humanities & social science the study of human life
From Flickr, by (: Petra :)
May 9, 2008
Pure Pedantry
A birdsong model of creole languages Language Log has a fascinating article about creole languages and birdsongs: Zebra finches are among the songbirds who learn their songs by imitating adults, just as human children learn their language by interaction with those who already know it. Male...
Laelaps
A "Godzillasaurus" vs. a Smart Fortwo I guess dinosaurs and cars just go well together;...
The Frontal Cortex
Plane Reading Sorry about the light posting - I've been traveling. As far as I'm concerned, the best thing about air-travel (besides the safety aspect) is that I get to read novels. For some reason, I've decided that I can't work or...
Afarensis
Morphometrics, Cladistics, And Human Evolution Kambiz has an extensive write up of the Nature paper that examines hominid phylogeny....
The World's Fair
World Death Rate Holding Steady at 100% Some stunning research results. A lot to ponder. More to come.
The World's Fair
Science podcasts heard 12 million times daily Some nanotechnology, some environmentalism, a lot of links.
Greg Laden's Blog
Carnival Four Stone Hearth 40 is at Remote Central....
Aardvarchaeology
Viking Sword Found on the Isle of Man The island has not previously produced any Viking swords.
May 8, 2008
Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted)
Chambers Street Subway Art 21 Another lovely artwork for you to enjoy as seen at NYC's Chambers Street subway platform, courtesy of ME!
Aardvarchaeology
Sunny Fieldwork in Uppland The St. Olaf site was perfect for metal detecting today, recently harrowed and almost completely without vegetation.
The Intersection
Science And The New Media at AAAS I'm back in the District to speak at the 33rd Annual AAAS Forum on Science and Technology Policy alongside Adam Bly and Dr. Anthony Crider. We'll be discussing 'Science and the New Media' and there's still time to participate online!...
May 7, 2008
Afarensis
Book Review: Who Owns Antiquity? Museums and the Battle Over Our Ancient Heritage When I first heard about this book I knew I would have to review it. The question of who owns the items archaeologists dig up has been the subject of a long, and frequently bitter, debate. Here in the United...
Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted)
Chambers Street Subway Art 20 Another lovely subway artwork for you to enjoy as seen at NYC's Chambers Street subway platform, courtesy of ME!
Uncertain Principles
Novels of Science Writing in Scientific American, Mark Alpert argues that we need more novels about science: A good work of fiction can convey the smells of a laboratory, the colors of a dissected heart, the anxieties of a chemist and the joys...
Laelaps
Mr. Darwin & the Defrauded Gorilla Mr. Bergh to the Rescue THE DEFRAUDED GORILLA: "That Man wants to claim my Pedigree. He says he is one of my Descendants." MR. BERGH: "Now, Mr. Darwin, how could you insult him so?" This cartoon was published in...
Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted)
Another Reason I Don't Keep a Gun in the House Here's a poem that a reader sent to me for you to enjoy!
A Blog Around The Clock
Open Humanities Press Peter Suber relays the announcement (and add some more) of the Open Humanities Press, a collection of seven Open Access journals (a humanities PLoS of sorts) in critical and cultural theory. Humanities bloggers have been way ahead of science bloggers...
May 6, 2008
Deep Sea News
The Oldest Signs of Whale Hunters Findings by Daniel Odess, curator of archaeology at the University of Alaska Museum in Fairbanks, suggest that whale hunting dates back at least 3,000 years. Odess's team found a piece of walrus ivory inscribed with scenes of hunters in boats...
Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted)
Chambers Street Subway Art 19 Another lovely subway artwork for you to enjoy from NYC's Chambers Street platform, courtesy of ME!
Laelaps
And it's Tyrannosaurus with the slam dunk! Some cheesy dinosaur carnage, as seen in the film My Science Project....
The World's Fair
Borges was a Webelo (and Other Book Jokes) New from McSweeneys: Because who *doesn't* want a good Borges joke?
Uncertain Principles
Little Brother for Free Speaking of YA literature (as I was, briefly, in the previous post), I would be remiss if I didn't note that Cory Doctorow has put up a Little Brother section on his web site, promoting his new book. As with...
Adventures in Ethics and Science
Passion quilt: a meme for teachers. More than a month ago William the Coroner tagged me. It is not just that I am slow; this meme is challenging! Not mush, methodology....
Uncertain Principles
Get a Grip! How our inability to judge risks leads to FutureBaby wearing a theft deterrent tag like a discount CD at Best Buy.
The Frontal Cortex
DNA Evidence In recent years, there has been lots of speculation on the potential intersection of neuroscience and the legal system. Will brain imaging became a fool-proof lie detector? Are some violent offenders suffering from a defective emotional brain that's beyond their...
“Didn't you know it was that great American, George Washington, who invented evolution? Right after he chopped down the cherry tree.” John Pieret on Another claim for priority from New Zealand

