Have you ever watched a large flock of birds or a school of fish? Notice how they all tend to synchronize their movements? It can be mesmerizing to see how a large group of animals moves together. Scientists have a name for it — Swarm intelligence. Isn’t it unfortunate that we can’t do the same
There has been so much written about this year’s election. All indications are it really is a pivotal event in this country’s future. How pivotal? I don’t believe any president should be judged until twenty years have passed, but where we go from here will be fascinating to watch. Since we have been putting together
My favorite law is the Law of Unintended Consequences. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, as today, private companies were doing a brisk business delivering packages. The Post Office’s answer to this competition was Parcel Post, shipping packages through the mail, which began on January 1, 1913. It was a major innovation. Now almost
Since it is now November, I’m reposting my winter poem. It’s included in my poetry book Some Poems About Life, available on this website and Amazon.com. If nothing else, it will be a diversion from the election news. Perspective The son stood in the doorway,Behold a beautiful sight!As far as he could see,nothing but fluffy
Assuming everyone has survived Halloween, here’s a question — when we get scared, what impact does that have on our bodies? The surprising answer is, depending on the type of person you are, the effects can be more good than bad. Being in or even viewing a scary situation does cause physiological changes, like an
This is as close as I can come to a good Halloween story. It was originally published at BewilderingStories.com in Issue 612, and was an Editors’ Choice in the 2015 First Quarterly Review. It’s also included in my book Stories Short and Strange, available on this website and Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle versions (https://www.amazon.com/s?k=bob+welbaum&i=stripbooks&ref=nb_sb_noss). By the
When I was a cadet at the Air Force Academy, and a new class entered one year in the fall, there was one 4th classman (freshman) who stood out. He showed up with about two rows of ribbons on his uniform. By comparison, the rest of us normally had two total — the National Defense
Recently I mentioned that Disney author/historian Jim Korkis has released two new books — Vault of Walt Volume 9: Halloween Edition and Hidden Treasures of the Disney Cruise Line. From the Embarrassment of Riches Department — Jim is also releasing Secret Stories of EXTINCT Walt Disney World. Like so much of our lives today, it was
Day to day, we use methods that seem to meet our needs perfectly well. Then something upsets our routine and we have to find different ways of operating. And sometimes we realize the new ways are better than the old. Ever since I entered the teaching profession, I’ve been hearing how many elements of our
I’ve found another unknown chapter in the sordid U.S. history of systemic racism — in the 1830s until the Civil War, neither runaway slaves nor free Blacks were safe in New York City. This story actually begins with the Constitution. Article IV Section 2 contains the (now obsolete) “Fugitive Slave Clause” — “No Person held