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March 2025
The Sun InterviewBy Mark LevitonHive MindLars Chittka on the Surprising Brainpower of Bees

Chittka: For me, understanding the minds of bees and other animals inspires a new respect for nature. Many conservation efforts—and there are a lot of people trying to rescue what’s left of the natural world—are motivated by the utility of these animals. This is especially the case with bees and insects. Many people are aware that bees are in trouble and that we ought to do something to help them, because they pollinate our crops. Many fruits and vegetables depend on bees’ pollination services: for example, melons, tomatoes, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, zucchini, pumpkins, cherries, cucumbers, squash, apples, and citrus fruits.
But that approach can’t work overall. If you’re really trying to protect nature, then it’s a complete package with many species, including annoying ones like wasps. So in addition to the utility argument, we must recognize that many of the animals around us are likely sentient—and thus quite possibly capable of experiencing the deterioration of their habitats. This creates a responsibility for us to do something about it.
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On a solo backpacking trip, in a desert military base, at a church revival

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Poetry

E-mail Elegy

Dedicated to e-mails from Save Darfur, War Child, Africa Action, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Free the Slaves, AIDS Action, and Doctors Without Borders. | How quietly they land, / bits of global sorrow accumulating like snowfall / as I teach a class, attend a meeting, / make a cup of tea.

By Adrie KusserowAugust 2012

Sy Safransky’s Notebook

July 2012

History laughs as the wind lifts her skirts. It’s too late for modesty now.

By Sy SafranskyJuly 2012

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By Krista BremerJune 2012

The Sun Interview

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Christopher Lane On What’s Wrong With Modern Psychiatry

There are more than a hundred more mental disorders in the DSM today than we had in 1968, including incredible new ones such as “sibling-relational problem” and even “partner-relational problem.”

By Arnie CooperMarch 2012

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By Krista BremerDecember 2011

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By Krista BremerJune 2011

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By Sy SafranskyDecember 2010

Sy Safransky’s Notebook

October 2010

My cat Nimbus is sick. Oil is fouling the Gulf of Mexico. The veterinarian, who makes house calls, will arrive soon in his twenty-four-foot-long animal hospital on wheels. I wonder how many miles to the gallon it gets. But with my cat’s well-being at stake, do I really care?

By Sy SafranskyOctober 2010

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By Sy SafranskyMay 2010

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By Sy SafranskyNovember 2009

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