"Burp!"Funny Animal Photos
-------Australian Blog-------
Dogs Are Smart, Just Like Humans
Humans aren't that special. It was once thought that people were superior to chimpanzees because humans had feelings and showed love. We all know now that chimps do have these propensities. Other animals weren't even considered in the "advanced" creature stakes. Time has shown that many animals use tools to find food.
Pets such as dogs tend to mimic their owners. They say you grow like your partner and if your companion is a dog then the dog copies you, and heaven forbid you copy the dog. So strong is this bond that dogs will actually give up food rewards to do what their owners do.
Researchers had two groups of pet dogs. Their owners went on hands and knees and opened a sliding door with their heads and closed hands. One group of dogs was rewarded for opening the door. The other group was reward with food for not doing what their owners did. All dogs opened the door after their owners - foregoing the food reward.
Clearly dogs learn like humans. They copy. Dogs in the test were of many breeds, so intelligence was not a factor. Furthermore, what does a dog do when it sees a human yawn? Think about it. It yawns of course.
Pets such as dogs tend to mimic their owners. They say you grow like your partner and if your companion is a dog then the dog copies you, and heaven forbid you copy the dog. So strong is this bond that dogs will actually give up food rewards to do what their owners do.
Researchers had two groups of pet dogs. Their owners went on hands and knees and opened a sliding door with their heads and closed hands. One group of dogs was rewarded for opening the door. The other group was reward with food for not doing what their owners did. All dogs opened the door after their owners - foregoing the food reward.
Clearly dogs learn like humans. They copy. Dogs in the test were of many breeds, so intelligence was not a factor. Furthermore, what does a dog do when it sees a human yawn? Think about it. It yawns of course.
Society
Australian Blog★
Bushmeat Trade Is Depleting Natural Forest
Bushmeat is not just a problem in Africa. Asian countries have the same problem, as the demand for meat from wild animals increases. Taking animals from tropical forest changes the whole ecosystem. It is common sense really. As the number of creatures feeding on vegetation and other animals decline there is an abundance of vegetation growth and remaining fauna. More growth kills off food for these animals.
While some plants increase, others decline. Even the amount of vegetation not consumed can fall. Uneaten vegetation crowds out growth for all, so saplings do not grow tall. Plants need animals to disperse seeds. Consequently, the variety of plants falls.
Just two decades ago the Lambir Hills National Park in Sarawak was pristine. There was an abundance of animals and trees. Now all the large animals have been killed off by hunters after a profit.
Once such dramatic change occurs there is no way back. The large animals will not breed back to original numbers. The damage also impacts on remaining animals who find their usual food source is no longer plentiful.
Society
Australian Blog★
EU-Thailand Free Trade Agreement Is Pointless
Negotiation between Thailand and the EU for a Free Trade Agreement in isolation from other Asian countries seems odd to say the least. What possible gain could there be for the EU? Yes, Thailand could flood the EU with cheap products thus helping European consumers, but the EU needs more jobs now to lift their economies out of recession. It seems counter-productive.
Another thing is Thailand will have to abide by EU rules which are very draconian and arbitrary in some respects. The EU is a bureaucracy out of control. Microsoft had to pay millions of dollars in compensation for not pushing rival search engines enough. This really doesn't make sense, with Google shipping its Chrome only Android.
Thailand allows cheap generic drugs to be sold to its citizens. If it wins a Free Trade Agreement this will have to end as medications fall under the umbrella of EU intellectual property rights. Paying more for drugs will reverse all the gains made in Thailand's health system.
The EU is ignoring public opinion and plans to extend patent terms for drug companies from 20 years. This will mean monopoly prices extend for much longer in EU countries and other countries will FTAs. Thai people are against any agreement that ends the supply of cheaper drugs.
Thailand exports food, plastic and rubber. It doesn't need the machinery and electrical appliances the EU exports. The question must be asked - Why is the EU bothering about getting a FTA with Thailand? There will be export gains by Thailand at the expense of a more expensive health system. There appears to be no benefit to the EU.
Society
Australian Blog★
Aboriginals Are Not Genetically Susceptible to Alcohol
Like the native Indians of North America, Australian Aboriginals have taken solace in alcohol. Since the Europeans arrived, discrimination has been part of their daily lives. Europeans immured in stratified society with strong class divisions treated Aboriginals as less than human.
City white people have the same alcohol problems as Aboriginals, but society accepts this as normal. Many Australians of European descent believe that there is a genetics predisposition in Aboriginals. There is no foundation to this.
When white people get drunk they fight, steal, and lose control. Aboriginal communities have alcohol prohibition supported by government legislation. If this was to be applied to white citizens there would be a public outcry. The current interference in unemployment payments to Aboriginals in the Northern Territory is definitely unlawful. This is why the board that polices human rights in Australia was suspended.
Life is so frustrating for Australian Aboriginals that they are trying to kill themselves with alcohol. Enquiries into the problem always ignore this. Alcoholism is more a sociocultural issue than a physical one.
Society
Australian Blog★
Calls for Change in Pain Relief May Not Be Possible
When you go into hospital for an operation you either get a "feel good" pain clinician who believes that no one should be in pain when medications are available, or you get an "ethical" physician who gives pain relief when he/she deems it to be "right". The problem is moral judgement differs from person to person.
Another issue is - Can pain be a disease in itself? Some calculate the failure to treat pain in working days lost. The problem is, taking analgesics will reduce some pain from the flu, for example, but you are still too sick to work. Furthermore, taking high levels of analgesics can make for a euphoric state where one does not want to work. Looking at it in terms of days lost is questionable.
Specialists are also calling for pain relieving medications to be shipped in large amounts to poorer countries where medical treatment is not widely available. Considering the drug problem in virtually all countries, this may not be a good thing to do. In Africa UN staff have to give some provisions to rebels in order to operate in particular regions. Would these controlling parties want analgesics? Common sense would indicate that they would.
Physicians who specialise in pain relief may be drawn to the profession because they have strong ethics in this area, but they need to look at the big picture. Some illnesses are just so bad that even strong doses of pain relievers have little effect. To fully remove the pain a high dose causing death would be needed. Long term use of such medications leads to resistance. In other words, pain is no longer reduced, and certainly for drug addicts there are no more highs. Distribution of analgesics need to be dealt with on a national basis. Change in this areas may seem necessary - it may not be possible.
Another issue is - Can pain be a disease in itself? Some calculate the failure to treat pain in working days lost. The problem is, taking analgesics will reduce some pain from the flu, for example, but you are still too sick to work. Furthermore, taking high levels of analgesics can make for a euphoric state where one does not want to work. Looking at it in terms of days lost is questionable.
Specialists are also calling for pain relieving medications to be shipped in large amounts to poorer countries where medical treatment is not widely available. Considering the drug problem in virtually all countries, this may not be a good thing to do. In Africa UN staff have to give some provisions to rebels in order to operate in particular regions. Would these controlling parties want analgesics? Common sense would indicate that they would.
Physicians who specialise in pain relief may be drawn to the profession because they have strong ethics in this area, but they need to look at the big picture. Some illnesses are just so bad that even strong doses of pain relievers have little effect. To fully remove the pain a high dose causing death would be needed. Long term use of such medications leads to resistance. In other words, pain is no longer reduced, and certainly for drug addicts there are no more highs. Distribution of analgesics need to be dealt with on a national basis. Change in this areas may seem necessary - it may not be possible.
Health
Australian Blog★
Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson Loses It in Australia
Does a celebrity "belong" to the people - apparently not. Jeremy Clarkson of Top Gear fame is a little miffed about photographers milling around him as he shoots an episode of the show in Sydney. Jeremy Clarkson didn't do the actual complaining, at first. It was his mate who lost the plot and ranted on.
The man said that Clarkson would never return to Australia, so it isn't a big loss. Top Gear is a silly show anyway - three guys acting like children hooning around the world in cars of all types. It is amazing that the show is so popular. Apparently, fans get a kick out of watching grown men behaving stupidly. They would probably not do such things themselves.
Never interfere with an Englishman and his dinner. That seems to be the issue. Photographers crowded around Jeremy Clarkson and his co-presenter James May while they sat down to eat their meal. Come on guys be polite! But this Australia. It is just about the only place on Earth where social rules are regularly broken.
Ah well, enjoy your visit Mr Clarkson. And you can't throw our photographers into the river. That is just not done - or is it?
Motoring
Australian Blog★
Ned Kelly Was No Hero
Ned Kelly has been made into a folk hero yet his exploits were very bad indeed. He killed policemen and believed he was hard done by and above the law. Like Jesse James in the US it is surprising how an evil person can be made larger than life. While there was possible police corruption affecting the lives of both, it was not a prime factor in their behavior.
From the start they had the belief in the their own superiority, that they could live above the law. Even today many strongly support the "heroism" of Ned Kelly. He was recently laid to rest in a Requiem mass. His skeleton, minus the head, were cremated. It has been 132 years since his execution.
There is something to be said about his fight against British rule in the colonies. Police control over the population was strong and brutal. Carrying the fight from Ireland to Australia is seen as a virtuous act. The problem is Ned Kelly was not really acting on this premise. He wanted to declare a region of Australia his own.
The authorities could not allow a break-away province and with the killing of police he was a "dead man walking". His gang was too small to fight the whole police force on its own. Despite his armour, twenty-eight police bullets struck his arms and legs. The sheer number of hits shows the ferocity of the final battle. He was captured and taken away.
History
Australian Blog★
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