It was lovely waking up feeling Boy at my feet. As if sensing I was awake or really, feeling my foot move, he walked over to my face and let me hug and pet him for the longest time. :) That is bliss.

Just after breakfast, Boy threw up his whole meal. Brown and clear biscuits. Poor child. He was eating them back when I ran out to check after hearing someone throw up. I dabbed it up and petted him before rushing off for work.

His Dad said he'd thrown up before, especially after eating our plants, my fern, particularly. I had checked and the fern is safe. He's happily napping beside me on his couch now. :D

A fairly restful weekend.

I have no recollection of what happened on Saturday but on Sunday, I received an acceptance email from John Klima, editor of Electric Velocipede for 2 poems: Miss Cossie's Pies and The World's Edge. That inspired me to clean up the extra 7 poems and send another 2 batches out. :)

Meanwhile, finished Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

Spoiler alert!

Engaging as always, but the flashbacks to Riddle's life was disconcerting and seemingly a little unnecessary. Those who feel traumatised about Dumbledore's alleged demise can seek therapy here. The romances seemed very clumsy, save for the amusing tension between Hermione and Ron. Harry falling for Ginny seemed a bit abrupt, like a quick add-in after writing off Cho.

Just as well I guess, the girl they chose to play her in the next movie was not quite what I imagined Cho to be. I guess it is a different perception of what an Asian beauty ought to be. The actors playing Fleur, Cedric, and Krum didn't match or even come close to the ones I imagined.

After the brilliant and perfect casting of the first 3 movies, I was rather disappointed with the new supporting cast. I doubt I'll watch the movie till I finish reading Book 7. I'd rather preserve my original visuals of the story.

I finally started on Queen of the Damned. Oh, it is a draggy one. I fell asleep twice reading it over the weekend, and last week it never failed to put me to sleep. While the language is lyrical and very emotive, the story never quite seems to arrive at the crux of the damned story, which is about Akasha taking over the world. Halfway through now...

I've also begun watching Buffy Season 7. It's a dark one. Nice.

Do Animals Have Feelings?

Susan Rubinowitz and Dr. Nicholas Dodman build a pretty good case.

Animals may share some of the same feelings as man and may actually experience pain, grief and joy.

In 350 B.C., Aristotle found evidence of emotion in animals. "Some are good-tempered, sluggish, and little prone to ferocity, as the ox; others are quick-tempered, ferocious, and unteachable, as the wild boar," he wrote in The History of Animals.

Today, the proposition that animals share some of the same feelings as man – actually experiencing pain, grief, and joy – is winning more advocates. And animal rights activists point to that concept as a concrete reason to end man’s exploitation of animals. The reformers are getting help from biologist Marc Bekoff, of the University of Colorado, who has compiled a new book, The Smile of the Dolphin, (Discovery Books/Random House, $35) in which dozens of animal researchers explain why they believe animals have emotions.

The Grieving Chimp

In one chapter, primate expert Jane Goodall recounts the grief experienced by a chimpanzee child named Flint after his mother, Flo, died in Africa’s Gombe National Park. "Over the next three weeks, Flint became increasingly lethargic. He stopped eating, and he avoided other chimps, huddling in the vegetation close to where he’d last seen Flo," she writes.

The sad-eyed mourner made his way to the spot where his mother had lain, next to a stream, staring into the water until he died.

"Chimpanzees, differing from us genetically by only just over one percent, can’t be said to weep, for they don’t shed tears. Yet…they show behavior that’s associated with sadness, depression, and grief in humans: soft whimpering, crying sounds, listlessness, lack of appetite, avoidance of others," Goodall writes.

But are such animals truly "sad," in the sense that they realize something is lost that will never be regained? How can they be said to be happy, sad, or angry if they don’t perceive themselves as a separate being?, the skeptics ask. Others say it’s credible to count apes as capable of feeling, but a broad stretch to attribute emotions to lions or sheep.

"Does Flint reflect and say, 'I’m sad'? I don’t know if he does, but he’s behaving as if he’s sad, and there’s no reason to believe that he’s not sad," Bekoff says, adding that anyone who lives with a dog knows when she’s happy, sad, or fearful.

Human-Animal Bond

Clinton Sanders, a professor of sociology at the University of Connecticut, writes that he studied a guide-dog training program to find out more about the social bond between dogs and people.

"For people who depend on dogs for special assistance, knowing their animal companions’ thought processes and feelings is central to building an effective alliance," Sanders says. "The visually-impaired people with whom I talked often spoke of the special pleasure their dogs derived from doing the work they were trained for – and, in contrast, the embarrassment they obviously felt when they made mistakes."

Mother-Infant Bond

Jaak Panksepp, an expert in neuroscience at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, says he witnessed the power of the mother-infant bond when his two female cats, a mother and her daughter, each gave birth after building nests in closets on opposite ends of his long, ranch-style home.

The mother cat gave birth first, and the daughter, while awaiting her babies’ arrival, took charge of the mother’s brood, carrying them to her nest. "Then we had a few days of chaos, as mother and daughter repeatedly ferried the kittens between their domains," Panksepp recounts. "We know many of the neurochemistries that activate these strong (maternal) feelings. At the basic emotional level, all mammals are remarkably similar."

So, what does it mean to believe that animals have feelings? "It means they are not just objects with which we can do what we please," Bekoff says. But the broader implications of viewing animals with more sensitivity could mean dramatic societal changes, like stopping the factory production of meat for humans, or granting animals more rights.

"I think it will have a subtle, slow impact," says Bekoff, who’s a vegetarian. "I think the world is going to be different."

GeneSat-1: Small Satellite Tackles Big Biology Questions

As a potential forerunner to follow-on technology modules, GeneSat-1’s goal is to help devise protocols for the study of genetic changes arising from the unique space environment. Back here on Earth, advances in therapeutics have come from delving into biological mechanisms and pathways at the molecular level.

Similarly, skill in thwarting bone density loss, muscle atrophy, and a stressed immune system—debilitating effects observed on long-duration space missions—could benefit from GeneSat-1 and future gene/protein array analyzers flown in space.

Validating the GeneSat-1 in Earth orbit could foster its use to study biological changes in microorganisms and other specimens on the Moon and elsewhere in deep space. Data results are transmitted to Earth, requiring no specimen return.

Just as there have been advancements in small satellite technology, a revolution in the biological and medical sciences has been underway over the past 15-20 years, Bruce Yost, deputy project manager of the GeneSat-1 work for Defouw Engineering at NASA Ames, said. "You don’t need large amounts of tissue or samples to probe and understand what it is you are trying to determine," he told the small satellite meeting here.

These two developments – small satellites and biological research—have "intersected quite nicely," Yost said.

Russian Clipper Ship Draws European Interest

Europe is eying Russia’s proposed crew-carrying Clipper spaceship, not only for use in International Space Station operations, but also to carve out their role in future Moon, Mars and beyond exploration.

The Russian Clipper would be a sporty replacement for the venerable Soyuz spacecraft and would feature abilities like those touted for NASA’s drawing board vision of a Crew Exploration Vehicle, or CEV.

It is expected that a decision on Europe’s future involvement in the Russian Clipper concept will be made this December at a European Space Agency (ESA) Ministerial Council meeting.

Clippership stats

Russian space officials have explained that the still-to-be-built Clipper can carry six people: two pilots with the other four seats for astronauts or space tourists. The craft would be capable of hauling some 1,540 pounds (700 kilograms) of cargo.

In early statements, Russian space authorities have indicated that the Clipper could be in service in the 2010-2011 timeframe.

Clipper’s launch vehicle would be a Russian Onega rocket - a modified version of the Soyuz carrier rocket and could head spaceward from European as well as Russian spaceports.

ESA Looks East for Future Cooperation

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin stepped into a full-scale mockup of the Clipper spaceship at MAKS 2005, a Russian International Aviation and Space Salon, held August 16-21 in Zhukovsky, close to Moscow.

Putin was joined by the head of the Russian Federal Space Agency, Anatoly Perminov and the Director of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Launchers Program, Antonio Fabrizi. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov also participated.

ESA’s Fabrizi discussed with Putin future collaboration on projects such as Clipper, in which a number of ESA Member States, including Italy, France, Germany, Belgium and Spain have expressed interest.

The mockup of Russia’s Clipper design has been making the rounds of late. It was showcased in June at the Paris Air Show.

The multi-use vehicle was part of Russia’s Rosaviakosmos display at the Pairs Air Show. Rosaviakosmos is Russia’s Federal Space Agency, with the Clipper design a product of that country’s Energia Rocket and Space Corporation.

Starting point studies

In July, Space News reporter, Peter de Selding, noted that the proposed Clipper vehicle could be the basis of a future crew-carrying vehicle that would provide an alternative to the U.S. Crew Exploration Vehicle, based on remarks from Daniel Sacotte, head of ESA’s Human Spaceflight program.

Sacotte said that ESA will propose to its governments in December that they fund a series of design studies, in cooperation with Russia, using Clipper as a starting point.

“We are discussing this with Japan as well,” Sacotte said. “What we want to do is to be in a position around 2007 or 2008 to ask our governments to fund a development program. If Clipper turns out to be credible, it could be based on that. Our starting point is that for an international space exploration program to depend on one craft is too risky.”

[Source: Space.com]

I am ecstatic to announce that Dark Dreams, my third and arguably darkest collection to date, will be joining Naked Snake Press's übercool chapbook series. :D I just received the news from Donna today and am still bouncing off the walls. XD

Found on Cat Welfare Blog

Mythic Delirium #12 is on sale now at Project Pulp. It has poems by Ursula K. Le Guin, Bruce Boston, and yours truly. :) Get it today!

Mythic Delirium Magazine
Issue 12

Edited by Mike Allen

Synopsis

Mythic Delirium is a biannual journal that publishes science fiction, fantasy, horror, surreal, and cross-genre poetry. We are interested in work that demonstrates ambition, that casts new light on genre tropes, that introduces readers to the legends of other cultures, that re-evaluates the myths of old from a modern perspective, that twists reality in unexpected ways. Our 12th issue features a classic reprint from Ursula K. Le Guin, plus terrific long experimental poems from Kendall Evans and Sonya Taaffe, and a medley of shorter works.

Poetry:

Genetics - Charles Saplak
Tarot in the Dungeon - Sonya Taaffe
The Magic of Crystals - Christina Sng
Rapunzel, Rapunzella - Kendall Evans
The Bitter Watches - David C. Kopaska-Merkel
Wordhoard - Ursula K. Le Guin
Survive - John Peery
Lost Over East Texas - Ann K. Schwader
Getting the Most Out of Your Retractive Tools - Robert Frazier
All That Surrounds Us - Roger Dutcher
The Last Cut - Jennifer Crow
Stardust - Marcie Lynn Tentchoff
Curse of Tinkerbell's Husband - Bruce Boston
Prosthetic Wings - K.S. Hardy
Eelgrass and Blue - Sonya Taaffe
The Damsel's Unicorn - Yoon Ha Lee

Artwork:

Tim Mullins
Don Eaves & Terrence Mollendor
Paula Friedlander
Bob Snare
Gary Bryant
Daniel Trout

Review Blurbs

Paul Di Filippo, Asimov's Science Fiction
"More fantastical stanzas can be found in the latest colorful issue of Mythic Delirium . . . . a zoo of wonders indeed."

My surreal poem The Art of Weaving received an Honourable Mention in the Year's Best Fantasy and Horror, 18th Annual Edition. This may well be my last nod unless I start writing again. It is an important incentive. It has always been my dream to see my work (not merely my name) in the same book as Neil Gaiman and other horror and science fiction luminaries.

Losing 2 years of work had been quite a blow to me at the same time when work swept me up in its wake of which I never quite recovered. Perhaps I just need to retreat to that place I am always at when I write, curled up under my blankets with my art book and black pen. Or it is simply a matter of commitment as it was when I first started. Not leaving the spot till I've written 5 poems, publishable or not.

It is a place to start weaving again. Tomorrow night. Actually, it is already tomorrow.

The premiere issue of Tales of the Talisman is now on sale at Project Pulp. This gorgeous glossy issue includes 2 of my poems "Medusa in LA" and "Passing Through". :)