Monkeys With Weapons

Researchers have observed chimpanzees in the West African savannah making and using spears to hunt.  This is a major step in evolution in hunting for animals other than humans.  Although researchers have observed chimps throwing rocks, this is the first time they have seen chimpanzees actually brake branches off of trees and sharpen them into weapons.  After sharpening the sticks with their teeth, they violently stab into bush baby nests and eat the small animals they killed.  This use of wooden weapons leads scientists to believe that humans, similarly, crafted wooden weapons to hunt, instead of stone.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/22/AR2007022201007_2.html

I've heard of monkeys peeling bananas and riding bikes, but making weapons and killing things is scary.  It's interesting to think that they are evolving like us, slowly becoming more creative and innovative.   However, I'm also worried that they will start attacking humans and learn how to make better weapons.  Some kind of "Planet of the Apes" scenario where we are oppressed by chimps.  Aside from an irrational fear, this was the coolest article I've read in a long time.  Maybe ever.

View Angles for Photography

A view angle can be used to create compelling composition to a photo. By choosing unusual angle of view, one can create a composition that is something out of the ordinary.  You often see photos of famous sights that are photographed from the eye level and straight from in front of the sight. Many photos are taken from the most natural location and view angle which is of course logical. However, it means that many photos taken by different people from the same sight might look somewhat similar. That can be boring because the view in the photos is something that everybody sees while walking by the sight. The appeal of a photo can often be increased by choosing an unusual view angle instead of the natural one. A low view angle can be used to create interesting views.  

This article gives good advice on the use of camera angles.  I find it to be true that most photos are taken from eye level and I think its a little boring.  It would be a refreshing change to vary different shot angles and give a different perspective to the famous sights of the world.  I, for one, would prefer close up shots of most architecture over long-distance shots.

My Photograph

Lyin' Eyes by The Eagles

City girls just seem to find out early 
How to open doors with just a smile 
A rich old man 
And she won't have to worry 
She'll dress up all in lace and go in style 

Late at night a big old house gets lonely 
I guess ev'ry form of refuge has its price 
And it breaks her heart to think her love is 
Only given to a man with hands as cold as ice 

So she tells him she must go out for the evening 
To comfort an old friend who's feelin' down 
But he knows where she's goin' as she's leavin' 
She is headed for the cheatin' side of town 

You can't hide your lyin' eyes 
And your smile is a thin disguise 
I thought by now you'd realize 
There ain't no way to hide your lyin eyes 

On the other side of town a boy is waiting 
with fiery eyes and dreams no one could steal 
She drives on through the nice anticipating 
'Cause he makes her feel the way she used to feel 

She rushes to his arms, 
They fall together 
She whispers that it's only for awhile 
She swears that soon she'll be comin' back forever 
She pulls away and leaves him with a smile 

You can't hide your lyin' eyes 
And your smile is a thin disguise 
I thought by now you'd realize 
There ain't no way to hide you lyin' eyes 

She gets up and pours herself a strong one 
And stares out at the stars up in the sky 
Another night, it's gonna be a long one 
She draws the shade and hangs her head to cry 

She wonders how it ever got this crazy 
She thinks about a boy she knew in school 
Did she get tired or did she just get lazy? 
She's so far gone she feels just like a fool 

My, oh my, you sure know how to arrange things 
You set it up so well, so carefully 
Ain't it funny how your new life didn't change things 
You're still the same old girl you used to be 

You can't hide your lyin eyes 
And your smile is a thin disguise 
I thought by now you'd realize 
There ain't no way to hide your lyin' eyes 
There ain't no way to hide your lyin' eyes 
Honey, you can't hide your lyin' eyes

The Eagles are one of my all time favorite bands, and my favorite song is definitely Lyin' Eyes.  

It tells how a woman made a mistake in marrying for money and falls in love with another guy.

She cries over this guy because he makes her so happy, but she's also guiltily attached to her husband.

This song is narrated by a guy who obviously knew her well and could always tell she was lying through her eyes.

Question 1: Should Homer be considered an early feminist or an old-fashioned sexist?

I believe that homer should be considered an early feminist because of the way he portrays the goddesses in his writing.  Throughout history, women didn't have many rights until the 1900's, so Homers vision of the women in his writings was a revolutionary and unique way of thinking.  A good example of this is the goddess Artemis defies Hera and the gods in the Trojan War.  She keeps pushing Apollo to kill more Achaeans even though Hera forbids the Trojans winning.  Women certainly weren't as defiant in the days of ancient Greece, so it seems weird that she would be portrayed as having enough confidence to stand up for herself.  Another goddess that screams "feminist" is, of course, Athena.  She is the goddess of bravery, strength, wisdom, and combat.  In other words, the total opposite of a woman in those days.  Woman weren't always strong, wise, and violent, they cooked and cleaned all day.  This shows how Homer stands up for the power of women, and gives them a tougher, stronger look.

Women aren't usually aggressive or violent, but Homer decided that they could be as well with the goddess Hera.  Hera is a jealous, stubborn, hateful goddess, who does anything it takes to win, like taking out Artemis when she helped the Trojans.  Women were supposed to be humble housewives, not rough and tough go-getters.  Homer shows how women, too, can show their strength and fight for their beliefs by making them goddesses, people to worship and fear as powerful as kings.  By making almighty goddesses, Homer evens the playing field for the ladies and maybe takes men down a peg. But it's not just goddesses Homer wrote about, he created a nymph named Calypso as well.  She holds Odysseus as a love hostage on her island and refuses to give him up to the gods.  Once again, it was surprising for a woman to deny a man in ancient times, but it was a trait that Homer gave her.  This hints at Homer's idea that women are equal to men and shared the same rights to opinions.  By making women into idols of worship and even fearing them, he shows his beliefs that women have equal power and rights as men, which thus clarifies his position as an early feminist.