Lazy Sunday Video: Endangered species vs. humans

Balancing the needs of endangered species that can damage human property and the people that own the property is quite the trick — one that hasn’t exactly been figured out yet. Ranchers call the conservationists arrogant hippies, conservationists call the ranchers heartless and selfish.

And as with so many of the battles in our species, it all comes down to property — who has right to the land? I think it’s a particularly interesting facet of the right-to-property debate because it really is so easy to understand where each side is coming from, especially as an outsider, while such squabbles (or wars) within our own species get complicated very quickly.

This short video by Jeffrey Mittelstadt, a UNC master’s student in documentary journalism, does a great job articulating the argument between the two “sides” by interviewing a rancher and a government worker working to protect the Florida Panther. You can read an interview with him as well.

Hat tip to Jason Goldman

Richard Dawkins and Neil deGrasse Tyson talk for A WHOLE HOUR.

Sometime tonight or in the next few days, take the time to listen to this conversation on the beauty of science between Richard Dawkins, the famous evolutionary biologist and author, and Neil deGrasse Tyson, the astrophysicist and director of the planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History.  You won’t regret it.  (I listened while doing the most thorough clean of my apartment since I moved in.  So productive!)

It’s a very interesting conversation – – the beauty of science, much speculation on the origins of life and intelligent life elsewhere (as you might expect from a clash of evolutionary biology and astrophysics), and, generally, simultaneous wonder at how much we know and how little we know.

But more than anything, here is a conversation between two of the greatest minds and communicators n science out there now.  They’re a little competitive, sure, but even though they are from different disciplines, their excitement just oozes from them.  The bromance is evident and it’s worth listening for that alone.

So take the hour.  Play it in the background when you’re doing housework later, or paint your nails, or knit, or whatever you crazies do.  It’s AWESOME!!!!

via Geekosystem

You know how I feel about squids…

Here’s a video from the people at MBARI (Monterey Bay) showing footage of deep sea squid behavior.  Grotesque, beautiful, the fascination with squids is not easily explainable.  But if you don’t fall in love after this…

Cute Warning:  Piglet Squid featured in video!

[via Zooillogix]

[If you like this, you might be interested in this post on octopus consciousness and intelligence]