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"Are we to paint what's on the face, what's inside the face, or what's behind it?" -Pablo Picasso As an animal lover, like others here on scienceblogs, as well as a big fan of Halloween costumes, it's probably unsurprising that a good, creative animal costume will crack me up. Three more turtle dogs and a giant rat will complete the set! Turn your sweet, harmless puppy into the fearsome guardian of Hades by adding two extra heads! Sometimes, you just need to play to your strengths. In this case, it's ridiculous cuteness. Dressing animals like other animals is practically its own artform…
Continuing with our series on Boycotting the Olympics ... Have you seen the male gymnasts? Some will be disappointed that they wear boxer shorts, but that is not what I wanted to talk about. Watching them (do very badly, by the way) I recalled that the argument has been made that this is probably the oldest Olympic sport. This assertion has been made because the earliest art in the region, predating the Greeks, includes dramatic depictions of the ancient art of Bull Jumping. Here's a picture from an ancient text with the title, roughly translated, "Bull Jumping for Dummies" ... This…
Elvis In 1977 I drove from Nashville down to Memphis with no particular plans regarding Memphis. It was just a place to stop on the way to Hot Springs, Arkansas. I had the name of a cheap motel and a vague idea of where it was. But I kept getting lost. Every time I came to about where this major street was supposed to be, there was a different street there. What the hell was going on? About the fifth time I came to the right/wrong location, it dawned on me ... "Elvis Presley Boulevard" must have just recently been named as such ... That, I realized, could also explain another…
But I thought I'd throw together a few of the more amazing scenes from earlier olympics. Hey, did you see the Cuba/US baseball game? Anybody know how Nix is? Anything broken? (Boy, that was rough.... talk about the agony of rolling around on the ground bleeding....) And now for today's closing ceremonies....
What they said then: What they say now: I'm not sure I care. But there you have it.
A giant inflatable dog turd brought down a power line after being blown away from a Swiss museum. The artwork, entitled Complex Shit, was carried 200 metres on the night of 31 July, reportedly breaking a greenhouse window before it landed again. The sculpture, by American artist Paul McCarthy, was equipped with a safety system that should have deflated it. The fake faeces has been returned and will remain on display at the Zentrum Paul Klee in Bern until October. More details, if you really need to know them, here.
I remember standing at a somewhat fancy reception, for a rather hifalutin program at the University, speaking with the director of the program, when the University Mascot (the largest Spermophilus specimen I've ever seen) came over to us and stood there waiting for us to .... to what exactly? I have no idea. Goldie is not allowed to talk, so we at first ignored it (Goldie is not allowed a gender, either) until finally the director became annoyed, turned to the ridiculous rodent who was just standing there gawking, and said "You are not supposed to be here. Go away," or words to that effect…
The FBI is upping the ante in relation to recent attacks on scientists working in California, in light of two firebombings over the last few days.(See FBI increases reward in firebombings to $50,000) I just wish they would stop calling these people "animal rights activists." They are not. They are just nutjobs. Two University of California, Santa Cruz faculty members and their families were targeted in what local authorities are calling attacks by animal liberationists. The first incident occurred off-campus on Saturday morning when a faculty member and his two small children were forced…
This is Michael Shermer Wow, that was cool. Now since you are in the mood, check this out if you have not already seen it:
On this day in 1895, T. H. Huxley died at the age of 70. Huxley was known as "Darwin's Bulldog" because of his defense of Darwin's important work in evolution. He debated Samuel Wilberforce in 1860, and people have been debating creationists since. Huxley invented the term "agnostic" and described himself as one.
This is not a time to be profound. This is a time to rehydrate and make some more coffee. And search around for stuff that fell out of pockets. I normally do not blog very many day to day details of my private life, especially regarding other people, because it is obnoxious to know someone who could at any point arbitrarily write in a very public way about anything that happens to occur at dinner, anything a person may say, and so on. But I have a small story about last night when I went out (and I never go out, so that in itself is kind of an event). The plan was simple: I would stop…
Tim Russert, most recently the host of Meet the Press and the Washington Bureau Chief for NBC died earlier today. Russert was recording voiceovers for Sunday's "Meet the Press" program when he collapsed, the network said. No details were immediately available. Russert, the recipient of 48 honorary doctorates, took over the helm of "Meet the Press" in December 1991. Now in its 60th year, "Meet the Press" is the longest-running program in the history of television. In 2008, Time Magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Timothy John Russert Jr. was born in…
Hat tip: Doug.
But wait, there's more.... This reminds me of my first trip to Boston as a non-child. It was with my friend Karl to see his cousin Mark. Mark lived in an area of Somerville that I eventually got to know quite well myself (student ghetto) years later. This was about the time the city was changing most two way streets over to one way streets in order to relieve congestion. (Somerville was, and may still be, the most densely populated city on the Planet Earth without exception, believe it or not.) Anyway, to get to Mark's house, you went down one one-way street and turned left onto another…
Great idea, but don't do what these guys did. Five SCUBA divers from Euope went diving in the vicinity of Indonesia in waters known to be very treacherous. They quickly became separated from their boat, and floated in shark infested waters for two days. Then, they found an island, and crawled onto the island to be safe. Big mistake.... The island was infested with giant Komodo Dragons who tried, it seems, to eat them. And why not? These humans are well within the normal size range for Komodo Dragons, and were probably pretty easy to catch, being tired and all. The stranded divers kept…
This is not a joke. Don't watch this if you have a weak stomach. But if you live in Hartford and can help the police find the perpetrator please do call them. Hartford police ask anyone with information regarding this incident and/or the identity of the suspects to please contact Crime Scene Division (CSD) Detective Michael Chauvin at 860-757-4229 or CSD Commander Sergeant Jason Thody at 860-757-4225.
Pretty good overview: I was under the impression that many of them monsters Godzilla fought were not from outer space, but rather, from eggs shaken loose by earthquakes and mutated by nuclear irradiation and stuff. Am I wrong about this?
My student who claims to be at Philosophy Camp just sent me this video of what goes on there. I'm not sure if I believe it:
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT An unwitting passenger arriving at Japan's Narita airport has received 142g of cannabis after a customs test went awry, officials say. A customs officer hid a package of the banned substance in a side pocket of a randomly chosen suitcase in order to test airport security. Sniffer dogs failed to detect the cannabis and the officer could not remember which bag he had put it in. Anyone finding the package has been asked to contact customs officials. Japanese officials would like the passenger to return their pot as soon as possible. Thank you very much. [source]