Old Plots

Some authors wittingly or unwittingly repeat versions of the same plots in different novels. This is definitely the case in Jane Austen novels, it seems to me. ‘Pride and Prejudice’ seems to have clear parallels with ‘Sense and Sensibility’ for example: two sisters seek husbands; one is led astray temporarily by a rake (Wickam and Willoughby, respectively), but eventually end up marrying an aloof but sound type (Colonel Brandon and Mr Darcy). Even in ‘Emma’, which has a very different plotline, there is once again an untrustworthy young man (Frank Churchill) contrasted with a more mature and sensible one (Mr. Knightly).
Another author who seems to show plot repetition is Henry James whose novels I have been reading recently. For example, in both ‘Portrait of a Lady’ and ‘The Bostonians’ there are Svengali-figures (Gilbert Osmond and Selah Tarrant respectively), both fathers to rather dreamy young girls (Pansy Osmond and Verena Tarrant). Key characters also include uptight young ladies with varying degrees of fondness for the dreamy girls (Isobel Archer – the ‘lady’ whose portrait is being depicted, and the Bostonian Olive Chancellor).
Though I’m not unhappy about anticipating genre, I do feel a little cheated when I detect a repeated plot - it is almost as if the author didn’t work hard enough to find something new for their readers to get their teeth into. I appreciate that authors such as Austen were constrained by the period and circumstances in which they lived, but there’s far less excuse for contemporary authors. Hence I was a little disappointed to discover that the plot of Sebastian Barry’s recent novel , ‘On Canaan’s Side’ (which admittedly I haven’t yet read) sounds as if it has a great deal in common with ‘Secret Scriptures’. I suppose there is justification, however, if an author is exploring further into a particular theme, or continuing a story, particularly if the end result is of high quality.

The Mysteries of Orange Buddleja

I have two orange-flowered Buddleja (or Buddleia - apparently the 'j' form is the more correct) bushes in my garden,  both of which started out as cuttings from an ‘escapee’ growing in local woodland. This variety, is, according to Wikipedia, a hybrid called  Buddleja × weyeriana, the result of a cross between B. globosa × B. davidii. The latter is the purple variety commonly found on waste ground etc, and I avoided it because of its  vigorous growth. But the orange version seems to have a down side – possibly more than one.
Firstly, though its flowers are often visited by bees and flies etc, it does not seem to be well-patronised by butterflies. This is reflected to some extent by a RHS study, though it appears to be the size of the bush and number of flower-heads that matter most to Lepidoptera rather than the species of Buddleja. However, it is known that butterflies and many other insects can detect uv light, and may be guided by it when it comes to choosing plants for food or egg-laying (though scent may be a stronger stimunlus). It may be that B. x weyeriani is not selected because it is a relatively poor reflector of uv light - different species/colours of Buddleja apparently vary quite considerably in this respect.
My two orange Buddleja bushes are planted in different positions - one free-growing in rather poor, slightly acid soil, and the other in a large pot filled with bedding compost. The free-growing bush is thriving and flowering, the pot-bound one is not, though I suspect not because it is pot-bound since the free-growing one was originally in a much smaller pot with poor soil yet did very well. It's obvious that Buddleja species generally do well on poor soil, so my nutrient-rich compost is probably responsible for the difference in growth, though I haven't worked out why (there would be a clear reason in the case of leguminous plants, for example). The pot-bound bush has a companion - a passion-fruit plant (Passiflora caerulea)- which brings me to the second mystery of  B. x weyeriani: the passion-fruit is barely growing at all. The solution is clearly to re-home one or both of them, but I am curious as to why the passion-flower, a healthy, well-rooted plant from a really vigorous parent (sadly, not in my garden!) has fared so badly. I have wondered whether root allelopathy may be to blame, with the Buddleja producing chemicals that inhibit the growth of the passion-flower, however I can find no reference to this online. The free-growing plant doesn not seem to have affected the Hydrangea and Crocosmia plants near it, but that may be because those species are more resistent, or perhaps because any allelotoxins produced drain away more easily. Some experimentation is needed!

Dust to Dust

The origins of dust are many, including the dead cells we human shed continuously. Bearing in mind the annoying accumulation of dust in my own home, it has crossed my mind that some people may shed more dead cells than others, or do so at different rates. Hence dust accumulation within a fairly closed envrionment, say a bedroom in winter, might be a reasonable measure of metabolic rate. But, also bearing in mind the annoying accumulation of dust, albeit less dust, in rooms in my house into which no-one, not even the dog, goes for weeks on end, there are clearly other,  more clandestine, origins of the wretched stuff. Do dust-mites manage to multiply on the most meagre biological remnants? Or is it their own death that I am witnessing when I notice - infrequently, I confess - yet another coating of dust on what should be pristine shelves?

Tokophobia??

Back to the blog after a ridiculously long absence. Will try to resume in a regular manner!

An article in last Saturday’s Guardian (20.11.10) has prompted me to put key-strokes to blog: it was about ‘tokophobia’, the fear of childbirth. This was a new term for me, and took me by surprise. Surely most births entail total agony unless analgesia has been liberally administered: being afraid of such suffering seems quite reasonable to me, and hardly constitutes a ‘condition’ that needs a special name.
I have often wondered about the evolutionary significance of birth pain. I hope –like to think – that birth is not such a significant trauma for most mammals (except for theinfants being born), though it may be in the case of some domesticated/inbred animals. The sort of desperate, protracted labour experienced in a human birth would seem to confer many disadvantages: it weakens the mother, prevents her from obtaining food, makes her vulnerable to predators etc. But perhaps there are advantages, too: for example, the energy invested in childbirth might cause a mother to value her infant more. It’s likely that in some cases knowledge of the pain involved ensures that pregnancy is postponed until the urge for motherhood is strong, but that would hardly the case in prehistory and is still not likely for the vast majority of ‘modern’ women – ie. they have no choice in the matter.

Silly Squirrels; Brainy Badgers

There aren't many squirrels in my corner of Wales (and those that are here are sadly grey). One reason for this is that they are accustomed to sit in the middle of the road (rural, but q.busy) blithely unaware of the dangers presented by vehicles (I have had to get out of my car and usher them into a hedge on more than one occasion!). They also seem incapable of exploiting bird nuts in the way their urban cousins seem to. But - this is not a problem for our local badgers. If a nut container is low enough, the badger(s) gets up on its hind legs and clonks it until it falls off, hopefully causing it to release its contents (though it has no trouble pulling apart a metal nut holder). If the containers are too high up for this, but dangling from a free-standing bird-stand, they just push the whole thing over to get at the nuts.
On the face of the above anecdotes, ours badgers would seem to be more successful than our squirrels. Yet on the basis of numbers alone, I suspect that the squirrels do better because of their reproductive capacity. This has made me think about how you define 'success' - perhaps it is not just about numbers, or survival to reproduce, but about stability, both of the organism and the environment. Which reminds me that we humans regularly mess up the environment: our squirrels wouldn't seem so very silly if there wasn't a road meandering through their habitat.

Migraine - caused by viruses?

I've yet to read about a convincing cause of migraines. Some people seem to think that certain foods are a trigger (the latest idea is that they increase brain levels of serotonin), but not for me anyway. Changes in blood flow are also implicated (especially in the meningal region apparently), and it would make sense that vasodilation increases pressure within the cranium and hence produces the sensation of pain. But what causes the vasodilation?
I have a theory that it is due to inflammation (and this is backed up by my observation that anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen can be helpful), possibly caused by low-level viraemia - perhaps rhinoviruses or types of influenza. Presumably, the viruses would be located in endothelium, but could be associated with nervous tissue, just like Herpes Zoster in the case of shingles.
At first sight, the idea of 'brain pain' being caused by micro-organisms seems way off the mark, but then it took quite a time to recognise the importance of bacteria (Helicobacter pylori) for gastric ulcers.
It's an idea, anyway - all comments welcome!

Why invest in the Welsh Language?

There is currently a major consultation underway in Wales on the future strategy for Welsh-medium education. The consultation document outlines a number of proposals to increase Welsh-medium education for pre-and post-compulsory schooling, and for the workforce in Wales. These developments will cost money - some might argue that it will be wasted money given that English is the main language for commerce, medicine, the media etc in the UK if not the world, and that virtually everyone in Wales is able to communciate in English.

There are many reasons why the investment should be made. For a start, if your first language is Welsh, you should have the right to conduct your daily life in Welsh, the language of your country. You should not have to see your children have their schooling in a different language (as happened in the first half of the twentieth century), and you should not have to speak a different language to officials or tourists, just as in any other country, say France or Germany. But there is another, deeper reason: the Welsh language is inextricably tied up with its culture and history. Lose the language, and you will also lose the words, songs, customs of centuries. A example of this was suggested in a recent Radio 4 programme (Open Country) about land in the north-east of England that was lost after a rise in sea-level after the last Ice Age. One of the historians on the programme mentioned that there is little folklore in that part of the UK referring to innundations, wheras in Wales there are many such tales ( eg. the story of 'Cantre'r Gwaelod'). One reason for this could be that there was far more continuity of peoples and language in the west than in the much-invaded east.

Without a concerted effort, the Welsh language will disappear, along with many other minor languages. Just as in the realms of biology, each linguistic extinction will make our world a little poorer.