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file770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedneonvincent_feedUnlike the Trump administration, The Daily Show acknowledges the existence of climate change. In this collection of segments honoring Earth Day, Ronny Chieng breaks down rising global temperatures, Michael Kosta discovers an environmental safe haven in Duluth, Minnesota, and Troy Iwata investigates solutions to the climate crisis, including a trip to Mars and a woolly mammoth resurrection.Michael Kosta is complaining about snow? He was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, just like my younger daughter! We know snow! On the other hand, he spent long enough to Los Angeles to know about the people there. He may be telling a joke, but he's not kidding! On a more serious note, Duluth is on CNBC's list of safest places in the U.S. from climate change, but so is Detroit, and we already have better weather than Duluth!
file770_feedfile770_feedneonvincent_feedLore of the ghostly whale skeleton, Bake-kujira, brings an ominous twist to stories of the revered marine giants in Japan. The entity is an omen of misfortune that emerged during the rise of industrial whaling in the 20th century. Is it a simple ghost story, or a warning of ecological collapse? And is Bake-kujira’s legend as relevant now as ever?Watching this video reminded me of the retirement plans I shared in Marche du Nain Rouge, history and revelry.
One of the projects I'm considering pursuing in my retirement is a horror mystery series set in Oakland County. I thought I would ignore the Nain Rouge because it was concerned with Detroit proper, not the suburbs. Hearing that the Nain Rouge protects the suburbs as well as the city means that I might have to incorporate the imp in my stories. Hmm. Maybe in the sequel. I have another supernatural entity planned to bedevil my protagonists in the first collection of tales.A vengeful whale spirit is exactly the kind of antagonist I'm looking for, except that my readers would think it's out of place in Michigan. Not completely, as three Quaternary,
In 1927 excavations for a new schoolhouse in Oscoda turned up a Late Pleistocene fossil rib that may have belonged to a bowhead whale of the genus Balaena. The specimen is now catalogued as UMMP 11008.[15] 1930 saw Hussey publish the first scientific paper on the Michiganian whale fossils curated by the University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology.
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The 1950s saw paleontological attention return to Michigan's whale fossils. In 1953, Handley tentatively referred the rib discovered in Oscoda during the 1927 schoolhouse excavation to the genus Balaena.[15] He also reported the discovery of an Arkonan-aged[clarification needed (possibly referring to Thedford-Arkona region)] rorqual rib of the genus Balaenoptera. The fossil had been discovered upright in the sand during the excavation of a cellar in Genesee County.[18] Handley also reported the discovery of another walrus fossil, a skull catalogued as UMMP 32453 found in a Mackinac Island gravel deposit.[13] Handley also reported the discovery of sperm whale ribs and a vertebra from Lenawee County.
Last week the results of study found the township bones were baleen whale vertebrae and radiocarbon dated the age at 220 +/- 30 BP (Before Present), as such, it is similar to a previous date of 190 years old for a sperm whale bone found in Michigan. The baleen whales have baleen instead of teeth which they use to collect shrimp-like krill, plankton and small fish from the sea. The report also included that all the dated whale bones found to date from Michigan are far too young for whales to have entered the Great Lakes. Bones of a sperm whale, finback whale, and a right whale where reported found in Michigan were dated between 190 and 810 years old, John Zawiskie, the Curator of Earth and Life Sciences at Cranbrook Institute of Science commented on the results of the whale bone discovery.Darn. On the other hand, these findings make it more likely for whale spirits to haunt Michigan, not less, as they've been moved relatively recently. Just the same, I think I might refer to the legend of Bake-kujira, but choose another angry animal apparition for my antagonist, like a mammoth or mastodon. Time to look for African and south Asian stories of ghost elephants as inspiration.
“Whales could only have entered the Great Lakes when the sea level was higher during glacial and post-glacial times more than 10,000 years ago,” said Zawiskie. “The whales are all too young – the oldest are only 800 years old.”
Why the bones were found in the township is uncertain, however one suggestion is that the bones may have been brought to Michigan by Hopewell culture people from the Atlantic coast, or maybe even a long running elaborate hoax, where someone else placed the whale bones on the landscape.
“The Hopewell people lived on the Atlantic Coast and they may have brought the whale bones to Michigan as they brought many shells and other marine items with them,” added Zawiskie. “It is unlikely that the Hopewell people scattered whale bones across Michigan and of course the recent find is only 220 years old – the other whale ages range from 190 to 800 years old.”
file770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedfile770_feedneonvincent_feedWhoever came up with our Easter traditions must have been really stoned, Italy’s new prime minister paid a visit to the White House, scientists may have discovered living organisms on a distant planet, and idiots online are insisting that Gayle King and Katy Perry didn’t really go to space.Being stoned has little to do with our Easter traditions conflicting with each other. GaudyMarko explained in a comment.
Fun fact but Easter used to be a pagan holiday that celebrated the spring equinox and fertility before it got rebranded as a christian holiday. The rabbits, eggs, and even the name are all cultural reminants that predate christian influences. Hence the weird mismatch in themes.Trueflights reinforced the point.
To be fair, most of the traditional Easter symbolism was stolen from the Pagan fertility holiday that happens around the same time. That is why you have bunnies (who reproduce quickly), chocolate (which is an aphrodisiac), and eggs (another fertility symbol).This sounds familiar, as something similar happened with Christmas trees.
The fabulous Evie McGee Colbert stops by The Late Show to help Stephen select the perfect greeting card for Easter.I should watch more "First Drafts" videos; they're cute, even when they're talking about death.
Meanwhile… A new machine can tell how much fat is in tuna meat, wild salmon exposed to anxiety drugs took more risks, ancient Romans fed tax evaders to leopards, and scientists grew real “chicken” meat in a lab.Science, animals, and more drugs! Also, the Webby Awards qualify today's post as the Sunday entertainment feature. I love awards shows!
Jesus Christ (Mikey Day) and his disciples (Kenan Thompson, Andrew Dismukes, Sarah Sherman, Ego Nwodim, Emil Wakim, Devon Walker, Michael Longfellow, Jane Wickline) get interrupted by President Donald Trump (James Austin Johnson) during the cleansing of the Temple.That made a worthy third part of the trilogy that began with James Austin Johnson's 'Trump' hijacks the Last Supper on 'SNL' for Easter and continued with 'Trump' hijacks the Resurrection to sell Bibles on 'SNL' for Easter. That written, I'm not sure I want to see a part four.
file770_feedfile770_feedneonvincent_feedPhantom Regiment opens their 1980 production with Rimsky-Korsakov's "Russian Easter Overture." The corps finished in 5th place at the DCI World Championship Finals in Birmingham, Alabama.I was in the audience for this performance, so imagine you can hear me cheer. For all I know, you can.
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