…your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn’t stop to think if they should…
— Dr. Malcolm
Started following the Entomological Society of America on Mastodon and today I learned 1) there are brown widow spiders in addition to black widow spiders and 2) a Florida study found that the brown widows killed and consumed nearby black widows 80% of the time (!)
The amount of sunlight that strikes the earth’s surface in an hour and a half is enough to handle the entire world’s energy consumption for a full year…
— U.S. Department of Energy
Contact, it’s the secret. It’s the moment, when everything happens. Contact, it’s the answer. It’s the reason, why everything happens. Contact, let’s make contact!
— 3-2-1 Contact
Remembering those who perished in service to this country:
- Civil War: 655,000
- World War I: 116,516
- World War II: 405,399
- Korean War: 36,516
- Vietnam War: 58,209
And as vaccines start to take hold, also thinking of these American lives lost:
- Flu Pandemic of 1918: 675,000
- COVID-19 Pandemic: 591,265
Rest in Peace 💜
Chance favors the prepared mind
— Louie Pasteur
I’ve been thinking a lot about safety lately. The pandemic, political and economic turmoil, return to work plans – all of these have safety components that give me anxiety and make 2020 feel like even more of a challenge. What exactly is the condition of being safe? I like these definitions: freedom from danger, risk, injury or loss; unhurt, harmless, cautious. Of course, safe can also mean unlikely to produce controversy or contradiction – also sometimes useful, but not what I’m writing about today.
The spread of COVID and the tools and policies available to manage the threat have become overtly political, which is unfortunate. I’m lucky that I really don’t have to fight any physical battles with people who won’t wear masks or follow guidelines and have the economic stability to isolate at home as much as I can during the pandemic. I’ve already decided I don’t *need* to visit casinos, go to movie theaters or drink in bars right now and I tend to favor take-out over eating inside at restaurants that are offering that option (and winter is coming, patio people). Correctly wearing a face mask to Target or the grocery store is literally the easiest thing you can do to keep the economy running, limit the spread of the virus and help keep people safe.
Outdoor activities are safer than indoor activities, which has resulted in a surge of bike sales and golf rounds. These are both things I love to do in a “regular” year, so this has been a great way to pass the time (and keep my move streak alive). It’s funny that some of the outdoor things I like to do aren’t always considered safe: danger is part of the appeal with downhill skiing and single-track mountain biking, for example. But even with those activities, I’m more cautious the older I get. Running has always been important to me, but I’ve even turned that down a notch, preferring strenuous hill walks to full out running for speed (at least for now).
