The program was wonderful and so informative. I knew that Monarchs migrated with different generations going only part of the way, but didn't really understand the specifics. As a child my brother and I "raised" them with milkweed in jars then got to see the crysallises (sp?)form and eventually release the butterflies. It was something I will never forget. When I was in elementary school a large group of migrating monarchs stopped for several days in a group of trees along Lake Whitney, near our very small school. The teachers loaded buses up and we got to go see the hundreds and hundreds of butterflies in this group of trees. What a sight! Thanks for the reminder about the program!

rouan, this was shown over here some months ago and was quite popular; we enjoy programmes with a bit of sunshine and warmth in them! I read Gerald Durrell's early books way back in the late '50's so can't remember how accurate the 'plot-line' is . . . not that it really matters as apparently GD made up a fair amount himself. ;-) I always wondered why 'Mother' was still looking after three virtually adult children when they could have been out earning a living and letting her get on with her own slightly gin-soaked life.

Irma, that's a good question! I was listening and watching with one ear and eye while doing other things. I don't remember hearing anything about tomatoes or potatoes, either. Maybe someone else will? Episode 2: Sex and Lies premieres this coming Wednesday, May 10. (It airs at 10:00 pm on my local PBS station.) Darwin’s book "On the Origin of Species" shook the scientific world and far beyond. Yet it was his next book, devoted entirely to orchids, which filled in gaps and firmed up his revolutionary ideas. Orchids have an ethereal beauty, whether growing hundreds of feet up in a misty rain forest or along the verges of busy suburban roads. But their exotic flowers are shaped for just one purpose: to draw in pollinators. Carol

"I've never understood how the common man can be conditioned to turn a blind eye to such horrors, how one mentally ill man can steer a country and so many of its people into a hate filled cloud of acceptance." I used to think that too, but no more. We are seeing first hand the power of a demagogue who can strike at the core of some people's fears to the point that they will follow him no matter what. Some become like a cult, believing that the world is coming to destruction by "the other" and only he can save them. Others go along with the power grab for what it gets for them, opting for the deal with the devil for personal gain despite what damage it brings to a nation and its people. Others simply become complicit by doing and saying nothing. There have been many studies done on how authoritarians accomplish their goals, and what to look out for... demonizing "the other" (be it immigrants, people of certain religion, race or ethnicity...), needing a "reichstag moment" a violent act that lends support to their idea of imminent danger and thus the need to grab power to "save" the nation, the big lie which will separate people from the actual truth as only the demagogue can be the source of any truth, and more. Timothy Snyder and Masha Gessen are just 2 suggested people to look up among many who have studied autocracy, how it arises and how to survive and combat it. ETA: Another article on 10 steps to autocracy: https://theconversation.com/so-you-want-to-be-an-autocrat-heres-the-10-point-checklist-125908