Nina Munteanu's Blog, page 18

Absinthe: the Vilified Spirit

A glass of absinthe is as poetical as anything in the world…After the first glass you see things as you wish they were. After the second, you see things as they are not. Finally you see things as they really are—Oscar Wilde



When Toulouse and I toured Switzerland a few months ago, we spent some time wandering Altstadt Zurich, walking from Neiderdorfstrasse across the Limmat and along trendy Heinrichstrasse. There, we encountered absinthe in all its shapes and forms: from boldly displayed 1-li...

Sustainable Architecture: Learning from Nature & The Magic of Symbiosis

Those who are inspired by a model other than Nature, a mistress above all masters, are laboring in vain—Leonardo daVinci



Those of you who follow this blog know that I'm a science fiction author. The alien race in my book "Collision with Paradise" live 100% sustainably in a cooperative and synergistic partnership with their environment, including intelligent organic houses with self-cleaning floors and walls, heated, fueled and lit by organisms in a commensal relationship. Everything works on...

Our Obsession with Ownership

I just divested myself of a large portion of my "household" to allow me the freedom to go wandering ("not all who wander are lost…"). It felt good. Very good, in fact, which surprised me a little. It got me thinking…



Why is our culture so obsessed with ownership? We see something that is beautiful and we "want it". It is not enough to enjoy it; we must have it.



Surely, the most beautiful and precious things in our lives are those we don't—and can't—possess. The wind, the trees, the sky. The...

What Altruism in Animals can Teach Us About Ourselves

In spite of everything, I still believe that people really are good at heart – Anne Frank



In an article entitled "Human Morality: Innate or Learned" Rebekah Richards writes, "Morality, integrity, generosity, honor – these are concepts our society esteems, rewards, and expects. They are principles embodied by our cultural heroes, and values which we strive to develop in our children. But where do these qualities originate? Are we taught to be good, or do we possess innate virtue? Are we conde...

The Karma of House and Dog-Sitting in Mahone Bay: the Toulouse way

Some of you might know that I offered to house-sit for some friends who have a house right by the water in Mahone Bay, a lovely sea-side resort town in Nova Scotia. The house came with a young cocker spaniel-poodle (cockapoo) puppy, Ollie (short for Oliver). I thought, "Oh, Boy!"... Walks along the beach, playing fetch and rough-play (like I wouldn't do with a cat…) Toulouse wasn't so enamored. He agreed …though with some reserve (he's a great sport!).



What neither of us realized was that O...

Events That Will Change Everything: To Clone or not to Clone

…Ah, but man's reach should exceed his grasp, Or what's a heaven for?—Robert Browning



In the June 2010 issue of Scientific American, an article called "12 Events that will Change Everything" discusses the likelihood by 2050 of naturally occurring and human-made events that may dramatically change our world and how we perceive it and ourselves. Authors ranked each event on a scale from "very unlikely" to "almost certain". Events spanned from the wondrous and "less likely" discovery of extra d...

Darwin and Lemarck on Soft Inheritance

Evolution is the language of destiny. What is destiny, after all, but self-actualization? Walking the path that we—or something "greater" than us has blazed for us? What is evolution and through what mechanism do we evolve? If evolution is the language of destiny, then choice and selection are the words of evolution and "fractal ecology" is its delivery.



What is natural selection, after all? How do we define today a concept that Darwin originated 200 years ago in a time without bio-engineer...

Celebrating Womanhood: I am Woman I am Paradox

That which is yielding conquers the strong and the soft overcomes that which is hard--Lao Tse



There is a new woman out there. You can recognize her if you look carefully. She's the one who blithely embraces the typical man's world with panache, style and a confidence that may daunt without being hostile. She has no motive in doing this except to be the best she can be. In truth, she exudes the apparently paradoxical qualities of compassion and strength. She looks you directly in the eye, is ...