In today's world where far too many people already defer spaying/neutering of pets, we have an article that provides another rationalization for those people.  Apparently, we should be concerned about our pets experiencing increased anxiety levels and even depression as a result.

I suppose we can ignore the fact that animals that are not spayed/neutered will experience higher risks for ovarian and testicular cancers. Equally, we can ignore the problems that are often accompanied by having sexually intact members of such species and the higher attendant behavioral risks that this often entails.  One can just imagine the fun and games of people keeping only stallions instead of geldings.

As a society we tend to fuss about creativity and its role in society.  While there is little doubt that creativity and innovation are immensely important in many endeavors, it is still an open question as to how important (or relevant) it is for the overwhelming majority of individuals.

Certainly most people want to be perceived as creative, and if you listen to them, you'll undoubtedly hear all manner of stories about how their creativity is being stifled by everyone ranging from the government to the educational system to their mother or their spouse.  Obviously no one understands them, or they would appreciate their inherent genius.

Can we stop the crap about "selfishness" and "altruism" when discussing animal behavior?  It's absolutely ridiculous the unnatural gyrations researchers go through to try and reconcile behaviors that clearly don't fit the prevailing theories.

The present "explanation" demonstrates how the altruistic behavior of some wasps (Polistes dominulus) is actually "selfish".  What kind of rubbish is this?

As some of you may be aware, this year the U.S. Congress finally passed the Zadroga Act which will compensate the first responders to the 9/11 attack as well as those that worked at the site for the following months for medical problems arising as a result of their efforts.

A sticking point has been that anyone filing claims must be able to demonstrate that any cancers are a direct result of their exposure at ground zero.

Needless to say, a recent study which has found no causal link to cancers has created some controversy.