Thinking Blogger Award

Shalini at Scientia Natura has bestowed upon me the Thinking Blogger Award. I'm honored. I've always thought I probably think too much, so it's nice to receive some accolades for it. (Normally, I see it more as a curse.) Fortunately or unfortunately, this 'award' looks suspiciously like a meme:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.

2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.

3. Optional: Proudly display the 'Thinking Blogger Award' with a link to the post that you wrote (here is an alternative silver version if gold doesn't fit your blog - see link to Thinking Blog).

Ah. Yep. A meme... which means I had to do a bit of work--thinking, as it were--about who to tag next.

• The first to come to mind was Ken of Prospero's Books. I think he feels the same sort of reverent awe towards complexity as I do, but with a greater knowledge base. As an English professor, he often explores similarities between scientific discoveries and bits of wisdom from the works of Shakespeare. If I could, I'd sign up for one of his classes. But, as I'm in the wrong state, I have to be satisfied with his blog.
• Since I refuse to leave this state, my next choice is a Colorado-based blog, Square State. JohnE, one of the more prolific bloggers there, also heads up our local chapter of Drinking Liberally. He always has some interesting insights as to how our dear state develops, politically.
• Next, I decided to look locally, in another sense, and pick out a couple of my fellow ScienceBloggers. I certainly have to include Suzzane, over at Thus Spake Zuska. With a powerful sense of confidence and logic, she is an expert at examining assumptions and stereotypes, and the ways they impact our society. She's gotten me thinking seriously about my own assumptions a number of times since she's joined us.
• Also a relative newcomer to ScienceBlogs, Martin at Aardvarkhaeology keeps my neurons firing. His blog is thoughtful, informative, and eloquent, laced with the perfect touch of humor. Of course, it doesn't hurt that archeology is one of my favorite subjects.
• Finally, I'd like to nominate one of my regular commenters, etbnc, who writes at My Blue Puzzle Piece. While his comments here are always thought-provoking, he has a number of interesting ideas about sustainability on his main site and at his second blog, Another Blue Puzzle Piece.

That's it. Consider yourselves honorary thinking bloggers, and tagged!

Photo of man thinking with a book by Charles Lillybridge, via the Western History Digital Image Collection at the Denver Public Library. (I'm going to be pulling more shots from the Lillybridge collection this summer... they're just too good to leave unused.)