111–120 of 177 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's good to always be asking that. As someone who often thinks "no, it doesn't", I think this kind of story is ok: it's not about politics or some kind of charged topic, it's just a random, interesting story. If you want one that's in need of flagging, the "big brother speech jamming gun" one is a great candidate.
So is it unhackerlike to be politically charged?
"Step one, therefore, would be to mount an intensive (and expensive) rat annihilation program. Residents would, no doubt, be happy to go rat-free, ..." I despise rats. Yet I find it disconcerting that the author just brushes this off as a triviality. We are perfectly happy saving one species by wiping out another.
Black rats are extremely common worldwide and are at no risk of extinction so nobody is 'wiping out' black rats. They're only talking about on Howe Island. The goal is not to avoid killing animals, it's to preserve biodiversity. Same reason people try to wipe out Kudzu, zebra mussels, snakeheads, rats, and other invasive species that displace endemic populations.
I don't imagine that black rats will become extinct, but we should not pretend as though the prospect of "wiping out" local populations of any species is anything other than a morally ambiguous activity.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's wrong too though: if I get 1000 people who love professional cycling news to sign up to HN and start upvoting articles about Alberto Contador, that doesn't mean it's on topic.
It's wrong only if you assume that guidelines should pertain to an absurd range of deliberately destructive yet highly implausible scenarios, as opposed actual problems that could regularly occur in their absence.
From the Wikipedia article on Dryococelus australis [1] "The ultimate goal is to produce a large population for re-introduction to Lord Howe Island if the project to eradicate the invasive rats is successful." I wonder what the 347 residents of Lord Howe Island think about this? It's an amazing story and all, but I sure wouldn't want a bunch of these insects introduced into my neighborhood. [1] http://en.wikipedia.or…
"Step one, therefore, would be to mount an intensive (and expensive) rat annihilation program. Residents would, no doubt, be happy to go rat-free, ..." I despise rats. Yet I find it disconcerting that the author just brushes this off as a triviality. We are perfectly happy saving one species by wiping out another.
They should import cats. Thats how they got rid from enormous rat population after Leningrad (current St.Petersburg, Russia) blockade during the WW2. That would be a natural way of annihilating rat population(passive killing).
'Look, I can explain,' he said.
Lord Vetinari lifted an eyebrow with the care of one who, having found--Terry Pratchett, _Making Money_
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Which is exactly why if we want to survive a nuclear war we need to start cross breeding with black rats and probably cockroaches.
Well that's an unpleasant mental image... However, cockroaches actually aren't any better at surviving radiation than any other species, mythbusters tried it.
Granted we would have to figure out a different neuro chemistry or physiology for having human level cognition on a much smaller energy budget.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
April 2003 - Attempts to begin a cull of hedgehogs on North Uist in the Western Isles have got under way. ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/2920067.stm ) April 2005 - Animal rights activists are trying to rescue hedgehogs as an annual cull gets under way in the Outer Hebrides. ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4406675.stm ) October 2005 - Protest over annual hedgehog cull ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland…
Also: Australia's efforts against the cane toad, invasive fish species all over the world introduced by humans for "sport", Florida's efforts against the Burmese python (which has become the dominant predator - even swallowing local adult alligators).
> invasive fish species all over the world
> introduced by humans for "sport"
Also, Florida has a lot of iguanas (which are non-native), especially in the Everglades, you just don't hear much about it because the pythons are a larger issue.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Wouldn't the cats eat the insects?
Not exactly their niche. They might hunt for insects, but it won't be enough in terms of energy acquired. So probably they will reduce in population until rats' population will restore back. And its good to keep rats busy. They won't wander as freely as they do now and hence eat less insects.
That's an awesome story! Initially I didn't like the genetic bottleneck created by just having one pair (i.e. that they should go back and get more now that they know how to care for them, perhaps as a swap) - but then I realized the original source on the island was probably a single individual, so they are all probably virtually clones anyway. Once they have enough they should sell some - tons of people would be de…
> Initially I didn't like the genetic bottleneck created by just having one pair (i.e. that they should go back and get more now that they know how to care for them, perhaps as a swap) - but then I realized the original source on the island was probably a single individual, so they are all probably virtually clones anyway. That's probably a problem when trying to save any endangered species. Given the challenges (and…