grrlscientist | October 31, 2009tags: prank, Halloween, funny, streaming video
This bratty brother scares the hell out of his sister so she will, no doubt, be plotting her revenge.
grrlscientist | October 31, 2009tags: pumpkin carving, Halloween, funny, streaming video
What do you think: might this pumpkin carving design make Martha Stewart jealous?
grrlscientist | October 31, 2009tags: halloween prank, fake trick-or-treater, humor, funny, prank, scaring the neighbors, streaming video
This is a funny video of a series of pranks committed on the videographers' neighbors. Truly inpsired!
This is the original in high definition. For this Halloween Prank, the videographers (and pranksters) fixed up a life size dummy to look like a trick-or-treater, complete with bag of candy and hidden microphone. Then they went door to door with their fake "Timmy" to see what kind of reactions they would get.
More videos from this videographer.
grrlscientist | October 30, 2009
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
Have you read an especially good essay about science, nature or medicine lately? If so, why not share it with the world by submitting the URL for this essay to a blog carnival designed to share excellent writing with others? You don't need to be the author of an essay to submit it for consideration, and this is one way that blog carnivals grow in size and influence: by sharing with others.
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) was just published recently…
grrlscientist | October 30, 2009tags: Bare-throated Tiger-heron, Tigrisoma mexicanum, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Bare-throated Tiger-heron, Tigrisoma mexicanum, photographed in Mexico. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dennis Paulson [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | October 30, 2009tags: Phidippus putnami, Jumping Spider, macro video, animal behavior, streaming video
This remarkable video is of (probably) a sub-adult female Phidippus putnami Jumping Spider ..
Video: Thomas Shahan [Thomas Shahan's photostream]
grrlscientist | October 30, 2009tags: environment, forest ecology, trees, forestry, carbon sequestration, global warming, climate change, Nature Conservancy, streaming video
You know that trees store carbon, but what does that really mean? How much carbon does the tree outside your window store, and how does that compare to the carbon we emit when we travel or power our homes?
How many trees are in your yard? I don;t have a yard (I have a fire escape), but my neighborhood is being revitalized by BYC's "Million Trees" project, so roughly by the time that I leave for Germany, the city will be planting trees on the street in…
grrlscientist | October 29, 2009tags: Cooper's Hawk, Chicken Hawk, Blue Darter, Accipiter cooperii, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Sharp-shinned Hawk, Accipiter striatus, Cooper's Hawk, also known as a Chicken Hawk or Blue Darter (?!), Accipiter cooperii, photographed at Smith Point, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 30 September 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1250s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
I added more images of the same bird, taken…
grrlscientist | October 29, 2009tags: Paraphidippus aurantius, Jumping Spider, macro video, animal behavior, streaming video
After taking the video of an adult male Paraphidippus aurantius eating a cricket and waving his arms threateningly at the videographer's finger, both the male and an adult female P. aurantius were released on a nearby plant.
As stated in the video, the videographer did not intentionally cause the female to kill the male. The videographer says, "I was actually a little concerned that the female might try to get him, so I put them about three or four feet apart and went back inside for a little bit to…
grrlscientist | October 29, 2009tags: halloween costumes, effeminate boys, humor, satire, funny, fucking hilarious, ONN, Onion News Network, streaming video
Anna Stephenson stops by Today NOW! to show parents of girly sons costume tips to survive Halloween without accentuating their child's already obvious homosexuality.
grrlscientist | October 28, 2009tags: DonorsChoose, science education, teaching, fund-raising, poverty
This is a poll. I will show you two pictures, and ask you to tell me which picture is more symmetric. Your votes are tabulated after you've clicked on that picture:
Now that you've participated in my little poll, I want to share some information about my own fund-raising efforts for DonorsChoose:
Those pictures tell us that collectively, we've:
provided resources to 550 students
supported 66 hours of instruction and homework
Oh boy! Sixty-six hours of classroom instruction AND HOMEWORK?? That's almost demonic…
grrlscientist | October 28, 2009
Image: wemidji (Jacques Marcoux).
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est (And thus knowledge itself is power)
-- Sir Francis Bacon.
Have you read an especially good essay about psychology, behavior or neurobiology lately? If so, why not share it with the world by submitting the URL for this essay to a blog carnival designed to share excellent writing with others? You don't need to be the author of an essay to submit it for consideration, and this is one way that blog carnivals grow in size and influence: by sharing with others.
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) was just published…
grrlscientist | October 28, 2009tags: DonorsChoose, science education, teaching, fund-raising, poverty
Here's the latest news from DonorsChoose: collectively, all of the blog writers and the 4,038 citizen philanthropists who participated in the Social Media Challenge have raised more than $565,000 to help more than 99,000 students in public schools throughout the US!!! I think this is amazing! JUST the ScienceBloggers team has raised an astonishing $54,358 from 244 citizen philanthropists (my blog has raised $5,646.31 so far -- last year, the ScienceBlogs team raised $38,000 and my blog raised $2,884.55)
But there's still…
grrlscientist | October 28, 2009tags: Rough-billed Pelican, American White Pelican, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] American White Pelican, sometimes known as the Rough-billed Pelican due to the structure that develops on the upper mandible of breeding adults, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos, photographed at Smith Point, Texas. Numerous Broad-winged hawks, Buteo platypterus (background) with two red-tailed hawks, Buteo jamaicensis (right of center, lower left) [I will identify these birds for you in 48 hours -- If you can convince me there's other species in this image, feel free to…
grrlscientist | October 28, 2009tags: Tutelina species, Jumping Spider, macro video, animal behavior, streaming video
Here is some video (and stabilized from some really shakey footage using Deshaker, a plugin for Virtualdub) of male and female jumping spiders from the genus Tutelina. Not sure on the species, but the videographer's best guess is Tutelina elegans. The female could be mimicking the antennae movements of an ant. The music was recorded by the videographer.
Video: Thomas Shahan [Thomas Shahan's photostream]
grrlscientist | October 28, 2009tags: Edinburgh, Scotland, big freeze, human behavior, streaming video
Sunday, 24 Feb 08, Edinburgh, in front of National Galleries of Scotland. Roughly 150 people froze for five minutes in this fab flash mob (this is a long time to remain motionless!).
grrlscientist | October 27, 2009tags: Mississippi Kite, Ictinia mississippiensis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Mississippi Kite, Ictinia mississippiensis, photographed at Smith Point, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 30 September 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | October 27, 2009tags: Phidippus princeps, Jumping Spider, macro video, animal behavior, streaming video
A nice little Phidippus princeps "chewing" on her (his?) feet, cleaning her eyes, and her fangs. Lots of fun palp movement, and a few glimpses of fang.
Video: Thomas Shahan [Thomas Shahan's photostream]
grrlscientist | October 27, 2009tags: Food, Inc., food industry, factory farming, health, documentary, film, movie trailer, Eric Schlosser, streaming video
This is the official trailer for a 2008 documentary based on Eric Schlosser's research (Fast Food Nation DVD or book). It identifies, describes and details the problems of the food industry, its effects upon our health and provides us -- the consumer -- with strategies for changing the way the food industry operates so farmers can earn a living wage and all of us can enjoy improved health outcomes.
Learn more about this film or purchase the DVD.
grrlscientist | October 26, 2009tags: DonorsChoose, science education, teaching, fund-raising, poverty
I am so lucky to be enjoying a flood of thousands of unique visitors right now, so much so that my blog will surpass the 4 million visits mark in an hour or less. To celebrate this incredible landmark, I ask you -- all of you -- to donate to a DonorsChoose classroom! DonorsChoose is a non-profit fund-raising agency that provides money to teachers throughout the United States to help "their kids" improve their education. I chose specific classrooms to help -- my "Challenge" students -- that focus on classrooms that are (a…