With numbers dwindling conservationist take amazing action.
Indiaβs first elephant hospital, the Wildlife SOS Elephant Hospital, opened in the Hindu holy town of Mathura, located in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
Injured, sick, rescued, and elderly elephants now have a home to receive the care that they need. The facility is run by non-profit Wildlife SOS. Wildlife SOS also runs a conservation and care center near the newly opened hospital, and is currently home to 22 elephants.
The Wildlife SOS Elephant Hospital was designed with the needs of our four-legged friends in mind. The 12,000-square ft. facility contains x-ray, thermal imaging, and ultrasound machines, tranquilization devices, a hydrotherapy pool, an in-house pathology lab, and quarantine facilities.
The hospital will even enable remote patients to receive care. βOur hospital has center with very portable kind of machinery,β explains Geeta Seshamani, Wildlife SOS co-founder. βSo if an elephant is hit-and-run very far away anywhere in North India, we can go there and we can take care of it on site itself.β
βThe hospital is something really special because for centuries India has used its elephants and abused them,β added Seshamani. βToday, for the first time, we can offer them a place where we can heal them and take very good care of them.β
Over 50 percent of Asia's wild elephants reside in India.
Photo pulled from Youtube video
Among those abused elephants who will find a safe haven at the Wildlife SOS Elephant Hospital will be elephants who were abused in captivity, elephants who were turned into tourist attractions, and elephants who were involved in freeway accidents.
βThese elephants go through a lot of abuse, brutality, cruelty in order to be ridden,β Wildlife SOS co-founder Kartick Satyanarayan said in a BCC interview. βAnd through that process, they develop abscesses, internal problems, back problems, all kinds of health issues that need to be addressed.β
Between 50 and 60 percent of Asiaβs wild elephants reside in India. Just 20 percent of domesticated elephants call the country home. With such a large elephant population, conservation should be at the forefront, especially since Indiaβs elephant population is on the decline. In 2012, Indiaβs elephant population was 29,391 β 30,711. By 2017, it had fallen to 27,312. World Wildlife Organization estimates there are as few as 20,000 in 2022.
Elephants are highly revered as both cultural and religious symbols in India, however they have been subjected to brutal mistreatment.
Some fall victim to the wildlife trade, while others are mistreated by mahouts (caretakers). Others are poached, poisoned, or electrocuted.
βI think by building a hospital we are underlining the fact that elephants need welfare measures as much as any other animal,β Seshamani told Reuters TV. βThat captive elephants are not meant to be used and abused but instead have to be given the respect which an animal needs if you are going to be using the animal.β
You can watch the BBC News story on YouTube below:
This article originally appeared on 11.27.18
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for informationβnot just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimicβ¦could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if theyβve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESLβbut English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I donβt know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! Iβm 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."