Bloggity Blog

A year ago to the day, skippy and Jon Swift led an uprising of little blogs. As skippy notes: the inestimable mr. swift has a handful of other links to other blogs also commemorating this auspicious occasion. so, this weekend, take a moment to click thru to a smaller blog, and read a new perspective. all of blogtopia and yes, we coined that phrase, will be better off. and happy blogroll amnesty day to everyone! and, to a lesser extent, duncan! [of Atrios] If you link to me (and you're not a truly evil or crazy person), let me know in the comments, and I'll link to you. Now go click through…
the blogs keep rolling on. More Blogroll Amnesty**. If you link to me and you're not an asshole or a fucking moron, let me know and I'll return the favor (instructions below). For now, say hello to: Tangled Up in Blue Guy, Sorting Out Science, The force that through..., jobsanger, no fish, no nuts, The Barefoot Bum, miriam's ideas. In the comments below, give me two lines, the first with the blog name, the second with the html code. For example: Mike the Mad Biologist http://scienceblogs.com/mikethemadbiologist/ *I've seen the Jordan River. It's not that mighty. **Hell, I'm a librul--I…
Say hello to Jon Swift. Speaking of Jon Swift, the start of 2008 seems like a good time to have another Blogroll Amnesty Day. If you're not on my blogroll, and I'm on yours, leave me a link below and I'll add you (note: racists, creationists, and flat-out weirdos won't be accepted). Instructions below the fold. Please put your blog name on one line, and the url on the second line, like so: Mike the Mad Biologist http://scienceblogs.com/mikethemadbiologist/ or give me a line of html code, like so: Mike the Mad Biologist Thanks! Update: This post is closed. Go here. Thanks!
And thank you to everyone who reads, comments, and links to the blog. I don't have time to respond to everything, but I do read it all eventually (I have science stuff to do....). Now back to our regularly scheduled ranting.
From the archives comes this post about movie critic Roger Ebert and the email he sent me. A little while back, Roger Ebert wrote a column assailing Imax theaters for pulling movies that were about the origin of life, the origin of the universe, and evolution. I suggested that we should send him email and thank him for supporting science. Well, I did just that, and in my email In Box today was a reply from Ebert. Pretty damn cool.To sum up, he says that he's received a lot of ('countless') emails from creationists who use ridiculous arguments. The criticism he's received the most is what he (…
It's my birthday. No blogging for me--however I do have a make sexy time photo for you.
We're having a nor'easter. That's a great excuse for some links. Science first: I'm on the fence regarding ScienceDebate 2008. My thoughts about The Bell Curve and IQ. Speaking of IQ, Malcolm Gladwell and Amanda discuss the plasticity of IQ. ScienceBlogling Chris Mooney discusses the supposed scientific training crisis. Do we have a substantive case of human-to-human spread of H5N1 influenza among humans in Pakistan? ScienceBlogling Revere puts it all in context. ScienceBlogling Janet has some great pictures of moon jellies. Mark H discusses countershading. Other stuff: ScienceBlogling…
Things are kind of hectic, but I stumbled across this interesting post by Chris Colvin, an NBC news writer, about blogging: Now to the news media.. the Mainstream Media.. as it has become known, and an object lesson in how the blogosphere is changing the way the MSM operates. (And I say this at the risk of sounding hopelessly naive to the many people who think the "corporate media" exists to push a political agenda-- if that's true, I'm either too stupid or too low on the food chain to be able to actually demonstrate it.) Anyway. Salon's Glenn Greenwald has engaged in a fairly brutal…
Here are some links for you. Science goes first: Piggies and MRSA: the Mad Biologist, Revere, and Tara. Alex Koppelman also chimes in. Do we always need to rebut creationists? Chloramphenicol, an antibacterial, seems to protect endangered frogs from a fungal epidemic. One of nature's most interesting hermaphrodites: the limpet. Crooked Timber has a good rebuttal of that silly female-walk paper. A five planet solar system! And it's only 41 light years away... Tuberculosis, elephants, and humans, oh my! Lewis Black's humorous take on creationism. Other stuff: Lance Mannion describes two…
It finally feels like Fall. Here are some links for you. First, evil, non-creationist science: First, it's time to do something about science education in the U.S. Go support some science for students. ScienceBlogling Andrew sees sea slugs sitting by the sea shore. Speaking of sea critters, Mark H tells us about mole crabs. Greta Christina writes about the historical amnesia of AIDS denialists. While we're on the subject of viruses, revere tells us about some neat flu virus biology. Yes, your garbage can can have a bad case of the crabs. ScienceBlogling GrrlScientist discusses the…
So ScienceBlogling Shelley Batts of Retrospectacle is one of twenty finalists in a blogging contest, and if she wins, she gets a $10,000 scholarship. Head on over to the voting page, and vote for her. Why? Not only do I like her writing, but she also stood her ground against Wiley Publishing when they went after her. The Mad Biologist digs conviction. So should you. Help Public School Kids by Funding my Challenge at DonorsChoose
This year, once again, we ScienceBloggers are raising money to buy equipment for science classrooms. I decided to focus on microbiology and marine biology, because, well, microbiology is what I do now, and marine biology is what I started in. Also, if a new textbook in evolutionary biology is any indication, I think microbiology is going to be emphasized a lot more in college. Anyway, here's what I've put into my challenge: Genetic Research For Immigrants This targets a school with a mostly immigrant population, and it would buy the equipment needed to do gel electrophoresis, so they can…
This is how Technorati characterizes this blog: Indeed. Now go do the Hokey Pokey and shake it all about.
Today is the day I'm leaving for vacation, so I'll be trapped in an airport lounge watching Very Serious People make Very Serious Pronouncements about the Surgetacular Surge. Anyway, I have some thoughts about the statistics of the surge here. Thanks to the ScienceBlogs Blogerator 9000, I'll still be able post while I'm away, but responses won't be very rapid (or at all). Oh, and before I forget: Try not to invade any countries while I'm gone. Thanks.
Actually, she lives in the blogosphere, and I live in blogtopia (and yes, skippy invented that phrase). Goodman argues that the lefty blogosphere is 'led' by angry white men. Granted, I am a Mad white man, but, trust me, I'm not leading anything. When I think of the regular blogs that I click through, here are some of the blogs*: Pandagon Feministe Feministing mahablog The Group News Blog (I think Sara Robinson is the strongest blogger there) Aetiology Majikthise FireDogLake Shakesville/Shakespeare's Sister These are all sites that I visit daily, and....they're run by women. I figure 40-50…
At least according to an internet quiz: You Are 95% Feminist You are a total feminist. This doesn't mean you're a man hater (in fact, you may be a man). You just think that men and women should be treated equally. It's a simple idea but somehow complicated for the world to put into action. Are You a Feminist? Of course, the internets tell me that I'm also 55% Irish: You're 55% Irish You're very Irish, and most likely from Ireland. (And if you're not, you should be!) How Irish Are You? That might have something to do with my having had Guinness for breakfast....
Be a mensch: stop by, and wish Lindsay Beyerstein of Majikthise well. It's good to have her blogging again.
Matt Bai doesn't get that. In the NY Times Magazine, Bai writes (italics mine): The emergence of the Internet age has been accompanied, in general, by a steady devaluing of expertise. A generation ago, you went to the doctor to find out about the pain in your knee; now you go to WebMD, diagnose it yourself and tell him what medicines you want. People used to trust stockbrokers and insurance agents; now they buy and sell at E*Trade and compare policies online. American voters who once looked to newspaper columnists for guidance on politics now blog their own idle punditry. Suddenly,…
...and the Mad Biologist answers. Over at the World's Fair, David asks scientists: 1. What's your current scientific specialty? Microbial population biology. 2. Were you originally pursuing a different academic course? If so, what was it? Yep. I was originally a marine evolutionary ecologist. I studied botrylloid ascidians (specifically, the evolution of histocompatibility). Sadly, I had far more cache than a microbiologist. 3. Do you happen to wish you were involved in another scientific field? If so, what one? Nope. Given the crappy wages, long hours, and work to get to the point where…
skippy, the kangaroo-eist blogger in all of blogtopia (and, yes, skippy invented that phrase) is celebrating his fifth blogiversary. Stop by and say hello.