Stepping Out: Laetoli Footprints

I want to share something really cool and interesting with you.  Some of you may already be aware of this, some not, but whether you have or haven't I think it is something so awesome that it warrants a brief blog about it.  

In 1976, a Yale University paleoanthropologist Andrew Hill was working with Mary Leakey's research group on the excavation of an early-hominid archaeological site in Laetoli, Tanzania, when he unexpectedly stumbled across one of the most spectacular prehistoric discoveries ever made: a line of hominid footprints left in mud 3.6 million years ago.  I know right!

Up until then, the earliest known human footprints were only tens of thousands of years old.  Remarkably, Hill's Laetoli footprint trail was nearly 30 metres long and preserved in volcanic ash that had turned into a cement-like solidity as good as a plaster cast.  It left us with an action replay of one of the first species of prehistoric hominids who walked upright on two legs.  

The ideal surface material was created by a coating of volcanic ash from the nearby Sadiman volcano that had settled on a sandy surface.  When rain then fell, the sooty volcanic sediment became soft , like wet cement, and all the birds and small animals that walked on it left small prints.  But they were joined by the track of two hominids, one large and the other smaller, trailed possibly by a third (child?), whose tracks share some of the larger individuals footprints.

A further eruption of dust from the volcano served to seal up the footprints for prosperity before the rains returned and washed them away.  The light rain then turned the ash into cement, which set solid.  There, they remained until they were exposed by millions of years of gentle erosion.

These prints have led to all sorts of deductions and speculations , however they differ significantly from chimpanzee footprints and are not very different from those of modern humans, with an aligned big toe, heel, and an arched foot.  Interestingly the smaller individual of the two ( because they left shallower prints) is lopsided, bearing more weight on one side - perhaps carrying a baby?  The sequence of depressions also reveal the pattern of walking, with an initial strike followed by a push off by the front toes, again like our own stride pattern.  

The length of the footprints along the two trails are 19cm and 20cm, umm, about a boys size 1 in UK sizing, indicating that the individuals were probably about 120cm (4 ft) and 152 (5 ft) tall.  For the first time we had what amounted to a photographic of pre-human intelligent activity that could be understood in terms of our present day movements, how awesome!

A summer stroll on the beach could create the same impressions on the sand, only a marvellous accident of nature could preserve them, and we do not really want that do we.  

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/07/1/l_071_03.html 


You can find more reading in:
N. Agnew and M. Demas, 'Preserving the Laetoli Footprints' , Scientific America (September 1998), pp. 45-55.  Mary D. Leaky and J. M. Harris (eds), Laetoli: A Pliocene Site in Northern Tanzania, Clarendon Press, Oxford  (1987).

Using Food to Bring A Community Together

The new Bathers Beach Sunset Food Markets, Fremantle, has a variety of international food.  Shopping at such a Market puts the 'customer' in a situation completely different from going to the supermarket. The customer is much more in touch with the land, learning to eat foods that normally they wouldn't, experiencing the foods from other cultures.  The variety of items one can find at these Market is astonishing.

However, when I viewed the pictures from our very awesome Mayor or Fremantle Dr Brad Pettitt and well respected Fremantle blogger Roel Loopers (see below), I instantly recognised that a large focus of the Market is the building of community, both in and out of the Market itself. One thing that draws people to a Market such as this is its friendly atmosphere. This is a place where you can build relationships with others, learn to know each other, begin to exchange stories and events of the week in addition to experiencing eating great international foods. Events such as the Bathers Beach Sunset Food Market, drew in large numbers of people and this gives a real sense of place to the community.

So why would a Market such as this create a sense of place.  Well, people's sense of community is that the members have a shared emotional connection.  This element seems to be the defining feature for people to experience a true sense of community.  There are many features that facilitate people having shared emotional connections.  One feature that connects to the physical features of a community is that people have an emotional connection with each other when they have a shared common interest, in this case, food.  Shared emotional connections are often experienced in public spaces, which can generate or restore a deep sense of community through providing people places to socialise and interact with each other.  People need places where they can socially interact with each other on a non-commercial level. 

Food plays an essential role in building community. One of the things that has changed so much in just my lifetime is our relationship to food and community. Many of us no longer have the experience of having meals together with our families or friends due to our busy lifestyles. It’s exciting to see that there’s a renaissance of people realising how important it is to use food as a way to connect with each other. People are doing this in all kinds of creative, inspired, and fun ways and these such Markets provide a valuable sense of community.  

The Market is held within the community so this means you will be seeing locals every time you go.  This regular meeting provides an opportunity to ‘catch up’ and 'slow down', to make a real connection, meaning, being part of the slow movement, providing the opportunity to sit and while the time away with other people.  Such Markets serve as an anchor attraction for a community, drawing foot traffic which, with the right location, spills into adjacent retail areas and can spark revitalisation.  

Markets are community anchors which provide a way to bring people together, anchoring a community around food and place.

One of the greatest things about this Market is its ability to generate happiness and good will at the heart of a community.  

Photo from our very own Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt - check out his blog at:

http://cofremantle.wordpress.com/2013/01/12/bathers-beach-sunset-market/

or see more photos from Roel Loopers blog at: http://freoview.wordpress.com/2013/01/13/fantastic-bathers-beach-sunset-market/

Expectations and our beliefs

Expectations or a preconceived idea of how we view the future whether it is moments from right now or years from now are always based on personal beliefs that we feel will provide us with a sense of power, control and wholeness within ourselves and the world. It can be expectations within a personal relationship or it can be with how things are unfolding across the planet, it’s relevant to any experience. Let’s take a look at how these beliefs are affecting us. What would happen if we were to let them go?

When we engage in expectation for anything, what tends to happen? Well firstly, it brings us out of the present moment. It clouds our viewpoint and doesn’t really allow us to appreciate what’s in front of us. It can create disappointment as well because we’re not at peace if things don’t go the way as planned. Even though we’re not at peace based on our beliefs, the situation is still always perfect as it allows us to move beyond the limitations of always feeling disappointed, fearful or just emotionally attached to whatever plays out.We’ve buried our feelings and beliefs and the way society is designed, there’s so much fear and judgement towards one another and our experiences that it’s become very difficult to even just talk to each other and to really work on and move beyond our challenges together. Ironically, love and communication seem like a taboo thing in society in many ways.

It’s so easy to get wrapped up in our needs and wants, our fears, our beliefs of how we need to identify within the world and control our lives. It’s easy because it’s being supported. We’re being bombarded, from all angles, with belief systems of how we should be, feel, think and act. It’s a great experience and challenge for all of us to observe and play with, but internal reflection is the only way to navigate your way out of it. Getting to know who you are through your life's experiences.

If we let it, society can take us away from who we really are, but the power of observation can assist us so well. This is where our true power lies. Our awareness. Our consciousness. By becoming aware of these thoughts and beginning to observe how we are limiting ourselves, we can move out of stuck states that we feel. We can move beyond any form of suffering and discomfort. It’s a bit comical to see how we’ve become so used to a specific way of life and how we’ve become comfortable being uncomfortable. But that is changing as well. It’s becoming a lot more difficult to run from, bury or ignore what we’re feeling inside. I think an important direction to take from here is to learn to really be comfortable with everything but not in the way that we’re covering up any uncomfortable feeling with distractions.  We have to truly accept everything for what it is. When we do this, it can lead to more opening within us where we get the opportunity to see, feel and connect with everything rather than judge it or fear and misunderstand it. There’s beauty in every situation and every thing on this Earth, but to really know, see and feel that, we need to know see and feel it within ourselves first. What we do internally is how we interact with the outside world. This is why individual change is so important. 

We’re all one and we’re all connected not just with each other but with everything. The animals, nature, the planet, even the rest of the universe. Everything affects everything. So what do we expect in our lives and how are we viewing it? There’s a power that we all hold far beyond our need to control, it’s a power that is limitless, but it’s just being covered up by our beliefs. Try observing and be excited to see what presents. You just might enjoy not being limited anymore!

Sexual motivation

Okey dokey my peeps.  It seems the majority have spoken with regards the number of views for particular posts.  Although my primary posts will be on science, especially Earth science and astronomy, I also am going to start blogging more on sociology, social psychology and human emotions including behaviour.  I am no way an expert in this, but this is part of my study along with the earth sciences as well.

I get more views when I talk about psychology, especially when it comes down to the intimate areas. I myself like this area, and many of you would have realised that if you have read my past posts on such subjects, so therefore, tonight I have decided to blog on a particularly important topic, to me anyway, that being sexual motivation, because it is indeed a science in itself.

Like hunger, sex is a universal drive based on biology, but its expression varies considerably from culture to culture and from person to person.  In fact, sexual motivation is even more variable than hunger.  Most people eat three meals a day if they are lucky, whereas sexual appetites defy generalisations.  Sexual behaviour is driven as much by fantasies as by hormones (this is why I do so much love having a vivid imagination): indeed, the primary sexual organ in humans is arguably not the genitals but the brain.

Apparently, the average sexually active person in Australia reports having sex twice a week (Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, 2004).  Good for them, all I can say is that If you compare it to the meals you have in a day, I'm always hungry!! :/

Anyway, the sexual response cycle... Yep, it has a cycle, that begins with a phase of excitement! Why of course!! Characterised by increased muscle tension, engorgement of blood vessels in the genitals causing, well guys and gals...I'm sure you know the answer to that.  Maximum arousal occurs during the second phase, or plateau, phase.  During this stage, heart rate, respiration, muscle tension and blood pressure reach their peak. The third phase, orgasm, BOOM! Characterised by vaginal contractions in females and ejaculation in males... Of course, you all know this.  However, the science behind an orgasm has been of much debate amongst scientist and is not truly understood.  Although the subjective experience of orgasm is very similar in men and women.

Watch the YouTube video I have linked to learn a little about the science of an orgasm... Very interesting stuff :D Woman though, seem to get the better deal when it comes (no pun intended), to the grand finarle'y. We experience it for longer, and multiply times... One hopes.

Humans do not have the same kinds of genetically based mating rituals or mating seasons as others animals, thank god.  However, biological influences on human dating and mating are obvious, from the 'plumage' displayed by both sexes at a party, to scents and perfume, to the pheromones that go off when there is a certain "chemistry" when you meet someone in particular that you find irresistible, oh yes those pheromones are the bodies natural scent, and those hormones have two effects on the nervous system and behaviour: organisational and activational, which I won't go into detail here.

So, do you feel motivated now??? I sure do.... Wonder what my next blog will be about :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpc2NjUAtOY&sns=em

Paradigm shift - a new way of thinking....

.... to continue on from my last blog now the festivities have calmed down, this is part two of the disaster of Hellenic.  We finished off introducing one cool dude called Aristotle.  Boy he was a fabulous chap indeed, it was his new way of thinking that has had a very influential effect on what we know about the world today.  You see, when catastrophe happened in Hellenic, Aristotle looked for more "earthly" explanations.  In a culture where the gods were so important, this was a radical approach in trying to understand the world.

Aristotle was particularly intrigued by the particular meteorological conditions that occurred at the time of the Hellenic disaster.  He came up with a theory that the earthquakes were a physical product, not of Poseidon's supernatural abilities, but of "winds" trapped inside the earth, it sounds farfetched but he may have well been on the right track.

The region of Greece in the north is the most earthquake prone part of Europe.  It is where Aristotle first made his observations, today, geologists who work in this area are looking into the relationship of gas and earthquaked.  It turns out, the gas trapped may well play a roll, but, not in the way Aristotle thought.  You see gas, particularly carbon dioxide, is naturally produced deep beneath the earths service.  This rises up, getting trapped along fault lines where the rocks are tightly packed together.  This gas might do one of two things.  As it is under great amounts of pressure, it could force it's way up between the rocks in the fault, eventually lubricating them so they slip - herego, earthquake.  But most geologists now believe that the rocks of the fault move all by themselves to cause seismic activity, this just allows the gas to escape.

Scientists are working today, looking into the escaping gas as a way to help predict when earthquakes can strike.  Trapped gases may not cause earthquakes but at least Aristotle's observations were on the right track, importantly he was taking a stab at understanding the world around him from a purely scientific point of view, he proposed a natural cause for what was otherwise regarded as a supernatural event.

However, although Aristotle made some headway in understanding some geological processes, most ancient greeks still believed that the running of the word, and any major catastrophes were created by their assorted gods!  It was almost 700 years after the catastrophe in Hellenic, before our beliefs in how the world worked around us, that we saw a dramatic change, and it all happened in Italy from the time of the Romans.

to be continued...................

The disaster of Hellenic, The Mediterranean – ancient believes and what we know now.

The Mediterranean is full of beautiful vistas but this stunning scenery is more than just a feast for the eyes.  Throughout history, the landscape has had a major influence on how we believed our planet works.  Civilisations around the Mediterranean held a fantastic range of beliefs about how the world worked.

In ancient Greece a whole legion of supernatural beings are believed to have ruled the earth.  There were numerous different gods to whom great temples were dedicated, plus assorted nymphs who lived in streams and trees and a range of hideous monsters.  Your average Greek citizen believed that these beings were responsible for absolutely everything from love to hate, to harvest and death.

The Greek gods who looked down on the world from heaven above appeared to be a vengeful bunch, ruling over earth with an iron fist.  Not surprisingly, the accent Greeks were keen to keep these mortals happy otherwise they could be in for a rough ride.  One god they really didn’t want to upset was the feared earth shaker, ruler of the sea, the mighty Poseidon. 

Poseidon was notorious for his bad temper; displeased he would cause volcanoes to erupt, the earth to shake and the sea to surge.  The ancients offered lavish gifts for Poseidon, in the hope he wouldn’t visit them with his roth, but despite their best efforts, throughout ancient Greek history, this particular god would often flex his muscles. One place where Poseidon was said to have inverted his fury with extraordinary effort was the Gulf of Corinth in North Penoploese of Mainland Greece.   Archaeologists believe that there once stood an ancient and once thriving city, Hellenic, built as a sacred place to worship Poseidon but despite this, he struck the city with total catastrophe and the sea swallowed it up. 

We now believe that the real cause of the catastrophe wasn’t Poseidon’s fury, but a fault in the earth, which has a habit of making the ground in front of it suddenly drop.  The Hellenic fault is clearly visible as a sheer rock face, which runs for over 19miles.  It was made naturally, as a result of a geological tug of war.  The earth service is broken up into what’s called, tectonic plates, and the whole of Greece sits on the Southern edge of one of those called the European Plate.  We now know that this plate is being pulled by its neighbour the African plate.  I am sure most people who have studied or read anything on earth science will be very much aware of what happens at these plate boundaries, but for anyone who isn’t aware I will give a simple explanation with an analogy. 

As the plates get tugged, it stretchers, that is because the rocks deep underground are so hot that they act like gluey caramel, think of the inside of a mars bar, but, at the surface, the crust is rigid, think of the outer chocolate coating of that mars bar… it doesn’t stretch when you pull it apart right, it forms a crack, which is exactly what we can see in earth, as a fault line.  But, like anything, it is not that simple.  The earth just doesn’t open up.  Here is another analogy.  Suppose this fault was represented as a gap between too books, when the rigid crust is pulled from either side, the fault moves by going on a slant, one side of the fault goes up, the other side goes down.  This phenomena was felt at this fault in a earthquake in 1861, and the evidence is that deep grooves appeared in the rock, appearing in seconds, the rock on one side slid down, scratching the surface of the other as it went, and this is the secret to how Hellenic was destroyed.  The ground beneath it was crashing all the way down below sea level allowing the waters of the Mediterranean to crash in and completely submerge the city.  Although this at that time was believed to be done by the roth of the gods, this particular disaster influenced a famous Greek philosopher to think differently.

 Aristotle, who may have been the first gem of irrational geological thought, introducing a new paradigm shift towards the science of the inner workings of the earth.  What an awesome dude :)

To be continued.........

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/greece/tectonic_summary.php

The Symmetries Of Life

The most memorable and the most important sights that most of us experience from birth are those of human faces.  They identify us and form the basis of first impressions; they are a source of art and social significance in many cultures.

But, there is a tantalising mystery behind the appearance: our faces and our bodies are strikingly symmetrical.  Whereas inanimate objects rarely display perfect symmetry, living things almost always possess external right-left symmetry.  On the face of it..... this might seem an improbable state of affairs.  After all, it requires delicate engineering.  By contrast, symmetry is absent in the top-down direction because bodies are adapted to deal with the variation of gravity and weight, with height, and with the need to remain stable under the influence of small perturbations that would otherwise cause them to fall over.

It is rare to find back-front symmetry in animals because it is 'cheaper' to engineer the ability to turn around.  Bilateral symmetry is very advantageous for movement - the imbalances caused by any bilateral asymmetry make straight-line motion tricky to engineer and the benefits of symmetry are even greater if motion has to occur off the ground, in air or water.

The classic representation of our human symmetry is displayed in Leonardo's famous drawing of the 'Vitruvian Man', which has been artistically reinterpreted and reproduced on countless occasions, most recently on all Italian 1-euro coins.

Many of our superficial evaluations on human beauty, or attractiveness, focus upon the symmetries of the face and body.  The human face displays a very high degree of symmetry, and the evolutionary importance of recognising creatures with faces in crowded fields of vision, between trees and boulders of foliage, has resulted in our sensitivity to lateral symmetry.  It is a good rough and ready guide to distinguishing things that are alive from things that are not.

Our bodies however, the bits under the skin, are a squalid muddle.  Our hearts are on the left, our brains are laid out in an asymmetrical fashion that reflects the type of cognitive activity being performed.  If symmetry persisted under the skin, our vital organs would have to duplicate to maintain it .  The brain would use resources in a wasteful way.

Our deep-laid sensitivity to human faces is an evolutionary inheritance that aids our survival and multiplication.  The sensitivity fo symmetry that we have inherited from these tendencies shows up in all sorts of other places - in the decorations we like to use in our homes, in the types of maths we like to study (or not), and the sorts of scientific theories that we like to create.... All are residues of the time when we first knew we had faces.

Faces have been a pretty useful too, lets face it! :)

Just for a laugh - listen to a classic 90's tune! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfDCWD3lhsg