ALL THE REST —  July 9
  

The Dance of the   Bees

In the field a given individual worker bee is likely to confine its visits to a definite species of flower. This is quite an advantage to both the bee and the flower. For the bee, familiarity with the floral architecture of a given species of plant assures quick access to the nectaries and saves time and effort. For the plant that is dependant on the bee for pollination, it assures that the bee will be loaded with the necessary pollen from the same plant species. The foraging bee must be able to recognize one type of flower from another. The bee must also be able to communicate the location of the desired flowers to the other workers of the hive.

Bees can recognize flowers by their colors. More important than color discrimination is their sense of smell. The fragrance of the visited flower clings to the hairs and body surface of the bee. When a bee discovers an abundant supply of flowers loaded with nectar, she excitedly returns to the hive. Covered with the fragrance of the flower, she begins to dance. Her activity attracts the attention of the other bees. The other bees follow her about keeping their antennae close to the returning bee. With their antennae they sense the odor of the flower. They then familiarize themselves with that fragrance and fly to the fields in search of flowers with the same fragrance.

The dance of the bees was first mentioned by Karl von Frisch. He published his studies of this activity of the honey bee in 1943. The dance of the bees is a precise pattern of movements performed by returning forager bees in order to communicate the direction and distance of a food source to other workers of the hive. The dance is performed on the vertical surface of the hive.

Two different kind of dances have been observed. One dance is the round dance. This dance is performed when food is nearby. Another dance is the waggle dance. This dance is done when the food source is further away. During the waggle dance the worker bee moves in a figure eight. The angle between the figure '8' and the vertical indicates the direction of the food source. In recent years some doubt has been cast on Frisch's complete interpretation of the dance. The work, however, of Karl von Frisch has greatly increased our knowledge of the life of the honey bee.

Tuesday- The workers

A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Proverbs 17:22 (NIV)

"What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity. These are but trifles, to be sure; but, scattered along life's pathway, the good they do is inconceivable."

Joseph Addison

Wrong Message?

The little church in the suburbs suddenly stopped buying from its regular office supply dealer. So, the dealer telephoned Deacon Brown to ask why. 

"I'll tell you why," shouted Deacon Brown. "Our church ordered some pencils from you to be used in the pews for visitors to register."

"Well, interrupted the dealer, "didn't you receive them yet?" 

"Oh, we received them all right," replied Deacon Brown. "However, you sent us some golf pencils...each stamped with the words, 'Play Golf Next Sunday.'" 

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THE SAGA OF MANAGEMENT REVIEW OF WRITING STYLE

Question: How many feet do mice have?

Original reply: Mice have four feet.

Mgmt. Comment: Elaborate!
Revision 1: Mice have five appendages, and four of them are feet.

Mgmt. Comment: No discussion of fifth appendage!
Revision 2: Mice have five appendages; four of them are feet and one is a tail.

Mgmt. Comment: What? Feet with no legs?

Revision 3: Mice have four legs, four feet and one tail per unit-mouse.
Mgmt. Comment: Confusing -- is that a total of 9 appendages?

Revision 4: Mice have four leg-foot assemblies and one tail assembly per body.
Mgmt. Comment: Does not fully discuss the issue!

Revision 5: Each mouse comes equipped with four legs and a tail. Each leg is equipped with a foot at the end opposite the body; the tail is not equipped with a foot.
Mgmt. Comment: Descriptive? Yes. Forceful? NO!

Revision 6: Allotment appendages for mice will be: Four leg-foot assemblies, one tail. Deviation from this policy is not permitted as it would constitute misapportionment of scarce appendage assets.
Mgmt. Comment: Too authoritative; stifles creativity!

Revision 7: Mice have four feet; each foot is attached to a small leg joined integrally with the overall mouse structural sub-system. Also attached to the mouse sub-system is a thin tail, non-functional and ornamental in nature.
Mgmt. Comment: Too verbose/scientific. Answer the question!

FINAL REVISION APPROVED BY MANAGEMENT:  Mice have four feet.

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A missionary, in Africa, was out taking a walk in the jungle.  Suddenly, he heard a noise from the brush in front of him.  It was a lion.  He started to back up and heard a noise from behind.  Sure enough, it was another lion.  He looked to his left and then to his right.  You guessed it, lions were on both sides.  It looked grim, so the missionary sat down where he was and started to read his Bible.  Shortly after he started reading, the lions jumped the missionary and ate him.

Moral of the story:  Never read between the lions.

From: Mark Wood <mwood1@mdc.com>

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When my father-in-law passed away, we had to clear out his home. We discarded many items and sold some others, but my husband decided to keep the beautiful but very heavy antique dining-room set. Our teenaged son helped us wrestle the set into our pickup truck. It took the whole day, but finally the table, chairs, and china cabinet were sitting in our own dining room.

"Just think," I said as I admired the furniture while my son sat resting. "This set is 100 years old. And one of these days, it will belong to you."

"Oh, no!" he replied with a stricken look on his face. "You mean I'm going to have to move this thing AGAIN?"

AdamsCathy@aol.com

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Q. Are you married?

A. No, I'm divorced.

Q. And what did your husband do before you divorced him?

A. A lot of things I didn't know about.

AdamsCathy@aol.com

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Little Johnny and Little Mary were talking one day. Little Mary asked "what is the highest number you have ever counted up?" "I counted up to 1,279 once" Johnny answered. "WoW! Really? Why did you stop at 1,279?"

Mary asked. "Because church was over."

AdamsCathy@aol.com

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TRUE FACT ...

Humans begin laughing at two to three months of age. Six year olds laugh about 300 times per day, while adults laugh from 15 to 100 times per day.

SOURCE: NYT, Dr. William F. Fry, Stanford University

Compost!  A rind is a terrible thing to waste! 

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~ The Singing Bus Driver ~

Author Joseph Campbell often talked about "following your bliss." I heard of a bus driver in Chicago who does just that.

He sings while he drives. That's right . . . SINGS! And I don't mean he sings softly to himself, either. He sings so that the whole bus can hear!
All day long he drives and sings.

He was once interviewed on Chicago television. He said that he is not actually a bus driver. "I'm a professional singer," he asserted. "I only drive the bus to get a captive audience every single day."

His "bliss" is not driving a bus, though that may be a source of enjoyment for some people. His bliss is singing. And the supervisors at the Chicago Transit Authority are perfectly happy about the whole arrangement. You see, people line up to ride his bus. They even let other busses pass by so they can ride with the "singing bus driver." They love it!

Here is a man who believes he knows why he was put here on earth. For him, it is to make people happy. And the more he sings, the more people he makes happy! He has found a way to align his purpose in living with his occupation. By following his bliss, he is actually living the kind of life he believes he was meant to live.

Not everybody can identify a purpose in life. But when you do, and when you pursue it, you will be living the kind of life you feel you were meant to live. And chances are . . . you will be happy.

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Source: As it appeared in WITandWISDOM, www.witandwisdom.org