At Home: White Deer
Deer passing through farmland are a common enough sight. But not all deer are created equal, as one Canadian farmer recently discovered.
As the Toronto Sun reports, a pair of white deer were spotted crossing the London, Ontario farm. The farmer, who first mistook the pair for ?lost goats,? later realized that he’d seen something extremely rare.
White deer are often the result of one of two genetic conditions: leucism and albinism. These deer appear to have been ?likely leucistic because the pigment in their face and eyes [wasn’t] consistent with albinism.?
The odds of a deer exhibiting these characteristics are low, ?about one in 10,000, according to wildlife officials.? Additionally, white deer often have a reduced lifespan; their colour can make camouflage difficult, making them ?easy targets for predators.?
According to legend, white deer are rare and are ?symbols of good luck, the spirit world and peace.?
Around the World: Tiers of Truancy
Students playing hooky: the bane of teachers for centuries. And It’s still a problem, although modern kids ?skip classes? and are more likely to sleep in than go fishing like Tom Sawyer. Some school districts, discouraged by the trend, are cracking down on the practice. Unfortunately, one overzealous board may have gone a bit too far.
As the Huffington Post reports, a Texas student was jailed overnight recently ?after missing too many classes.? Board policy, yes, but here’s the catch: She’s an honour student who’s working two jobs to help support her siblings.
Diane Tran, 17, is no academic slouch: She’s taking ?AP Spanish, college level algebra and dual credit English and history classes.? After school she heads to work?one of her two jobs is considered to be full-time?and is doing homework until the wee hours every morning.
Her exhaustive schedule has caused Diane to miss enough classes to get the school district involved. Under Texas law, ?if a student has ten or more unexcused absences within a six-month period, the school district may refer the student to a juvenile court.?
The issue is now under the court’s advisement, but there are petitions circling to have her case dropped.