The question above, “How dangerous is taking a shower?”, seems almost laughable at first glance, but if you watch the video below, you will gain an understanding that risks are not always what they seem. As we live longer and longer, the odds become stacked against us and we must maintain our vigilance to avoid mishaps. The video below shows how scientist/author Jared Diamond learned this lesson from the tribes of Papua New Guinea.
“Jared Diamond shares what he learnt about risk and everyday life from the tribes of Papua New Guinea. This was taken from a 2013 conversation, ‘The world until yesterday’. Watch the full discussion here: youtu.be/ceLuaf7low4
Pullitzer Prize-winner Jared Diamond discusses how insights from the lifestyles of far-removed cultures can impact the way we think about our own lives. Is it worth worrying about the risk of everyday actions like falling in the shower or tripping on the street? Each time you do these things, the risk of mishap is low, but we do them every single day. Over time, does that mean these tiny risks accumulate to become almost inevitable?
This animation was produced by Andrew Khosravani, thanks to generous support from the Sfumato Foundation.”
A gorilla at the Louisville Zoo enjoys sitting next to visitors and looking at their smartphone photographs. The interchange took place for more than 20 minutes according to reports. Some of the photos were of other gorillas.
If you are looking for an audience for your photos and you are near the zoo, it might be a good place to share!
We are creatures of habit and past experience. When we go to the market to purchase an item, we can anticipate that any given category of item will be packaged in a particular manner.
Eggs will most likely be in the familiar egg cartons made of styrofoam or cardboard. Milk will be in a plastic bottle or plasticized cardboard container. Bread will most likely be in a plastic bag, etc.
Every once in a while, though, someone breaks the mold and presents a “better idea.” They are “thinking outside the box” or in this case, outside of the package.
Seth Godin is an author known across the world for his innovative ideas, thinking outside the box on a regular basis and explaining to others how they can become better at whatever it is they are trying to do in life.
I read Seth’s Blog on a regular basis and, I encourage you to read it as well. I am sure you will find a number of things that are interesting.
On August 28, Mr. Godin posted “The strawberry conundrum” which caught my eye because it seems to hold lessons for us yet, at its core, it is a very simple idea.
“Every grocer has to decide: when packing a quart of strawberries, should your people put the best ones on top?
If you do, you’ll sell more and disappoint people when they get to the moldy ones on the bottom.
Or, perhaps you could put the moldy ones on top, and pleasantly surprise the few that buy.
Or, you could rationalize that everyone expects a little hype, and they’ll get over it.
A local grocer turned the problem upside down: He got rid of the boxes and just put out a pile of strawberries. People picked their own. He charged more, sold more and made everyone happier.
Your chances of being killed in an airplane crash are about 1 in 11 million (according to the article linked below), but…
When you travel by air and you select a seat, what are your considerations? I know people who most want a window seat so they can put a “pillow” against the window wall and sleep. Others want an aisle seat to make getting to the bathroom easier. Many want to avoid the middle because they don’t like being sandwiched.
Do you ever consider the safety factors? I am talking about: “Which seat will give me (you) the best chance of surviving an airplane accident?” Honestly I haven’t thought much about that either except I know I don’t like sitting in the back of an airplane because I always felt that was the least safe place to be in an emergency and the location of the bathrooms create too much traffic and noise.
The link below is to an article that will give you a new perspective on selecting airplane seating among other safety factors. According to the author, you only have about “90 seconds to get out” so which seat will maximize your chance of survival?
NOTE – This website is designed for men and their issues so apologies ahead of time for the gender related pop-ups, etc. I still think the issues raised are important for everyone.
Even if you don’t heed all the cautions, I think some will change your outlook about flying!
Oh! One last thing:
“If you were born on an airliner in the US in this decade and never got off you would encounter your first fatal accident when you were 2300 years of age and you would still have a 29% chance of being one of the survivors.” — Les Lautman, Boeing Safety Manager
Picture Courtesy of Trey’s Website http://tour.treyratcliff.com/
On this very hot day, it was a cool thing to do! Trey Ratcliff, known world wide as the father of modern High Dynamic Range photography, was going to be in my town, Phoenix, Arizona. His Photo Walk Across the USA had made it to the west.
Of course most people don’t come this way during the heat of August, but Trey is a trooper as is the rest of his crew. They were making their way through several major cities to publicize a number of things and to give fans a chance to do a photo walk with them.
The Phoenix photo walk began at the Irish Cultural Center. I never knew there was such an organization until I needed to find the location. As you can see, it is a beautiful building.
Trey likes to refer to his tour bus as a megabus and it was!
For someone who has earned quite a bit of celebrity, Trey is very approachable. You can imagine how uncomfortable it was in the heat of the desert in a paved parking lot, but he continued to meet and greet people and take photos with them for way more than an hour.
Here I am (wearing the light cap) with others talking to Trey.
Picture Courtesy of a screen grab of Trey’s footage of the Walk – http://tour.treyratcliff.com/
My wife came along, but tended to stay in the background. She likes photography, but isn’t a picture taker. The yellow arrow points to wife Mary and the green arrow is me again (sorry).
Picture Courtesy of a screen grab of Trey’s footage of the Walk – http://tour.treyratcliff.com/
I guess you can call Curtis Trey’s right hand man. He can be seen on videos and webinar type experiences offered through the Stuck In Customswebsite. He provided some helpful hints and guidelines prior to the walk.
As time approached for the walking tour to begin, the crowd began to form.
Trey was wearing some amazing Nikes
But he wasn’t the only one!
A note needed here – I don’t own a camera that is able to take quality pictures in low light. The best I could do was with my trusty iPad and my Canon PowerShot A590. So…many of the shots that remain will be grainy, but I think they still offer a good “feel” for how the night unfolded.
As we began to walk around downtown and without knowing where the tour would lead, the sun began to set. One of the first photo opportunities was a church that was barely lit, but had a nice courtyard.
Trey was using the new Sony a7R Mark II which has great low light abilities as well as being at the top if its class and, according to the initial reviews, surpasses many of those in other classes as well. Do you detect camera envy?!
After another brisk walk, we stopped at this street corner. Trey explained that he liked the mix of the mural on the wall and the building lights.
One of the best things about the photo walk was that the participants could ask questions which TR was glad to answer. He discussed the composition and the details indicating why he thought each shot would make a good picture.
Trey wasn’t taking single shots either. He was taking HDR photos which call for a series of three exposures; one properly exposed, one two stops over and the other two stops under. These are later combined to yield the HDR picture bringing a high dynamic range to the photo with details in shadow areas as well as those that are strongly lit.
As the traffic light was changing, other photogs were asking questions; a walk and talk kind of experience.
There was another picture opportunity at a concert in the park where this modern structure made of optical cable or wire was being illuminated by changing lights. (I will provide a link to better pictures at the end of this post) so you can appreciate the full effect.
At this stop (below) trey provided another “Mind Vitamin” (something to think about) as he pointed out how converging lines help give depth to a picture and offer the viewer somewhat more than a two dimensional experience.
He stated that he loved the green trees, i.e.Palo Verdes.
Others took the opportunity look at his camera (as he had it set up to take the pictures on a time delay) so they could examine the settings, etc.
One of the AV crew members was wearing this shirt which I thought had a slightly ironic twist.
Trey selected this shot because of the pattern of light and dark and the reflections. This picture doesn’t do it justice, but I think you get the idea.
Once again, Trey stopped to discuss scenes that cried out to be photographed.
Another example of converging lines drawing the eye into the picture.
This was one of the last stops of the tour before the after party so we headed back to the car since we had a long ride home.
On the way back to the car (a nearly two mile trek) through downtown Phoenix, we came across this scene. I know it is just a water fountain, but it struck a responsive chord with me especially after reading the sign (The Little Fountain That Could).
If you want to learn more about HDR photography and the story behind Trey Ratcliff’s photography experience, you can check my former blog post,Founding Father of HDR Photography – Trey Ratcliff, which includes a link to Trey’s inspirational TED talk!
During a recent weekend, my wife and I took four days to visit Sierra Vista and the surrounding area to do some hiking and birding. We enjoyed hiking in the Coronado National Memorial and nearby Brown Canyon. This area is a hotspot for bird watchers. Our Bed and Breakfast, Casa de San Pedro (CDSP), caters to nature enthusiasts and birding hobbyists.
Little did we know when we made our reservations, that on one of the days we would be visiting CDSP, there would be a hummingbird banding. This was exciting news indeed! I had no idea how they would go about capturing, assessing, banding and releasing these very tiny creatures. I was very interested to witness the process.
Humming Bird Evaluation and Banding
(photos are below the narrative)
The first step is setting up the capture feeder is for one of the volunteers to place a capture net over the feeder.
The top of the feeder has a battery-operated mechanism which uses remote control to drop the net. When the bird is at the feeder, i.e. inside the net area, the net is triggered. (yellow arrow points to battery compartment)
The banding was a collaborative effort. Volunteers worked to record specific data about each bird, collect donations from attendees, assist in transporting captured birds from the feeder area to the work station and finally safely releasing each bird.
Once the net is dropped around the feeder, the bird is placed inside a laundry delicates holder to safely move it from one area of the field to another.
Sheri works to band a female Black-chinned Hummingbird. The yellow arrow points to the thin bird bill.
A variety of measurements were taken including the length of the bill, the length of the bird, the length of the wing, etc.
More measurements and assessment.
Here is a look at the record book (rotated to make it more legible (if zoomed in for a look).
Sheri explains the examination process. …According to SOBA’s website:
The band is applied to the bird’s “leg” (actually the tarsus, equivalent to the long bones in our feet) using specially made pliers. The fit is checked, then the bird’s vital statistics are recorded: species, age, sex, lengths of wing, tail, and bill, weight, plumage condition, molt (loss and replacement of feathers), amount of visible fat, pollen color (if visible) and location, signs of impending or recent egg laying in adult females, and any peculiarities such as scars, odd-colored feathers, or presence of parasites. Pollen may be collected for later identification to help us understand what natural resources the birds depend on during migration and nesting.
A straw is used to separate the feathers to check for parasites, evaluate plumage, etc.
The female Black-chinned Hummingbird had an egg which could be seen through the translucent skin although it is not readily visible in the picture.
Each captured bird is weighed. These hummingbirds weighed between 3 – 3.5 grams; a fraction of an ounce. According to Wikipedia, a penny weighs 2.5 grams.
Before release, each bird is offered a drink for their journey back home.
The second bird trapped was a male Black-chinned hummer. While it may be difficult to tell them apart, especially when upside down, the white tipped tail feathers are a reliable indicator.
From above the bird, the feathers create a very obvious pattern and enhances the male plumage.
Sheri Williamson shows admiring onlookers the beautiful feather patterns of this male Black-chinned hummingbird.
Sheri checks the band on this bird to assure that it is loose enough to be comfortable.
The small band is encircled in this photo.
Banding attendees are offered an opportunity to release a bird. The bird is very carefully placed in a hand and…
I have always been a sucker for optical illusions and street art (or streetart). I am not talking about graffiti although that has become a more acceptable genre nowadays since it is currently producing some nice art pieces around the world.
When I mention street art, I am addressing those illustrations done with chalk on sidewalks and roadways which create optical illusion to make them appear that passersby are interacting with the artwork.
Leon Keer demonstrates his mastery of this genus by creating a sidewalk Pac-Man display. In the images below, you can see people walking through it and there is one shot of Keer creating the illustration by exaggerating the elements so they look correct when viewed from afar and above. How do they do that?!
Below is another of Keer’s creations (shwoing the artist’s perspective) which appeared at the Malta Streetart Festival. Can you tell what it is? Visit his website to see.
NOTE – ALL pictures are from www.streetpainting3d.comand are placed on JBRish.com via their courtesy.
NASA released a photograph taken from a million miles away from earth showing the moon passing in front of the earth. Interestingly, the side of the moon photographed is not seen from earth as it faces away from our planet!
“Published on Jun 19, 2015 – Did you know the coast of Texas is the most important spot for migratory birds in the U.S. and Canada? Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center staff journey to this small island annually to study songbirds returning from their tropical wintering grounds and share this experience with local schoolchildren. Understanding these species and teaching the next generation about them is critical to their survival. Learn more in this video made possible with the support of ConocoPhillips. #WeSaveSpecies #StateoftheBirds”
Sierra Vista, AZ is known for the birds that visit that area year-round. There are migratory birds that leave south and central America as well as Mexico and spend part of the summer in the southeast portion of Arizona. While visiting that region recently, we took note of a house sparrow nest in a tree and a male and female that were taking care of their young.
In the picture (below), the “dad” is bringing food to the babies. If you look closely you can see a grasshopper (or similar insect) just to the left of the tip of the yellow arrow (center of photo).
The adult bird is getting ready to “cram” the insect down the throat of the chick. They do this with great energy.
In this case, as in some bird species, both adults take turns feeding the chicks. This is a picture of “mom” watching the meal being delivered and perhaps providing instructions.
The male bird has left for a “refill” and both chicks look on in anticipation. The one on the left almost appears to be frowning as it awaits its turn.
Here is another photo of the chicks looking on with apparent increased vigilance and vocalizations.
This scene repeated itself over time and we enjoyed watching the protocol of the house sparrow for taking care of its fledglings. It is estimated that these chicks were just a few days away from leaving the nest as they are rather large; as chicks go.
