Niliketi mbele ya TV yangu siku ya Jumapili nikitazama awamu ya hivi punde ya mfululizo wa BBC/Discovery “Maisha”. Jambo la kwanza linalonijia akilini… “KWA NINI Oprah alichaguliwa kusimulia!?” Kwa kawaida, Nilingoja wadudu hao maalum kupeperushwa kabla sijablogu kuhusu hili, lakini kulazimika kumsikiliza Oprah kwa wiki chache zilizopita kumekuwa kukikuna nyuma ya macho yangu. Nadhani ningeweza kwenda nje na kununua toleo la BBC kwa sauti ya kitabia ya Sir David Attenborough badala yake…
Ili kupata mtego mzuri wa jinsi Oprah anavyochukiza, unaweza kutazama klipu sawa kwenye Ugunduzi. Sijawahi kufikiria Oprah kuwa kitu chochote karibu na nia ya kisayansi – na fahari yake msaada wa Jenny McCarthy inathibitisha uhakika. Kwa wale ambao hawajasasishwa – McCarthy ndiye mtetezi mkuu wa harakati za kupinga chanjo. Unaweza hata kufikia kuhusisha kampeni yake ya PR vifo vinavyoweza kuzuilika. Nitalazimika kurudi kwenye mada hii wakati mwingine.
Rudi kwenye mada iliyopo. Kulikuwa na picha za kushangaza za wadudu, na vignettes chache kuhusu maisha ya wadudu labda sijapata kuona. Inaonekana kama toleo la Marekani la Life limeandikwa upya kidogo bila mchango wowote wa ukweli. Mistari ya msingi hubadilishwa kutoka “hakuwa katika hali” kwa “uh-oh, inaonekana kama maumivu ya kichwa”. Inaonekana kama hatua chini kwangu, japo ndogo. Pia nilikerwa kidogo na kuzingatia kila mara kwa wanyama wenye uti wa mgongo – ndege wanaokula nzi, dubu wanaokula asali, mijusi wanaoiga Carabids – na nia ya anthropomorphizing, k.m.. mchwa “mafanikio makubwa ya jumuiya kubwa changamano… jambo la karibu zaidi katika asili kwa miji ya wanadamu”. Ingawa inaweza kuwa kweli kwamba makoloni makubwa ya chungu yanafanana na miji ya wanadamu, Nisingewaita “mafanikio ya taji ya wadudu”. Akili inashangaza katika utata, ndiyo – lakini kufunika marekebisho mengine yasiyo ya kijamii? Haya yote yanatokana na dhana potofu kwamba mageuzi yanajitahidi kupata sifa zinazofanana na za binadamu na yana mwelekeo.
Lakini hakuna kitu cha kukosoa sana. Kwa kuzingatia utofauti na ugumu wa ulimwengu wa wadudu, Nisingefurahishwa na wiki mbili za picha thabiti. Ningependa kuona kile kilichosalia kwenye sakafu ya chumba cha kukata!
I was equally mesmerized by the footage of those beetles (are they Chiasognathus granti?). I wonder if they are using wide-angle macro – I can’t imagine how else they are able to gain such amazing depth of field.
Your minor criticisms are certainly valid, but really the debate over directional evolution is beyond the general public’s capacity to grasp – I can live with having them still misinformed about that point if the program captivates their interest and makes them want to watch. Build respect and fascination for nature first, then worry about the details.
I blogged about the lizard/carabid mimicry thing about a year ago – go to “Contents” and look for “Tyrant ground beetles” under January 2009 (don’t want to link, because two will flag this as spam, and I’ve got a really good link in the next paragraph).
Regarding “vifo vinavyoweza kuzuilika”, Michael Specter touched on this in today’s edition of TED Talk Tuesdays.
nakubali, at some point you just have to be happy that it’s as good as it is and might pull someone into a deeper appreciation of nature. It just bugs me (ina) to see a valuable teachable moment slip past.
That’s a great TED video! I’ll have to re-post that soon.
Incredible video! The background music was perfect, and David is King. I laughed aloud at the final “toss”! I can’t bring myself to go watch the Oprah version (shudder).
I didn’t know that they changed the narration depending on where it was aired. Here in Aus we (kwa shukrani) get Attenborough. I don’t think it would be a proper BBC natural history doco without him!
As for the footage, all of it is superb but one shot really has stuck at the forefront of my memory. It is the amazing slow pan timelapse shot in the plants episode. If you haven’t seen it yet, you’re in for a treat.