February 2023 - Curiosity Chronicles
The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life — Confucius
👋 Hello friends!
... and greetings to our new subscribers — welcome to the second edition of the Curiosity Chronicles. I look forward to hearing from you in the comments and getting to know you all a little better. Thank you for sticking around while I find my feet — and voice — with this new platform!
If you missed the January edition of the Curiosity Chronicles you can read it here.
😸 Curioser and Curioser!
I have a couple of curiosities to share with you this month: Why is curiosity important, and How do cats know? Let’s dive in!
Why is curiosity important?
We are born curious, have you ever witnessed a baby stare in wonder as they discover they have fingers and toes? Or a toddler taste things, stick their fingers in things or ask interminable questions? Kids are curious! The problem is that throughout our school careers answers are more acceptable than questions, so curiosity is slowly but surely drummed out of us. Big businesses tell us to stop thinking and focus on revenue. Not very inspiring is it?
Curiosity is chaotic and unpredictable, and this is not at all welcome in a world that likes order and predictability.
“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when one contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvellous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries to comprehend only a little of this mystery every day.”
— Albert Einstein
Did you know that our brains work better when we are curious? I didn’t! Curiosity sparks dopamine release (the feel good and reward chemical in our brain) and improves focus and memory. It makes our lives deeper and richer and promotes connection as we explore and ask questions. Fascinating!
Curiosity also brings joy and personal transformation in a lovely smooth and gentle way. As we explore and follow the metaphorical breadcrumbs, change just creeps up on us as we feed our brains and learn new things. Pursuing curiosity builds anticipation and increases our motivation and enthusiasm. We don’t know what the outcome will be when we start down the rabbit hole of what sparks for us and the potential for discovering something new makes us excited. I love it!
“Monotony collapses time; novelty unfolds it. You can exercise daily and eat healthily and live a long life, while experiencing a short one. If you spend your life sitting in a cubicle and passing papers, one day is bound to blend unmemorably into the next — and disappear. That’s why it’s so important to change routines regularly, and take vacations to exotic locales, and have as many new experiences as possible that can serve to anchor our memories. Creating new memories stretches out psychological time, and lengthens our perception of our lives.”
— Joshua Foer
Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything
If you feel bored and unmotivated, start asking questions and looking a little more closely at the world around you. Who, what, when, where why, how...and keep going until you get the answers you’re after! Ask yourself: what if…what does this remind me of…I wonder…?
See the beauty and small details and see where that leads you.
Jump from one thing to the next as you find something that captures your imagination. Who knows what adventures what that might lead to!
Curiosity is just serendipitous learning, and it’s a brilliant way to pull yourself out of a funk and the benefits will flow on into the rest of your life.
Want to read more about the science?
🔬 The surprising link between curiosity and dopamine
🔬 Curiosity improves memory by tapping into the brain’s reward system
How do cats know?
We’ve had our cats for almost two years now, and during that time we’ve noticed that they tend to stick close if either of us are under the weather.
When Mr Collier is sick in bed, they hop up and either settle in to watch closely or snuggle into his legs. If I am anxious Krasnyy curls up on my chest when I lie down, and purrs like a tractor. He has also taken to kneading my belly when I get crampy. Sometimes he also lays across my belly like a big old vibrating hot pack and goes to sleep.
But how on earth do they know when we need them? How can they tell when we need them? We certainly cannot make a cat do something like that for us, or even tell them we need them and have them understand.
I HAD to find out!
It turns out that cats have an amazing sense of smell, and they can detect hormonal and chemical changes…not just when you open a can of food.
They are also keen observers. They can sense changes in behavioural patterns and facial expressions even if we don't see it. This seems to be how they sense when we are stressed, anxious or depressed.
So when they observe these changes in their family, with whom they have close emotional bonds, they turn into little nurse beasts! Must help the large non-furry family members! Meow!
“There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats.”
— Albert Schweitzer
It turns out there has long been speculation about whether or not pets in general are good for our health, and with cats in particular, the healing properties of their purr. Scientists have found that cats’ purrs rumble along at 25–100Hz and in addition to accelerating healing their own bones, it is a frequency that may also benefit human bones, skin and soft tissues. Studies have also shown that petting a cat can relieve stress and cut the risk of stroke or heart disease by up to about 30%. Wow.
There aren’t many scientific papers that I could find with definitive conclusions in relation to cats actually playing a part in healing bones and tissues, nor helping with mental health. Apparently there are too many variables in relation to stress and how the human body heals to be able to create studies that would give solid answers.
Either way, they make us feel better to have around, and wouldn’t trade them for the world!
Want to learn more?
🐈⬛ The complicated truth about a cat's purr — BBC
🐈⬛ Is there healing power in a cat's purr? — Orthopedics Today
🐈⬛ Why do cats purr? — Scientific American
🐈⬛ Cat ownership and the Risk of Fatal Cardiovascular Diseases — National Library of Medicine
✒ Things I hit publish on this month
🎥 EXCLUSIVE! As one of the perks of being a Curiosity Chronicles subscriber, you get first look at my latest videos. This week I recorded a chatty walk-through of my latest sketchbook. Grab yourself a beverage of your choice and sit back and enjoy. This one runs to about half an hour.
🪹 Shortly before Christmas we found ourselves rattling around the house without my sons. Here are my thoughts — We're empty nesters!
🖼️ This month I visited an art exhibition for the first time in YEARS and loved it! — Cressida Campbell Exhibition
🎨 My favourite creations this month
I couldn’t decide which was my favourite between these two, click to enlarge:
Mixed media and collage
Ink and watercolour
💜 Curious things that caught my attention this month
🤪 How absurd to be alive and not really live — The Absurd Manifesto via Substack
😭 We all Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman. This story of love and loss that made me laugh and cry in equal quantities...and the author has Siberian cats like us! What’s not to like? Find it on: Booktopia | Amazon
🌊 I found this Twitter thread about the geology of the Mediterranean and a Megaflood fascinating!
👧🏻 The 100 Best Children's Books of All Time — I’ve only read about 26 of these, but I LOVE kids books! What would you add to the list?
👳🏾♂️ This Twitter account of a Sikh-Canadian dancing Bhangra, brings me joy every day: Gurdeep Pandher of the Yukon 🕺
🧐 What if...we had a chat?
📚 Tell us your favourite kids book! Mine are Where the Wild Things Are, Gnomes and The Very Hungry Caterpillar ... I couldn’t choose just one!
❓ What are you curious about at the moment?
😻 🐶 Do you have a pet that knows when you need help?
Tell us in the comments! Pick one or answer them all.