jlynch
Posts by this author
March 22, 2006
I have to admit to having taught students that essentialism - the belief that species have an essence and thus could not evolve - was prevalent prior to Darwin. This was something I got from reading the writings of Ernst Mayr. Now along comes John Wilkins who argues "essentialism in biology…
March 20, 2006
George says:
"The Afghan people are building a vibrant young democracy that is an ally in the war on terror - and America is proud to have such a determined partner in the cause of freedom."
Meanwhile, back in Kabul:
An Afghan man is being prosecuted in a Kabul court and could be sentenced to death…
March 20, 2006
Remember Kiwa hirsuta, the hairy lobster? Now you too can have your own.
March 20, 2006
Researchers have found evidence for referential gestures in wild chimps. Humans commonly use referential gestures that direct the attention of recipients to particular aspects of the environment. Because the recipient of a referential gesture must infer the signaler's meaning, the use of these…
March 19, 2006
Any readers in Arizona may be interested in the following upcoming public lecture that I will be giving on Tuesday, March 28:
Twenty Years A-Growing: Creationism Since Edwards v. Aguillard
Sponsored by ASU's Secular Freethought Society
In 1986 the Supreme Court effectively killed off "scientific…
March 19, 2006
The British critic and novelist, Melvyn Bragg, has chosen twelve works that changed the world for an upcoming book and TV program. Nice to see a good representation of scientific works:
Principia Mathematica (1687) by Isaac Newton
On the Origin of Species (1859) by Charles Darwin
Experimental…
March 19, 2006
I'm back from Maine after having a wonderful trip to Colby College. It was cold (but I got used to it) and the people were very friendly, so thanks to one and all.
Normal blogging will resume once I get caught up, but for the moment, here's a belated random ten:
Hold On / Lou Reed / New York
World…
March 13, 2006
As I mentioned previously, I'm getting to spend the latter half of Spring Break over in Colby College, Maine - where the temperature is currently 43 degrees. That's not too bad (it's only 52 here in the desert at the moment). Problem is, they are forecasting a high of 39 and low of 20 for Wednesday…
March 11, 2006
If the hairy lobster wasn't your style of thing, what about a meter long Giant freshwater crayfish (Astacopsis gouldi) from Tasmania?
Yeah, I know, it's not a lobster ... but they are related.
It's Saturday evening. I'm posting on parasitic fish and large crustacea. I need to get a life.
(source)
March 11, 2006
Catfish are a fairly diverse group of fish, familar to aquarium keepers and fans of fried food. They vary in size from the over two meter long Giant Mekong Catfish (Pangasius gigas; a record 646 pound specimen is above) to a finger-length parasitic species, the candiru (Vandellia cirrhosa, see…
March 11, 2006
Boy, I thought I was getting some traffic yesterday when PZ linked to me. Today, DarkSyde over at Daily Kos linked to the hairy lobsters and the hits keep a-comin'. Welcome one and all !
March 10, 2006
Berlinski's latest expectoration in his interview with himself:
You talk very often of, and I quote, "the serious sciences." I take it you mean to exclude biology altogether. Is that your view? ...
DB: To a certain extent. My real view is that there is only one science, and that is mathematics, and…
March 10, 2006
Over at Rationally Speaking, Massimo Pigulicci hits the nail on the head as far as I'm concerned regarding nuclear weapons:
I am baffled by the fact that nobody seems to notice the obvious flaw in the US, Russian and European effort to stop Iran's path toward nuclear weaponry: we have them, why not…
March 10, 2006
I can't possible compete with RPM's "Double Entendre Friday" (heh, heh, he said "penetrance"), but here they are, your Friday Random Ten:
Sad Professor / REM / MTV Unplugged
Babylon Sisters / Steely Dan / Gaucho
Free Fallin' / Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers / Greatest Hits
I Wanna Be Your…
March 9, 2006
This looks interesting. As I haven't seen the paper yet, I wont comment.
The vast differences between humans and chimpanzees are due more to changes in gene regulation than differences in individual genes themselves, according to a report in Nature. Using novel gene-array technology to measure the…
March 8, 2006
I used to work on Eurasian badgers, Meles meles, a fascinating mustelid carnivore that is relatively easy to observe in the wild. My work was in cranial morphometrics - measuring skulls and detecting differences - and I was more interested in variation in sexual dimorphism than anything else (…
March 7, 2006
French biologists have apparently discovered a new species of lobster, Kiwi hirsuta at a depth of 7,540 feet, 900 miles south of Easter Island. Thing is, it's blind ... and has limbs covered with "sinuous, hair-like strands" (source).
March 7, 2006
I will be on the east coast for a brief period next week.
On Thursday March 16th, I will be giving a public talk ("Darwin, Design, and Democracy") at Colby College, Maine. The venue is the Olin Science Center, the kick-off is 7:00pm, and I'm being sponsored by Colby's Science, Technology &…
March 6, 2006
"One could certainly ascertain that if you're in a barn and in a secluded area with a lamb and you're behind her and your pants are down by your ankles, then an unnatural sex act is probably occurring." That's an understatement.
(I know, I know. I shouldn't have posted this. But, come on ... I'm…
March 6, 2006
In a previous post I noted the governor of South Carolina's inane comments on evolution which he characterized as "[t]he idea of their being a, you know, a little mud hole and two mosquitoes get together and the next thing you know you have a human being". Well, not to be outdone, his counterpart…
March 6, 2006
Creationism is, it appears, a profitable business. Jim Lippard has a nice piece on Answers in Genesis, Ken Ham's young earth organization. Seems that in 2004, AiG had a total revenue of $10,423,222. Ham himself had a salary of $121,764, with $6,887 in benefits and $63,808 in expenses. Similarly,…
March 6, 2006
Max Blumenthal has an interesting piece in last week's Nation discussing Robert "Robby" George, a Princeton professor of jurisprudence, and his James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions. Of interest is that the Program is supported by many of the conservative foundations that fund…
March 6, 2006
A while back I mentioned Dan Ely, the University of Akron physiologist who seems to be unsure about the age of the earth. According to Red State Rabble, three of his departmental colleagues have written to the Kansas BoE to fix two of Ely's "misrepresentations". Their first correction ultimately…
March 6, 2006
A few weeks ago, I noted that I had bought a lace catfish Syonodontis nigrita for my aquarium. The little guy doesn't come out often, preferring the evenings, but he sure is a nice looking fish. Somewhat strangely, he likes to spend time inverted among the plants, wedging himself down near the…
March 5, 2006
As I'm still mid-grading, I still don't have time for any real posting. So, in lieu, I give to these two videos which are flying around the internet.
Natalie Portman goes gangsta on Saturday Night Live (YouTube)
The Simpsons opening credits redone with flesh people (YouTube)
That's all for the…
March 4, 2006
This is a little wierd. I took that "What space crew would you best fit in?" quiz that some other Sbers have been posting on, and like PZ, afarensis, and Chris, I came out with Serenity (Firefly): You like to live your own way and don't enjoy when anyone but a friend tries to tell you should do…
March 3, 2006
I used to do a Friday Random Ten over at my old blog, but haven't in a while. And then I find that PZ ran one today, and he featured "Strange Fruit" by Billy Holiday. I take that as a cosmic hint (is it design? who cares), so here's my Friday Random Ten:
I'm Bound For The Promised Land / Johnny…
March 3, 2006
Over at Majikthise, a blog (on analytical philosophy and liberal politics) that I have just noticed, Lindsay has the following to say:
Being raised by academic hippies is like being raised by wolves--you can rejoin human society, but you can never integrate seamlessly.
That's probably true for…
March 2, 2006
Since I am busy, I thought I'd post this oldie from April of last year. The book in question, now titled "Darwin's Nemesis: Phillip Johnson and the Intelligent Design Movement" will, according to Dembski, ship soon. I will offer a real review when I can.
Over at his website, Bill Dembski had…
March 2, 2006
Still busy here. Grading and stuff, so it will probably be a few more days before I can blog on matters scientific. Took a break off last night to go see the legendary Buddy Guy play in Mesa. Take it from me, this is one blues guitarist you need to see before you die. Excellent show .... probably…