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PETA is doing something kind of cool: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-fake-meatapr21,1,7351841.story
They announced today that they'll give $1 million to the "first person to come up with a method to produce commercially viable quantities of in vitro meat at competitive prices by 2012."
I personally love the idea of fake meat. I have no problem with eating animals (obviously), but animal protein is expensive to raise, and meeting a growing worldwide demand for it means commercial operations are often cruel to the animals and messy for the environment. I can get around supporting that kind of crap by buying local, happy, pasture-raised, humanely slaughtered animals or hunting it myself, but there's very few people in the world who are in my (rather privileged) position. It would be great if there was an efficient and economical way to grow meat without the inconvenience of silly things like intelligence and pain receptors and waste products.
It's interesting that Newkirk is the driving force behind this. It's such a pragmatic and common-sense move from a lady who is certifiably insane. I also think it's hilarious that she's getting flak from others within the organization because some PETAns find eating any animal protein unacceptable, even if it's raised in a test tube.
$1 million dollars is a pretty dinky prize for advancing a new technology. According to the same article linked above, the Netherlands has already spent $5 million in fake meat research. And a deadline of less than 4 years from now also seems like a joke.
So, it's not terribly well thought-out, and of course it pisses me off that the prize money is coming from PETA, which probably means it was raised through lying to well-meaning pet lovers, but I can't help but admire the move just a little bit. If you're a crazy vegan out to impose your views on the rest of the world, what better way to stop people from eating meat than provide them with a cheaper alternative? Violence just hasn't been working for them, and they've been caught out in many of their lies http://www.petakillsanimals.com/ ; maybe they're finally coming to their senses and trying a different, more practical, (and ethical), tactic.
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I must say, I'm very happy with my new lens:
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"Well, I didn't think the rat bait would hurt chickens; they don't have stomachs!"
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New camera! New camera! OMGnewshinywonderfulcamera!!1!
Ahem.
So, Tom recently sold some stuff of his that was lying around. It was apparently relatively valuable, because he had enough extra cash to get me an early Xmas present:
Canon Rebel XT digital SLR + 2 Gig memory card + extra battery pack (so there never need be a pause in the picture-taking madness).
Let me explain the above picture: I was taking pictures of a moth I found in the bathroom when it suddenly flew off the wall and disappeared from view. I looked up from the view finder but couldn't see where she'd landed. I searched for a few minutes, then gave up. I thought she'd simply flown out the door or something. I put the lens cap back on and put the camera away for the night. The next day, when I took the lens cap off to take a picture of the cat, guess who was sitting on the lens. There was just enough room between lens and cap for a moth to fit. You can tell I did clip off the tip of a wing, but when I let her outside, she flew just fine. It was just a funny experience.
Anyway, it'll be a while before I can afford another lens, but the one it came with has better zoom/studio/macro than any other camera I've ever had, so I'm not too worried. :D
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May. 25th, 2006 @ 03:08 pm
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So many amazing things happened today I can barely contain myself. First (not in chronological order) I read this poignant essay about a man coming to terms with the fact that global warming is, in fact, real. I’m not being sarcastic, I really was touched, especially after the last sentence.
Secondly, I got a phone call. A very important phone call. Very. I don’t think I can talk about what was said during this phone call, lest it become jinxed before full fruition. But it was important. Yes. *cackles enigmatically*
Lastly, but not leastly, a two-headed snake “hatched” at the reptile house I'm interning at. I promised Liz I wouldn’t make postcards out of this photo and try to sell them.
Hopefully I will now go on to get an amazing grade on my Ag. quiz, as well.
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Apr. 28th, 2006 @ 07:09 pm
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According to the DJ on 106.3, today is U2's 30th anniversary. I'm not as obsessed as some people, but I sure am enjoying the 2 hour all-U2 special they're having on the radio. So, congrats U2 on being, like, the greatest band in history.
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And let us all also view pretty pictures of Jimmy and Redbird enjoying the spring sunshine. Because I, like them, am in a better mood today. Happy macaws are better than dead fetuses any day...
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I had insomnia last night. Went to bed at 11 and just tossed and turned, listening to the rats scramble around their cage until Tom got home at 1:30. He fell asleep before me. The last number I remember seeing on the clock was 2:21, so I'm pretty sure I went to sleep sometime before 3. I blame it on drinking a huge cup of tea a mere 6 hours before bedtime. I can't think of any other reason; except for job applications, I'm not particularly stressed about anything.
It sucked especially since I had to get up at 7am to go on a BugZoo outreach. But once I was out of bed, it wasn't so bad. Me and two other members spent all Earth Day at the Oregon Garden manning a booth. It was fun but exhausting. We had one of the most popular booths, and there was never a time when there wasn't someone there. We each had to take turns taking a lunch break. I've talked myself hoarse, but I repeat: lot's of fun.
Noodle time!
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Random puppies + frisbees = undeniable goodness
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...were blowing in Albany on Sunday.
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To celebrate, here's a picture of a large tortoise eating an apple.
It's not, like, one of Darwin's tortoises from the Galapagos, but it's close enough.
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Have you ever seen such a pile of soft, serpenty goodness? All curled up together by the heating lamp. So cute. And any of them are big enough to eat your cat. Or small dog. Awwww...
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