How much longer will humans be free?
Human Zoo
For hundreds of years, if not more, we have taken the attitude that we are above nature. Some people still deny that we are related to other animals, as was shown by the reaction to Desmond Morris's books The Naked Ape (1967) and The Human Zoo (1969), and to London Zoo's recent "Human Zoo" exhibit.
Divorced from our roots, some of us feel that nature is there for us to use and dominate, and that we are immune to natural law. Our new jungle is the city, our new hunt is for profit. It didn't matter what we did to the natural world. We'd come up with a technical fix for any problems.
But every natural population is subject to controls; either from above, in the form of predators, or from below, in the form of limitations on the amount of food, or from both. Somehow mankind has managed to escape these controls - our population has skyrocketed in the last couple of thousand years. Part of this has been fuelled by ever-greater efficiency in food production. And yet, we are not able to feed everybody. Millions die of starvation each year, and others are killed by the people they compete with for food or other resources. Part of this has been brought about by improvements brought about by the industrial revolution. For instance, we have been able to transport food and other resources long distances, and to produce fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides, germicides, vaccines and other compounds to protect us or our food sources. We've also learnt about hygiene, and developed refrigeration and other new ways to preserve and distribute food.
What many people forget is that all these developments involved science - the study of nature and the physical world -- and that science is still relatively young. Unlike religions, which have a different purpose, science can and often does learn from its mistakes. Beliefs which seem carved in stone can be completely overturned by new evidence and better theories. Science still has a great deal to learn. The downside of this is that there is uncertainty, which many people have noticed when it comes to advise about what it is healthy to eat and drink, for example. This makes it hard to make major decisions based on scientific theory, and yet, where would we be if people had declined to take a gamble on new science in the past?
One area of scientific prediction where many people are clinging to that uncertainty as a reason not to disturb their comfortable lifestyles is global warming. And yet, there have been so many peer-reviewed studies, that it is hard to imagine that the theory is totally wrong. But if people can close their eyes and live in earthquake- or hurricane-prone areas where they have seen the evidence of previous quakes and storms, it is perhaps not surprising that they ignore the less obvious (unless they live next to a glacier) pattern of global warming.
Sooner or later, one or more of the resources upon which our society is built will run out, and we will no longer be able to provide ourselves with all the necessities of modern life. Perhaps with ingenuity we will be able to find alternative ways. The likelihood of this happening will increase, the more of our children we give access to the education that suits them - there is no telling where the next Albert Einstein or Leonardo da Vinci will be born. It will also increase, the more biodiversity we preserve, so that we can find new foods and medicines when we need them. But eventually our numbers will be limited by supply.
While there is no larger animal preying on us, there are bacteria and viruses. We have created the conditions, through crowding and mass rapid travel, for them to spread like wildfire and to kill large numbers of us. There have already been several mass plagues. Now, the World Health Organization is warning that an avian flu pandemic is imminent. We do at least have the advantage of being forewarned.
Another mechanism for keeping our numbers down is natural disasters. As our numbers have grown, then larger numbers of us have died in famines due to drought or plagues of locusts, or from earthquakes, or tsunamis, or big freezes, storms, and hurricanes. In some cases, our ability to predict and track the weather has enabled a great many lives to be spared, in other cases, it hasn't.
While our numbers remained relatively small, what we did not matter too much to nature. But we only have to look around us to notice what changes we have made, with plants and animals replaced by concrete and us, for example. Global warming and pollution are major problems.
Animals in zoos are often pathetic shadows of their wild counterparts, if any are left. They often show signs of stress by pacing or self-mutilating. We are building our own zoo all around us, and soon there will be little of the wild left. Already many of us are showing signs of stress and suffering, self-harm and suicide, as we live unnatural lives in cramped cities. We fight each other for scarce resources. Welcome to the human zoo.
There is an alternative. We can break out of the human zoo by moving closer to our natural side. This doesn't mean going back to caveman or hunter-gatherer lifestyles. It simply means learning more about nature, becoming more in tune with it, so we can better judge what effect our actions are having. Those who love birds are enabling us to predict where avian flu might spread, because they have learnt about the migrations that birds undergo. Those who love and study plants have brought us new foods and medicines. Those who were fascinated by the weather or by chemistry or by archaeology have combined to give us a better understanding of what the natural climactic trends are, and how we are influencing them. Those who have divorced themselves from nature and from science don't have a clue what's going to hit them.
Latest Exhibit: The Human Zoo
The London Zoo has put on display a new species of mammal on display for the first time: Homo sapiens, more commonly known as mankind, or humans. Some people were outraged, but not everyone.
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Other stories
Highlights of Federal Response to Katrina, Refugees Still Showing Up at Superdome, Gulf Coast Declared Health Emergency, Governor: Everyone Must Leave New Orleans, Runaway Oil Rig Was Carried 66 Miles, Refinery Conditions Still Being Studied, Katrina Prompts Global Support for Victims, Homes Destroyed; No Grand Isle Fatalities, Hurricane Katrina cuts phone service to millions, Hurricane Victims in Shelters Growing, Meteorologists: It Could Have Been Worse, Officials Helpless Against Looters, Katrina Refugees Will Go to Astrodome, Governor: Everyone Must Leave New Orleans, Katrina Triggers Memories in Tsunami Zone, New Orleans in chaos, refugees to get Texas shelter, Americans Contribute Millions for Relief, Texas to send gasoline to Fla. to ease supply crunch, Charities say Katrina effort is biggest ever in US, Woman Gives Birth While Fleeing Katrina, New Orleans Hospitals Trying to Make Do, Officials rescue Katrina's survivors amid 'chaos', Homeland Security Workers Eyed for Relief, Tenet says six hospitals hurt badly by Katrina, Warships, hospital ship join in storm relief, New Orleans Paper Publishes Online Only, Pentagon Coordinating Katrina Response, Katrina Delays New Orleans Farm Shipments, Katrina Damage May Bring $25B in Claims, Pope Prays for Hurricane Katrina Victims, Officials rescue living, count dead after Katrina, Massive Storm Damage Found in Alabama, Current Katrina Quotations, A Helicopter View of Katrina's Devastation, Hospital Conditions in New Orleans Worsen, Katrina May Be Retired From Storm Names, Deadliest U.S. Hurricanes Since 1900, Residents Grapple With Aftermath of Storm, Utilities Rush to Restore Power to South, Katrina Cripples Gulf Gambling Industry, Relief, Despair for Some As Storm Moves On, Navy Sending Ships to Gulf Coast
The headlines in the previous message speak for themselves.
This was a huge disaster. A disaster for those who died. A disaster for those who lost their loved ones. A disaster for those who lost their homes and belongings. A disaster for those who lost their businesses. A disaster for those who lost their jobs. A disaster for the pets. A disaster for the wildlife. A disaster for the environment. A disaster for those facing lawlessness, unsanitary conditions, hunger and thirst as they wait for rescue. Will it be a disaster for those who contributed to the severity of the aftermath? For those who voted to cut funding for maintenance of flood protections, or who failed to show leadership? Only time will tell.
US Govt waives clean air rules for gasoline, diesel
The U.S. government has relaxed some gasoline and diesel environmental standards until September 15 in all 50 states because of the disruption due to hurricane Katrina.
Air Regulators Want to Curb Wine Pollution
The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District says that the area's wine industry is polluting the air, and plans to introduce air quality standards for wineries. Fermentation releases ethanol, methanol and other organic compounds into the atmosphere. These contribute to the ozone which is a component of smog.
Judge Blocks Plan to Poison Sierra Stream
A judge issued a preliminary injunction against the California Department of Fish and Game's plan to poison a Sierra waterway with rotenone. The aim was to kill the competitors of the rare Paiute cutthroat trout.
Dry, hot weather ignites big Alaska wildfire season
About 4 million acres of forest have burnt in Alaska this summer as a result of hot summers, insect-weakened trees and lightning. This follows on from last year's record season.
Volcano Activity Puts El Salvador on Alert
El Salvador is on alert as the Ilamatepec volcano, about 40 miles west of the capital San Salvador, showed a significant increase in activity.
6.2-Magnitude Quake Jolts Northern Japan
A magnitude 6.2 quake jolted northern Japan early Wednesday morning. There was no damage, injury or tsunami.
Scientists Decipher the Chimpanzee's DNA
Scientists have mapped the DNA of our closest living relative, the chimpanzee. There should be a lot to be learnt from comparing it to that of humans.
Emergency plan unveiled to save Africa's apes
Conservationists announced a 5-year $30 million plan to save the great apes of Africa; the western lowland gorilla and the central African chimpanzee. They are threatened by poaching for bushmeat, logging, and the Ebola virus.
First land animals may have shuffled not walked
Scientists studying 360-million-years-old fossils of the Ichthyostega, a four-legged fish, believe it may have shuffled like modern-day caterpillars.
Study: Oregon Wild Fish Face Extinction
The first Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife status report on wild fish in ten years found that 11 out of 33 salmon and steelhead species and 17 out of 27 trout species are at risk of irreversible decline. Several other species listed under the Endangered Species Act are potentially at risk. Several species have already become extinction the past century, either cut off by dams, loss of habitat, escape of hatchery fish or other problems..
Man Rescues Goose; Bird Flies Beside ATV
The wounded Canadian goose that a man rescued now flies beside his all-terrain vehicle, to the confusion of his hunting dog.
Scientists: Bison in Illinois Earlier
A recent bison bones discovery shows that bison existed in Illinois around 265 B.C., 1,700 years earlier than previously believed. A group of eight bison were found beside the Illinois River.
Zimbabwe bans hunting to protect elephants-paper
Safari hunting has been banned in part of Zimbabwe to protect a "presidential" elephant herd. Zimbabwe has tens of thousands of elephants.
S.F. Man Convicted of Severing Dog's Ear
A San Francisco man has been convicted of animal cruelty after a particularly brutal case of cutting off his pet pit bull's ears to try and make the dog look tougher.
Woman Takes Dog on Trip, Leaves Tot Alone
A woman left her 15-month-old grandson alone at home when she drove her husband to work, but took her pet poodle.
Encephalitis Death Toll Hits 267 in India
14 more have died of Japanese encephalitis in India, bringing the total to 267.
Feds Unable to Pin Down Source of Mad Cow
The U.S. government has failed to determine how he nation's first domestic case of mad cow disease happened. They can only assume that the cow was infected by contaminated feed that it ate before the United States banned feeding cow remains to cows in 1997. There are still loopholes in the ban as cattle can still be fed poultry litter, cattle blood and restaurant leftovers
Vaccines Not Available for Asian Disease
There is no cure or effective treatment for the Japanese encephalitis that has killed over 400 people in India and Nepal recently. Vaccines can prevent it, but are not available to most. About 1,100 are in hospital. Most survivors will have some form of disability. It is carried by mosquitoes.
Chiron: British vaccine plant passes test
The flu vaccine plant in the UK belonging to Chiron Corp. which was closed last year because of contamination, leading to a shortage of flu vaccines in the USA, has passed an inspection after an upgrade.
FDA Clears a Third Flu-Vaccine Supplier
The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new flu shot, Fluarix. The government hasn't yet worked out how much vaccine it will have this year.
S.Korea says finds carcinogens in Chinese fish
South Korea has found the carcinogens malachite green and leucomalachite in carp imported from China. It had already found malachite green in eel and eel-related products from China and Vietnam. China has blamed the problem on there being too many small family fish farms to monitor. South Korea has also occasionally found lead in Chinese crabs from pellets used to make the shipment heavier.
Olive oil may have pain-relieving powers
Freshly pressed extra-virgin olive oil includes a compound, oleocanthal, which acts in a similar way to ibuprofen, with 50 grams a day of olive oil being abut as effective as 10% of an adult ibuprofen dose. The more the oil stings in the throat, the more oleocanthal it contains - not enough to cure a headache, but it may have some long-term health benefits.
Finland says mild strain of bird flu in dead gulls
Finland says that the strain of bird flu found in 3 dead gulls is not the deadly H5N1 strain. The birds died of starvation. 200 birds had died, and about 20 had been tested.
U.N. Agency: Bird Flu Likely to Spread, UN rekindles bird flu migration fears in Europe
The Food and Agriculture Organization says that the bird flu virus will probably spread to Africa, Europe (eastern this year, western next year), the Middle East and south Asia. It urged nations to be prepared. Areas where birds from affected areas migrate to or over include the Caspian and Black Seas, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Ukraine and some Mediterranean countries.
50 countries now have plans to prevent the H5N1 strain spreading. Poland wants the EU to help Russia.
Wounded Dumbo Gets a Leg Up
An elephant in Thailand which lost a foot due to a landmine has had a prosthesis fitted.
Index of topics in this series.
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Here's the part of FEMA's National Situation Update for Wednesday, August 31, 2005 relating to hurricane Katrina:
New Orleans is 80 pct flooded, with water still rushing into the city after Hurricane Katrina due to a 200 foot breach in a dike protecting the city from Lake Pontchartrain, city officials said.
New Orleans, most of which is below sea level, is surrounded on three sides by bodies of water, with Lake Pontchartrain in the north, Lake Borgne in the east and the Mississippi River in the south.
Most of the flooding was being caused by a breach in the levee holding back Lake Pontchartrain, officials said, and US military engineers were searching for ways to plug the hole, including dropping shipping containers filled with sand from airplanes.
'The breach in the 17th Street canal is about 200 feet wide,' New Orleans Police Lieutenant Julie Wilson told reporters. 'The water is going to keep coming in until it reaches the level of the lake. I don't know what they are going to do.'
'The devastation is greater than our worst fears,' said Louisiana state Governor Kathleen Blanco. 'It is just totally overwhelming. It is a tragedy of great proportions.'
'There's no electricity and won't be any for quite a while,' the governor told reporters in Baton Rouge, the Louisiana capital. 'There's no water. And there's no food to be had.
'The communications network is completely gone,' Blanco said. 'We think there may be only one major way into the city right now.'
Governor Blanco said rescuers have saved hundreds of people, but 'many lives' have been lost. 'We know that many lives have been lost,' she said, but there was no way for authorities to put together any kind of reliable death or casualty toll.
Telephone communications with New Orleans were cut off and around 700,000 people were without power.
The Superdome, which is holding at least 10,000 evacuees, was surrounded by water on Tuesday. Evacuees sat tight in the massive sports arena, which itself bore Katrina's scars after having much of its outer dome ripped off on Monday. (Media Sources)
FEMA-1603-DR-FL was amended on August 30, 2005 to add one county for Public Assistance and two counties for Public Assistance Categories C- G. (FEMA HQ)
Here's the EPA's Response Activity for Wednesday, August 31, 2005 relating to hurricane Katrina:
EPA emergency response personnel continue to help assess damage and prepare for cleanup in Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana. EPA is responsible for cleaning up releases of oil and other hazardous materials in the area. Currently our efforts continue to be focused on aiding the priority for 'search and rescue' efforts in affected areas.
We are coordinating with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the US Coast Guard, and other federal and state agencies. Our emergency operations centers are in operation and our staff is working in national and regional interagency response coordination centers. Response efforts are now underway 24 hours a day.
In Mississippi and Alabama:
EPA has staged 7 assessment teams in Alabama to assess affected areas in both Alabama and Mississippi and 3 assessment teams in Mississippi. We are coordinating closely with the Coast Guard to conduct assessments of potential spills and releases. A Water Division Assistance Team has been deployed to Mississippi to assess damage to local drinking water systems and help restore the systems to deliver safe drinking water in the affected areas.
We are planning to deploy Airborne Spectral Photometric Environmental Collection Technology (ASPECT) airplane over Mississippi to conduct over-flight assessments of spills and chemical releases.
In Louisiana:
EPA has mobilized 4 response teams to Louisiana and has provided boats to the affected areas to assist with search and rescue.
EPA is preparing to deploy personnel to assist the Louisiana Department of Health and Human Services to assist drinking water supply systems as they restore healthy water supplies to communities. EPA is evaluating the need for chlorine to restore systems in Louisiana. 'Boil Water' notices are likely to remain in effect even after supplies are restored, as many systems may face long-term repairs to their distribution systems. EPA is currently working on waivers for the treatment and discharge of flood waters.
Our Baton Rouge team is coordinating with local federal/state response planning entities, the State of Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to prepare plans for future removal of debris and disposal.
Yesterday, EPA deployed our ASPECT airplane over Baton Rouge and New Orleans to conduct over-flight assessments of spills as well as possible airborne chemical releases. The aircraft was scheduled to conduct assessments of 4 areas beginning near Baton Rouge and continuing south and east past the New Orleans area. Details of the assessment are pending.
EPA staff is standing by around the country to travel where needed to aid the overall federal effort. We are evaluating our laboratory capacity for analyzing floodwaters and are considering how to remove polluted floodwaters.
We will release information from environmental assessments as it becomes available.
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Here's the EPA's Nationwide fuel waiver issued Wednesday, August 31, 2005 relating to hurricane Katrina:
Emergency fuel waivers issued nationwide Aug 31 - In order to increase the supply of gasoline and minimize potential gasoline supply disruptions caused by Hurricane Katrina, EPA is waiving the requirement to sell "summer gasoline" which contains a lower volatility limit. This action has the effect of allowing early use of wintertime gasoline. EPA is also allowing the use of diesel fuel which exceeds 500 ppm sulfur content. Both waivers are effective immediately and will continue through September 15th of this year and are applicable throughout all 50 states, U.S. territories and the District of Columbia.
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Thank you very much. Today, I am exercising my authority under the Clean Air Act to temporarily waive specific standards for gasoline and diesel fuels to ensure that the Hurricane Katrina natural disaster does not result in serious fuel supply interruptions around the country.
As we are all well aware, we are seeing increasingly serious impacts from the hurricane in a number of fuel markets around the United States. Yesterday afternoon I exercised this authority with respect to four states: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. It has become clear that the consequences of the hurricane have become more widespread. So today, I’m sending letters to the governors of the remaining 46 states and territories providing temporary relief from volatility and sulfur standards. This action will result in a needed increase in fuel supply.
These waivers are necessary to ensure that fuel is available throughout the country to address public health issues and emergency vehicle supply needs. Under the Clean Air Act emergency authority, I am making the waivers effective through September 15, 2005. These waivers only apply to volatility standards - the rate at which fuel evaporates - and the amount of sulfur in fuel.
EPA is committed to working with our state and federal partners to address this extraordinary national disaster.
Thank you very much.
