TIL that the tumbleweeds commonly found in the American West are Russian thistle. They are an invasive species from Asia that adapted well to the dry, open landscapes of the western U.S.
TIL that the tumbleweeds commonly found in the American West are Russian thistle. They are an invasive species from Asia that adapted well to the dry, open landscapes of the western U.S.
It's kind of funny, I think, that a plant so closely associated with America is actually not native at all.
I think most things that are most closely associated with America aren't native...
And then you have horses, which originated there, migrated to Eurasia, went extinct in the Americas, and then were reintrouduced thousands of years later.
Also, horses had gone extinct in North America until the Spanish brought them back in the 15th century.
It's theorized this is partially why a lot of indigenous societies in the Americas simply didn't use wheels in larger contexts. We've found perfectly engineered wheels in a lot of archaeological sites here in North and South America, but they're almost always on toys. The theory is that civilizations like the Aztecs and various Native American and First Nations peoples invented wheels just fine, but since North America particularly lacks any form of native, easily-domesticated draft animal, wheels just didn't make sense or save anyone significant enough time to really bother with in larger forms like carts or chariots.
Obligatory CGP Grey
Haha, I literally just watched that a few days ago. For a brief second, I saw this post and jokingly thought, "so when did Lemmy start snooping on my search history?"
But seriously, it's a really bad problem. It's crazy how widely they've spread and become such a massive pain in the ass in so many areas.
I am terrified every time I see these videos pop up https://youtube.com/shorts/UknfPeLDzmw?si=RRQ8MSHATXnFX2Xp https://youtube.com/shorts/roRdZJQ3lmg?si=2Cv2dDofKQSa4S-W
Ok, but where did the
Dunadunaduna na wah wah waaaah
come from?
italy
And the best version came from Denmark
It's the sound spaghetti makes.
It was always there. It just needed the Italians to set it free.
antarctica
Wait holdup, a weed from asia, named after russia is ravaging america?
Russia is part of the Asian continent
So you are saying that russia isnt a north american country?
Whats next, saying that france isnt a south american country?
Yep. They're like tribbles.
Kinda poetic really. Gets edged out by the European settler for the most prolific invasive species, though
Fuckin' Russians.
Freaking commie tumbleweeds rolling from town to town looking for handouts
It’s kinda like tomatoes being associated with italian cuisine
And spicy chili peppers being associated with Chinese, Thai, or Indian food
And potatoes being associated with Ireland... or Russia...
Or native americans being stereotyped on horses
South America right?
Yep. Western bits of SA.
That does make the Sons of the Pioneers song famously played at the beginning of The Big Lebowski a bit less romantic...
Apple pie has entered the chat.
Sure, but the same applies to so many foods in so many cultures. What was Italian food like before they had access to tomatoes? Eastern, Central European, or Irish before potatoes? Chinese, Southeast Asian, or Korean before they had chili peppers?
Now each of those countries have dishes we associate with them but which use those non-native ingredients.
*Johnny Appleseed approves this comment
Kochia scoparia is another one like that, and also makes tumbleweeds
I was about to say, there isn't just one tumbleweed. There are a bunch of plants that evolved to grow in a roundish shape, dry out, and unroot. I don't even know them by name, but my area has at least 3 distinct plants that could be considered tumbleweeds
And they cause a tingling feeling when you get pricked by them.
Kinda speaks to how ð US is defined by stuff ðat's come from abroad.
I hate to say it, but ð is likely the wrong character for that sound, you'd be better with þ. Ð is never used at the start of a word, and þ has a long history in English as being used in abbrieviations for words like "the" and "that" (see "uses" in this article https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorn_(letter)). Your use of ð is correct for the Icelandic use of the sound, though, so I absolutely see where you're coming from.
Unless you're using the IPA ð, in which case ignore me.
(sorry for the rant, I used to be very passionate about returning þ to common use in English)
Ð use of þ in ðat manner suggests it as a historical spelling dating to a lack of distinguishing of ð sound in English prior to ð letter being codified in written English.
Ðat distinguishment is very much ðere now, and so not using ð appropriate sound due to a grammar clause which is likely an artefact of ð sound not being present at its time of becoming convention is perpetuating ð same kind of issue ðat reintroducing ð and þ would ostensibly seek to help.
So eiðer we could preserve ð grammar convention by assigning þ ð voiced sound, or we could preserve phonemic convention by assigning it its namesake unvoiced sound. Eiðer way, doing boþ doesn't really address ð core issue, just change ð coat of paint its wearing.