The Sky Is Falling

The Sky is Falling word collage experiments continued January 16, 2009 compiled by Mary Ann Schaefer

Part 1. The Sky Is Falling, better known as Chicken Licken, Henny Penny or Chicken Little is an old fable about a chicken (or a hare in early versions) who believes the sky is falling. The phrase, "The sky is falling," has passed into the English language as a common idiom indicating a hysterical or mistaken belief that disaster is imminent. Origin Although sometimes mistakenly listed as one of Aesop's Fables, the story actually originates from the Jataka Tales of Buddhist Indian folklore. The basic motif and many of the elements of the tale can be found in the Daddabha Jataka (J 322). The Jatakas comprise a large body of folklore dating from around Gautama Buddha's time (6th century BC) to the third century AD. However, this ancient version features a hare as the central character rather than a chicken, and the wise protagonist is a lion (the Bodhisattva or future Buddha). from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sky_Is_Falling_(fable)

THE TENT Margaret Atwood Nan A. Talese/Doubleday Fiction/Essays ISBN: 1400097010

Never one to rest on her artistic laurels, Margaret Atwood, author of THE BLIND ASSASSIN and THE HANDMAID'S TALE, has compiled a clever sketchbook of images and ideas; short, imaginative prose pieces, one long-form poem, all complemented by her own illustrations. Poking fun at the archaic views of conventions such as motherhood, science and love, Atwood turns these ideas on their ear, as in her piece, "Chicken Little Goes Too Far," where the well-known nervous character who proclaims that the sky is falling gets a modern twist in this version. Here, he takes his announcement to the media and forms an environmentally conscious group, only to be assassinated by the head of a large development company who builds retirement communities in the sky.

from http://www.bookreporter.com/reviews2/0385516681.asp

Part 2. bird Noun a two-legged feathered creature, with a beak and two wings, with which most can fly Arabic: Chinese: Czech:

pták

Danish:

fugl

Dutch:

vogel

Estonian:

lind

Finnish:

lintu

French:

oiseau

German:

der Vogel

Greek:

πτηνό, πουλί

Hungarian:

madár

Icelandic:

fugl

Indonesian:

burung

Italian:

uccello

Japanese: Korean: Latvian:

putns

Lithuanian:

paukštis

Norwegian:

fugl

Polish:

ptak

Portuguese (Brazil):

ave

Portuguese (Portugal):

pássaro

Romanian:

pasăre

Russian:

птица

Slovak:

vták

Slovenian:

ptič

Spanish:

ave, pájaro

Swedish:

fågel

Turkish:

kuş

from http://translate.reference.com/browse/bird

Birds arrived on Earth. came insects, in the past. For years or they ruled the skies. But these were pioneers of the air. Think of them, in terms, as the planes of the Century. , years , and forms, Pterosaurs, or dinosaurs, took the ascendancy. These creatures had wings of skin, stretched between finger and their flanks. years they were joined by - or, as scientists say, they began to turn into - a , creature. The bird was born. And the biplane ceded mastery to equivalents of the 767, Concorde, the bomber, the fighter. A variety of types have come and gone and evolved to give us the species we know . the catastrophe that wiped out the dinosaurs - now believed to have been a meteor - birds have taken command of the skies. For a time, the mammals were , birds ruled the planet….

from http://www.pbs.org/lifeofbirds/evolution/index.html modifiers removed by MAS

LEHRER: What can bird intelligence teach us about the evolution of human intelligence? Birds and primates parted ways a long time ago. PEPPERBERG: Yes, primates and birds separated about 280 million years ago. But Alex's abilities show us that it’s important to examine parallel evolution and to be willing to examine how a brain functions, not only how it looks. The cortical-like area of the parrot brain looks nothing like human cortex, but it is derived from the same pallial areas as is human cortex, functions in a similar manner and takes up roughly the same proportion of space. We also must examine the conditions that likely selected for in[[tel[[li[[gence 7in tel$! j!ns8 in evolution. Grey parrots, for example, like nonhuman primates, are long-lived and exist in a complex ecological and social environment. Likely the same conditions that selected for intelligence in nonhuman primates were at work in the parrot lineage. from http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=bird-brains-parrots-smarter

Bird attacks influenced human evolution, researchers say Aug. 29, 2006 By Holly Wagner/Ohio State University and World Science staff Prehistoric birds of prey may have targeted our ancestors for meals so often that the threat of them helped drive human evolution, researchers say based on a study. Analyzing hundreds of modern monkey bones gathered below African eagles’ nests, the scientists found the birds are a severe menace to some of our primate cousins. They also concluded that the resulting bone injuries are suspiciously very like those on the skull of an ape-like child of human ancestors, found decades ago. It apparently has clawed-out eye sockets, they said.

A skull of a Diana monkey. The hole to the right of the nasal cavity was likely inflicted by an eagle, researchers say. (Photo by Jo McCulty, Ohio State University) "It seems that raptors have been a selective force in primate evolution for a long time," said W. Scott McGraw of Ohio State University, the study’s lead author. "Before this study I thought that eagles wouldn’t contribute that much to the mortality rate of primates in the forest. I couldn’t have been more wrong."

from http://www.world-science.net/othernews/060829_raptors.htm

PART 3. AIRCRAFT DIMENSIONS Overall length Height Fuselage diameter Maximum cabin width Cabin length Wingspan (geometric) Wing area (reference) Wing sweep (25% chord) Wheelbase Wheel track

metric

imperial

37.57 m. 11.76 m. 3.95 m. 3.70 m. 27.51 m. 34.10 m. 122.6 m2 25 degrees 12.64 m. 7.59 m.

123 ft. 3 in. 38 ft. 7 in. 13 ft. 12 ft. 1 in. 90 ft. 3 in. 111 ft. 10 in. 1,320 ft2 25 degrees 41 ft. 5 in. 24 ft. 11 in.

BASIC OPERATING DATA Engines Engine thrust range

metric

imperial

two CFM56-5 or IAE V2500

150 4,800 (5,700) km. 0.82 Mo. 37.41 m3

two CFM56-5 or IAE V2500 22,000-27,000 lb. slst 150 2,600 (3,000) nm. 0.82 Mo. 1,322 ft3

metric

imperial

111-120 kN

Typical passenger seating Range (w/max. passengers) Max. operating Mach number (Mmo) Bulk hold volume - Standard/option

DESIGN WEIGHTS Maximum ramp weight Maximum takeoff weight Maximum landing weight Maximum zero fuel weight Maximum fuel capacity Typical operating weight empty Typical volumetric payload

73.9 (77.4) tonnes

162.9 (170.6) lbs. x 1000 162 (169.8) lbs. x 73.5 (77) tonnes 1000 142.2 (145.5) 64.5 (66) tonnes lbs. x 1000 134.5 (137.8) 61 (62.5) tonnes lbs. x 1000 23,860 (29,840) 6,300 (7,885) US Litres gal. 42.4 tonnes 93.5 lbs. x 1000 16.6 tonnes 36.59 lbs. x 1000

http://www.airbus.com/en/aircraftfamilies/a320/a320/specifications.html

Photograph by Steven Day

Part 4.

Birds v. Planes Monday, Nov. 06, 1944

from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,803440,00.html Skip to comments.

Birds Hit Planes Every Day, but Don't Usually Cause Crashes (Environmentalists nix clearing birds) ABC News ^ | 01/16/2009 | NA Posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:22:44 AM by prisoner6

Excerpt: Andrew Maloney, an attorney and partner with Kreindler & Kreindler LLP in Manhattan, said the US Airways crash will very likely have a major impact on ongoing discussions about the bird problem at New York's LaGuardia Airport, where the plane took off today. Maloney, whose firm specializes in aviation issues, said city and Port Authority officials want to clear the area surrounding LaGuardia Airport of birds, but environmentalists don't want the birds, mostly seagulls and Canada geese, disturbed from their nesting grounds. LaGuardia, he said, was built on swampland and the main runway is just hundreds of yards away from Riker's Island, which with its grassy areas, trees and water access is prime nesting ground for birds. (Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ... TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: New York KEYWORDS: birds; environmentalists; laguardia

So the environmentalists almost killed a plane load of people. 1 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:22:44 AM by prisoner6 [ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies] To: prisoner6

Kill all birds. 2 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:24:12 AM by Rudder (The Main Stream Media is Our Enemy--get used to it.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

If the environmentalists had their way the title of this article would read “Plane hits birds, Kills many necessitating calls for for more regulations”. 3 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:27:34 AM by Man50D (Fair Tax, you earn it, you keep it!) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rudder

your reply sounds too close to home; my son has a severe dislike for birds...I have a severe dislike for for those who wish to save every species other than human. I don’t condone the killing of ALL game, just those that are overstocked and tasty with a good sauce. 4 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:29:54 AM by junkman_106 (The ACLU can go have aerial intercourse with a revolving glazed pastry.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

I wonder if this attorney was the same one who called into Hannity’s show yesterday when he was talking about this incident. The caller said that was ex-USAF and said that he specialized in aviation issues. 5 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:34:53 AM by Riley (The Fourth Estate is the Fifth Column.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

Geese are nasty, aggressive, destructive, filthy beasts. They’re not even all that good to eat and they deposit huge amounts of excrement everywhere they go. 6 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:37:19 AM by Fresh Wind (Hey, Obama! Where's my check?) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: Man50D

Environmentalists are comfortable speaking out because by miracle nobody died. Enviros are sick, liberals are sick. They need to be removed from the national scene McCarthy style and replaced with American values. 7 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:37:34 AM by omega4179 (Bush Abandoned Ramos and Compean) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies] To: Riley

Oh yeah! I remember that call. It might have been the same guy. 8 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:38:48 AM by prisoner6 (Right Wing Nuts hold the country together as the loose screws of the Left fall out.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies] To: junkman_106

Barbecue all birds. 9 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:40:19 AM by Rudder (The Main Stream Media is Our Enemy--get used to it.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

The plane was 3000 feet over the Bronx when the strike occurred. Clearing birds from around LGA wouldn’t have mattered. 10 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:43:12 AM by Moonman62 (The issue of whether cheap labor makes America great should have been settled by the Civil War.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: Fresh Wind

The Canadian Geese have been BIG problem in Pittsburgh. Last year and this year the county has OK'd the killing of some. Of course the environmentalists/PETA types have complained. This year a councilman is threatening a lawsuit because the hunt was done in

an area where some people actually are dumb enough to feed the Geese. The councilman claims it's against the law to hunt their because the birds are being baited. 11 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:46:02 AM by prisoner6 (Right Wing Nuts hold the country together as the loose screws of the Left fall out.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies] To: Moonman62

Didn't know about the altitude, however the birds might have been heading to the sanctuary and been in the flight path. Even if not I'd still clear birds from areas near airports. 12 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:49:14 AM by prisoner6 (Right Wing Nuts hold the country together as the loose screws of the Left fall out.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

We can’t get rid of the birds until we get rid of the environmentalists. So it might seem counter-intuitive, but a solution to the bird problem actually begins with dropping environmentalists from planes. 13 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 4:59:26 AM by samtheman [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: samtheman

Coffee...nose...keyboard, LOL! EXCELLENT IDEA! 14 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:01:54 AM by prisoner6 (Right Wing Nuts hold the country together as the loose screws of the Left fall out.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies] To: Fresh Wind

They’re not even all that good to eat They eat grass all day, which just has to be full of pesticides and herbicides. I'd be scared to eat one unless I was literally starving. 15 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:06:26 AM by Hardastarboard (Why do I find the Toyota "Saved by Zero" ads so ironic?) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

Those “Canada Geese” are not really Canada Geese, but a hybrid of Canada Geese and domestic geese, bred by hunters to use as decoys. They are much more cold resistant, and much less able fliers than a real Canada Goose. If a goose is in New York in January, he is a hybrid who should be killed on sight as a persistent noxious invasive species. The enviro-weenies should be the very first ones signing up for permits. The fact that they are not reveals that they are more about the fluffy-bunny-fundraising aspects of environmentalism than they are about actually protecting the environment. 16 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:19:57 AM by gridlock (QUESTION AUTHORITY) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

Bush’s fault. 17 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:22:47 AM by don'tspeak4me [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Fresh Wind

and they can be quite mean! Goose! It’s what’s for dinner! 18 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:34:51 AM by a real Sheila (Going into my cave Jan 20. Come get me in 4 years.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

Like watermelons, ecowackies are green on the outside and red on the inside.

19 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:35:33 AM by atomic conspiracy (Victory in Iraq: Worst defeat for activist media since Goebbels shot himself.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: a real Sheila

Wife and I tried a goose for Christmas a long time ago. I like grease and dark meat but NOT THAT MUCH, LOL! Never did another one. Might try again someday. 20 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:40:08 AM by prisoner6 (Right Wing Nuts hold the country together as the loose screws of the Left fall out.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

"Birds Hit Planes Everday..." Yeah, right. Plane hits bird is more like it. 21 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:47:20 AM by CPOSharky (Coming up: Four years of Jimmuh Cartah on crack.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: samtheman

“As God is my witness, I thought environmentalists could fly!” 22 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:47:38 AM by 6SJ7 (Atlas Shrugged Mode: ON) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies] To: junkman_106

if there’s a choice between environmentalists and us on planet earth, then we should take appropriate actions! 23 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:48:32 AM by ken21 (people die and you never hear from them again.) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies] To: 6SJ7

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s SuperGore! (Plummeting to earth. And oh, my, what Gore at the bottom.) 24 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:49:07 AM by samtheman [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: don'tspeak4me

Bush’s fault. Wow. What's the Left going to do without these 2 words. Oh, I know. They're going to keep using them anyway, for years into the future. 25 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:50:40 AM by samtheman [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies] To: gridlock

Don't know about the hybrid business, but we have lived in east central Illinois for 40 years. When we first came here, there were no local geese in the summer. The only ones we saw were the migratory ones flying high in the fall & spring. Soon there were a few that stayed the summer & nested. The fish & wildlife people told us that these were a slightly bigger variety which had been exterminated locally in the pioneer days. There were some survivors & the area was being restocked. Now we have many more or less nonmigratory geese which disappear when the local lakes freeze over. Large flocks move south & north depending on the weather. I suspect that is what they saw in New York yesterday. Large flocks of geese going south a little ways to try to avoid a little cold. It is a problem resulting from the annual failure of global warming. 26 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:55:49 AM by Western Phil [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies] To: Western Phil

The problem is too many geese, too few hunters. 27 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 5:57:36 AM by Western Phil [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

“Maloney, whose firm specializes in aviation issues, said city and Port Authority officials want to clear the area surrounding LaGuardia Airport of birds, but environmentalists don’t want the birds, mostly seagulls and Canada geese, disturbed from their nesting grounds.” Sue the environmentalists. Bankrupt them. That is what Reagan would do. 28 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 6:11:52 AM by EQAndyBuzz ("Control the information, you control the people.") [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies] To: Fresh Wind

While you are at it, take out the migratory blackbirds. 29 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 6:23:40 AM by rusty millet [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies] To: prisoner6

Kill the damn birds. Enough is enough. There are a Quntillian number of birds alive on the this planet. When was the last time you got up in the morning and thought, “ Gee, I don’t think I get through the day because the Ivory-billed Woodpecker is extinct. 95% of all species that have ever lived are extinct. Who the hell cares! Shoot em, poison em, burn em or anything else you can think of. Absolute insanity. Maybe we should all strip down and sit in cages for PETA! 30 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 8:40:00 AM by Doc Savage ("Are you saying Jesus can't hit a curve ball? - Harris to Cerrano - Major League) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Moonman62

Every kill, everyWHERE MATTERS Dufus! 31 posted on Friday, January 16, 2009 8:41:01 AM by Doc Savage ("Are you saying Jesus can't hit a curve ball? - Harris to Cerrano - Major League) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies] Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

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Kevin Poormon, a senior research engineer at the University of Dayton Research Institute in Dayton, Ohio, tests the ability of airplanes and engines to withstand bird strikes. He fires four pound to eight pound birds at strategic points along aircraft from compressed gas guns at hundreds of miles per hour. He said he uses 'freshly killed' birds or a gelatin substitute ‘that has similar impact properties.’ http://www.planecrashinfo.com/cause.htm

part pi (3.1415926535897932384626433832795028

841971693993751058209749445923078164062862

089986280348253421170679821480865132823066 089986280348253421170679821480865132823066 470938446095505822317253594081284811174502 841027019385211055596446229489549303819644 288109756659334461284756482337867831652712 019091456485669234603486104543266482133936

072602491412737245870066063155881748815209

209628292540917153643678925903600113305305 209628292540917153643678925903600113305305 48820466521384146951941511609 Energy Cannot Be Created or Destroyed...) Destroyed...)

As illustrated in figure 1.1, there are four types of energy that are crucially important for airplanes, namely: • potential energy, which is proportional to the airplane’s altitude; • kinetic energy, which is proportional to the square of the airspeed; • the chemical energy in the fuel; and finally • the energy left behind in the air as the plane passes through, stirring the air and leaving it slightly warmer. There are of course other types of energy, but the four forms listed above are the ones pilots use all the time, so let’s concentrate on them for now.

Figure 1.1: Total Energy Cannot Be Created or Destroyed Energy has the remarkable property that it cannot be created or destroyed. Energy can flow from one region to an adjoining region, and it can be converted from one form to another ... but the amount of energy remains the same. This rule (which physicists call the law of conservation of energy) is not one of Newton’s laws; it was not even known in Newton’s day. Consider the analogy with freezing water: liquid water can be converted to ice and back again, yet the amount of H2O doesn’t change in the process. Similarly, if some water leaks away and we lose track of where it is, the number of H2O molecules hasn’t changed. Similar notions apply to energy, as illustrated in figure 1.1. Fuel energy can be converted to altitude; altitude can be exchanged for airspeed; altitude can be cashed in to pay for drag; et cetera. The amount of energy doesn’t change. The energy is just converted from one form to another. from http://www.av8n.com/how/htm/energy.html#sec-energy-conserved

present part if I didn’t know about a body, if I had no words for being hatched into warm-blooded existence with a four-chambered heart an airy skeleton illustrated plumage two folded forelimbs attached high and behind if I could be nothing else but this lifting up and soaring unthinkably among seasons and wind currents, direction and altitude, inevitably to alight anywhere, everywhere home in the moment I might be one.

© 2009 Mary Ann Schaefer