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Rick LeCouteur
Inviting young readers to marvel at the wonder of nature's creatures
Rick's Blog
#bunyipsbooksbeyond
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Evolution Explained: Separating fact from fiction (#374)
Giraffes didn’t evolve long necks just to reach high leaves – though that may play a role. The more compelling evolutionary explanation...
Rick LeCouteur
Jul 204 min read
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The Interrobang in Vet Med: When "?" or "!" alone just doesn't cut it (#372)
Ever seen this combo – !? – at the end of a sentence and wondered what it means? It’s called an interrobang  – a fascinating piece of...
Rick LeCouteur
Jul 182 min read
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Nonetheless vs. Nevertheless: A Tale of Two Adverbs (#363)
If you’ve ever paused mid-sentence, wondering whether to use nonetheless or nevertheless , you’re not alone.  Both words seem...
Rick LeCouteur
Jul 12 min read
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Cut That Out! The overlooked editing trick (#358)
Growing up in Australia, where “proper English" was prized and verbosity often mistaken for precision, I was slow to appreciate the...
Rick LeCouteur
Jun 232 min read
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Speaking Truth to Power: A lesson from Cassius and Murrow (#344)
Cassius  (the younger man pointing) and  Brutus  (the older man listening) from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar . In the winter of 1954,...
Rick LeCouteur
Jun 72 min read
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The World Is Waiting: Turn the Page (#342)
Saint Augustine , philosopher, theologian, and one of the towering intellects of the early Christian church, left behind many timeless...
Rick LeCouteur
Jun 62 min read
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Crows & Ravens: The consciousness of corvids (#330)
As children, many of us watched a crow tilt its head or a raven glide overhead and wondered: What’s going on inside their minds?  For...
Rick LeCouteur
May 264 min read
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Why Orange Cats Are (Mostly) Boys: Science cracks the code (#329)
For years, the genetic mystery of orange cats has gone unsolved. While their personalities have long inspired memes, comic strips, and...
Rick LeCouteur
May 264 min read
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When Nature Imitates Politics: The southern flannel moth (#328)
Deep within the forests of the southeastern United States and parts of the Amazon, a peculiar caterpillar has captured public attention,...
Rick LeCouteur
May 252 min read
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Titanic’s Missing Passenger: A cat named Jenny (#327)
Among the many legends to drift from the wreckage of the RMS Titanic , one tale stands out. Not for tragedy, but for survival. Her name...
Rick LeCouteur
May 242 min read
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Snollygoster: A deliciously devious word (#326)
Every now and then, the English language coughs up a word so curious, so characterful, and so loaded with sly charm that it demands to be...
Rick LeCouteur
May 242 min read
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In Praise of the Contrarian (2 of 2): When animals defy the norm (#319)
While contrarianism  is a human concept rooted in reasoning and culture, certain animals behave in ways that resemble contrarianism :...
Rick LeCouteur
May 22 min read
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Restoring Columbus Day: A step backward for America (#314)
Columbus was a skilled navigator and undeniably changed world history by linking Europe and the Americas. Â But when you look closely at...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 284 min read
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Memory, Dream, & Longing: A Soft Collision (#313)
A memory, a dream, and a longing. Â At first glance, they seem like separate phenomena, each belonging to its own corner of the mind. Â ...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 273 min read
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Who Are Indie Authors? Part 1: Why do writers choose this path? (#309)
Over the last two decades, the publishing landscape has undergone a quiet revolution. Â No longer solely the domain of large publishing...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 244 min read
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Fission vs. Fusion: Splitting and merging atoms (#303)
Nuclear fission and fusion are both nuclear reactions that release energy, but they work in very different ways.  Nuclear Fission  ...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 162 min read
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The 10:10 Mystery: The secret behind the time (#302)
Have you ever noticed that in advertisements for clocks and watches, the time is almost always set to 10:10?  Whether it’s a luxury...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 162 min read
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Growing Up Under the Stars: Trailblazer Edna Zigenbine (#301)
In the vast, untamed landscapes of Northern Australia, where the sky stretched endlessly and the land whispered stories of resilience, a...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 163 min read
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Underwater Soap Opera: Kissing, cleaning, and changing sex (#297)
When we think of the Great Barrier Reef , our minds often drift to the kaleidoscope of corals, the graceful movements of sea turtles, or...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 53 min read
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The Great Lakes: Cross-border stewardship for the sake of the planet (#296)
When we think of freshwater on a grand scale, The Great Lakes  stand unrivaled in North America.  Spanning two countries and housing...
Rick LeCouteur
Apr 54 min read
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