grrlscientist | July 7, 2009tags: Onion News Network, Mexico, Border wall, US Assholes, humor, satire, streaming video
Disgusted with vacationing Americans and their horrible behavior, this video news report reveals that Mexico is doing something about this: They are building a wall to keep Americans out of their country [1:36]
grrlscientist | July 6, 2009The current Antarctic Trip Vote count is as follows; 787 - 616 - 551 - 471 - 358 out of 241 candidates registered. I am in second place.
If you've already voted, then please encourage your family, friends, colleagues and neighbors to vote for the person whom you think would be best for this unique job: traveling to Antarctica for the month of February 2010 and writing about it for the public on a blog. Here is my 300-word essay; hopefully, you will agree that I am a very well-qualified candidate for this job opportunity. Voting ends noon EDT on 30 September and there is one vote allowed per…
grrlscientist | July 6, 2009tags: Finland, Sonkajärvi, sports, wife-carrying world championships, entertainment, streaming video
I am Finnish by ancestry, and I am in love with Finland, having visited this beautiful country three times now. However, I must warn you all that women who marry Finnish men are asking for a fair bit of humiliation. Finnish men like to indulge in a very peculiar sport: wife carrying contests, which are a modern day carry-over from the ancient pass time of wife-stealing. This is video from the 2009 event, which took place yesterday (5 July) in Sonkajärvi, which is smack-dab in the middle of…
grrlscientist | July 6, 2009tags: Black-eyed Susan vine, Gardening, Horticulture, Botany, nature, Helsinki, image of the day
Mystery flower, can you name the species?
Black-eyed Susan vine, Thunbergia alata.
Photographed on Seurasaari, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 4 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
The Black-eyed Susan vine, Thunbergia alata, is a perennial climbing plant in the Acanthaceae family. It is native to Eastern Africa, and has been naturalized in other parts of the world.
grrlscientist | July 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) was published today at Greg Laden's Blog.
Scientia Pro Publica (Science for the People) is a traveling 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.
The host for the upcoming 6 July edition is Greg, author of Greg Laden's Blog. To send your submissions to Scientia Pro Publica, either…
grrlscientist | July 6, 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, we must write an essay explaining why we think we are the best choice, and solicit votes from the public. Whomever receives the most votes wins the job. But I am not the only one who thinks I…
grrlscientist | July 6, 2009tags: Upland Sandpiper, Bartramia longicauda, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Upland Sandpiper, Bartramia longicauda, photographed in Kingsbury County, South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Terry Sohl, 5 July 2009 [larger view]
Photo taken with a Canon 50D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | July 6, 2009
Who: Dr. Jeff Schweitzer
What: free public presentation, "Moral Life in a Random World"
Where: SLC Conference Center, 352 7th avenue (between 29th and 30th streets), 16th floor.
When: 700pm, Thursday, 9 July
Dr. Jeff Schweitzer is a scientist who has written extensively on morality, religion, politics and science -- and who served as science advisor to former President Bill Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore. Schweitzer will talk about how we each have within us the awesome power to create our own meaning in life, our own sense of purpose, our own destiny. He will address how…
grrlscientist | July 6, 2009tags: Antarctica, music, Terra Nova, Sinfonia Antarctica, photography, streaming video
This video is the trailer for DJ Spooky/Paul D. Miller's next large scale multimedia performance work: an acoustic portrait of a rapidly changing continent. Terra Nova: Sinfonia Antarctica is a seventy minute performance featuring music combined with visual material from Getty Images' vast collection, creating a unique and powerful moment around man's relationship with nature [5:36]
Quark Expeditions is searching for an Official Blogger to join a voyage to Antarctica. Their goals are to have this person…
grrlscientist | July 5, 2009The current Antarctic Trip Vote count is as follows; 746 - 593 - 493 - 425 - 298 out of 235 candidates registered. I am in second place.
If you've already voted, then please encourage your family, friends, colleagues and neighbors to vote for the person whom you think would be best for this unique job: traveling to Antarctica for the month of February 2010 and writing about it for the public on a blog. Here is my 300-word essay; hopefully, you will agree that I am a very well-qualified candidate for this job opportunity. Voting ends 30 September and there is one vote allowed per valid email…
grrlscientist | July 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 | July 5, 2009tags: petunias, Gardening, Horticulture, Botany, nature, Helsinki, image of the day
White petunias, Petunia x hybrida.
Photographed on Seurasaari, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 4 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
Petunias are trumpet shaped flowering plants that are endemic to South America. Botanically speaking, tobacco, tomato, potato, and petunia are all in the family Solanaceae. These popular flowers got their name from the French, which took the word petun -- 'tobacco' -- from a Tupi-Guarani language.
grrlscientist | July 5, 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 | July 5, 2009tags: mystery bird, identify this bird, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Black-capped Chickadee, Poecile atricapilla, photographed near a small Olympic Peninsula lake in Shelton, Washington State. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Lee Rentz, 19 February 2009.
As an added bonus, can you name the close relatives to today's mystery bird that are found in Finland?
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
The closest relatives to the pictured bird that live in Finland are [English name, Finnish name, Scientific name];
Willow…
grrlscientist | July 5, 2009tags: science, god, religion, creationism, humor, funny, satire, Edward Current, streaming video
This video provides an unbiased look at whether Earth's favorable conditions for life prove that a loving God planned it that way all along. (Hint: There's no other explanation.) [3:45]
grrlscientist | July 4, 2009tags: Seurasaarenselkä, Seurasaari, Helsinki, Finland
Looking out over Seurasaarenselkä on Seurasaari, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 4 July 2009 [larger view]. (raw image)
It looks like it is going to rain today, so I am exploring the open air market in downtown Helsinki. I am still sorting through and labeling all the photographs I took yesterday on Seurasaari. In short, my walk there started out with very nice weather -- sunny, breezy, warm -- and ended up overcast, but still bright (too bright for good photography, as you can see in the above image) and chilly.
grrlscientist | July 4, 2009The current Antarctic Trip Vote count is as follows; 728 - 582 - 455 - 368 - 292 out of 228 candidates registered. I am in second place.
If you've already voted, then please encourage your family, friends, colleagues and neighbors to vote for the person whom you think would be best for this unique job: traveling to Antarctica for the month of February 2010 and writing about it for the public on a blog. Here is my 300-word essay; hopefully, you will agree that I am a very well-qualified candidate for this job opportunity. Voting ends 30 September and there is one vote allowed per valid…
grrlscientist | July 4, 2009
Auror and actor, Ronald Weasley, has appeared in all the biographical Harry Potter films.
Harry Potter's best friend, Ronald Weasley, is recovering from a "mild bout" of swine flu, his publicist has said.
After kissing a pig that had been charmed by his older brother and businessman, George Weasley, he became ill. He was successfully treated at St. Mungo's hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Weasley has now returned to work as an auror alongside his best friend and fellow school dropout, Harry Potter.
And he is well enough to attend the world premiere of the biographical…
grrlscientist | July 4, 2009tags: fireworks, fourth of july, independence day
Image: Orphaned [larger view].
grrlscientist | July 4, 2009tags: politics, the declaration of independence, fourth of july, independence day, streaming video
The United States was born with a single document -- the Declaration of Independence. Have you actually read it? Few people get beyond "... Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." But it really is fascinating. It lays out all the justifications for separation from Great Britain. And it clearly states the founding ideals. In this video, you'll get a chance to hear the entire document read by some of Hollywood's A-list celebrities. But the words are the real stars. It's not a perfect document…