grrlscientist | February 28, 2010tags: Saturday Night Live, Dana Carvey, Jan Hooks, evolution, humor, funny, satire, television, I evolved from Jesus, streaming video
I think I need to ask you which religion believes we evolved from Jeebus .. any ideas? I am also interested to additional lyrics that you would provide this song with .. maybe our friend, Digital Cuttlefish, the bard of the intert00bz, can write a few verses for us?
grrlscientist | February 28, 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 | February 28, 2010tags: Large Flycatcher, African Grey Flycatcher, Bradornis microrhynchus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] African Grey Flycatcher, also known as the Large Flycatcher, Bradornis microrhynchus, photographed in 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 500, 1/320 sec, f/8, Exposure compensation -1.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | February 28, 2010
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is almost here once more and it is still seeking submissions for tomorrow's edition of this blog carnival! Can you help by sending URLs for well-written blog essays to the host?
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is a traveling blog carnival that celebrates the best science, environment and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days…
grrlscientist | February 28, 2010tags: comedy, humor, funny, fucking hilarious, self parody, wingnuts, hate group, religion, cults, institutionalized mind-control, Westboro Baptist Church, streaming video
If this video doesn't scare you, then this piece of information might: this video is by the Westboro Baptist Church hate group of Topeka, Kansas. After you see the title of their homepage, I think you'll start wondering about these people and whether their "God is Love." This group of religious wingnuts and haters also enjoys protesting at pop concerts, Kansas City Chiefs football games, the funerals of soldiers and of…
grrlscientist | February 27, 2010tags: comedy, humor, funny, fucking hilarious, religion, cults, institutionalized mind-control, streaming video
The meaning of christiantiy -- in their own words. Rather damning, in my opinion.
grrlscientist | February 27, 2010
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is almost here once more and it is still seeking submissions for Monday's edition of this blog carnival! Can you help by sending URLs for well-written blog essays to the host?
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is a traveling blog carnival that celebrates the best science, environment and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days…
grrlscientist | February 27, 2010tags: Taveta Weaver, Taveta Golden Weaver, Ploceus castaneiceps, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Taveta Golden Weaver, also known as the Taveta Weaver, Ploceus castaneiceps, photographed in 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 800, 1/640 sec, f/7.1, Exposure compensation 0.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | February 27, 2010tags: comedy, humor, funny, fucking hilarious, birds, streaming video
This particular exhibit is a living art piece made up of 40 zebra finches jamming on electric guitars and cymbals at the Barbican, in London. The artist, Boursier-Mougenot creates a walk-though aviary for a flock of zebra finches, furnished with electric guitars and other musical instruments. As the birds go about their routine activities, perching on or feeding from the various pieces of equipment, they create a captivating, live soundscape.
This video is cute, because it shows a female zebra finch, building a nest on the…
grrlscientist | February 26, 2010tags: comedy, humor, funny, fucking hilarious, elderly couple pay piano, streaming video
An elderly couple walked into the lobby of the Mayo Clinic for a checkup and spotted a piano. They've been married for 62 years and he'll be 90 this year. Check out this impromptu performance. We are only as old as we feel, it's all attitude. Enjoy! They certainly do.
My spouse and I want to grow up to be like these two!
grrlscientist | February 26, 2010tags: Tilikum, Tillikum, Tilly, Orcinus orca, Killer Whale, SeaWorld, Sea World, Orlando, Florida, whales, animals, news, behavior, streaming video
Are orcas too brainy for captive life? Should they all live only in "the wild"? This video is only the beginning of the debate .. what do you think?
grrlscientist | February 26, 2010tags: humane society of the united states, HSUS, H$U$, Feld Entertainment, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, animal rights, animal welfare, lawsuit, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, RICO
In the United States on New Year's Eve, a judge dismissed a federal lawsuit filed by a consortium of animal rights groups including the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). The lawsuit alleged that Feld Entertainment, the parent company of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, mistreated elephants in violation of the Endangered Species Act. Now the Circus…
grrlscientist | February 26, 2010tags: Oriental Dwarf-Kingfisher, Ceyx erithaca, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Oriental Dwarf-Kingfisher, Ceyx erithaca, photographed "somewhere" in Indonesia. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: a herpetologist photographed this bird while visiting the islands of Indonesia [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | February 26, 2010tags: comedy, humor, funny, fucking hilarious, information technology, IT, Isilon, magician, Scott Tokar, streaming video
The moral of this short video is this: never bring a magician on a tour through your facilities. Or, if you do, don't curse on camera when this magician destroys something you've spent hours setting up.
Okay, here's the link: i.
grrlscientist | February 25, 2010tags: neuroscience, health, medicine, health care, blindness, poverty, India, Pawan Sinha, TEDTalks, streaming video
Pawan Sinha details his groundbreaking research into how the brain's visual system develops. Dr Sinha and his team provide free vision-restoring treatment to children born blind, and then study how their brains learn to interpret visual data. The work offers insights into neuroscience, engineering and even autism.
TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their…
grrlscientist | February 25, 2010
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is almost here once more and it is still seeking submissions for Monday's edition of this blog carnival! Can you help by sending URLs for well-written blog essays to the host?
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is a traveling blog carnival that celebrates the best science, environment and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days…
grrlscientist | February 25, 2010tags: Tilikum, Tillikum, Tilly, Orcinus orca, Killer Whale, SeaWorld, Sea World, Orlando, Florida, whales, animals, news, behavior, streaming video
The latest word is that Tilikum will not be euthanized in retaliation for being associated with his third human death. Of course, if the SeaWorld officials did decide to euthanize him, this raises several problems, not the least of which are the publicity and the mechanics of carrying out this animal's demise.
This realist (me) has decided that SeaWorld avoided the "euthanization problem" in the case of Tilikum due to two reasons, and two…
grrlscientist | February 25, 2010tags: Tilikum, Tillikum, Tilly, Orcinus orca, Killer Whale, SeaWorld, Sea World, Orlando, Florida, whales, animals, news, behavior, streaming video
Sea World officials say Dawn Brancheau was pulled into the tank by the adult male orca, Tilikum (also spelled "Tillikum"). Witnesses say she was in the tank and was dragged underwater by her ponytail by the whale.
The Connells saw the entire event happen just after they finished their "Lunch with Shamu," just before 2 p.m. They said the Tilikum (also spelled as "Tillikum") and Brancheau had been playful during the entire lunch. The Connells…
grrlscientist | February 25, 2010tags: Black-crowned Night-heron, Nycticorax nycticorax, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron, Nycticorax nycticorax, photographed in California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Steve Duncan [larger view].
Nikon D200 w/ Nikkor 300mm f/4 & TC17E.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | February 25, 2010tags: Postcarden, gift idea, plants, cute, streaming video
Aw, now this is a very cute gift idea for those people you know who either have everything or who want nothing, as well as for your co-workers and others whom you may not know well, but whom you wish to honor in some way: give them a postcard that turns into a living garden! All they have to do is add water!
Combining gift and greeting card, Postcarden is a fun and simple pop-out card that transforms into a mini living garden.
NOTE: I am not paid anything to show this to you (and I doubt the business will even know I linked this…