Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in FYI.
Blindsight
I wonder how many people with reflexive responses (whether of approval or disapproval) to Stanley Milgram’s famous experiment have read the book he generated from its results, Obedience to Authority. It’s a curious document. He vastly overimagines the degree to which authority and obedience are ingrained in human interactions. To demonstrate that people have provisional authority in some situations who don’t in normal circumstances, he points out that a shoe clerk can order you to stand in your sock feet, a barber to present your throat to his razor, a movie usher to take the seat she (usually) shows you with the flashlight she carries for guidance in the dark, and a bank teller to surrender your money. The last is the only one of these that bears any real colour of truth, and most of the means by which banks extract money from their ordinary customers are imposed by the invisible authority of custom, not that of tellers whom we’re likelier to regard as servants than masters (if we don’t regard them as equals momentarily attending to our needs).
By Martin Heavisides5 years ago in FYI
The Dark Side Of Black History
When we learn about black history in school, we learn about the great leaders from a dark time in American history, but we don't realize how that dark time came about. In this story, I will tell you how slavery in America began and the unique facts you never learned in a history book. Would you be shocked if I told you there were black slave owners in all of the original 13 colonies? Would you be surprised if I told you the first indentured servant to turn into a lifelong slave was the property of a black man? Would you be amazed to find out that he won this right to enslave the first American against the wills of his white neighbor in the court of law?
By Jen Benart5 years ago in FYI
Daylight Saving and The Illusion of Time
Growing up in the tropics, we had two seasons: dry and wet. From January to June, rainfall is scarce, the air is practically devoid of moisture, and the sun is hotter than usual, which, living on an island in the Caribbean, is saying a lot. Onwards from July, it is more common to be lulled to sleep by the pitter-patter of rain outside your windows. As a bonus, the threat of hurricanes is ever-present. With the acceleration of climate change, the line between these two seasons has become a bit more blurred.
By Laquesha Bailey5 years ago in FYI
Blindsight
I wonder how many people with reflexive responses (whether of approval or disapproval) to Stanley Milgram’s famous experiment have read the book he generated from its results, Obedience to Authority. It’s a curious document. He vastly overimagines the degree to which authority and obedience are ingrained in human interactions. To demonstrate that people have provisional authority in some situations who don’t in normal circumstances, he points out that a shoe clerk can order you to stand in your sock feet, a barber to present your throat to his razor, a movie usher to take the seat she (usually) shows you with the flashlight she carries for guidance in the dark, and a bank teller to surrender your money. The last is the only one of these that bears any real colour of truth, and most of the means by which banks extract money from their ordinary customers are imposed by the invisible authority of custom, not that of tellers whom we’re likelier to regard as servants than masters (if we don’t regard them as equals momentarily attending to our needs).
By Martin Heavisides5 years ago in FYI
The Lost Art of The Olympic World
Javelin, triple jump, 100m, boxing: all a sport to get excited about when we tune into our 4 yearly Olympics. If you're anything like me, the Olympics are an exciting way to get through the summer ( along with cocktails and late night barbeques ). I love sitting on the sofa with my cup of tea ( or cocktail ), while eating a chocolate éclair and telling myself "I could have been an athlete".
By Kayleigh Taylor5 years ago in FYI
Did You know? - The never-ending Rodent family
Rodents are among the most successful mammals in the world; almost half of all mammalian species belong to this family and their numbers are likely to be higher than the other mammals combined. This is due to their high reproduction rate: the house mouse reaches sexual maturity at 5-7 weeks and females can give birth to more than 50 pups every year as they can mate right after giving birth.
By Daniel Toth5 years ago in FYI
Biology, Lesson 101: The *Strange* Animal Kingdom
If you are looking for the answer to if aliens helped build the great pyramids, if DaVinci ever successfully flew or if the chicken came before the egg- this article isn’t for you. You are about to walk down a dark path of completely useless, semi-entertaining, and just plain weird information that you never knew you never knew. How did I come across this? Why was there any interest? It probably began when I watched a documentary about the Galapagos turtle and then it was just all downhill from there. A million questions that just had to be answered and honestly, the internet was just asking for trouble!
By Carissa Brown5 years ago in FYI
A Pandemic and an Apple
Little to nothing was known of germs and bacteria prior to the 17th century. The Bubonic Plague or as it was more commonly named, the Black Death, was a major pandemic that raged through the known world in the Middle Ages from time to time with the people having no knowledge of its origins. Superstition was rife in these times and infection was attributed to a number of things including bad air, evil spirits, poisoned wells, foreigners and sin amongst other things. Populations affected by the plague had little reason to suspect it was transmitted from rats and mice to humans by the bites of fleas. It was incredibly virulent and is now known to have been caused by the fleas being infected with the bacterium Yersinia Pestis.
By Michael Trigg5 years ago in FYI
