

Raccoon-Bit Rabid Dead Man Indirectly Kills Another

Like a page out of a horror novel, a raccoon-bit rabid dead man has just indirectly led to the death of another man ...

The Amazing Gecko

Animal News

20 Interesting Facts About The World's Most Species-Rich Lizard

The gecko is an extraordinary lizard, a triumph of both adaptation and diversity. Out of the 5,600 species of lizard on the planet, over 1,500 belong to the gecko infraorder called Gekkota.

So, what is so interesting about a line of lizards which is, apparently, so ubiquitous? Here are 20 interesting facts about the gecko, as well as some amazing pictures of species that you may not have come across before.

Animal News

Animal News

Elephants Out-compete Rhinos at Salad Bar

Elephants get first dibs at the African savannah salad bar, which may force rhinos to make do with lower quality food and a more limited diet.

Barred Owls to be Seduced and Shot

Barred owls responding to rival's songs in the forests of the Northwest may soon meet with 'fowl' play.

Geese Police and Other Crime-Fighting Critters

An elite gaggle of geese is deployed in China -- but they're not the only animals that walk the beat.

Male Fish Lure Females With Genital Claws

When their good looks and scaly charm fail to win over females, male guppies drop the nice-guy routine and get forceful.

Less Ice Equals More Seal Strandings

An increasing number of seals are ending up stranded along the U.S. East Coast, as far south as the Carolinas, far away from where they should be at this time of year.

Baddass Shrew Lifts Logs, Can't Be Stomped

A new species of hero shrew is one of the strongest, sturdiest mammals in the animal kingdom.

Sea lions got rhythm

Got that head-nod shit that make you break your neck? Take it to the aquarium. Sea lions can keep a beat, better than many humans I've known, in fact. 

Herring Wars: Attack of the Faroe Islands 

Herring travel in schools billions of fish strong and, thanks the outsized role they've played in North American and European culture, they've been called the most influential fish in history. Now, threatened first by overfishing and then by the effects of climate change, international organizations have worked to set treaty limits on how many tons of the fish different countries can catch each year. The problem: The limits are more randomly applied, rather than being based on rigorous standards or rules. Now, some countries are voicing their displeasure by resisting the limits, altogether. Begun, these Herring Wars have. 

Study reveals tale of peacock's fan

Animal Pictures