“The Fish in the Ocean are Literally the Canaries in the Coal Mine”

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What I've been thinking about...

Jun 18

A quote I heard today on talk radio, describing how environmental problems affect the oceans first.

In a way, I can agree that this is a very direct metaphor, but in a stronger way, uses like this of the word “literally” make me hulk out.

No, the fish are not literally the canaries. Yeesh.

The Dune Saga by Frank Herbert. All the usual speculations about science fiction, plus some of the deepest thoughts about politics, society, and human destiny I've read anywhere.
The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt. Morality from a psychologist's perspective, with a focus on major divides, like Liberal/Democrat, or Religious/Atheist. Haight sees through his self-delusions, and challenges us to do the same.
Microcosm by Carl Zimmer. A close look at what we can learn about ourselves inside our distant cousins, the single-celled organisms. Lots of evolutionary insight into what we are at this baser level!
Virus of the Mind by Richard Brodie. A book about memes... ideas and how they participate in their own evolution within human mind and society.
Godel, Escher, Bach the titanic work on math, music, and human consciousness by Douglas Hofstadter.
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. A favorite children's book that became an even more favorite adult book. Full of poetry, metaphor, and wisdom.
Out of Our Heads by Alva Noe. A book about consciousness, and idea that our conception of it should maybe cross the boundary of the skull!