Some want upheavals of a darker nature
It is interesting to note that, when it comes to the upheaval that plagues and other calamities can have on societies, certain people view things very differently (23 July, p 42). They certainly don’t see disasters as catalysing a shift to something better for the wider world.
There are some religious groups that would welcome catastrophes of various sorts: at one time it was nuclear war, lately it has been climate change. They believe such calamities would be signs of the Rapture or the end times. For them, even sea level rise can encourage notions of Noah and the cleansing of Earth. They think they will survive while the rest of us perish. So much for building back better.
Diving deeper into nature's impact on us (1)
“Into the blue” comprehensively conveyed the psychological benefits of both green and blue spaces (16 July, p 38). However, I was intrigued by the reference to the calming effects of blue spaces.
We have known for some time that blue has a stimulating, not a calming, effect due to melanopsin receptors in the eye that are particularly sensitive to blue light. This causes excitation of the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the brain, the master biological clock, and releases wake-up hormones, such as cortisol.
For me, this begs the question: what is the physiology that underpins the calming effect of proximity to water?
Diving deeper into nature's impact on us (2)
Given the limited proximity of urban populations to natural bodies of water, I would like to delve into the effects of moving water features in urban settings.
Having lived for a while in central Rome, I can attest to the great relief you can find in the sight and sound of flowing water in fountains and so on, and in the fascinating diversity of observations that can be made of splashing water in the piazzas, which you might encounter on casual walks to work or shopping.
Even the echoes of a little street fountain, or of the one found in the small courtyard below our bedroom windows, were soothing in the night.
Non-metric systems do have some upsides
There are good reasons why the metric system isn’t favoured by some people (Letters, 16 July). Apart from having to learn another system when the one in use is perfectly adequate for their needs, the metric system isn’t as good for some transactions as, for example, a system based on multiples of 12, which are more flexible. Multiples of 12 allow you to easily divide quantities of food, fabric, liquids and so on into thirds or quarters, as well as halves. These divisions are easier to determine by eye than when doing the same with multiples of 10.
Can space telescope put big bang to the test?
Now that the James Webb Space Telescope can see really distant objects, with redshifts that equate to the early universe, surely there is a simple test for the big bang theory (30 July, p 9). The further away we look, and hence the further back in time, the lower the concentration should be of elements heavier than hydrogen and helium. If not, then it’s back to the drawing board.
Did short dino arms avoid self-inflicted injuries?
It was fascinating to read of Meraxes gigas, a newly described dinosaur with a large head and sharp teeth, which walked on powerful hind legs and yet had proportionately small arms (16 July, p 23). Though other reasons for “small” arms in the likes of T. rex have been put forward, I suspect it is mainly to do with their huge jaws.
Flinging around a fridge-sized head filled with rows of huge, sharp teeth isn’t only dangerous for the unfortunate prey, but also for the predator. The longer the creature’s arms, the more chance of them being bitten off in the melee by another pack member, or even their owner.
Seeing time through the eyes of various cultures
“Mysteries of the fourth dimension” didn’t address how different cultures perceive time (18 June, p 38). For example, the Hindu tradition views time as cycles of ages that arise out of darkness or dissolution. Aeons follow each other in rotating cycles, repeating similar events and developments and each time concluding with a universal dissolution into divine, primal substance.
For Indigenous Australians in the central desert area, the past doesn’t exist in a distant time. Instead, it is concurrent with the present, embodied in current generations who preserve it and pass it on. Past and present coexist, as they do in Albert Einstein’s “block universe”.
Could these cultures have insights into time that scientists are now grappling with?
New coal mine may have some merits
Adam Vaughan argues against the opening of a new coal mine in Cumbria, UK (16 July, p 28). However, the promoters of the mine must be confident of the market for the coking coal that it would produce. If that mine doesn’t open, will that market miraculously vanish or will the same amount of coal come from mines elsewhere in the world, perhaps where safety receives less attention?
Of course the steel industry should be (and is) moving towards better methods that will emit less carbon dioxide, and perhaps that will happen faster than the promoters of the mine expect, but the rate of decline of the demand for coal will depend very little on where the coal comes from.
Four legs or six, it's all just meat
I am fascinated by those like Roger Browne who feel that the “yuck” factor will be an obstacle in the transition toward more insect-based diets (Letters, 9 July).
Meat eaters may wish to consider how a gambolling little lamb becomes the pile of bloody lamb chops they might have with mint sauce for their lunch. As they, the main target for insect foods, already deal with this, the step from eating animals with four legs to six should be relatively easy.