“We’ve arranged a global civilization in which most crucial elements profoundly depend on science and technology. We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces.” Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

The above image is from the James Webb Space Telescope and is called the Cartwheel Galaxy because it looks like a wheel from a cart. It is located about 500 million light years away in the constellation known as Sculptor. It is thought that the shape was created by the collision of a smaller galaxy though what was a large disk galaxy. And this produced ripples, similar to the ripples that are created when a stone is dropped into a pond. The outer ring is an intense area of star formation. To give some scale to this, the outermost ring of the galaxy is 1.5 times the size of our Milky Way. Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO Production Team. If you would like to learn more please see these links: https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220824.html and https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2018/hubble-s-cartwheel

“In the way that skepticism is sometimes applied to issues of public concern, there is a tendency to belittle, to condescend, to ignore the fact that, deluded or not, supporters of superstition and pseudoscience are human beings with real feelings, who, like the sceptics, are trying to figure out how the world works and what our role in it might be. Their motives are in many cases consonant with science. If their culture has not given them all the tools they need to pursue this great quest, let us temper our criticism with kindness. None of us comes fully equipped.” Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

This is a photo that was taken back in August 2022 with the James Webb telescope. It is of Jupiter. This is considered one of our best views of the iconic planet to date, showing differences in cloud layers and the Auroras at each pole. Jupiter is the fifth planet from the sun and the largest in the solar system. It is a gas giant. This planet is the third brightest object in the night sky after the Moon and Venus. Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Jupiter ERS Team; Processing: Ricardo Hueso (UPV/EHU) & Judy Schmidt. If you would like to learn more about his image please see these links: https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220830.html and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter

“Science is an attempt, largely successful, to understand the world, to get a grip on things, to get hold of ourselves, to steer a safe course. Microbiology and meteorology now explain what only a few centuries ago was considered sufficient cause to burn women to death.” Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

This stunning image was recently captured by the James Webb Space telescope. The picture showcases a group of stars that are known as NGC 2070 or Caldwell 103. They are part of what is known as the Tarantula Nebula. In this Nebula is a huge cluster of some of the largest and hottest stars known to date. It was first observed by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille in 1751 and 1753. Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO Production Team. If you would like to learn more please see these links: https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220907.html and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarantula_Nebula

“Think of how many religions attempt to validate themselves with prophecy. Think of how many people rely on these prophecies, however vague, however unfulfilled, to support or prop up their beliefs. Yet has there ever been a religion with the prophetic accuracy and reliability of science? … No other human institution comes close.” Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

This is one of my favorite images from the Hubble Space Telescope. It is called a Starburst Galaxy or Messier 94. It is 15 million light years from earth in the norther constellation Canes Venatici ( Hunting Dogs). It was first discovered by Pierre Mechain in 1781 and catalogued by Charles Messier two days later. The is a great example of a spiral galaxy. Even though 15 million miles is a very, very long way from earth, this galaxy is popular with astronomers because it is bright enough to be spotted with smaller telescopes. Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA. If you would like to learn more please see these links: https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220731.html and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messier_94

HEY!! I AM LOOKING AT YOU!! THAT’S WHO!!

If you are reading this then you have continued to survive Covid 19 so far and so have I!! Yea for us again!! I am still hoping that I can keep saying this until the Covid Marry-Go-Round is done!! Oh well what are you going to do??

By the first week of August we were still adding about 60,000 to well over 100,000 cases per day and the total death toil was about 1,059,000. This was an increase in about 15,000 deaths from the first week of July. And the variant of concern was BA5. Unfortunately the numbers for new cases you have to take with a slight grain of salt due to the fact that home testing has no tracking. It is any bodies guess how high the actually numbers might be. The death count is probably much, much higher but again due to no national mandatory reporting laws, we really do not know.

The above picture has not changed. These are the top states as it stands with the highest morbidity and mortality. The only exception is North Carolina. My guess is if NC reported their counts correctly and honestly, then they would move into the picture and push Michigan out. Interesting to say the least.

By the end of the month (August 2022), we were still adding at least 60,000 cases per day and increasing the death toil by 300 to 500 cases per day. Covid is still considered the fourth leading cause of death, right behind heart disease, cancer and accidents. By the first week of September the total number of deaths for the USA was 1,730,000. Or again, another 15,000 deaths in the last 30 days for a total of 30,000 deaths in the last 60 days. We are done with the virus but unfortunately the virus is not done with us.

Now in better news, on September 1st, the CDC endorsed the use of an updated booster for the omicron subvariants. One was from Moderna and another was from Pfizer. My guess and it is only a guess, because there is no real data yet, this will become a yearly occurrence just like the flu shot. A good link to check this out is from the PBS news hour: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/updated-covid-19-booster-shots-are-now-available-heres-what-you-need-to-know

If you interested in looking at the numbers for yourself, please see this link: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

If you interested in getting a good understanding of what is going on with Covid every other week without having to watch the news, check out this link for the Osterholm Update on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FC1G09xkOFc

And if you don’t want to listen on YouTube you can check out Apple Pod cast. Dr. Michael Osterholm is an American epidemiologist, Regents Professor, and Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Osterholm gives an update each week on where we are with the virus. Really good information directly from the source and not spun by the news media channels.

Another great YouTube channel to follow on Covid, and other infectious diseases like Monkey Pox and Polio, especially if you are someone that is medical, is this one: https://youtu.be/786kiTxg6Bk

It is a part of microbe.tv/twiv. Vincent Racaniello and Dr. Griffin do a great job in presenting the “information” each week. Vincent R. Racaniello is Higgins Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. Dr. Daniel O. Griffin is an American infectious disease specialist. He is an instructor in Clinical Medicine and an associate research scientist in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at Columbia University.

The months of July and August were again not as good as it was in the spring for being outdoors. There were air quality issues as in “Ozone action days each and everyday.” And heat, it was hot here on the front range of Colorado. It was so hot that I had to resort to walking Marvin twice per day – everyday. Once in the mornings and once in the evenings. The only time that this was different is when I got a change to get up into the high country. And even then, temps above 10,000 feet were higher than usual. Oh well what are you going to do?!

This month instead of showing pictures from in and around Fort Collins, I thought I would post some from a trip we took in August to the town of Rico, Colorado. Janet and I with Marvin made this trip to visit the middle daughter. She moved there with her significant other Dave this past year to become the managers along with the owner Cindy of the “High Camp Hut.” We got to see the place while we were visiting and I have to say it is pretty cool. The hut is located at about 11,000 feet in the San Juan National Forest. It is situated on about 300 acres of private land in the Forest. To call it a Hut is somewhat of a misnomer in my opinion. It is more of a large fully outfitted cabin in the woods. There is no cell service and no Wi-Fi, so you are definitely unplugged from the rest of the world. And if you are like most of us in modern society, being unplugged from our hyper-connected world every once and a while is a good thing. If your interested and want more information, please check out their website: https://www.highcamphut.com/

The pictures below are from the area around the Hut and the Hut itself.

The next set of pictures are from a couple of local trails around the town of Rico. The town is not a big place, less than 200 residents at any give time. There is a gas station if you need gas, but the only hotel had closed when we were visiting and only a few choices for dinning with limited hours. When asking about this, I got the feeling that the “locals” kind of like it that way. Lol. Rico was a silver mining center in the late 1800s. A good website to learn more and see pictures of Rico is here: https://www.uncovercolorado.com/towns/rico/

The next few pics below are from the Scotch Creek Toll Road and Pinkerton Trail. This trail/road was the only route into Rico in the 1800s until the railroad reached Rico in 1891. Incredible to think this was the only way into the valley if you had to move large items and by horse and oxen no less. So many things we take for granted in our modern lives.

The next few pics are from an area that is called Horse Gulch Creek Trail and is a launch point for paragliders when the weather is cooperative. Janet and I were amazed at the number of Aspen in the area. There were a lot and I am guessing that you could get a spectacular fall viewing if the conditions are right.

These next pictures were from the East Fork Trail to Twin Creek. This trail follows the Dolores River as it climbs into the mountains above town. If you were to follow it far enough it connects to a whole network of other trails in the same area. Pretty cool.

It was a good trip to see Jean-Marie and Dave and to check out some of the local hiking areas. I did not do any running because of an overuse injury to my left knee. Runners are their own worst enemy but I will save that story for another time.

Even though the town of Rico is only about 30 miles from the big resort of Telluride there does not seem to be the same level of development and activity as you see in Frisco/Breckenridge area or the Vail/Edwards area. While there is an advantage in having certain amenities with increased development, there always comes a point of diminishing returns. The challenge is to create enough growth to have certain things but not too much that you permanently change the feeling and character of an area. In my opinion Rico could use a little extra growth but just a little. I was blown away when I first saw the town with it proximity to Telluride. You could say it is even a bit run down looking. My guess is that it has something to do with the locals and being a Home Rule Municipality. They recently voted down a local initiative to get a regular sewer system. The entire town is still on septic!

On an interesting note, a mining company in the area is selling what appears to be all or part of it’s holdings called Silver Springs at Rico. It totals 181 separate parcels of land (146 mining claims, 6 tracts and 29 platted lots) for a total of about 1146 acres. It has been on the market since April 2022 and list for 10 million. Which, when you think about it, is not much since you are less than 30 miles to Telluride. It will be interesting to see who buys this and what happens with the rest of the town when this occurs.

It was another great month for reading and I would like to share a few book recommendations.

A great Science Fiction book to take a look at this late summer and early fall is one by Blake Crouch called Upgrade:  A Novel.  If you are someone that has occasionally followed the science of gene editing and the CRISPR technique, I think you would really find this novel entraining.  But, even if you have not followed anything about gene editing, this is still a great read.  So, if you do not know what CRISPR is then let me give a very brief synopsis of what it has allowed scientist to do.   First what does it mean?  CRISPR is an acronym for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats.”  Do you need to know what that really means to enjoy the book?  No, not really.  Lol.  What it has allowed though, in a nutshell, is a more rapid, accurate and cheaper way of editing genes in DNA. It really increased the precision in manipulating genes in any living organism.  From viruses to humans and everything in between.    

The story takes place in the not too distant future, in which the main character’s mother has invented a gene editing technique that makes CRISPR look like child’s play.  And because of this, the whole world has been or has the potential to be transformed.  If you have read the book by Nancy Kress called Beggars and Choosers (published in 1994) then you will understand all the possibilities this opens up.  If not, no worries.

This book explores one of the many possible futures that gene editing makes possible.  I loved this SiFi book because it points out our potential blind spots. We are all worried about climate change, the war in Ukraine, the lingering pandemic, etc.… We all have our eyes on what we think is the approaching “disaster bus” as it bears down on our car (humanity), but in reality we do not see the speeding train (unregulated gene editing) that crashes into us as we cross the tracks!  Of course the story is only Science Fiction but it still gives me chills thinking about it.  Lol. 

Of course I listened to the book as an audio book but it would work well in any format. You should be able to find it at your local book store or Amazon. Here is the Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Upgrade-Novel-Blake-Crouch-ebook/dp

Another good Science Fiction book that I would like to recommend is called “Atropos” by John Japuntich.  This is a good science fiction yarn that has to do with current topics in science, like genetic engineering, information technology, longevity, the possibility of future space travel, etc.… There is also some good content on geopolitics and religion.  The author takes all of these topics and weaves them together to give the reader an interesting story with good food for thought.  It made me wonder, what would happen if there was a way to end all death due to natural causes but at the cost of zero birth rate?  How would humanity as a whole respond to this type of crisis?  And I think it would be seen as a crisis.  Especially with the zero drop in birth rate.  Interesting ideas.     

I believe this is the author first crack at a full length novel and I have to give him an A minus.  The story line was good and it kept me interested to the very end.  There was a little bit of jumping around in the different story arcs of the characters but once I got used it, the narrative flowed fairly smoothly.  I got this book as an audio book but I think it would work better in traditional format.  The narration did not work for me as well as it has with other stories of this type.  You should be able to find this book at your local book store or on Amazon.  Here is the Amazon link:  https://www.amazon.com/Atropos-John-Japuntich-ebook/dp 

The next book I would like to recommend is also a Science Fiction book.  This one is called “The Kaiju Preservation Society” by John Scalzi.  If you have read any of Scalzi’s previous books then you will understand the kind of entertaining and talented writer that he is.  This book is no exception.  It is a quick and fun read that is just pure brain bubble gum.  Lol.  I love the fact that he weaves the story line into current events with the Covid pandemic.  There is just enough “science” to be plausible and believable. 

If you have not googled the word Kaiju yet, let me tell you what it is.  It means “Strange Beast” and is a Japanese genre of films and television featuring giant monsters.  Think Godzilla but in an alternate dimension in which humans are absent.  In the book, the Kaiju are in trouble and humans help to keep them safe, but there is someone trying to make a profit off them.  And of course, this is where the trouble begins.  Don’t be turned off by the “Godzilla theme,” thinking it’s a little hokey.  I thought the same thing at first but due to author’s reputation I got it anyway and I am glad that I did.    

I listened to the book as an audio book but it will work in any format.  You can probably find it at your local book store or on Amazon.  Here is the Amazon link:    https://www.amazon.com/The-Kaiju-Preservation-Society/dp  

Also if you have never read any of Scalzi’s books, another one I highly recommend is “Old Man’s War.”

The last book I would like to review is called “The Forest of Vanishing Stars:  A Novel” by Kristin Harmel.  Let me start out by saying that this is not my usual type of fiction book, but I find it good to read outside of your traditional likes a few times per year.  This one was recommended by my sister and I am glad that she did.  It is a WW2 survival novel that takes place in a forest of Eastern Europe.  It has a somewhat similar story line to the 2008 movie called Defiance.

It took me a little time to get engrossed in the book, mainly due to some of the mysticism and religion that is part of the book, but by about half way in, I wanted to find out how it was going to end.  In a very brief nutshell, the main character (Yona) is put into an impossible situation of being a forest dweller and encountering an ill-prepared group of Jews fleeing the Nazi occupation. It does not take long for her to come to the realization that she is the last hope of these people being able to survive a harsh winter in the wild. Not to mention that she must keep them and herself hidden since they are still being hunted by the Nazis. 

   

It was a good story, but not one that really stands out in my mind initially. What made the “good to great review” was the author’s note at the end.  It was rather lengthy but this was a good thing.  The author goes into all the research that helped to inspire her with writing the story.  Very interesting and definitely was the icing on the cake so to speak.

I got the book as an audio book but it would work in any format.  I am sure you can find it at your local book store or on Amazon.  Here is the Amazon link:   https://www.amazon.com/Forest-Vanishing-Stars-Novel/dp

Last but not least I would like to show case a new piece of art work. This is the fifth version of what I call Jesus of Borg or SiFi Jesus. Or what you could call “Transhumanist Jesus” depending on whether you believe Jesus was an alien or inspired and created by humanity’s need to find meaning in an uncaring Universe.

I decided to do these pieces initially over anger of the Texas GOP’s enactment of their draconian anti-abortion law. I had only planned to do a limited number, but now with the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe vs Wade, I will continue to make them.  I have three adult daughters and while they might not agree on whether it is right or wrong to get an abortion, they all agree that it is “their right” to choose. And I agree with them. So that is how the project started out, but it morphed into something a little different. Did you know that there are at least 10,000 different denominations of Christianity in the world? Of course, some say this number is much higher, but I figure 10,000 is a safe estimate. Knowing this I thought why not make up my own Jesus?! A lot of other people have. So, I did. And what I came up with was a tough but accepting LGBT SiFi Jesus. A Jesus that would assimilate all other Jesuses, even Republican Jesus, into a hive mind and create an accepting and loving collective for all people and all religions. AND the Jesus Brothers would support all women in their right to choose! In Star Trek, the Borg are considered the enemy but, in my version, I have turned it around and made “Jesus of Borg” the good guy, the savior from the Conservative Christian Taliban.

This drawing is done in pen and ink with a little acrylic paint thrown in. It is mounted to painted white board and coated with Mod Podge. It measures approximately 9.25 inches wide by 12.25 inches tall. When hanging the overall height is 17.25 inches. I have called these studies of Jesus by several different names, Jesus of Borg or SiFi Jesus or the current name of Transhumanist Jesus.

Transhumanist Jesus #5

These pieces and other types of art work are for sale and can be found on my Etsy site: https://www.etsy.com/shop/strugglingprotoplasm/edit?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

In support of Prochoice and the Separation of Church and State, I will donate 10% of any sales to Planned Parenthood or the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

Well I have come to the end of another blog post! Yea! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it! But before I go, I would like to give another shout out to becoming minimalist. I think that the quote below from the movie “Fight Club” says it best. Lol. Of course minimalism is much, much more than that, but if you had to boil it down to one reason for being minimalist then this would be it.

There is way too much to go into detail here in the blog post about minimalism and others have done it a lot better than me, so if your interested and want to learn more about sustainability, minimalism and the steady state economy, please see these sites: https://www.sustain.ucla.edu/what-is-sustainability/ and https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/ and https://steadystate.org/ and https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/12/27/35-ways-reduce-carbon-footprint/

So take care my friends and if you have not gotten vaccinated or boosted, then get it done. It would be stupid to lose your life or suffer significant disability with this virus when vaccines are readily available in this country. So until next time Adios!!

“Questions you cannot answer are usually far better for you than answers you cannot question.” Yuval Noah Harari

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous…, leading to the most amazing views.” Edward Abbey