My scientific specialty is chronobiology (circadian rhythms and photoperiodism), with additional interests in comparative physiology, animal behavior and evolution. I am not an MD so I cannot diagnose and treat your sleep problems. As well as writing this blog, I am also the Online Discussion Expert for PLoS. This is a personal blog and opinions within it in no way reflect the policies of PLoS. You can contact me at: Coturnix@gmail.com
Bees Seem To Benefit From Having Favorite Colors:
A bee's favourite colour can help it to find more food from the flowers in their environment, according to new research from Queen Mary, University of London. Dr Nigel Raine and Professor Lars Chittka from Queen Mary's School of Biological and…
I've been a little behind (as in 'few weeks') in adding the blogs I tagged in my Blogrolling for Today posts into the actual Blogroll but I caught up with that a few minutes ago. That Blogroll is a Monster! But, check it out anyway - at least check if your blog is there and if the link is correct…
Professor Steve Steve, Wesley Elsberry, Tara Smith and Jason Rosenhouse [edit: Part 3 is now available] went to that funny new "museum" in Kentucky and report about it so you don't ever have to go yourself!
By Kidoakland: Abel Guillen: the Rise of the Millennials:
In my recent and direct experience, millennials are engaged, groundedly idealistic and willing to make careers that will change their nation and world over the long haul. I see this every day. Even among the youngest of this consort, the…
Individual Differences In Sleep Structure Are Biologically Determined:
Sleeping pattern variability has long been attributed to differences in several non-biological factors. Now a study from the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University Spokane, Wash., has shown that…
Wear your learning, like your watch, in a private pocket, and do not pull it out and strike it merely to show you have one. If you are asked what o'clock it is, tell it, but do not proclaim it hourly and unasked, like the watchman.
- Lord Chesterfield
So, Anton Zuiker and I went yesterday to the Talking To The Public panel discussion at Duke, organized by Sigma Xi, The Council for the Advancement of Science Writing and The Duke Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy.
There is nothing yet on their websites about it (the 20th century school…
Remember when we discussed the mammal vs. bird survival at Chernobyl the other day? Well, I learned today that someone is about to go and study the humans there as well. I am not exactly sure what kind of reserch it will be, but it will have something to do with the mutations in genomes of the…
I am looking in the closet to see if I can find my tie, because I am going to this in an hour - a very bloggable event:
A Lunch and Panel Discussion
TALKING TO THE PUBLIC: How Can Media Coverage of Science Be Improved?
Friday, June 22, 12-1:30 p.m. at Duke University, Bryan Research
Building, Rm…
Prey Not Hard-wired To Fear Predators:
Are Asian elk hard-wired to fear the Siberian tigers who stalk them" When wolves disappear from the forest, are moose still afraid of them? No, according to a study by Wildlife Conservation Society scientist Dr. Joel Berger, who says that several large prey…
I dropped by Anton's blog as I tend to do every day and saw something that caught my eye in his side-bar SugarCubes - an amazing story about William Kamkwamba, a 19 year old boy in Malawi who had to quit school because his family did not have money. So, he started teaching himself from books. And…
This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:
* sex (18x)
* death (13x)
* suicide (6x)
* hell (3x)
* dangerous (2x)
* penis (1x)
Thanks, Jennifer
First, a video of Jonathan Haidt - Morality: 2012 (Hat-tip to Kevin):
The social and cultural psychologist Jonathan Haidt talks with Henry Finder about the five foundations of morality, and why liberals often fail to get their message across. From "2012: Stories from the Near Future," the 2007 New…
Thanks to Jeff over on Shakesville (or should it be IN Shakesville?):
Election Central reports that Drudge (who the hell and why still reads that sleazeball of all people!?) tried to slander Edwards by insinuating that his daughter Emma-Claire supports Hillary:
Her comment came in response to a…
Why Female Deer Like A Stag To Be A Big Noise In The Forest:
Impressive antlers may be the most eye-catching attribute of the male red deer, but it's the quality of a stag's mating call that attracts the female of the species, a new study from the University of Sussex has discovered.
Surprising…
I loathe the expression 'What makes him tick' ... A person not only ticks, he also chimes and strikes the hour, falls and breaks and has to be put together again, and sometimes stops like an electric clock in a thunderstorm.
- James Thurber
I got tagged by Steve Poceta -(if you are more interested in sleep disorders than circadian clocks in funny animals, his blog is more interesting to you than mine) to participate in the Eight Random Facts Meme. Here are the rules:
1. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
2.…
You may be aware of the ongoing discussion about the tense relationship between scientists and science journalists. Here is the quick rundown of posts so far:
Question for the academic types--interview requests
The Mad Biologist and Science Journalists
Science Journalists are NOT the Problem
Just…
A gazzillion new papers got published on PLoS-ONE today. Some of the titles that caught my attention and I intend to read tonight are:
The Role of the Substantia Nigra Pars Compacta in Regulating Sleep Patterns in Rats
Climate and Dispersal: Black-Winged Stilts Disperse Further in Dry Springs
The…
Circumcision is always one of the topics with the most spirited discussions on science blogs. Here, a brand new paper on PLoS-ONE will likely stir up the conversation yet again (hopefully on the annotations and discussions attached to the paper itself, so please go there if you have questions/…