India bans captive dolphin shows, says dolphins should be seen as ‘non-human persons’

themanofearth: In a bold move to protect the well-being of dolphins, India has moved to ban dolphin shows — a push that helps elevate their status from creatures of mere curiosity to one that borders more closely to the personhood we seem to share.

“Whereas cetaceans in general are highly intelligent and sensitive, and various scientists who have researched dolphin behavior have suggested that the unusually high intelligence; as compared to other animals means that dolphins should be seen as ‘non-human persons’ and as such should have their own specific rights and it’s morally unacceptable to keep them captive for entertainment purpose,” reads the ministry’s statement.

May 22 2013 8 notes

Reblogged from themanofearth

asteroidmind:

Photographer Shannon Bileski of Signature Exposures captured this beautiful photograph last Friday at Patricia Beach in Canada. It shows a bright meteor streaking through a sky filled with the green glow of the aurora borealis.

Bileski tells us she was out at the beach attempting to witness and photograph the northern lights with others from a photography club and an astronomy club.

The aurora was on and off all night, but at 11:10pm just as everyone else was packing up their camera gear, the green glow in the sky intensified. Bileski began snapping some shots with her Nikon D800 and Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 lens, with settings at f/3.2, 8s, and ISO 800.

Suddenly, during one of the 8-second exposures, there was an intense streak of light in the sky and bright green flashes. It was a meteor that had broken up in the atmosphere, and Bileski captured the whole event as the photo above.

To see such a bright meteor is a rare occurrence already, but to capture one on camera whizzing toward Earth through the northern lights? “Amazing,” Bileski says.