Hedwig Pöllöläinen
grrlscientist
Posts by this author
March 9, 2006
I broke all the etiquette rules, PZ, because I did not ask your wife or daughter before I got a virtual pet for you for your hatchday. However, this pet is a little different than most because it does not use a litter box, it doesn't have to be walked three or five times per day, nor can it starve…
March 9, 2006
Klamath River, Oregon.
Photo by Dave Menke, USFWS.
Click on image for a MUCH larger view in its own window.
Do you wonder what happened with that online letter to the US Senate that I posted to my blog awhile ago, soliciting scientists' signatures regarding the upcoming rewrite of the 1973…
March 9, 2006
After a delay, the 181st issue of the Carnival of the Vanities was just posted by Daniel at The Global Perspective. Daniel was kind enough to include one of my pieces with all the other fabulous writing that is linked there.
The Carnival of the Vanities is the grand dame of all blog carnivals, it…
March 8, 2006
Yes, it's me again, my peeps. I am once more reminding you to send me something for my issue of Tangled Bank, which will be published here on 15 March! I have already received half a dozen articles, but of course, I want more because the public is hungry to read and learn more about science!…
March 7, 2006
With one picture, a friend reminded me of my barely concealed longing for a horse when he sent this to me. Oh, cruel, wicked friend!
Oddly, that kid looks a lot like I did when I was young and cute (yes, I had freckles when I was a wee one).
But this picture makes me wonder what is it about girls…
March 7, 2006
Kim, an emergency room and critical care nurse and the author of Emergiblog, has published the latest edition of Grand Rounds, vol. 2, no. 24 (week 76), for all to enjoy. Grand Rounds is a weekly blog carnival that compiles the best medical writing in the blogosphere. This issue is fabulous. It is…
March 7, 2006
A colleague apparently read the essay about avian influenza that I wrote this past weekend and was inspired to send me a portion of an email written by Ted Cable, Assistant Chairman for the Department of Horticulture, Forestry and Recreational Resources at Kansas State University. Cable is…
March 7, 2006
A word cloud is a visual depiction of content (words) used in a body of text. The words in this cloud, are arranged alphabetically and depict more frequently used words in progressively larger fonts. This word cloud (pictured) was generated from my blog. You can generate your own word cloud, from…
March 6, 2006
What should you study in college? I think I gave this on-line quiz a run for its money, as you will see from my scores (below the fold).
Did you earn a different major than the one the quiz diagnosed for you? If so, what was the major you did get and the major the quiz says you should get? What…
March 6, 2006
A friend sent me this poem (below the fold), which is written entirely from actual quotations from George W. Bush. These quotes were arranged for poetic purposes by Washington Post writer, Richard Thompson. Of course, I had to share this with you, especially since it is such a powerful testament…
March 6, 2006
Over the weekend, I found this new report [PDF] by GRAIN that shows that the global poultry farming industry is, as I suspected, the primary cause of H5N1 avian influenza, NOT wild birds and backyard free-range poultry farmers as is so widely reported by the media. Further, this report claims that…
March 6, 2006
Hey everyone, Carnival of the Godless, issue 35, is now available and, amongst all the great links they published, they also included a piece written by moi.
tags: blog carnival
March 6, 2006
I already have two articles for my issue of Tangled bank, which will be published on 15 March, but I need more!
Tangled Bank is a Blog Carnival that is actively seeking submissions of your blogged essays, opinion pieces, poetry, and cartoons that present or discuss topics that affect the natural (…
March 4, 2006
Sent by a friend for your enjoyment.
Okay, this astonishing series of four photographs also falls into my new "Wow!" category and will appeal to those of you who like to feed birds on your back porch and other places. [I am not showing you ANY pictures from this particular link because seriously,…
March 4, 2006
Cashing in a few of its nine lives, this cat was lucky to be alive when it was rescued from its predicament.
"The cat was just hanging under there," said Bristol Police Lt. Nick Guercia, who was one of the feline's rescuers. "How this cat didn't get killed is just amazing."
Which leads me to ask…
March 4, 2006
FINALLY! The polls are open to vote for the 2005 Koufax Awards. The purpose of this round of voting is to identify the top 6-10 semifinalists for each category. Voting is done either through email or by posting your choice in each category's comments. As you might recall, Living the Scientific Life…
March 3, 2006
Josh Hosler has catalogued all of Billboard Magazine's number one songs since 1940.
So what was the number one song on the day you were conceived? The day you were born? The day you lost your virginity? The day you graduated? The day you were married? Or whatever other day that has some sort of…
March 3, 2006
I was recently reminiscing about my winter vacation spent in Minnesota, so a friend sympathetically sent me this story (below).
Note: For those of you who don't know, I am blonde (Obviously! Who else other than a blonde who hates the cold would spend her winter vacation in Minnesota??), but this…
March 2, 2006
Condor in the Torres del Paine.
Photo courtesy of Ron Cook.
Click image for MUCH larger view in its own window.
Special Bird Note
Tomorrow, 4 March, is the anniversary of the first issue of Birds in the News. As of tomorrow, I have been digging up, linking to and commenting on news stories about…
March 2, 2006
I and the Bird, issue #18, is now available. It is hosted by Rob, author of The Bird Chaser.
This issue is a wake-up call to the blogosphere because it takes the form of a news story that was published on this very day, but 30 years in the future. This story reviews bird-related blog posts (all of…
March 2, 2006
Normally, I don't talk about something as mundane as snailmail because I tend to receive bills, junk, bills, crap, bills and more bills -- certainly nothing worth mentioning. But not today: today was special.
Today was special because I received a book. A book that I had to sign for. Since I had…
March 1, 2006
Hey everyone, I was busy working on my CV and on a class that I will teach soon, so I forgot to tell you that Tangled Bank (TB), issue #48, is available!
TB is hosted by blog sibling, Aetiology. Tara, the blog author, decided to design TB around the hypothetical scenario; "songs by groups that may…
March 1, 2006
Click image for a slightly larger view in its own window.
I found a really interesting animation that demonstrates evolution of "Darwin's Finches" (Flash required, 515kb).
This animation is interactive, and is based on the only figure (above) that appeared in the first edition of Darwin's…
February 28, 2006
Anna Quindlen, an extraordinary writer whom I met through her book, One True Thing, has a sad and eloquent editorial in Newsweek speculating on the likely social implications due to the loss of Sandra Day O'Connor from the Supreme Court.
Quindlen writes;
O'Connor, the first female Supreme Court…
February 28, 2006
Here is a prehistoric album ("prehistoric" because it's vinyl) to separate UK bird lovers from their hard-earned funds. It is currently on sale on eBay in the UK (click image to be magically transported there). After you buy it, be sure to burn a CD for me.
Thanks, Ian!
February 28, 2006
The 23rd Qualm
Written by a retired minister,
sent to me by a reader.
Bush is my shepherd; I dwell in want.
He maketh logs to be cut down in national forests.
He leadeth trucks into the still wilderness.
He restoreth my fears.
He leadeth me down paths of international disgrace for his ego's sake…
February 27, 2006
How important it is to walk along, not in haste, but slowly,
looking at everything and calling out
Yes! No!
-- Mary Oliver
Almost everyone has heard about "Darwin's Finches" -- those dark little birds that live on the Galapagos Islands. But most people don't realize that Darwin didn't set eyes…
February 27, 2006
Note: Original sent to me by a reader, I rewrote it a little bit.
Dear [feminine hygiene product brand name],
I recently noticed that the peel-off strip of my pantiliner had a bunch of "[brand name] Tips for Life" written on it. It was annoying and condescending advice such as;
- Staying active…
February 26, 2006
Like most Americans, I was losing sleep because I realized that Dick Cheney was roaming the countryside, fully armed and seething with rage while inebriated, with the single-minded goal of murdering innocent domestic quail and guilty lawyers. But then a friend sent me to the Quail Hunting School.…