Why Evolution is True is a blog written by Jerry Coyne, centered on evolution and biology but also dealing with diverse topics like politics, culture, and cats.
I was pondering choosing a reader’s cat to highlight World Cat Day, and, by pure luck, reader Leo Glenn sent me a lovely note and picture about Baxter, his rescue cat. So let Baxter stand for all the moggies of the world who are saved by human kindness and given forever homes. Here’s Baxter’s Tale as related by one of his staff:
I enjoy your posts immensely and thought, in honor of World Cat Day, I would submit this photo of my son with our cat Baxter. Baxter showed up one winter night several years ago at our back door, nearly dead, in a critical state of malnutrition, with most of the fur missing from his neck, and his skin badly inflamed. A neighbor told us later that he had discovered the cat lying motionless in a ditch at the side of the road, with a glass jar stuck on his head. Thinking the cat was dead, he removed the jar, whereupon the cat revived and ran away.
We began feeding him, although it took several months for him to trust us enough to let us catch him and take him to our vet. Sadly, the vet informed us that he had FIV and recommended putting him down to prevent him spreading it. Of course he had won our hearts by then, so we nursed him back to health and gradually gained his trust enough for us to bring him inside. I’ve cherished the companionship of many animals over the years (including wild animals–I had a pet crow and a pet deer), but Baxter truly stands out as one of the most remarkable I have ever known. Once he made the commitment to trust us, his trust was utter and complete. My six-year-old daughter can carry him around the house like a rag doll, and he just purrs. We call him the Big, Squishy Bag of Cat because all of his bones seem to disappear when you pick him up. When our 13-year-old dog was in his final hours, Baxter curled up next to him and kept him company right up to the end (they were buddies from the start). His trust only extends to us, however. He is still wary around strangers, and we have to be with him at all times when he is at the vet’s. He has enriched our lives beyond description.
Reader John Danley, a guitarist, informed me that a company called “Strings and Beyond,” which specializes in selling guitar strings, will give you a 5% discount on your order if you use a coupon labeled “Jesus Christ.” It’s just another case of promulgating Christianity, though, to be sure, the company says that the discount (offered through a company called “Retail Me Not” will work for nonbelievers:
Now I suppose you could pin this on the “Retail Me Not” site, but surely the code was specified by Strings and Beyond. But I’m informed by those who know that this is not a First Amendment violation, because it’s not discriminatory, and thus doesn’t violate the Civil Rights Act. It’s also unclear whether this firm is a “place of public accommodation” (places to get food, a rest, or amusement), which are the only places covered by the Act. But the lack of discrimination rules this out as being any kind of legal violation. It’s simply the annoying promulgation of Christianity.
One more thing: guess which part of the U.S. harbors this company? If you know the country, you have a 100% chance of being right.
I am saddened to say that John (he was fine with me giving his name) actually USED this discount, selling his soul to save $2.13. When I mock-yelled at him because of this, his response was “I used a version of the Woody Allen defense to avoid cognitive dissonance: ‘But I needed the strings.'” (You’ll recognize the joke if you’re a Woody Allen fan.)
After further communication, John added this: “Believe me, it’s the most Jesus ever did for me. I’m waiting for the ISIS group discount on sheet music: ‘Abu Bakr.'”
What a comedown! Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (born 1954), son of the late RFK, senator and attorney general, has become an anti-vaxer, and a particularly invidious one. I haven’t really followed his attacks on vax, but “Orac” (the web name of surgeon David Gorski, who’s given me permission to identify him) has, and Gorski has repeatedly attacked the long-time antivaccination stance of Kennedy. RFK Jr. is not really an anti-vaxer in the sense of opposing vaccinations per se, but opposes vaccinations that contain thimerosal, a mercury-containing compound once used to preserve vaccines. That preservative, he claims, causes autism.
That’s right, I said thimerosal was “once used.” It hasn’t been used in over a decade, except for certain flu vaccines that are used in remote parts of the world where they can’t be preserved by refrigeration. Nevertheless, Kennedy continues to harp on the dangers of thimerosal, including the claim that it causes autism. This claim has been debunked in several studies, and, as far as I know, there are no other health risks of thimerosal in the quantities used in vaccines. And remember, it’s only used in one type of vaccine, and only in remote parts of the world.
To get the lowdown on Kennedy’s claims, I wrote to Gorski, long respected for his skepticism about bizarre medical claims, skepticism he displays on two websites. I asked him about Kennedy, his book, and his claims, and Gorski replied:
“Heh. Just search Science-Based Medicine and Respectful Insolence for ‘thimerosal’and ‘mercury,’ and you’ll find more posts than you know what to do with. . . I could produce dozens more, and not just by me.”
He sent me some examples of columns he’d written debunking the claims that thimerosal is commonly used, that it’s toxic, and that it causes autism. If you want to read the real science, see Gorski’s columns here, here, here, and here. If you can read only one, read the last one, written on June 17 and dealing with RFK Jr.’s book and its claims.
Rather than excerpt and digest them all, I’ll refer you to a new article in Time Magazine, “RFK Jr. joins the anti-vaccine fringe”, that also debunks Kennedy’s thesis. Some excerpts:
But let’s start with a single fact that ought to be, as the lawyers like to say, dispositive: the thimerosal ain’t there. With the exception of the flu vaccine, it was removed from or reduced to trace levels in all vaccines given to children under 6-years-old 13 years ago. You face a greater mercury risk eating seafood and fish—and even that danger is low enough that the EPA recently recommended that pregnant and nursing women increase their intake of certain kinds of fish because the nutritional benefits outweigh the theoretical dangers.
Kennedy is wrong on basic epidemiology too. Autism diagnoses have indeed risen steadily in the U.S. in recent years, but that has been happening in the same period in which thimerosal levels in vaccines plunged. When your cause goes away and your reputed effect increases, well, you really do need to review your class notes on what cause and effect mean in the first place.
Most fundamentally, Kennedy does not get chemistry. Thimerosal is an ethylmercury product. Mercury in general may be a neurotoxin, but it’s in its methylmercury form that it does its damage—and only in particular concentrations. The quantity of ethylmercury that was once in vaccines was so small that it was actually within acceptable limits for the more toxic, methyl form—but it wasn’t even in that methyl form to begin with.
It’s amusing to see Kennedy, in his piece, waffle on the methy/ethylmercury distinction. Time continues:
. . .As long ago as 2005, he published an anti-vax article in Rolling Stone claiming to reveal how “government health agencies colluded with Big Pharma to hide the risks of thimerosal from the public.” And Keith Kloor, the author of a new Washington Post Magazine profile of Kennedy, reports that last year, in response to a story he wrote on the Discover magazine website labeling this kind of thinking as the nonsense that it is, Kennedy called him up and said bluntly, “I’m trying to figure out whether you are a shill for Big Pharma.”
. . . The worst—and the least explicable—thing about Kennedy and his new cause is the company he keeps. His book is being put out by Skyhorse Publishing—an outfit that also includes the disgraced Andrew Wakefield in its stable of authors. Wakefield is the U.K. investigator whose fraudulent 1998 paper purporting to link autism to the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine set off the entire anti-vaccine wildfire. In 2010, The Lancet formally withdrew the 1998 paper and Wakefield has since been banned from practicing medicine in the U.K. And as for the company Wakefield himself keeps? The foreword to his book was written by Jenny McCarthy.
After I read this, I wrote back to Gorski asking if it was indeed true that thimerosal was still used in flu vaccines, and his response was brief:
Yes, but they are rarely used in children any more, at least not in developed countries. Thimerosal, however, is very important for vaccine preservation in Third World countries, where the refrigeration chain is nowhere near as reliable as it is here.
He then referred me to three other pieces he’s written on the topic, and on Kennedy; they’re here, here, and here. After reading those, it’s clear that a). there are no dangers to using thimerosal in the quantities once employed, and b. even if there were very small dangers, they would be greatly outweighed by the benefit of vaccinating people against influenza.
I haven’t read all of Gorski’s pieces on this issue, but I’ve read enough to know that RFK Jr. is fear-mongering, and in so doing damaging public health. Although he doesn’t oppose vaccination, he still makes claims that will lead people to oppose vaccination, and for no good reason. The fact that he’s a Kennedy will also add unwarranted weight to his claims. It’s sad to see someone who could use his name to do good act in exactly the opposite way.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., pseudoscientific fear monger
An outraged alumnus of the University of Chicago called my attention to an upcoming “Computations in Science” Seminar. It is being given by none other than intelligent-design creationist William Dembski, famous for his characterization of ID in Touchstone Magazine:
Intelligent design is just the Logos theology of John’s Gospel restated in the idiom of information theory.
And now he’s coming here to talk about this?
So Dembski is going to come here and talk to a bunch of computational scientists about how evolution can’t be right because of his No Free Lunch Theorem, which has already been debunked (see here. here, and here for the debunking). I can’t believe that my own university, proud of its reputation and academic rigor, is presenting creationism as serious science. As my correspondent noted: “WTF is happening at my alma mater?”
University of Chicago, and especially those responsible for inviting speakers to this series, you should be ashamed of yourselves! Don’t you vet your speakers.
Notice two things, though:
1. Dembski’s seminar is the only one in the series lacking a host
2. Dembski’s home institution (really just a tiny warren of offices in Seattle) is misspelled.
Reader Linda Grilli, who has upwards of six cats, informs me that today is World Cat Day. And damn if she’s not right! Today is indeed the one day of the year that is officially designated for appreciating cats, though of course on this site every day is World Cat Day. I’m only sad that Google didn’t see fit to make a Doodle; that would have been fantastic.
I even thought of limiting posting to those who have are owned by cats, but that would be unfair. Feel free, however, to offer a short tribute to your cat in the comments.
To celebrate, Hili (I hope) will get an extra sachet of Chicken Whiskas, and you can see some celebrations over at International Business Times (“15 Reasons Why Cats are Better than Dogs“), which includes these reasons:
Did I ever tell you how Abbie Smith’s pit bull, Arnie, distressed her by repeatedly trying to hump my leg when I visited her? Yes, I did tell you that, but I just wanted to rub it in, since it made her scream with embarrassment.
UPDATE: In comment #9, reader Tubby claims that he had a cat that would hump another cat—its BROTHER. I asked for photographic proof and got the following note and photo.
Attached is a smaller version of the photo of Orson humping Bogie. Both cats are male, and according to the shelter they came from they’re littermates. This was taken the night I got them back from the vet after having them fixed, so the hormones were still raging. Unfortunately I never managed to catch a photo of either one of them in the act with a stuffed animal. Mostly because I was laughing too hard to grab the camera. Their favorite targets were the large Catbus I mentioned in my reply, as well as a large blue dragon and a large Totoro.
I don’t know: I can’t see much proof of cat-humping from this blurry photo. Skeptical readers, what do you think? I can barely make out two cats!
And, the Cheezburger site, responsible for much of this business, is celebrating by collecting the best internet images of cats that look like other things. You can submit your own. Here are two of the four that are up:
And from over the Big Pond, the Sydney Morning Herald proclaims the Day (they have 15 more photos; be sure to see #7):
In all my life, I’ve never seen an expression like that on a cat.
Reader Mark Sturtevant, who appeared previously with pictures of GIANT INSECTS, has some practical advice about how to raise them for fun (but not profit). If you have kids, this is a cool way to teach them about complex life cycles, and has the advantage that, at the end of it all, you set the insects free. Here’s Mark’s advice; the only requirement is fresh leaves, which should be available if you’re synchronizing your hobby with nature:
You may remember that I was raising a batch of cecropia larvae (Hyalophora cecropia) and documenting the process with pictures. These grow into one of the largest larvae in the U.S. (but not the largest by length) and later become our largest moth. Raising giant Saturniid moths is a hobby of mine, and now I am discovering that taking pictures makes it even more rewarding. The several pictures show the different growth stages that they have passed through so far. The pictures of the younger larvae were taken with an iPhone 5S with a cheap clip-on macro lens. The larger larvae were photographed with a Nikon Coolpix camera.
1. Newly hatched 1st instar larva with eggs, and mature 1st instar. Eggs are kept in small serving cups without food. Larvae are transferred to leaves of a chosen food plant. I am using the common garden lilac as their food source, although they will accept over a dozen species of common plants. Once they are started on a food plant, however, they will not accept a different species of plant.
2. 2nd , 3rd, and early 4th instar larvae. One of the things I like about this species is that the larvae change their colors as they grow. I have no idea why they do this. [JAC: Readers? Do you know? I suspect spines are predator deterrent and that the caterpillars are toxic. The colors are probably “aposematic,” or warning colors to deter predators as well. But I have no explanation for the color change over time.] The spiny decorations may somewhat deter ants, and they might make them unpleasant for birds to swallow.
3. Mature 4th instar larvae. By this time they are over 2 inches long. Next, they will molt to the final (5th) instar, and then get really REALLY big before spinning cocoons. Next year I should have a bunch of giant moths that look like cuddly plush toys.
4. These pictures show how I feed my babies. The larger larvae stay on a bouquet of branches in a big plastic jar. The air holes have to be large so that condensation does not form.
Eggs and pupae can be purchased through a breeder who lives in Canada. This hobby is easy and fun for adults, and kids go bonkers over these beautiful monsters.
Here’s a picture from the breeder’s website. Can there be a prettier hat? (Bonus points: identify the moths.)
Mark continues:
The ultimate species, in my opinion, are hickory horned devils. By length, these grow into the largest ‘pillars in the U.S. I raised a batch last year, and I have pictures to prove it. But I plan to raise both cecropias and hickory horned devils next year. I think the two should meet! It will be Mothzilla vs Mothasaurus rex!
I’ve found a photo of a hickory horned devil caterpillar (below); it is large and fearsome. Now wouldn’t your kids like to bring up one of these?
“Hickory horned devil” is only the name of the caterpillar; the adult stage is called either the Royal Walnut Moth or the Regal Moth (Citheronia regalis). Here’s the lovely adult. If you raise these, you have to let them go within their natural range (mid-Atlantic and southern U.S. west to Texas).
It’s the evening, I’m done with work, and nobody’s around to read this, so I’ll just post what I want. What I want tonight is to hear two of Tony Bennett’s best songs. I heard his stuff repeatedly as a kid, as my parents had several of his albums:
“Love Look Away,” my favorite of all Bennett songs. It’s from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Flower Drum Song” (the original Broadway version, by Arabella Hong, is here):
And “The Good Life” (note that the last minute is silence: a feature of the only embeddable YouTube video of his version):
