Apr 7 2021 - Skeptical about National Awareness?

 

It seems like a river of national awareness days - sometimes I look for fun, and then other times I am dismayed by the topics celebrated.  I wonder if there should be a National Skeptics Day.  Of course there is - it is October 13th - and it is International Skeptics Day.   Wikipedia lists many organizations as skeptical organizations. But then scientific skepticism is a positive thing - it questions the veracity of claims lacking empirical evidence.  Most common is the examination of claims and theories that appear to be beyond mainstream science.     "What skeptical thinking boils down to is the means to construct, and to understand, a reasoned argument and, especially important, to recognize a fallacious or fraudulent argument. The question is not whether we like the conclusion that emerges out of a train of reasoning, but whether the conclusion follows from the premises or starting point and whether that premise is true." — Carl Sagan  Our International Skeptics Day seems to be something else.  "Research thus far has not revealed an inaugural year of recognizing International Skeptics Day, nor does skepticism itself follow a clear timeline that would be punctuated by specific events. But as a paradigm within which to operate, skepticism shows no loss of momentum, with periodicals like “The Skeptic” and “The Skeptical Inquirer” still in print, along with podcasts, TV documentaries, and and meet-up groups all over the world. The Doubting Thomas who is reading these words should have no trouble finding like-minded people, whatever his or her current location.meet-up groups all over the world.    The Skeptics jokes are very strange... A man walks into a bar and says to the bartender: “I bet you fifty dollars that I can bite my right eye.” The bartender says: “Yeah, right! I’ve never seen anyone do that!” So the man takes out his glass eye and bites it. The angry bartender pays the man his fifty dollars and the man walks away. He comes back half an hour later and says: “I bet you fifty dollars I can bite my left eye.” Now the bartender becomes really skeptical. She says: “I just saw you walk in here, you can’t be blind!” So, to the bartenders dismay, he takes out his fake teeth and bites his left eye. I take photos of Cannas every chance I get.  These were at Sunshine Express last week. Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

2016 - Monkey Year Ahead

For those interested in following horoscopes and signs, this year will be the Year of the Monkey, starting Feb 8 2016, the Chinese New Year.   Why does the date of the Chinese New Year change every year?  The Chinese use the Lunar calendar for their festivals. The Lunar calendar is based on the time the moon takes to go around the Earth. (The Western calendar is based on the time it takes for the Earth to go around the Sun.) The lunar cycle is about 29.5 days. In order to "catch up" with the solar calendar the Chinese insert an extra month once every few years.  The first day of each Chinese year will always fall sometime between January 21 and February 21, inclusive, and takes place at sunset on the day of the second (sometimes rarely on the third) New Moon following the winter solstice (21 or 22 December). How long do the New Year celebrations last for? Chinese New Year celebrations last for two weeks and end with Teng Chieh, the lantern festival, on the full moon about 15 days later. The Chinese Calendar Each year in the Chinese calendar is represented by one of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, the Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. Some people believe that people born in a particular year such as the year of the Rat will have some of the characteristics of that animal. It is said that "The animal hides in your heart." At the other end of the spectrum, the 2016 trends in the news seem to veer into the silly. CTV News says a culinary trendologist told The Canadian Press that her ingredient to watch in 2016 is toast. Today we have an abstract of Canna leaves, and a sunflower interpretation.

Lifehacker Thursday

The Cannas have finished blooming for the year, and the tubers are tucked away till next spring.  The leaves are a significant size.  That  means light in combination with the lines on the leaves make for wonderful abstracts. And I found this with the news today: There's a Top 10 website called Lifehacker.  In April, it celebrated its 10th anniversary and posted its most popular top ten lists of everything.  Take a look HERE.  With the website's success, Thursdays are known as "Lifehack Thursday".

Cannas - Beautiful Lines

Canna leaves are elegant and colourful, with flowing lines as they unfold.  They have been popular with artists for a long time.  Georgia O'Keeffe 's image of Canna Leaves is on display in the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe.  

With hybridization, the leaves have taken on rainbow hues.  Together with the orchid-like flowers, it remains a popular pot plant and garden display plant.