Ed Yong recently wrote a book titled, An Immense World, about the difficulties inherent in trying to imagine what it's like to be an animal other than a human (spoiler alert: we suuuuuck at accepting the validity of other animals' experiences). At the heart of the book is the concept of Umwelt, or self-centered world.... Continue Reading →
Variations On An Odor Theme
My family and I hurry through the doors of the Wayzata Central Middle School, helped along by an icy late November breeze. It's the Sunday before Thanksgiving, and we're not there for a sporting event or a play, we're there to see the Wayzata Symphony Orchestra. When we lived in Los Angeles, I would regularly... Continue Reading →