“If you can’t love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else?” - RuPaul - - - - - - - - - - - “if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal.” - John F. Kennedy - - - - - - - - - - - - “Imagine finding someone you love more than anything in the world, who you would risk your life for but couldn’t marry. And you couldn’t have that special day the way your friends do – you know, wear the ring on your finger and have it mean the same thing as everybody else. Just put yourself in that person’s shoes. It makes me feel sick to my stomach …. When I shared a picture of my tattoo on my Twitter page and said, ‘ALL LOVE is equal,’ a lot of people mocked me – they said, ‘What happened to you? You used to be a Christian girl!’ And I said, ‘Well, if you were a true Christian, you would have your facts straight. Christianity is about love.’ The debate resulted in a lot of threats and hate mail to people who agreed and disagreed with me. At one point I had to say, ‘Dude, everyone lay off.’ Can’t people have friendly debates about sensitive topics without it turning into unnecessary threats?” - Pop star Miley Cyrus on her marriage equality tattoo - - - - - - - - - - -
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Wednesday, June 1, 2011

The World's Most Dangerous Animals - The Venomous Snake

Since we were on the subject of snakes yesterday, the next animal on my list of The World's Most Dangerous Animals is the Venomous Snake.  According to Wikipedia there are over "2,900 species of snakes on the planet."  Too bad we're not one of the countries who don't possess any whatsoever, Ireland, Iceland and New Zealand. Furthermore, "Of the 725 species of venomous snakes worldwide, only 250 are able to kill a human with one bite."  If you get bitten by a snake, you should rush to the hospital.  Do Not attempt to suck the venom out, cut the wound, or ice it. Head to the emergency room immediately.  I found the subject on anti-venom particularly interesting, I guess because we live in the United States, where Rattlesnakes, Copperheads, and Cottonmouths reside. 

I learned that in order to produce the anti-venom, scientists take the venom from Rattlesnakes, Copperheads and Cottonmouths and inject it into a horse (poor horsie), "in ever-increasing dosages" until the horse becomes immune to the venom. The mad scientists then draw blood from the horsie, separate the serum, purify, and freeze-dry it. They then return it to it's liquid state by adding sterile water - at this point it becomes anti-venom.  I just hope you don't own a Cobra, Mamba or Taipan, those anti-venoms are species-specific.

Responsible for: An estimated 50-125,000 fatalities a year.


Hangs out in: Africa, Asia and North America.


Method of dispatch: Snakes are very fast and any part of the human body is a good place for a bite, seeing as the venom can flow into the bloodstream within minutes; although those near major veins and arteries will travel faster. Snakes use their venom to paralyse their prey. A fully grown king cobra can rear up so it looks a man in the eye; others can spit venom into the eye. Nasty.


Useful avoidance techniques: Unsurprisingly, most people come a cropper when they try to harass a snake or draw close to it. Snakes will usually only attack if they’re feeling threatened so the short answer is: stay away! Wear stout boots if hiking and check either side of paths. Don’t mess about looking under rocks or fallen vegetation as you’ll get more than you bargained for. If you come across a snake, back away very slowly, as it can strike to half its length and sudden movements are likely to alarm it.

1 comment:

Ryan said...

Poor horsie indeed. :(

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- Blade 7184 aka Peter