A rant about Climate Deniers

Usually I wouldn't venture on to a subject such as climate change denialists, not because it's a hotly debated subject, because the fact is, it isn't. Everybody who needs to be in the know, is. Such as politicians and scientists, they understand fully that the climate is changing, we have caused it and the repercussions on the natural environment that can be expected. The only ones left now are arrogant, clueless trouble makers, who frankly, I'm bored of arguing with.

No this post is a bit different, as I explore the reactions to the label of  'climate denier' they have brought upon themselves. It seems as if every time you mention 'climate denial' the accused draw up their pettycoats and shout 'lies, slander, don't liken me to a holocaust denier!'. I consider it unfortunate, that certain journalists who advocate the realisation of current climate change felt it necessary to compare, let alone liken climate change denialists to holocaust denialists. Perhaps it was reactionary, a statement drawing power from such a recognisable and provocative phrase as Holocaust denial. The fact is, they are completely unrelated, sharing but one word, denial. It's like saying a social-scientist is the same as a natural-scientist, of course they share similarities in the processes and actions just as both forms of denialists do. This is why the word denial is so appropriate, because of the significance of its meaning.

Denial, first postulated by Sigmund Freud as a defence mechanism- 'when a person is faced with a fact that is too uncomfortable to accept so rejects it instead, despite the overwhelming body of evidence.' Now, when I read that statement I feel like the word was just made for climate denialists. The evidence is freely available to view and understand, yet still denialist continue to reject such insights. Of course I'm not only referring to the 'hockey stick' graph that illustrates a significant increase in global surface temperatures after the industrial revolution. But also a unprecedented rate of warming not seen historically, the reactions of species such as early bud burst and emergence as well as northward shifting range boundaries. The evidence really is overwhelming if you care to look for it. Of course some denialist choose not to argue the evidence and instead spout conspiracy nonsense. 97% of all researchers in the scientific community accept the warming of the earth through anthropogenic means. That is a huge consensus, most likely because the evidence is irrefutable, I'm left advising said climate deniers to crawl back into their caves because, really, you just look a bit silly now...

What I really despise is the hijacking of the work skeptic. They are not sceptical, because clearly they have not understood the evidence. Scepticism is essential to science ipso facto science is skeptic, evidence and theory is questioned and questioned again to come to the best possible answer based on our observations. Just as hundreds of climate scientists have hypothesised, preformed experiments and critiqued each others work have come to the same answer. The distinction comes from the evidence based thinking of a skeptic to the rejection of evidence by a denialist.

The trouble is, climate change is global and thus political. The mis-communication between scientist and politician and politician and lay man may have lead to the confusion of what we can accept as the truth and what we can reject. However, isn't it funny that those so apposed to the idea of an anthroprogenic change in climate are the ones often stood to loose out from such a revelation? Weird, huh. Finally, if you're wondering what a climate denialist looks like, have a gander at these crayzies in this handy article from the guardian.

Happy Halloween!

Things that go bump in the night

As the nights grows longer and days grow colder, people across the world usher in the winter solstice with gatherings twisted in myth, superstition and celebration. Halloween, heralded as the night when the boundaries between the world of the dead and the world of living become blurred has evolved over time, but grim and ghoulish creatures remain a central theme.

The Spider, a quintessential Halloween creature, with its alien form and in some species, deadly capabilities, human misunderstanding of these interesting species has had a long history. Meet Nephilia komaci, the largest orb weaving spider known to science and a bit of a biological enigma. This rare species of orb-weaving spiders are native to South Africa and Madagascar. The extreme differences in size between the sexes, makes them evolutionarily interesting. Males can reach a modest 2.5cm where as females can reach a frightful 12cm leg span. Researchers suggest the female developed such a large body size to increase fertility (ablity to lay more eggs) whilst being a huge deterrent to any smaller predators that might happen to pass by. The Nephilia komaci web weaving skills are some of the best with some webs reaching one meter wide!

‘They mostly come at night, mostly...’ But not always, Bats aren’t quite the blood sucking children of the night as you might think. These complex creatures are some of the most interesting mammals on the planet. The notorious Vampire bat has long had links to Halloween with their nocturnal lifestyle and blood sucking behaviour but let’s separate the fact from fiction. There are only 3 species out of over 1000 Bat species that feed solely on blood. It is true that they are nocturnal, but not only do they use caves for shelter, various species throughout South America have been known to make use of a wide variety of locations from hollowed trees to abandoned mine shafts. Although they indeed feed on the blood of mammals it is not sucked, but in fact the skin is pierced and the blood lapped from the wound. With an average of 2-4 tsp being consumed each night this is hardly a feed of vampiric proportions.  One of the less well known and incredibly endearing qualities of the Vampire bat is its altruistic behaviour.  These bats are vulnerable to starvation if they do not find a blood meal more than two nights in a row. It has been shown that fellow cave dwellers will regurgitate a blood meal to insure the survival of the receiver at a small cost to their own fitness. The expectation is that the favour will be returned in the future, when the other bat may need a meal. Once you know this, they seem rather friendly and considerate little creatures quite apart from the tales of Dracula!

Tree of life

Ficus from the family Moraceae, the Latin for fig tree, if ever there were a tree of life this would be it. A variety of fig species are native to the tropics but also span to the temperate zone, occupying an assortment of ecological niches. An ancient genus, fig trees have been a life force to a diversity of creatures and cultures.

Historically, fig trees have been recognised as sacred organisms, having appeared in many religions and cultures such as Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism. It is documented that Buddha meditated beneath a fig tree before finding enlightenment, Adam and eve are famously depicted as covering themselves with the leaves of the fig having eaten the forbidden fruit and many cultures have worshipped the fig as a spiritual entity and a sign of fertility.

But why has the fig tree been remembered and valued so much throughout our culture? The answer it seems is simply, because it is remarkable. Traditionally people have wondered in awe at the capabilities of the fig and in days when science was unable to explain its extraordinary nature, many cultures explained it through religion and worship. Today we have a much greater understanding of the ecological and symbiotic relationships of the fig, although biologists are still being astonished by new discoveries in its interesting biology.

The co-evolution and symbiotic relationship between fig trees and fig wasps has long been a subject of scientific wonder. Some studies suggest a co-divergence of the mutualism over the last 60 million years. The mutualism between fig wasps and their host figs is intricate and complex and has fascinated many. In simplistic terms- female wasps burrow into the figs through a natural opening in which they oviposite their eggs. Through doing this they inadvertently brush past male flowers on the outside of the fig. Once developed wingless males mate with females in the fig, using their specialised burrowing physiology to dig a hole out of the fig. Females move through the opening whist brushing through the female flowers on the inside of the fruit and fly to a new fruit to deposit their eggs thus beginning the cycle again. The stability of this mutualism over such a long period of time is of great interest, considering the large number wasp species that in fact parasitize figs. It appears that the fig wasp mutualism only evolved once, yet the constant hybridisation of fig species has allowed for the continuous evolution of pollinator wasp species.

Ficus is one of the largest genera of land plants with 750 species of figs worldwide, and is often considered a keystone species, providing food and shelter to a variety of fauna. From monkeys to bats, birds to caterpillars, the Fig is a life source that many organisms rely on and constantly confounds us with intrigue and awe. So pay homage to the humble fig, whose intricate relationships with nature and its ability to provide for a diversity of life has woven itself into our history. As our ancestors were in awe of this complex organism so too has it captivated the imaginations of scientists today.

Zombie science

Zombie Science: Zombies are the new Vampires, except these ones won’t be glittering in the twilight...

Zombies are definitely in this year, with the new epic Zombie series ‘The walking dead’ restarts this February, it's guaranteed most of us will be in training for the apocalypse. As in all zombie tales the post apocalyptic scenario of humans struggle for existence against the trans-morphed, rotting versions of themselves has enthralled the minds of many.. In fact a fascinating subject I recently came across is zombie science and the likelihood of such a situation actually occurring.

When encountering said Zombie film, whether it be George Romero’s cult classic ‘Night of the living dead’ or the more modern Danny Boyles ’28 Days later’ science always plays a part. From an airborne virus to parasites and neuro-toxins to the bacterial infection from the saliva of a rare rat-monkey found in the remote mountains of South America.... The science of said outbreak is taken for granted, then disregarded as soon as the film finishes and threat to mankind is extinguished, or mankind itself meets a somewhat sticky end. I however, am left pondering the possibilities of an era in which the dead would roam the earth....

So let’s talk about infection. The idea of an emotionless, flesh eating organism aimlessly wandering with nothing but basic motor functions to keep it company may not be as far fetched as you once thought.

You only need a brain stem. Ever heard the one about the chicken that went on to live for a year having been decapitated? That's because technically a brain stem is all you need to preform basic motor functions (such as stumbling around shouting brains) thus deterioration in the cortex (what makes us human) would result in a zombie like appearance. But the brain stem is usually damaged too, I hear you cry, advances in medicine has allowed the replication of healthy living brain cells through stem cell research. Such innovative medicine could render the patient alive yet void of thought and personality - the beginnings of a whole load of bad zombie mojo don't you think?

It is widely known that some parasites have the ability to modify the behaviour of their hosts to insure their life cycle is completed. Take Toxoplasma gondii, a common parasite found in rats, cats and humans. The toxoplasma will make cysts happily throughout the unsuspecting victims body and brain with no apparent physical detriment. However, as the toxoplasma must complete it's life cycle within the gut of a cat, this nifty parasite has evolved to slightly change the behaviour of it's current host. The rats instinctual and inherited fear of cat's vanishes and thus it becomes an easy meal and a ticket out for the parasite. Perhaps it's important at this point to establish the connection between zombie and said parasite. Well, did I mention that through domestication of the cat over half of the worlds population is infected with Toxoplasma? I know what you're thinking- answer to the unprecedented increase in 'cat ladies'.... One study found a significance in behaviours of infected humans, stating that infected individuals tended to be more insecure and self reproaching. Now, if a parasite has the ability to change our personalities, are out thoughts really our own? Or are we just mindless flesh destine to roam this earth to do the bidding of microscopic organisms? You decide...

Neurotoxins and germ warfare is not a new concept, governments have already come up with vicious alternatives to weapons such as anthrax, botulism and have you ever seen a rabbit with myxomatosis? Bulging eyes, slow moving, bodily juices...oozing. Does this sound familiar?! Consider a neurotoxin developed from naturally occurring chemicals (alkaloids) that cause schizophrenic behaviour, perhaps hallucinations and what do you have? The rage virus- 28 days later...

All I can say is I'm glad someones already working on our survival. R.J Smith a mathematician at the University of Ottawa has been developing a zombie apocalypse model. A infectious disease model in which various scenarios are tested to see whether human kind would survive or zombies would cause the complete collapse of society.... Using math they established quick aggressive attack was the only way. So I guess 'nuking them' wasn't that far off... alas, I always hated that ending.

So always remember, no loud noises it attracts attention, go for the head else your dead and a watch your friends, feverish and shifty? I'd start to worry.....................
                                                                                           Brains.