Did you read "coming of age" books when you were in high school? If so, what did you really think of them? Like most people, I read these books but I was unique among my peers because I never liked them, even when I was "coming of age". The authors of those books always struck me as being pathetic self-involved crybabies with no purpose in life beyond whining about "being misunderstood" by the world because the people around them wisely refused to indulge their every desire -- most of which were utterly ridiculous anyway. So I initially hesitated when one of my contacts at Houghton Mifflin…
Late is better than never, as they say, and so it is with this new feature, Ask a Science Blogger. This week's question was late, arriving yesterday, but here it is;
Question: Will the "human" race be around in 100 years?
Um, YES. Even if The Rapture does occur, there still will be people on Earth since someone has to take care of the christians' pets that were so thoughtlessly abandoned.
But I do wonder if the human race will still exist 1000 or 10,000 or 100,000 years from now? I think that's open to debate, particularly considering our tendency towards self-destruction and especially as…
The Grand Rounds, volume 2, number 34 is now available. This blog carnival celebrates the best medical writing on the web and there are lots of interesting essays there to read, including a contribution from me.
As a New Yawkuh, I thought it was my duty to contribute to the new blog carnival, the Carnival of the Cockroaches. So it was at least one hundred years ago yesterday, when I sent my contribution to the Carnival of the Cockroaches, and I just learned that issue 6 has poked its little antennae-bedecked head out from under my kitchen sink.
Take a close look around and tell me .. what's new?
Thanks to Jeff Hebert, who caught my attention by sending me a basic banner design that we reworked into the design that you see above (for those of you who are seeking computer graphics and especially for those of you who are, or soon will be, new to SB, and wish to have your own banner, Jeff's contact info is listed in my profile).
There might be a little tweaking of this new banner after I've had some time to look at it for awhile, and after I've read your comments, but this is mostly the way it will look for quite some time (although, it…
I have never owned a television in my life and I have (so far!) steadfastly refused all offers of free TVs, which, I suppose, effectively makes me into a conversational wasteland according to modern American conversation standards.
But honestly, there are times when I wish I did have my own TV .. times such as the college basketball playoffs, the Triple Crown of American horse racing, the Presidential Debates, college football season, Law and Order reruns and, as of last night .. The Simpsons. But thanks to the magic of divine intervention in the form of my new neighbor's free access…
Next week, I will publish my review of Pete Dunne's new book, Pete Dunne's Essential Field Guide Companion: A Comprehensive Resource for Identifying North American Birds (NYC: Houghton Mifflin, 2006). Because the good peeps at Houghton Mifflin accidentally sent an extra hardcover copy of this book to me (a $30 value), I decided to share my wealth: I will give this book to one of my readers.
How will I decide who to give this book to? I am going to have a contest, the "Nickname that Bird" contest.
Why did I choose this theme for a contest? Because throughout his book, Pete Dunne gives each…
The History Carnival, issue 31, is now available. This carnival has a strongly international flavor, and it is hosted by a Brit an Aussie, so it was very kind of him to include something from me, which is the first time anything I've written has appeared in this particular blog carnival.
Orange-bellied parrot, Neophema chrysogaster,
now numbering only approximately 200 individuals, is one of the world's rarest birds.
Photographer: Dave Watts.
Birds in Science
Scientists have discovered that migrating dragonflies and songbirds exhibit many of the same behaviors, suggesting the rules that govern such long-distance travel may be simpler and more ancient than was once thought. This research is based on data generated by tracking 14 green darner dragonflies with radio transmitters weighing only 300 milligrams -- about a third as much as a paper clip. Green darners, Anax…
This morning, I saw this letter on the NYTimes Letters the the Editor page;
To the Editor:
One has only to look at the acceptance of "intelligent design" by the president and high-ranking members of Congress to define a society that looks on evolution with open hostility or suspicion.
Creationists recognized years ago that very few students take college courses in biology, and most are exposed to a serious study of biology only in high school. Today most biology texts cover evolution, but in specific chapters that can be conveniently ignored by teachers under threat. Such books use several…
Your Blogging Type is Confident and Insightful
You've got a ton of brain power, and you leverage it into brilliant blog.
Both creative and logical, you come up with amazing ideas and insights.
A total perfectionist, you find yourself revising and rewriting posts a lot of the time.
You blog for yourself - and you don't care how popular (or unpopular) your blog is!
What's Your Blogging Personality?
Well, this is true, but .. I am surprised: this quiz only relied on four questions, each with only two possible answers, to determine that! How many possible "blog types" were there? In this…
Your Inner Child Is Surprised
You see many things through the eyes of a child.
Meaning, you're rarely cynical or jaded.
You cherish all of the details in life.
Easily fascinated, you enjoy experiencing new things.
How Is Your Inner Child?
tags: online quiz
Colorado artist and birder, Radeaux, depicts 23 boreal-nesting species.
Can you identify all 23 species?
International Migratory Bird Day (IMBD) was initiated in 1993 by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, and is celebrated on the second Saturday in May [PDF]. Now under the direction of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, IMBD continues to focus attention on one of the most important and spectacular events in the life of a migratory bird -- its journey between its summer and winter homes. Today, it is…
The Teaching Carnival, issue 9, was published today. It links to many interesting essays, especially since the academic year just ended for many people, so they have both the time and the material to write about.
Several more blog carnivals have been published, all of which I contributed to;
I and the Bird, issue 23, hosted by BirdDC, includes a quiz for the birders among you, and those who can identify all 27 pictured birds will win a free Peterson Field Guide!
The Skeptic's Circle, issue 34; critical thinking crystallized. The host for this issue, The Second Sight, written by EoR, says;
Eor surveys the Wonderful World of Crystals, and receives some interesting etheric vibrations as a result. By applying the higher vibrational properties of these gems to his chakras he received contact with various…
Today is Endangered Species Day! Thanks to the US Senate, which unanimously passed a resolution on April 6th, today has been designated as national "Endangered Species Day." [animation: Arlington Central School District]
"Endangered Species Day" is an opportunity for schools, libraries, museums, zoos, botanical gardens, agencies, businesses, community groups and conservation organizations to educate the public about the importance of protecting endangered species and to highlight the everyday actions that individuals and groups can take to help protect our nation's wildlife, fish and plants.…
There are a few blog carnivals available for your reading pleasure, all of which saw fit to include one or more pieces by me;
The Tangled Bank, #53, Go Climb a Tree!. The entries are arranged in a story format.
Carnival of the Vanities, #191. This carnival has a pirate theme, and my particular contribution was included in Kang's Picks for the Tutu Brigade.
Carnival of Education, #66. All entries are arranged under the titles for the five skits from Monty Python's Flying Circus for your ease of locating them.
Fat Cat.
Orphaned image, resized (smaller).
Can obesity be a symptom of depression? I certainly think so, although I only have anecdotal evidence to support my opinion. To wit;
Based on what a chubby friend once told me, this is a vicious cycle; feeling depressed? Eat comfort foods, which leads to weight gain, which leads to more depression, which leads to eating more comfort foods, more weight gain, followed by deeper depression ..
On the other hand, a doctor once explained obesity to another friend of mine as resulting from additive behavior. But, he said, a food addiction not like an…
Similar to the animation that I previously linked, this will keep you distracted while you are supposed to be working. But this is different (click image) because not only do you get to choose your own monkey from a cast of three possiblilities, but you also can dress your monkey up. As you can tell from this picture, my receptionist monkey has quite an eye for fashion.
Anyway, as true for the previous animation, the monkey's head and eyes will move to track your mouse and then you can also have your monkey say things from the prerecorded messages, or from text that you've entered, using…
In 2001, the US Fish and Wildlife Service published their survey results of fishing, hunting and wildlife-associated recreation and estimated that there are 46 million bird watchers in the United States, making it the second most popular hobby in that country. According to a report by the New York Audubon Society, there were only a dozen bird festivals but in 1993, when the report was published, there were more than 250 every year throughout America. Why is watching birds so popular? Several reasons include the fact that birds are easily visible everywhere that humans go, and birds tend to do…