Tuna (dog)

Tuna is a Chihuahua Dachshund crossbreed dog, best known as an internet celebrity, and an internet meme. He was abandoned by his original owner near San Diego, and was adopted at a farmer's market in Los Angeles by Courtney Dasher. After she created an Instagram page for him, a photo of him was featured on the company's website resulting in an increase in followers. Dasher has used Tuna's celebrity status to raise money for animal rescue groups as well as promoting the cause generally. A book of photographs of Tuna was released in 2015, entitled Tuna Melts My Heart: The Underdog With The Overbite.

Early life

Tuna was found on a roadside near San Diego, California, having been abandoned by his original owner. He suffered emotional trauma from this abandonment, leading him to the habit of crawling on his belly; because of this, his rescuer called him "Wormy".

Tuna was taken to a farmer's market in Los Angeles by the rescue centre at the age of around four months, where Courtney Dasher saw him and adopted him. She decided to change his name from "Wormy" to "Mr. Burns" because of his resemblance to the character in The Simpsons. She had initially only intended to foster the dog, but after a week decided that she would keep him. Over time, he was called "Tooney" affectionately which eventually become "Tuna".

Tuna

A tuna is a saltwater finfish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a sub-grouping of the mackerel family (Scombridae) – which together with the tunas, also includes the bonitos, mackerels, and Spanish mackerels. Thunnini comprises fifteen species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max. length: 50 cm (1.6 ft), weight: 1.8 kg (4 lb)) up to the Atlantic bluefin tuna (max. length: 4.6 m (15 ft), weight: 684 kg (1,508 lb)). The bluefin averages 2 m (6.6 ft), and is believed to live for up to 50 years.

Tuna and mackerel sharks are the only species of fish that can maintain a body temperature higher than that of the surrounding water. An active and agile predator, the tuna has a sleek, streamlined body, and is among the fastest-swimming pelagic fish – the yellowfin tuna, for example, is capable of speeds of up to 75 km/h (47 mph). Found in warm seas, it is extensively fished commercially, and is popular as a game fish. As a result of over-fishing, stocks of some tuna species such as the southern bluefin tuna have been reduced dangerously close to the point of extinction.

Opuntia

Opuntia is a genus in the cactus family, Cactaceae.

The most common culinary species is the Indian fig opuntia (O. ficus-indica). Most culinary uses of the term "prickly pear" refer to this species. Prickly pears are also known as tuna (fruit), sabra, nopal (paddle, plural nopales) from the Nahuatl word nōpalli for the pads, or nostle, from the Nahuatl word nōchtli for the fruit; or paddle cactus.

The genus is named for the Ancient Greek city of Opus, where, according to Theophrastus, an edible plant grew which could be propagated by rooting its leaves.

Description

Prickly pears typically grow with flat, rounded cladodes (also called platyclades) armed with two kinds of spines; large, smooth, fixed spines and small, hairlike prickles called glochids, that easily penetrate skin and detach from the plant. Many types of prickly pears grow into dense, tangled structures.

In the Galapagos Islands, six different species are found: O. echios, O. galapageia, O. helleri, O. insularis, O. saxicola, and O. megasperma. These species are divided into 14 different varieties; most of these are confined to one or a few islands. For this reason, they have been described as "an excellent example of adaptive radiation". On the whole, islands with tall, trunked varieties have giant tortoises, and islands lacking tortoises have low or prostrate forms of Opuntia. Prickly pears are a prime source of food for the common giant tortoises in the Galapagos islands so they are important in the food web.

Transurethral needle ablation of the prostate

Transurethral needle ablation (Also called TUNA or transurethral radiofrequency ablation) is a technique that uses low energy radio frequency delivered through two needles to ablate excess prostate tissue. A cystoscope/catheter deploys the needles toward the obstructing prostate tissue is inserted into the urethra directly through the penis under local anesthetic before the procedure begins. The energy from the probe heats the abnormal prostate tissue without damaging the urethra. The resulting scar tissue later atrophies, reducing the size of the prostate which in turn reduces the constriction of the urethra. It can be done with a local anesthetic on an outpatient basis. It takes about an hour to perform the procedure. It takes about 30 days for the ablated prostate tissue to resorb. Patients should have an annual rectal prostate exam for their doctor to feel the prostate health with a lubricated gloved finger.

Transurethral needle ablation can be used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Dogū

Dogū (土偶)(meaning "clay figures") are small humanoid and animal figurines made during the late Jōmon period (14,000–400 BC) of prehistoric Japan. Dogū come exclusively from the Jōmon period. By the Yayoi period, which followed the Jōmon period, Dogū were no longer made. There are various styles of Dogū, depending on exhumation area and time period. According to the National Museum of Japanese History, the total number found throughout Japan is approximately 15,000. Dogū were made across all of Japan, except Okinawa. Most of the Dogū have been found in eastern Japan and it is rare to find one in western Japan. The purpose of the Dogū remains unknown and should not be confused with the clay haniwa funerary objects of the Kofun period (250 – 538).

Origins

Some scholars theorize the Dogū acted as effigies of people, that manifested some kind of sympathetic magic. For example, it may have been believed that illnesses could be transferred into the Dogū, then destroyed, clearing the illness, or any other misfortune.

Dog (zodiac)

The Dog (狗) is one of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. The Year of the Dog is associated with the Earthly Branch symbol 戌. The character 狗 refers to the actual animal while 戌 refers to the zodiac animal.

Years and the Five Elements

People born within these date ranges can be said to have been born in the "Year of the Dog", while also bearing the following elemental sign:

Basic astrology elements

See also

External links

References

Dog in Chinese mythology

Dogs are an important motif in Chinese mythology. These motifs include a particular dog which accompanies a hero, the dog as one of the twelve totem creatures for which years are named, a dog giving first provision of grain which allowed current agriculture, and claims of having a magical dog as an original ancestor in the case of certain ethnic groups.

Myth versus history

Chinese mythology is those myths found in the geographic area called China, which of course has evolved and changed throughout its history. These include myths in Chinese and other languages, as transmitted by Han Chinese as well as other ethnic groups (of which fifty-six are officially recognized by the current administration of China). (Yang 2005:4)

In the study of historical Chinese culture, many of the stories that have been told regarding characters and events which have been written or told of the distant past have a double tradition: one which tradition which presents a more historicized and one which presents a more mythological version.(Yang 2005: 12-13) This is also true of some accounts related to mythological dogs in China.