grrlscientist | September 6, 2009tags: birds, parrots, Quaker Parrot, Monk ParakeetGrey-Breasted parakeet, Myiopsitta monachus, NYC events, NYC Life, Brooklyn, Wild Parrot Safari
Monk Parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus) Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Image: Magnus Manske, 10 May 2008, Wikipedia [larger view]
Even though NYC is located in the armpit of hell where, during the summers, the air is a humid miasma of fetid human sweat and decomposing dog shit, and the winters possess the cold and wind of Antarctica with none of its natural charms, there is a brave group of illegal aliens who not only live here, but are actually thriving…
grrlscientist | September 6, 2009tags: conservation, environmentalism, global warming, ocean acidification, AMNH, American Museum of Natural History, New York City, A Sea Change, film premier
Image: A Sea Change [larger view].
Can you imagine oceans that have been emptied of all fish? What would life be like for other life forms on this planet if there really were no more fish in the sea? This is not science fiction: human-caused ocean acidification is already making its effects known. Sometimes known as the "wet underbelly" or "evil twin" of climate change, ocean acidification is caused by excess carbon dioxide from…
grrlscientist | September 6, 2009tags: flowers, Gardening, Horticulture, Botany, nature, Helsinki, image of the day
Tufted Loosestrife, Lysimachia thyrsiflora.
Helsinki mystery flower, can you identify this?
Photographed at the gardens at the Tarvaspää Café at the Gallen-Kallela Museum
near Tarvon Salmi in Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 2 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
This isn't the best picture I've ever taken, but I hope it's good enough that you can identify the plant.
grrlscientist | September 6, 2009
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 a blog carnival that celebrates the best science, nature and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days. To send your submissions to Scientia Pro Publica, either use this automated submission form or use the cute little widget on the right (sometimes that widget doesn't upload when the mother site is sick). Be sure to include the URL or "…
grrlscientist | September 6, 2009tags: 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 | September 6, 2009tags: Double-barred Finch, Owl Finch, Bicheno, Taeniopygia bichenovii, identify this bird, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Double-barred (Owl) Finch, Taeniopygia bichenovii, also known as the Bicheno, photographed at Grafton, Australia. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Steve Duncan, 15 August 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 w/ Nikkor 300mm f/4 1/2000 sec, f/4, iso 200.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
The photographer writes;
Double-barred Finches, aka Owl Finches or Bichenos, are frequently observed in small…
grrlscientist | September 6, 2009
Jockey Calvin Borel rides Rachel Alexandra to victory in the Grade-I Woodward Stakes
at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, NY, Saturday, 5 September 2009.
Image: Mike Groll (AP Photo) [larger view]
For those of you who, like me, love watching the phenomenal Rachel Alexandra run, you had a real treat yesterday when the 3-year-old filly beat the boys -- again -- in the $750,000 Woodward Stakes at Saratoga. The purse for this race, traditionally meant to test older male horses, was increased by $250,000 after her entry was announced.
In short, Rachel was tested yesterday, but after…
grrlscientist | September 6, 2009tags: religion, violence, genocide, fundamentalism, MtlRedAtheist, streaming video
This is the second in a series of videos that address some of the violent, absurd and atrocious Bible stories being taught to children in Sunday School around the world today. This video discusses the Sunday School Bible story Joshua and the Battle of Jericho. This story describes how God ordained the extermination of the people of Jericho, a disgusting and unethical practice known as genocide.
Teaching this to children is designed to teach them to have faith in God. However, it is an excellent example of how…
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009tags: religion, miracle, watermelon, satire, humor, Mitchell and Webb, streaming video
The religious respond to the discovery of a watermelon whose seeds spell out: "There is no god!"
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009
Image: Sneer Review.
The current Antarctic Trip Vote count is as follows; 5860 - 1841 - 1667 - 1218 - 1118 out of 568 candidates registered. I am in third place and sloooowly creeping up on second place. With less than 4 weeks remaining, things are heating up and voting is changing rapidly as previous voters reassign their votes and new voters cast theirs for the first time. Many tens of thousands of votes have already been cast in this competition, so if the people who have cast their votes already decide to change them, they can significantly affect the outcome of this competition. The…
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009
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 a blog carnival that celebrates the best science, nature and medical writing targeted specifically to the public that has been published in the blogosphere within the past 60 days. To send your submissions to Scientia Pro Publica, either use this automated submission form or use the cute little widget on the right (sometimes that widget doesn't upload when the mother site is sick). Be sure to include the URL or "…
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009test
test
test
testosterone!
dangnabbit, is this thing broken AGAIN??
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009tags: travel, nature, environment, cities, Munkkivuori, Helsinki, Finland
Brick tower that is just outside my host's apartment
in the Munkkivuori neighborhood in Helsinki, Finland.
Photographed as I walked to Tarvaspää Café at the Gallen-Kallela Museum
near Tarvon Salmi in Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 2 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
Now that a new month has begun, my Flickr accounts allow me to upload images once more, so I am back to cramming them full to bursting with images for the photoessays that I wish to share with you from my time in Helsinki, Finland.
As…
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009tags: Daisy, Gardening, Horticulture, Botany, nature, Helsinki, image of the day
Biting (Goldmoss) Stonecrop, Sedum acre, also known as the Wall-pepper.
Helsinki mystery flower, can you identify this?
Photographed as I walked to Tarvaspää Café at the Gallen-Kallela Museum
near Tarvon Salmi in Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 2 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
This isn't the best picture I've ever taken, but I hope it's good enough that you can identify the plant.
Stonecrop is a succulent herb that includes perhaps 600 species -- mostly in the North Temperate Zone. Many…
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009tags: Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus, photographed at Anahuac Wildlife Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 14 July 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/640s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
grrlscientist | September 5, 2009tags: parrots, Kakapo, Strigops habroptilus, BBC Two, Last Chance to See, endangered species, BBC Two, Mark Carwardine, Stephen Fry, streaming video
Parrot lovers will especially enjoy this video, but anyone who enjoys birds and who wishes to protect endangered species will like it also. Following in the footsteps of Douglas Adams, Stephen Fry joins Mark Carwardine to travel to some of the most remote places on earth in search of endangered animals. In this case, he meets a Kakapo, Strigops habroptilus, a round, sweet-smelling green parrot that lives in New Zealand.
You might also be…
grrlscientist | September 4, 2009tags: parrots, Kakapo, Strigops habroptilus, BBC Two, Last Chance to See, endangered species, BBC Two, Mark Carwardine, Stephen Fry, streaming video
Following in the footsteps of Douglas Adams, Stephen Fry joins Mark Carwardine to travel to some of the most remote places on earth in search of endangered animals. In this clip, Stephen Fry jokes about some of the names given to birds in New Zealand.
You might also be searching for this video: Shagged by a Rare Parrot.
I am very jealous of all you peeps who live in the UK: BBC Two is starting this series, Last Chance to See tomorrow! Alas, I…
grrlscientist | September 4, 2009
Image: Sneer Review.
The current Antarctic Trip Vote count is as follows; 5815 - 1838 - 1662 - 1209 - 1117 out of 561 candidates registered. I am in third place and sloooowly creeping up on second place. With less than 4 weeks remaining, things are heating up and voting is changing rapidly as previous voters reassign their votes and new voters cast theirs for the first time. Many tens of thousands of votes have already been cast in this competition, so if the people who have cast their votes already decide to change them, they can significantly affect the outcome of this competition. The…
grrlscientist | September 4, 2009tags: Daisy, Gardening, Horticulture, Botany, nature, Helsinki, image of the day
Helsinki daises.
Photographed as I walked to Tarvaspää Café at the Gallen-Kallela Museum
near Tarvon Salmi in Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 2 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
grrlscientist | September 4, 2009Since I have recently developed quite a history of visiting cold and snowy places, often during the winter, I wish to preserve that tradition. I am competing for the opportunity to go to Antarctica in February 2010 -- a dream adventure that I've always wanted to pursue (and almost did pursue when I was an undergraduate researching Fin Whales and Crabeater Seals at the University of Washington). To enter, all candidates must publish a picture of themselves and write an essay explaining why we think we are the best choice, and solicit votes from the public. Whomever receives the most votes wins…