Looking differently

It's Christmas eve and I am sat very quickly typing up a Blog post before the bourbon sets in! I wanted to write an article based upon this piece of research published this week. However rather than write about human evolution and the aggressive nature of our species, pondering on whether this is something that is still evident - having been shoved around a few times in Christmas shopping I can say it is. As well as wondering whether we should be ashamed of the fact that we are a species that has survived most likely through baser instincts and notions as opposed to the cerebral and more insightful creatures we tend to paint ourselves as.

Instead however - and because it's Christmas so I wanted to write something a little more cheery - I came across the following idea while trawling through the internet (yes the whole internet!). Now please don't shout at me I am only re-posting what someone else has said - and probably not 100% accurately.

"Pollen is basically plant sperm, people get hayfever from it! Which means hayfever is pretty much an STD from plants. Added to that the fact that we don't want to be covered in plant sperm. So we are getting STD's from trees that are trying to sexually assault us!"

Now I am not saying that is true but it is an interesting way of looking at things. Just like the research into the evolution of the human hand, most people look at it and see an appendage for using and manipulating tools. However look at it another way and it is a weapon, and an effective one. Even though I still believe that humans evolved basically because of this:

It is the art of looking at things in multiple ways that makes us. It's like the glass half full/half empty example. There is the expectation that I should say the glass is half full - after all I am trying to be positive as much as possible in my blog. However I am a scientist and I really like this idea:

Which is it, if you think about it. The point I am trying to make in this blog is that we need in life and in teaching and in science to always be looking at the world in different ways.

It's a little likes the people/person who came up with this:

A year ago I started this blog as a way of looking differently at my working day. That is why the name of the blog is 'Good things in life' I was originally aiming to look at the good things in my day and through that improve my perception of being a teacher. As anyone who has regularly read this will know it has worked and that I love what I do now.

Now I am not saying we should look at the world too differently (we don't want a parallax error - the only bit of science my Dad seems to know about!) however perhaps a different thought is needed.

So just like the people who looked at the hand and thought 'I wonder why that evolved in the way it did to be different to other great ape hands' or looked at the amount of data transmitted in a sperm and related it to electronic data transmission I feel we need to start looking at the same things in a more subtle way.

Just like Christmas and all the people wandering around and complaining about not having sorted their presents sorted, surely they are not looking at the holiday in the right way?

That said I am going to wish you all a Merry Christmas and I will blog again in the Happy New Year!

Keep happy, keep going and keep looking for the 'Good things in life'!