Random Thought of the Day

Just had another earthquake.

Preliminary reports are 7.1 with the epicenter somewhere in Puebla. The alarm sounded a second after the quake started.

Coincidentally, today is the anniversary of the 1985 quake that leveled parts of the city. There was an earthquake drill in the morning.

Some odd reports are saying there were two earthquakes. No explanation. Some buildings fell in downtown Mex City. The airport's closed.

N. Korea missed on the first try?

Speaking of potential disaster, reports are Puerto Rico is going to get hit by worst storm ever recorded to hit it.

Quote: rxwine

N. Korea missed on the first try?

Parts of Mexico City are ugly, but not as ugly as Donald Trump's butt.

What do you think? Is it bad writing when a plot device needs a plot device to work?

Wow, we just got a fax.

I had to check the year.

I'd no idea we still had a fax machine anywhere in the office.

How does an aquatic species develop agriculture?

One way would be to use the shallow areas of ocean by beaches. Assuming a material they can build fencing or netting with, they could fence off relatively large volumes of terrain and keep out fish and other lifeforms, especially large predators. Then they can cultivate plants on the sea floor. With more fencing or netting they can contain fish or other animals in corrals and eventually eat them.

I've no clue what areas of ocean have more fertile soil than others, except for river deltas and volcanic vents. So deltas would be favored spots, as volcanic vents are too deep.

Being at the shore, and with access to rivers they can swim in against the current, they'd eventually find ways to exploit the land as well. This would be very hard if they can't breathe air, but not impossible. Figure the aquatic equivalent of leather at first to hold water they can breathe, and later on perhaps whole watertight suits for venturing on land, with water pumped in and out from the sea or rivers.

Why exploit land? Well, there would be plants and animals they could eat, and some they might domesticate. Also materials like wood and rock not found underwater. And fire, too. You can't have fire underwater. This may not be too obvious, but they could use it for many things, such as smelting metals from ores.

Eventually they may expand inland, building watertight buildings and pumping water to them. This would require rather sophisticated technology, but nothing more advanced than, say that found on Earth by the late iron age, say the 3rd century BCE onward.

Haven't heard if they are doing air drops over Puerto Rico. Seems like it would be a good idea. One pallet could supply an area quite a few things.

'Cause they sure are talking about the problem of getting stuff into different areas.

Red cross is flying in fifty ham radio operators but better would be to fly in some wifi drones and let the messages go directly.