“A growing cluster of actors, musicians and viral internet stars have Fortnite in their crosshairs. The smash hit third-person shooter is free to play but generates mountains of revenue through in-game microtransactions. Those purchases lure avid Fortnite players to spend real-life cash on virtual cosmetic items, like special character skins (today: a winter skiing set!) and, most importantly, dance moves.
Now, Fortnite creator Epic Games faces two new lawsuits over dance moves: one from actor Alfonso Ribeiro, who played Carlton on the TV hit “Fresh Prince of Bel Air” in the 1990s and another from the family of Russell Horning, better known as “Backpack Kid,” who created a viral dance called “the Floss.” Horning’s lawsuit also names 2K Sports, maker of NBA 2K, for that game’s depiction of his dance. Earlier in December, rapper 2 Milly filed a lawsuit against Fortnite maker Epic over the game’s depiction of his dance move, the Milly Rock, which the game calls “Swipe it.”… ”
In other words, so many people have come to the general consensus that Donald Trump is an idiot that it actively affects Google’s algorithm which takes into account trillions of websites and web searches to try to match keywords with relevant images. This is a real world example of “If you look up x in the dictionary, you’ll find a picture of y” and the fact that the Republicans blame Google for “search results bias” instead of admitting that most people think that the current president is an idiot. That’s hilarious.
Me and Ryer working on a “dive” behavior with the long target pole.
This is a good example of how the behaviors people often like to malign as ‘forced tricks’ are entirely voluntary. Look how eagerly Ryer waits for that cue and then dives for the target.
Cool thing I learned:
A lot of these “tricks” are actually to help provide quality care for animals in the least stressful way possible
For example, trainers at the Minnesota Zoo train bears to touch their noses to batons (much like the otter is doing in the video) so that zookeepers can examine the bears without handling them. Getting bears to turn their heads, stand on their hind legs, or turn around helps zookeepers get a good look at how the bears look and move (which is important to monitor their health).
Baton training also provides the most amount of safety to trainers as possible, and bears willfully play and enjoy the activities and the treats that come with them.
Baton training also helps bears get vaccinated. Without being distracted by an activity and willfully exposing their sides to the trainers, bears would have to be tranquilized to receive their immunizations. That puts a lot of stress on the bear’s body and can be a traumatic experience.
When bears are distracted and happy, zookeepers can give them a quick shot and the bear hardly notices!
So yeah training can be for purposes that benefit the animals, not just for entertainment. But training could also be an enrichment activity that offers mental stimulation.
This is such a great explanation of all the husbandry training that we do. Some examples of husbandry behaviors in disguise that we have:
Dive: it gives the otters exercise, and it could be used for future research such as breath holding time, how swimming effects heart rate, etc so that we can keep learning more about these animals and their physiology.
Retrieve or Fetch: looks like just fun, but it can actually be used for animal safety. If a foreign object gets into the exhibit we can ask them to retrieve it so we can safely remove it.
Full Body Tactiles (touching them full handed on their back): looks like we are just petting the otter and showing off how much trust we have (which like yes kinda but keep listening), but actually it allows us to check body condition and feel for any lumps or swelling on their back. It can be great early detection for tumors, spinal problems, and hidden scabs.
I work at a zoo and the keepers are incredible with training. It is so so useful. By being able to do more veterinary-related conscious, the less stressful it is for the animal.
Once, it was before i started but, they even managed to get a full blood sample from the tail of a conscious tiger – purely by using his training. Its not for fun or show, its genuinely makes it easier and less stressful for everyone/every animal involved.
