Homosexuality Is For The Birds
August 16, 2014 9:16 AM Subscribe
Koryos, who previously explained how cats got domesticated using tumblr, now explains why homosexual pair-bonding can be a successful reproductive stratagem. Also, Coot Parenting Tips, Queen Cowbird Of The Brood Parasites , There's No Such Thing As An Alpha Wolf, and Can Animals Have Pets?
Lots of people are reading this right now and preparing mental arguments that say “well if there’s no actual SEX it can’t be homosexual!!! only sex makes gay things gay!! NO GAY WITHOUT PENIS IN BUTT!!!”
I was actually reading that and thinking how much better scientific articles are when they're not navel-gazing and filled with contrived colloquialisms. There's interesting content in the articles, and the author is clearly intelligent, but the articles' style has the opposite effect of its intent and just makes them difficult to read and feel overly long.
posted by lunch at 10:34 AM on August 16, 2014 [4 favorites]
I was actually reading that and thinking how much better scientific articles are when they're not navel-gazing and filled with contrived colloquialisms. There's interesting content in the articles, and the author is clearly intelligent, but the articles' style has the opposite effect of its intent and just makes them difficult to read and feel overly long.
posted by lunch at 10:34 AM on August 16, 2014 [4 favorites]
Can Animals Have Pets?
My cockatoo certainly believes that the dog is his pet.
posted by Splunge at 11:05 AM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]
My cockatoo certainly believes that the dog is his pet.
posted by Splunge at 11:05 AM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]
Personally, I liked the conversational style! Sometimes it was too exaggerated, but I thought it was engaging and made it very clear what the big take-aways were from each piece.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 11:28 AM on August 16, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by Solon and Thanks at 11:28 AM on August 16, 2014 [3 favorites]
Great post!
I have shared that particular "Alpha Wolf" article many times (as part of my standard "dominance is outdated" discussion when I am talking to people/students about dog training), people somehow don't seem to want to accept that it's true though, they prefer getting all Fifty Shades of Grey with their dogs...(which is part of why I avoid most of the dog training questions on AskMe these days, you can only have that discussion so many times before the willing and indefatigable ignorance takes its toll, despite the toll you know it's taking on the dogs some people own)...
posted by biscotti at 3:40 PM on August 16, 2014
I have shared that particular "Alpha Wolf" article many times (as part of my standard "dominance is outdated" discussion when I am talking to people/students about dog training), people somehow don't seem to want to accept that it's true though, they prefer getting all Fifty Shades of Grey with their dogs...(which is part of why I avoid most of the dog training questions on AskMe these days, you can only have that discussion so many times before the willing and indefatigable ignorance takes its toll, despite the toll you know it's taking on the dogs some people own)...
posted by biscotti at 3:40 PM on August 16, 2014
"Hooligan Cocks" is my next band name.
posted by jaut at 4:21 PM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by jaut at 4:21 PM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]
Just after "Lesbian Superclutch"
posted by The Whelk at 4:36 PM on August 16, 2014 [6 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 4:36 PM on August 16, 2014 [6 favorites]
The picture of the baby cuckoo, larger than the nest it's in, being fed by its much smaller "parent", is kind of horrifying. This one. It has all the elements of terrifying science fiction or conspiracy theory: "Someone is killing your babies and taking all your food for itself... all your maternal love... the 'child of your heart' that you're protecting and feeding and loving is actually an oversized alien who has hijacked your instincts..."
(I'm clearly not a writer of good fiction. But you get the idea, I hope.)
posted by clawsoon at 6:46 PM on August 16, 2014
(I'm clearly not a writer of good fiction. But you get the idea, I hope.)
posted by clawsoon at 6:46 PM on August 16, 2014
This is great stuff. The author has a real talent for presenting scientific literature in an interesting and accessible manner.
posted by sophist at 9:25 PM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by sophist at 9:25 PM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by Arandia at 10:03 AM on August 16, 2014 [1 favorite]