Lenny Campello's excellent post about amazing photographer Lida Moser, whose name should be better-known. Street scenes and portraits that burrow into the mind.
Sep 12, 2009
Lida Moser: photography vérité
Lenny Campello's excellent post about amazing photographer Lida Moser, whose name should be better-known. Street scenes and portraits that burrow into the mind.
Sep 11, 2009
Sep 10, 2009
Big Food and health care
My sky-high health insurance premiums are an incentive for others to make unhealthy choices. Michael Pollan makes some good points here about Big Food and health care costs.
Sep 9, 2009
Hubble Kaleidoscope scoop
"Despite excitement over the discovery that space is all crazy-looking, a number of legislators have threatened to cut funding for NASA's kaleidoscopic program. An outspoken critic of the agency, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said she hopes NASA scientists don't just use the kaleidoscope a few times and then lose interest and never touch it again, like they did with the Brookhaven Neutrino Spirograph, Fermilab's Particle Slingshot, and the Very Large Slip 'n Slide Array in New Mexico." Onion scoop here.
Sep 8, 2009
Ben’s Cruise for Compassion
4th Annual Ben’s Cruise for Compassion takes place Friday, September 18, from 7 – 10 p.m. Location: Watermarks’ Harbor Queen at the Annapolis City Dock. The cruise is after Ben, a dog rescued as a result of the 2007 Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) v. Woodley trial. The cruise - just $55 per ticket - includes an evening of food and entertainment...and well-behaved dogs are welcome aboard. Tickets via credit card at 410-263-8683. There will also be a raffle for VIP tickets to see Dancing With The Stars in LA, including airfare and hotel. Details at http://www.pawspetboutique.com under “News & Events.” All proceeds from the raffle and cruise donated to ALDF.
Flea control - legit vs. counterfeit
Many scientiests and animal health care professionals such as Dr. Michael Fox advise not to use chemical and pharmaceutical anti-flea and tick products except as a last resort. Though these products offer a convenient quick fix, due to a growing number of consumer complaints, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently conducting reviews.
Many anti-flea product ingredients are excreted from people's companion animals, thus posing an environmental health hazard. Already we know this is the case with chemicals applied to animals used in agriculture - livestock - that people eat. Also, some reports suggest that the target bugs build tolerance, making the products less effective.
Visit the insightful Flea Control Secrets blog maintained by the author of a new book, “Flea Control Secrets,” which is available on the web as an e-book. I’ll be reviewing the book and posting a Dog Tips review in the coming weeks. The blog features visual comparisons of legitimate vs. counterfeit packaging for Frontline. Fake versions of Frontline and other popular products is yet another problem, and some legitimate mail order companies have stocked and shipped the fakes.
Two articles worth reading...but note that there are many others equally worth reading. My personal tip: add organic apple cider vinegar to water bowls and wipe your animals down with apple cider vinegar. My Dog Tips contain some other tips as well.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124329165300152331.html
http://www.greenpaws.org
Sep 5, 2009
A Golden Rule for God's Green Earth
Clark Strand writes on Washingtonpost.com: "The Golden Rule ("Do unto others as you would have them do unto you") is the foundation of Christian moral teaching. But lately I've begun to wonder if that gold standard of ethical behavior really equips us for an age of global environmental concerns. Jesus teaches us to include other people in our prayers--even our enemies. But what about other species of plant and animal life? What about the atmosphere? What about the Earth?" Read on.
Sep 1, 2009
Chicks thrown into grinder - is cruelty worth cheap food?
Chicago animal welfare group has released a new video shot at an Iowa chicken "processing" plant in which unwanted chicks are ground up alive. More proof of cruelty supported by most consumers ... standard op procedure in animal agriculture. BTW, most reporters ignorantly label animal welfare as rights. AP newswire report here.
Aug 30, 2009
Killer onions...dog and cat alert
Onions are among several foods toxic to dogs and cats...see Dr. Yin's article here.
NYC sight-seeing & saving with CityPass
Robin's travel piece on New York City icons...sight-seeing with new CityPass savings. In Aug. 30 editions of the Examiner newspaper. DC edition here.
Aug 24, 2009
VegFest DC Sept. 12
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Finally there's a vegetarian fest in DC. Free booklets, cool talks, facts to counter food profiteer propaganda.
Aug 23, 2009
Cooking 101 for the young and hungry
Robin's piece about Freshman in the Kitchen author Max Sussman, who is sous chef at Ann Arbor's hot restaurant named eve (yes, lower case). The article's in the Examiner print and web newspapers...here's one edition.
Junk instruments
Recycling debris into music instruments - Robin's article in various editions of the Examiner. Here's one.
Aug 22, 2009
Health care reform - good read
Good concise article addressing myths and realities about health care and insurance in the U.S. and worldwide.
Aug 20, 2009
Fixing the cheap, immoral food system
The U.S. agricultural industry can now produce unlimited quantities of meat and grains at remarkably cheap prices. But it does so at a high cost to the environment, animals and humans. Read the article here. By the way, most animal agriculture takes place in horrid factory-like conditions, not like the farm shown in this photo.
Aug 19, 2009
Farm Sanctuary: saved from the slaughterhouse
"Rescued from slaughterhouses, stockyards and other “food animal” production facilities, these creatures find themselves in a bucolic idyll run by vegan activists.... They are more interested in improving the appalling conditions under which animals become food." Good folks running an interesting alternative farm - read on.
Aug 17, 2009
Spiritual vs. material gospel - great book
In "American Gospel: On Family, History, and the Kingdom of God," Erik Reece offers a more sensible interpretation of scripture, one that compels acting like Jesus on earth instead of banking on a free ticket to heaven. From another review: "Reece, author of the award-winning Lost Mountain, is the son and grandson of Baptist preachers. His own religious world-view, however, comes not from traditional Protestant Christianity, but from American thinkers such as Walt Whitman, Thomas Jefferson, William James and the lesser-known scientist Lynn Margulis.... He is searching for a form of Christianity that he can live with, since he believes that the usual sources are unhelpfully dogmatic. The primary tension is a classic one: the struggle between the material and spiritual worlds...." Details here.
Aug 16, 2009
Science breakthroughs podcast
We discovered this resource at the American Chemical Society's national conference. Bytesize Science was conceived for smart kids, but adults will be able to understand it too. Dogs' companionship, super-floating boats, paper stronger than iron...podcasts and vids about energy and other science topics. Check it out here.
Energy vs. nature
Thought-provoking Newsweek article on animal casualties from new energy technologies and ways to reduce the carnage. Companies and govt can take more steps to protect wildlife and ecosystems...and each individual can help by trying to reduce their energy consumption (which will save you money too). Article here.
Veggies for longer, healthier life
If you want to live longer -- avoid heart disease, Alzheimer's disease and cancer -- then pick and choose your foods with care to quiet down parts of your immune system. Meaning mostly plant-based foods. LA Times story here: http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-anti-inflammation17-2009aug17,0,3196484.story
Aug 15, 2009
Detroit's latest remodels
Robin's latest travel piece in various print and online editions of the Examiner newspapers. Here's the Washington DC edition.
Aug 14, 2009
Crunch: feel hungry yet?
Do chips taste better when an ad describes their crunch? Is popcorn more flavorful if its aroma is featured in an ad? Yes, says U of Michigan researchers with a tasty assignment. They report that multisensory advertising - ads that describe taste, smell, texture, sight and sound - enhance consumers' taste perception. Why? Because taste is generated from multiple senses.
Aug 13, 2009
Dog Tip: Teaching beats jerking
Force-based corrections are popular because they can yield instant results. But most often, the instant results are confusion, a temporary end to the behavior, possible fear-based aggression, and fear of your approach. In her Your Dog article, "Teach Instead of Correct," Pat Miller offers expert guidance, including some of the tips noted here.
Aug 10, 2009
Superhero snuggies, mystic vases at Renwick Invitational
Staged Stories: The 2009 Renwick Invitational in D.C. Robin's latest review in various editions of the Monday Aug 10 Examiner. Click here.
Aug 9, 2009
Pit Bull Blues
Same song, 2 videos. One from Happy Tails Rescue; the other features the Eugene, OR singer/sw John Shipe.
Aug 8, 2009
Public Lands Day...Rocky Mountain High
Robin's latest in the Examiner's print and web editions in San Francisco, Oakland, Northern Virginia, suburban Md. and Washington DC.
Off grid with goats at Funky Butte
"I've spent the past three years trying to get petroleum out of my life and live locally. Where I differ from many locavore cruncholas is in my determination to do these things without giving up digital-age comforts..." More here. And here. From this funny smart guy's blog: " For most of human history, this poop-to-pasture method of fertilizing worked just great for everyone. I wonder who the first farmer was who said, “Hey, lay some of those carcinogenic chemicals on me. That sounds like a good plan”? My guess it had something to do with a skilled carcinogenic chemical salesman offering free samples."
Healthier, humane meat from the lab
A pioneering group of scientists are working to grow real animal protein in the laboratory, which they not only claim is better for animal welfare, but actually healthier, both for people and the planet. It may sound like science fiction, but this technology to create in-vitro meat could be changing global diets within ten years.
Aug 3, 2009
Please shop with compassion: dollars are votes; vote vs. cruelty
Slaughter of factory farm animals is not humane. If you won't go veg, please buy only from sources that treat and slaughter humanely.
Aug 1, 2009
Dogs at least as smart as 2-year-old children
Dogs can count. They can also understand more than 150 words and intentionally deceive other dogs and people to get treats, according to psychologist Stanley Coren, PhD, of the University of British Columbia. He spoke Saturday on “How Dogs Think” at the American Psychological Association’s annual convention.
Coren has reviewed numerous studies to conclude that dogs have the ability to solve complex problems and are more like humans and other higher primates than previously assumed. He says dogs’ mental abilities are close to a human child age 2.5 years.
The intelligence of various types of dogs does differ and the dog’s breed determines some of these differences, Coren says. “There are three types of dog intelligence: instinctive (what the dog is bred to do), adaptive (how well the dog learns from his environment to solve problems) and working and obedience (the equivalent of ‘school learning’).”
Data from 208 dog obedience judges from the United States and Canada showed the differences in working and obedience intelligence of dog breeds, according to Coren. “Border collies are number one; poodles are second, followed by German shepherds. Fourth on the list is golden retrievers; fifth, dobermans; sixth, Shetland sheepdogs; and finally, Labrador retrievers,” said Coren.
As for language, the average dog can learn 165 words, including signals, and the “super dogs” can learn 250 words. “The upper limit of dogs’ ability to learn language is partly based on a study of a border collie named Rico who showed knowledge of 200 spoken words and demonstrated ’fast-track learning,’ which scientists believed to be found only in humans and language learning apes,” Coren said.
Dogs can also count up to four or five, said Coren. And they have a basic understanding of arithmetic and will notice errors in simple computations, such as 1+1=1 or 1+1=3.
Four studies he examined looked how dogs solve spatial problems by modeling human or other dogs’ behavior using a barrier type problem. Through observation, Coren said, dogs can learn the location of valued items (treats), better routes in the environment (the fastest way to a favorite chair), how to operate mechanisms (such as latches and simple machines) and the meaning of words and symbolic concepts (by listening to people speak and watching their actions).
Coren has reviewed numerous studies to conclude that dogs have the ability to solve complex problems and are more like humans and other higher primates than previously assumed. He says dogs’ mental abilities are close to a human child age 2.5 years.
The intelligence of various types of dogs does differ and the dog’s breed determines some of these differences, Coren says. “There are three types of dog intelligence: instinctive (what the dog is bred to do), adaptive (how well the dog learns from his environment to solve problems) and working and obedience (the equivalent of ‘school learning’).”
Data from 208 dog obedience judges from the United States and Canada showed the differences in working and obedience intelligence of dog breeds, according to Coren. “Border collies are number one; poodles are second, followed by German shepherds. Fourth on the list is golden retrievers; fifth, dobermans; sixth, Shetland sheepdogs; and finally, Labrador retrievers,” said Coren.
As for language, the average dog can learn 165 words, including signals, and the “super dogs” can learn 250 words. “The upper limit of dogs’ ability to learn language is partly based on a study of a border collie named Rico who showed knowledge of 200 spoken words and demonstrated ’fast-track learning,’ which scientists believed to be found only in humans and language learning apes,” Coren said.
Dogs can also count up to four or five, said Coren. And they have a basic understanding of arithmetic and will notice errors in simple computations, such as 1+1=1 or 1+1=3.
Four studies he examined looked how dogs solve spatial problems by modeling human or other dogs’ behavior using a barrier type problem. Through observation, Coren said, dogs can learn the location of valued items (treats), better routes in the environment (the fastest way to a favorite chair), how to operate mechanisms (such as latches and simple machines) and the meaning of words and symbolic concepts (by listening to people speak and watching their actions).
Jul 29, 2009
Saving civilization – free book
Thumbs up: “Entering a New World,” in Lester R. Brown, Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2008), available for free download at http://www.earthpolicy.org/Books/PB3/index.htm. Get it, read it, do something good each day.
Manon Cleary's amazing pastels on view
An art show not to be missed if you're in DC. Here's what artist Anne Marchand says about Manon Cleary's amazing exhibition. On view Tues.-Sat. through Aug. 22 at Addison/Ripley in Georgetown at 1670 Wisconsin Ave. NW.
Jul 28, 2009
Meat of the problem
Meat production is harder on the planet than is driving gas-guzzlers. Excellent report on the effect of diet on the climate, land, civilizationin the Washington Post. Read it here.
If your pet could talk
Check out "If Your Pet Could Talk" at Pets.com. Dr. Suzanne Hetts, who has commented in some of Robin's Dog Tips, helped PETsMART create this interactive guide consisting of a quiz, videos, and interactive exercises to help pet parents interpret behavior and better understand what our furkids.
Jul 27, 2009
"Skin Trade" film event; Circus cruelty caught on tape
The Open the Cages Alliance will screen “Skin Trade," a new documentary about the fur industry on Saturday, August 8, from 1 to 9 pm, at St. Stephens Church in Washington, D.C. 1525 Newton Street, NW. Mobius Strip and Ryan Harvey will perform at the benefit; admission's on a sliding scale starting at $10 Details here.
The doc exposes the scope of the global fur trade and cruelties occurring at fur farms, seal hunts and Asian animal markets. Fur industry advocates get their say – and so do people of conscience including clothing designers, models, and rock stars who know that skinning animals is not a cool concept.
On a related note, more proof of the cruel treatment of elephants in circuses: new vid from Ringling Bros.
Visit RinglingBeatsAnimals.com
The doc exposes the scope of the global fur trade and cruelties occurring at fur farms, seal hunts and Asian animal markets. Fur industry advocates get their say – and so do people of conscience including clothing designers, models, and rock stars who know that skinning animals is not a cool concept.
On a related note, more proof of the cruel treatment of elephants in circuses: new vid from Ringling Bros.
Visit RinglingBeatsAnimals.com
Jul 26, 2009
Tullio sculptures: Sensual meets spiritual
Check out Robin's review of the amazing new exhibition of Renaissance sculpture on view at the National Gallery of Art. It's in the Monday editions of the Examiner newspapers; click here. Also on the online editions.
Jul 25, 2009
Green Beer and Food: Eco lessons from the brewpub
Robin's Eco Simple column in this Sunday's Examiner newspapers looks at an Ann Arbor brewpub that has greened its operation from beer-making to food sourcing. Results include local, healthy and tastier food and award-winning beer. In the Washington DC and San Francisco/Oakland regional print editions of the Examiner and in the paper's online and e-dition.
Jul 22, 2009
Red meat and poultry boost body burden
People who eat meat and poultry have significantly higher levels of common flame retardants compared to vegetarians. The findings (from a 2009 studyreported in the latest Environmental Health Perspectives) indicate that food may be a more important source of the contaminants, known as PBDEs, than previously thought. PBDEs are omnipresent in the environment This is the first large-scale study to examine the contribution of red meat and poultry to dietary PBDE body burden in the US.
Jul 20, 2009
Beer/peer pressure
B/peer pressure. When college students think other undergrads drink a lot of alcohol, they drink more themselves. New research suggests that peers exaggerated about how much they drink, students drink less. Reviewers evaluated 22 studies that involved 7,275 students. The review appears in the current issue of The Cochrane Library
Jul 17, 2009
Whale of a story
Fantastic piece of feature-writing in the New York Times Magazine this week from great journalist Charles Siebert. Treat yourself and be sure to read it. He also has a new book out called The Wauchula Woods Accord: Toward a New Understanding of Animals.
Jul 16, 2009
Curry and vitamin D may help ward off Alzheimer's
New research involving humans suggests a form of vitamin D, together with a chemical found in turmeric spice called curcumin, may help stimulate the immune system to clear the brain of amyloid beta, which forms the plaques considered the hallmark of Alzheimer's disease.
New Humane Food database and locator
The World Society for Protection of Animals has set up the first searchable humane food database, making it easier to find animal-friendly food products at local grocery stores across the U.S. Visit and bookmark FindHumaneFood.org
Think about it: the food you buy has a profound impact on the lives of animals. More and more people are trying to choose humanely when they visit restaurants or shop in stores. To help relieve the confusion, WSPA has ranked humane food labels, such as "cage free," "free range," "grass fed" and "organic."
Storefront Churches
Robin reviews the new Storefront Churches exhibition at the National Building Museum. In the July 16 print and online editions of the Washington Examiner.
Jul 14, 2009
Cool beans: ADA endorses veg diet
Vegetarians knew it, vegans knew it, nutritionists are now speaking up in praise of plant-based diets. A carnivore discusses the endorsement and her thoughts on changing eating habits
Cats domesticated themselves
"They had the wits to notice that the first human settlements were full of uncleared garbage strewn about by their slovenly inhabitants and so were overrun with rats, mice and sparrows. The full story here. And in other cat research today: "Researchers found that purrs of hungry cats included a higher-pitched sound, somewhat like a cry or meow. They played recordings of these purrs from 10 cats to 50 human volunteers. Even people who'd never owned a cat found them to be more urgent and less pleasant than contented purrs from the same animals." The full scoop here.
Jul 11, 2009
New mobile tool to find alt fuel stations
If your vehicle uses any kind of alternative fuel, you can now find stations nationwide with a new tool that works with mobile phones, PDAs and computers. Robin's Sunday Eco Simple column in the Examiner newspapers has the scoop. NOTE: the paper chopped off the end of the mobile device URL. It is: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/stations/m
Jul 10, 2009
Jul 8, 2009
Amazon watch
As many as 4,550 of the more than 50,000 plant species in the Amazon will likely disappear because of land-use changes and habitat loss within the next 40 years, according to a new Wake Forest University study appearing in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Altitude adjusting for high-elevation exercise
How to adjust to higher elevations and avoid altitude sickness...Robin's new piece from Albuquerque's Sandia Mountains in various editions of the Examiner - in print and online. 
Jul 6, 2009
Cussing reduces pain
Why do people swear? “Swearing has been around for centuries and is an almost universal human linguistic phenomenon” says Dr Richard Stephens, proposing that swearing can increase pain tolerance. His UK-based Keele University team asked volunteers to submerge hands in ice water for as long as possible while repeating a swear word of their choice. Then they repeated the experiment using a more commonplace, non-swear word. The volunteers were able to keep hands submerged in the ice water significantly longer when saying the swear word. Researchers believes a pain-lessening effect occurs because swearing triggers our natural ‘fight-or-flight’ response. The accelerated heart rates of the volunteers repeating the swear word may indicate an increase in aggression, in a classic fight-or-flight response of "downplaying feebleness in favor of a more pain-tolerant machismo." Illustration courtesy of the talented Surfdoggie
Jul 4, 2009
Painterly Visions
Some of our art commentary is being picked up on Twitter feeds and on other respected online publications such as Painterly Visions, which is edited by Anne Marchand. Anne is one of the brightest shining lights on the Washington, DC artscape – check out her work here and her Cityscapes here. And she was instrumental in the window murals project that kept the spiritual embers glowing at Eastern Market (a Capitol Hill D.C. icon) between its destruction by fire in 2007 and its reopening last week.
Jul 2, 2009
Robin's in Bark mag
Robin has a Florida panhandle travel story in the July/Aug. issue of Bark. It's listed in the online edition, but for the content, get a print issue at a newsstand near you.
Jul 1, 2009
Artful Animals - new family exhibit
Just opened at the African Art Museum on the mall (10th and Independence Ave SW) in D.C. Aimed at children but also interesting for adults, the exhibition includes 130 objects that give you a cross-section of art from various African cultures and a variety of perceptions of nonhuman animals’ roles, from symbols of power to embodiments of deities to earthly neighbors welcomed, feared or exploited. Includes free activities for kids and a clever lesson involving a mirror. Runs through February 21, 2010. Shown here: a helmet mask of wood from the Loma peoples of Liberia and Guinea, and an oil painting from appx 1950 by Republic of Congo article Kaballa depicting mother crocodiles protecting their eggs. For racier fare, the Mami Watts water spirit goddess exhibit is worth a visit...the last room's full of surprising, stunning finds.
This plant waters itself
University of Haifa-Oranim researchers have identified the "self-irrigating" mechanism of the desert rhubarb, which enables it to harvest 16 times the water expected for a plant in this region. It's the first example of a self-irrigating plant worldwide.
Check dog food labels: fluoride alert
A new Environmental Working Group report reminds us to look at the ingredient lists for packaged foods. Read it here.
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