Growing beards, graduation in COVID-19
A hairy notion
You can bet that there are a lot of men out there who are now sporting “Coronavirus Beards,” says the Association of Mature American Citizens. Living in isolation for long periods of time make it easy to put you off your daily personal hygiene routine and among the first to go is shaving. Men have many other reasons for growing their beards, not the least of which is to create an adventurous he-man look. But a new study published in the journal, Integrative Organismal Biology, suggests that the reason men began growing beards in the first place was for protection. Biologists used fake heads made of epoxy composites and found that those with furry faces were able to take a punch better than the bald faced samples. They propose that “the beard may function similar to the long hair of a lion’s mane, serving to protect vital areas like the throat and jaw from lethal attacks.”
A really early graduation
It’s graduation season and although the COVID crisis may have put a damper on the festivities that go along with this rite of passage. But, the celebration still brings a tear to the eyes of moms and dads. But the friends and family of 13-year-old Jack Rico are especially proud of their graduate, reports the Association of Mature American Citizens. No, Jack is not graduating from grammar school. Nor is he graduating from high school. Instead, this prodigy is the youngest person to graduate from of California college. To be specific, Jack has earned four associate degrees from Fullerton College and he did it in two years. But, he’s not done yet. Next stop for this fledgling teenager is the University of Nevada, which has granted him a full scholarship. What does he want to do with his life? “I’m still trying to figure it out, but I just want to focus on learning right now. That’s what I love to do,” says this boy wonder.
A dog’s tale
Spot, the sheep herding mechanical dog, is making a name for himself for his skill and, well, his doggedness, according to the Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC]. This is no shaggy dog story. Spot is for real, the brain-child of Massachusetts-based, Boston Dynamics, and the New Zealand-based software company, Rocos. They got together to show off the practical capabilities of robotics. And, they succeeded in proving that robots can, indeed, easily handle complex responsibilities in a demonstration herding sheep on a New Zealand sheep farm. Someone once said that herding sheep is like herding cats-- a daunting task, at best.