Dear
Griffin Post
The Science of Flies and the Truth Behind our Fascination with Celebrities
By: Ariana Larson
11/15/2024
Why do flies like stinky stuff?
Question From: Ibrahim
Think of the stinkiest things you have smelled. That might include bodily excrements, skunks, trash, and dead animals. The last two objects mentioned might attract flies if left out for too long. What flies do with waste is significant to their survival and also aids law enforcement in the investigation of deaths.
The fly is an insect in the Diptera order, which means they are classified by having two wings (strangely enough, the order they belong to includes types of mosquitos too). The types of flies we see on things that emit a foul odor depend on what is producing said odor. Flies go to malodorous places because the decaying material can provide nutrients for larvae. Flies lay eggs on the waste, and when larvae hatch, the larvae eat the waste. Though we now know that, how do flies find this waste so quickly?
Flies use their antennae to find waste. Their antennae act a lot like your nose. When an object or person produces a smell, they send out specific molecules. When those molecules are breathed in via your nose, they set off smell receptors. Those receptors send a signal to your brain telling you what you smell. The same thing happens with flies, but with antennae instead of a nose. Also, their antennae are especially attuned to find the source of the waste they are detecting. Flies finding all our trash can sometimes be annoying. Very annoying. But this ability can help a lot of people.
For example, flies can help law enforcement when someone dies in a crime. Police and forensic investigators can use the type of fly and the stage of life a fly is at to determine many things to solve a case. Forensic entomology (using bugs to solve a crime) can be used to find how long ago a person died using the type of fly and the stage of life the fly found (near the body) is at. Additionally, if a type of fly is not common where the body was found, but it is common somewhere else, it could be assumed the body was moved.
To conclude, flies can use their antennae to find waste far away. When they find waste, they lay their eggs there so their larvae have food to eat. They can sometimes be pests, but they can help police investigators determine valuable information about what happened in a criminal case.
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Why do people feel drawn towards certain celebrities?
Question From: Alexis Dear
There are many people that we collectively hear of, but aren’t close to or friends with us. They are called celebrities. We don't usually interact with them on a daily basis like we do with our friends and family, but we know a lot about them. For example, I could name random names and most people in the room would know them. (There are also people who don’t know celebrities, and I am usually part of that group. Please don’t be mean to us.) Celebrities can become famous because people can like them since other people like them.
That might sound complex and confusing, but it can be explained very simply. If a lot of people at school like croissants, you will want to try a croissant or eat croissants for a snack. You would probably do that because you want to fit in. People have wanted to fit in for thousands of years, ever since we started living in groups together. The best way to survive was to have everyone in the group want you, so they would allow you to enjoy the benefits of staying in the group. Another reason why we like certain celebrities, is that we seek out qualities that we lack in them.
If you feel you lack something, be it friends, self-esteem, or something else, it would be human nature to surround yourself with people you think have an abundance of that thing. This would be another reason someone would be obsessed with a certain celebrity. The person might look prettier or have more friends than you feel like you do. But, usually, that isn’t the case.
The place we can see and obsess over celebrities the most is social media. And not all of it is true. Online, someone can look all perfect and have the best life. However, in reality, they aren't living the dream. They could orchestrate a video or only show part of what happened in a situation. It’s like if you bit out of an apple and turned it around so all people saw of the apple was the whole part. You don’t want to show the bad parts of your life because you want people to think highly of you (this also ties back to wanting to fit in).
To summarize, celebrities are people that are collectively known in society. People feel drawn to certain celebrities for two reasons. One would be to fit in because everyone else likes them. The second reason would be that they look like they have an admirable life, and people want it. However, this is not true, they are human, and their life is only slightly less hard. A regular person and a celebrity are entirely parasocial, meaning they might be the center of your life, but they don’t even know you exist. You can combat your celebrity obsession with going outside, speaking with people you are close with (in real life like parents and friends), and distancing yourself from whatever is giving you access to stalking this celebrity.
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Sources:
Nature curiosity: How do flies find garbage and other stinky things?
The House Fly and Other Filth Flies Prevention and Control
We All Want to Fit In | Psychology Today
The Future of AI and the History of Math
By: Ariana Larson
10/18/2024
Will AI grow enough to stop humanity ? If so, is there a solution to stop it?
Question From: Ibrahim
You’re home alone and doing your homework. You shout, “Alexa, what is the square root of 64?” even though no one else is there. Nevertheless, a cheery voice replies, “The square root of 64 is eight”. You might not know it, but voice assistants like Alexa and Google are forms of artificial intelligence or AI. In our advancing world, AI is appearing in more and more places.
One of the places where AI is included is on your devices. It is included in most software because instead of having a human carry out and solve a multitude of tasks, you can program a software to do it. AI can help a bit by predicting what you will search, but it can show itself on a larger scale in apps dedicated to it like ChatGPT. Although these forms of AI are current, the concept of AI was used in 1952 about 72 years ago!
The program was originally made to play a game of checkers with a human player independently. Three years later at a college workshop, the term Artificial Intelligence began to be used, even though the concept had been in the public’s eye since the late 1810s.
The idea of creating another independently thinking being has been pondered over since 1818 when Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was published. Since then, books have been written and movies have been made asking: What if we made new intelligent life forms (usually robots)? What would they do? We can only guess, but one of the major developers of AI has voiced concerns about the possibilities.
Geoffrey Hinton has worked at many software companies, most recently Google. He is considered the godfather of AI for his work with developing AI. Now, he is trying to warn people about the dangers of AI. Hinton acknowledges that it may seem far off in the future, but he says it’s actually closer than we think. With all this bad news, what should we do?
There have been measures taken to prevent the future domination of AI, like a letter suggesting that we should pause work on AI. Over 33,000 researchers and technologists have signed this letter. It sounds like a lot; however, it’s not enough. You could help this cause by limiting your dependence on AI. For example, try thinking things through yourself and being creative, not just asking questions to a chatbot.
To conclude, artificial intelligence can be found in a variety of places. Even though it is a fairly new technology, the idea has been around since the start of science fiction. Ironically enough, like in science fiction, we are facing the threat of it taking over. Thankfully, we don’t have to fear just yet because there are measures we can take to mitigate the risks.
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How did math start?
Question From: Aanya
As annoying as the homework is, math is a subject you use in everyday life, no matter your job. It is overlooked a lot because you could just punch numbers into a calculator instead of solving math problems yourself. However, it is and has been important for daily life since ancient times.
The first artifacts containing mathematics were clay tablets from ancient Mesopotamia. There was mathematics in most ancient civilizations. Ancient Mesopotamia developed many mathematical concepts we still use today, like the base sixty system that we use for time. Despite Mesopotamia’s mathematical prowess, the most evidence of sophisticated mathematics is found in Arabia. This is where the mathematician Muhammed ibn-Musa al-Khowarizmi used a system of formulas that today is known as algebra. In addition, by the tenth century, the number zero was in the Arabic numeral system.
Wait, why is zero important? It doesn't have any numerical value. Well, it has value in other mathematical areas. It developed in many physical areas. For example, in Mesoamerica, the Mayans used zeros to indicate different dates. Then, the Indian mathematicians were the first to give meaning to the number zero. Finally, in Arabia, zero was made a number. Zeros then got a role in what is now called algebra.
What did we use this new math for? At first, algebra was used to aid geometry. Geometry was used for dividing land and for architectural purposes. Then, when a basic understanding of principles was developed in ancient Greece, more complicated math could be learned. After this development, they could use the new, more advanced math to figure out other problems. The new, more complicated math allowed people to deal with astronomy, which then led to the development of recording time and making calendars.
Lastly, math has been around for millenia in most ancient cultures. So, it wasn’t developed by one person, it was a collection of ways and ideas that made today's math. Additionally, one of those ideas was the concept of zero, which aided the different forms of math, such as algebra and geometry.
Sources:
What is the history of artificial intelligence (AI)? | Tableau
Who invented computers? | Bricsys Blog
National Sci-Fi Day: Getting Started
'The godfather of AI' sounds alarm about potential dangers of AI : NPR
14 Dangers of Artificial Intelligence (AI) | Built In
Pause Giant AI Experiments: An Open Letter - Future of Life Institute
Who Invented Math? | Wonderopolis
Mathematics - Ancient Sources, History, Culture | Britannica
What is Zero in Math? Definition, Facts, and Examples
Mosquitoes and Michigan Lefts
By: Ariana Larson
10/04/2024
Why are mosquito bites so itchy?
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Summer can be defined by many things, good and bad. And for most people, a bad thing would be mosquitos. They are tiny buzzing vampires that not only take your blood but also leave the area were they bit you itchy for days. This begs the question: why are mosquito bites so itchy? But before we learn why they are so itchy, we need to know more about the insect itself.
A mosquito lives its life similar to most insects. It starts off from an egg and becomes a larva. Soon that larva grows into a pupa. Then that pupa is finally ready to emerge into an adult and make its own eggs, which brings us back to the topic of blood. Blood is basically the transport system for our bodies. So, even a little bit of blood can contain many different nutrients that would be vital to our (and other species’) survival. Our blood contains iron, proteins, and other types of amino acids, which are vital. However, blood is not their main meal. They have non-hemoglobin alternatives like fruit juice and nectar. Because of this, only the females bite us owing to the extra boost of iron needed to produce the eggs.
So, when a female mosquito comes down and bites you, why does the bite itch so
badly? Well, just like you, mosquitos have saliva (AKA spit), and when they bite you with their proboscis, some of their saliva gets injected in you. Gross, I know, your body thinks that too. This means the red lump you get is the response of your body to the saliva, which it deems an allergen.
If a mosquito bite is just basically an allergic reaction, itching mercilessly won’t do anything right? Wong. If you constantly scratch the wound, problems could occur. The bite may bleed, causing it to scab then potentially scar. Also, with the bleeding, blood out in the open could possibly lead to infection. All bad things, and it’s not just one hole the mosquito drank from. It’s six small ones. That’s because inside its proboscis is a sophisticated system of six small styles (try saying that five times fast). I would include a picture but a photo may be too nauseating for some readers (including this writer). Another bad thing a mosquito bite can give you is disease. Like viruses, parasites, and other forms of sickness.
There are many different ways of alleviating the discomfort of the bite, such as wearing bugspary to help prevent most of the bites in the first place. There are products to soothe the itchiness like anti-itch and antihistamine creams (histamine is the thing that causes the bug bite to cause an allergic reaction). There’s also technology like the suction-powered gadget “The Bug-Bite Thing,” and of course the long list of home remedies.
All in all, mosquito bites are so itchy because our body perceives mosquito saliva as a threat and try to counter it. So, remember next time you want to itch the bites, at least you know why they’re there in the first place.
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Why do we have Michigan Lefts?
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Why didn’t the chicken turn left at the intersection? Because he was in Michigan. A Michigan Left is a very strange concept. It leaves many people confused when they first come here. However it is more than just an indulgence Michiganders enjoy, it is a very important process to prevent lethal accidents.
How do you do a Michigan Left though? Let’s take a two lane intersection for example. If you live in a normal place you would cross two lanes before you turn left. A Michigan Left is when, instead of doing the former procedure, you turn right first, then you shift to the left and do a U-turn around the median. Now you are back on track on the road you originally wanted to turn to. Still why be so extra and add all those steps?
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Well, in the 1960s, Thomas Maleck, a traffic engineer, was assigned the task to help decongest traffic. Even though he credits the concept to another person, Don Snakey, the idea was a hit. Now the concept is seen all over Michigan, even in places it isn’t needed. But why is it such a good idea?
Remember those two lanes we crossed over at the start of the article? Well, now we’re crossing them again but in one of those lanes there is a car coming at you from the right. They hit you right as you’re crossing the lane. Wherever they could've hit you, they hit you on the left side with full force, injuring or sadly killing everyone on the left side (including the driver). If we had the Michigan Left, they would’ve just hit our back, or had time to slow down and stop.
Reading this, it may just seem like it just helps in those specific scenarios that rarely happen. However, Michigan Lefts have prevented thirty to sixty percent of accidents. It also has been shown to relieve traffic congestion and also protect not just cars but bicyclists and pedestrians.
Even if it has been overused or been a foreign creation, it is and has been very helpful. It isn’t just found in Michigan, either. It is not called a “Michigan Left,” but the same idea is found in Louisiana, Texas, Utah, North Carolina, Arizona and even other countries like Mexico and Australia (oddly enough because they drive on the left side of the road already). Nevertheless it has been helpful in saving countless lives.
To conclude, the Michigan Left is an action taken by many drivers in Michigan and beyond to avoid directly turning left. Even though it seems excessive, it has been proven to alleviate accident injuries and help decongest traffic. So, next time you get nauseous because of how crazy you’re turning, remember you’re turning like that for a reason.
Sources:
WATCH: Mosquitoes Use 6 Needles To Suck Your Blood : Shots - Health News : NPR
Mosquito Bites: What They Look Like, Why They Itch & Treatment
CuriosiD: Where Did the Michigan Left Come From? - WDET 101.9 FM