grrlscientist | March 8, 2010tags: education, public outreach, BirdNote Radio Program, Bird Note, birding, Bird Watching, birds, nature, environment, conservation, NPR, National Public Radio, Seattle Audubon Society, mp3
Are you trapped on a crowded subway or in a traffic jam of honking, stinking cars? If so, you might be interested to know that you can transport yourself to a different world, a cool green space where you can feel the earth breathe in time to the music of birds. Your personal vehicle is BirdNote, a 2-minute radio program about birds and nature.
"We want to help people connect to the natural world and…
grrlscientist | March 8, 2010tags: Egyptian Goose, Alopochen aegyptiacus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Egyptian Goose, Alopochen aegyptiacus, photographed at PalmenGarten, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 February 2010 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 8, 2010tags: reptiles, chameleon species, herpetology, Chris Raxworthy, research, American Museum of Natural History, AMNH, New York City, field research, nature, travel, Madagascar, speciation, streaming video
With Madagascar containing nearly two-third's of the world's chameleon species, Christopher Raxworthy, Associate Curator of Herpetology at the American Museum of Natural History, recently embarked on an expedition to the island in search of these special lizards. His hope was to track down the lined-chameleon in order to further study speciation on Madagascar.
Having recently returned from…
grrlscientist | March 7, 2010tags: Praying Mantis, Preying Mantis, mantid, insects, birds, hummingbirds, offbeat, predation, predatory behavior, nature, streaming video
Sandy Lizotte, the Ventura Hummingbird Lady, captures a rare and remarkable moment where a praying mantis was waiting patiently at a hummingbird feeder to ambush a hummingbird. As you'll see in this video, the mantid succeeds.
The hummingbird did survive.
grrlscientist | March 7, 2010
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
The next edition of Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is less than two weeks away and it is seeking submissions! Can you help by sending URLs for well-written science, medicine, and nature blog essays to me?
Scientia Pro Publica is a traveling blog carnival that celebrates the best science, environment, nature and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days.
The most recent…
grrlscientist | March 7, 2010tags: Birdbooker Report, bird books, animal books, natural history books, ecology books
"How does one distinguish a truly civilized nation from an aggregation of
barbarians? That is easy. A civilized country produces much good bird
literature."
--Edgar Kincaid
The Birdbooker Report is a special weekly report of a wide variety of science, nature and behavior books that currently are, or soon will be available for purchase. This report is written by one of my Seattle birding pals and book collector, Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, and is edited by me and published here for your information and…
grrlscientist | March 7, 2010tags: Eastern Black-headed Batis, Black-headed Batis, Batis minor, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Eastern Black-headed Batis, also known as the Black-headed Batis, Batis minor, photographed at the Pangani River Camp, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300s, 600 mm lens, ISO 1000, 1/160 sec, f/5.6 -0.3 exposure compensation.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 7, 2010tags: scientology, religion, cults, mind control, Thetan, silly, offbeat, beliefs, Xenu, L Ron Hubbard, television, BBC, streaming video
Speaking of Mormonism and other cults .. erm, religions .. I thought I'd give you a peek at Scientology. In this television report, hidden cameras go inside the London Scientology Organization to expose their inner workings. It seems that even the Mormons could learn a few mind-control techniques from the Scientologists.
I find it really depressing to think that one Scientology survivor exchanged one form of mind control for another: after he escaped…
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010tags: children, religion, cults, mind control, television, silly, offbeat, beliefs, funny, education, streaming video
This amusing video is from a British TV show, Outnumbered. In this clip, young Ben asks the vicar some awkward questions about Jesus -- questions that most religious people have been asked at one time or another.
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010I apologize for not writing more for you recently, but after my wifi was restored (after 14 days of agony!), thanks to Ralph (my new boyfriend), I then became ill and was quite miserable for an additional three days. In fact, I didn't even crawl out of bed one of those days. After a slow recovery, I am feeling fine now, but I have been preoccupied with reading a book for review (Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals), for Nature. This will be the third book review that I've written for Nature.
The editors needed a quick turn-around on this particular book review, so I said I could do…
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
The next edition of Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is less than two weeks away and it is seeking submissions! Can you help by sending URLs for well-written science, medicine, and nature blog essays to me?
Scientia Pro Publica is a traveling blog carnival that celebrates the best science, environment, nature and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days.
The most recent…
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010Today, I was surprised to receive an unpleasant letter in the mail. The letter was sent by ConEdison, the power company that provided electricity to my NYC apartment before I left. The letter says;
Dear Sir/Madam:
Your unpaid account for utility service supplied to the above address has been referred to us.
The amount shown above [$20.40] is past due.
Please arrange for payment of this amount within the next seven days. If you have any questions, please call Con Edison's Law Department at the telephone number shown above.
A postage-paid envelope is enclosed for your convenience in making…
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010tags: PalmenGarten, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, flower porn, nature, environment, image of the day
Flower Porn 2
PalmenGarten, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 February 2010 [larger view]
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010tags: Red-backed Shrike, Lanius collurio, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Juvenile Red-backed Shrike, Lanius collurio, photographed about 5 miles away from the Pangani River Camp, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300 600 mm lens, ISO 400, 1/1250 sec, f/7.1 -1 exposure compensation.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Photograph 1:
[Image 1] Juvenile Isabelline Shrike (?), Lanius isabellinus, photographed about 5 miles away from the Pangani River…
grrlscientist | March 6, 2010tags: Star Trek: How It Should Have Ended, Star Trek, Star Wars, comedy, humor, parody, satire, silly, fucking hilarious, streaming video
Space: the Final Frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise, to seek out new worlds and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before ... this is how Star Trek should have ended!
grrlscientist | March 5, 2010tags: Beware the Ninja Chemistry Professor, college chemistry, comedy, humor, silly, fucking hilarious, streaming video
This risky and hilarious college prank was done as part of a student's fund raising efforts for a Dance Marathon. The prank is funny, but the chemistry professor's reaction is priceless.
ChemistryBlog says Professor Owen Priest of Northwestern University, is the scary ninja professor taking down that chicken.
grrlscientist | March 5, 2010tags: PalmenGarten, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, flower porn, nature, environment, image of the day
Flower Porn
PalmenGarten, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 February 2010 [larger view]
grrlscientist | March 5, 2010
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
The next edition of Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is less than two weeks away and it is seeking submissions! Can you help by sending URLs for well-written science, medicine, and nature blog essays to me?
Scientia Pro Publica is a traveling blog carnival that celebrates the best science, environment, nature and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days.
The most recent…
grrlscientist | March 5, 2010tags: Least Bittern, Ixobrychus exilis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Least Bittern, Ixobrychus exilis, photographed at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 31 July 2007 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/320s f/8.0 at 500.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 5, 2010tags: How Will the End of Print Journalism Affect Old Loons Who Hoard Newspapers?, newspapers, print journalism, newspaper hoarding, ONN, Onion News Network, comedy, humor, satire, fucking hilarious, streaming video
The decline of the newspaper?? Ransom notes, papier-mâché and slacker gift wrapping will never be the same! Worse, what will crazy old loons pack their houses to the rafters with?