Month: August 2017

One take on Helen Keller that was just too impressive not to share:

Despite being blind and deaf, she was a revolutionary advocate for the removal of stigmas associated with sight and hearing disorders, and became a world recognized author and lecturer.

That’s an odd enough description of what she did anyway, but…“despite”. Sure.

(The guy seems stuck on that one, anyway. Stevie Wonder? “Despite being blind since birth, his dedication resulted in stardom as a soulful singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer.” Not quite as crap funny as the other despite, but still.)

On the not-so-related note that turned up that page in some search results to begin with, another interesting take:

In 1923, President Henry L. Schloh and Treasurer Charles I. Hausmann of the Rego Construction Company discovered 17th century farmland in Forest Hills West, owned by Chinese farmers …and began developing 525 8-room one-family frame houses.

As you do, when you “discover” land inconveniently owned by Chinese farmers. Possibly in a pocket universe a few centuries out of sync with the rest of NYC.

A little more on that interesting bit of history I saw mentioned in passing elsewhere, before getting distracted by “despite”: #14: Chinese Farms in Queens

(Apparently from the 1870s-1880s, when a good number of Chinese people left the West Coast thanks to the widespread racist violence, through later immigration–and up until developers did drive them all out during the early 20th century. Haven’t had a chance yet to look through some of the other interesting-looking stuff on that blog.)

Border Wall could put more than 100 endangered species at risk, Rice professor says

typhlonectes:

Scott Egan, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary
biology at Rice, said evolutionary effects from the wall can change the
balance of nature along the border, which could put wildlife in the
area, including more than 100 endangered species, at risk.

“Some of the larger animals that will be threatened by the
border wall are the jaguar, ocelot, jaguarundi, Mexican gray wolf,
desert big horn sheep and pronghorn antelope,” Egan said.

Egan
said there are two important phenomena to consider when building any
type of barrier that interrupts animal or plant movement..

Border Wall could put more than 100 endangered species at risk, Rice professor says