clock | September 30, 2008As the month of September is coming to a close, and the topic of the month in PLoS ONE is bats, we decided to end the focus with a Journal Club.
Starting today, and lasting a week, there will be a Journal Club on this PLoS ONE article - Bats' Conquest of a Formidable Foraging Niche: The Myriads of Nocturnally Migrating Songbirds by Ana G. Popa-Lisseanu, Antonio Delgado-Huertas, Manuela G. Forero, Alicia Rodriguez, Raphael Arlettaz and Carlos Ibanez:
Along food chains, i.e., at different trophic levels, the most abundant taxa often represent exceptional food reservoirs, and are hence the main…
clock | September 30, 2008Meat-eating Dinosaur From Argentina Had Bird-like Breathing System:
The remains of a 30-foot-long predatory dinosaur discovered along the banks of Argentina's Rio Colorado is helping to unravel how birds evolved their unusual breathing system.
Discovering How Human-caused Sounds Affect Marine Mammals:
The Marine Board-ESF published its 13th Position Paper, which presents a view from marine mammal specialists on the research needed to assess the effects of anthropogenic sound upon marine mammals.*
Microbes 'Run The World': Metagenomics Increasingly Used To Characterize Them:
Mostly hidden from…
clock | September 30, 2008
Nature Network will be much better represented this year than last year, I am happy to report. This early in the game, we already have four registrants, coming from four different countries and making our meeting very international!
Anna Kushnir came last year. This year, it is Dr.Anna Kushnir who is coming back.
Martin Fenner is coming from Germany.
Bob O'Hara will travel from Finland.
And Richard Grant is coming all the way from Australia.
See who else is registered so far. Then register yourself.
clock | September 29, 2008Our ignorance of history causes us to slander our own times.
- Gustave Flaubert
clock | September 29, 2008Under the fold:
Rebels? No, Simply Scientists:
The problem of creativity is common to the arts and sciences. What distinguishes geniuses from ordinary mortals? In the arts, from Mozart to van Gogh, creativity has frequently been associated with the artist's opposition to the society of their time. A good artist is a rebel. Paradoxically, whereas science might appear as a progressive rational construction of new knowledge, the same relation has been postulated between rebellion and scientific creativity. There are many historical accounts of how scientists who made decisive breakthroughs saw…
clock | September 29, 2008Here are another five clips (out of a total of 47) from the Millionth Comment party at the NC Zoo:
clock | September 29, 2008Viral video marketing of science instruments seems to be flurishing: Monty Python and the Holy Instrument:
clock | September 29, 2008Amanda is in the middle of reading Michael Kimmel's Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men and has posted the first, preliminary review, with some very interesting explorations by the commenters as well (I guess the MRAs did not get there yet to ruin the discussion). The review is focusing on the societal gender roles as the cause of the hook-up culture as well as the perception of it as being negative.
Much younger, sarahmeyers looks at the setting for the hook-up culture and identifies her own - highly urban, career-oriented, highly-connected (online and offline).
Possibly…
clock | September 29, 2008
Getting Lost: A Newly Discovered Developmental Brain Disorder:
Feeling lost every time you leave your home? You may not be as alone as you think. Researchers at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute recently documented the first case of a patient who, without apparent brain damage or cognitive impairment, is unable to orient within any environment. Researchers also believe that there are many others in the general population who may be affected by this developmental topographical disorder.
Out Of Iraq Emerges Hope For Those With Severest Of Head…
clock | September 29, 2008The Accretionary Wedge #13: Geology in Space - is up on goodSchist
Encephalon #55 is up on Neuroscientifically Challenged
Berry Go Round #9 is up on Gravity's Rainbow
Friday Ark #210 is up on Modulator
Carnival of the Green #147 is up on Confessions of a Closet Environmentalist
clock | September 29, 2008I always get excited when Paul Sereno publishes a paper in PLoS ONE and today is one such day - his third paper in this journal within a span of less than a year (the first was the paper with detailed description of Nigersaurus and the second was the article on Green Sahara cemeteries). Today's paper is also the second time PLoS ONE publishes a taxonomy paper, i.e., a monograph that describes a new species:
Evidence for Avian Intrathoracic Air Sacs in a New Predatory Dinosaur from Argentina:
Background
Living birds possess a unique heterogeneous pulmonary system composed of a rigid, dorsally-…
clock | September 29, 2008Once a year, I go back to my alma mater and do a guest lecture about biological clocks in an Anatomy & Physiology class. Knowing how many pre-meds are among the 200 students in the room, I try to start with some examples of rhythms in human physiology (and disease), and the first one is body temperature, busting the myth that 98.6F (37C) is the "normal" temperature:
Now Orac links to an excellent post that explains it all - the entire history of the idea that 37C is normal and what the real difference, means and fluctuations there are. Read the whole thing.
clock | September 29, 2008
You may remember how last two years I introduced all registrants for the blogging conferences, 2-3 people per day. I decided this year to do it less often, but to introduce more people in each post. Let me start with an easy group to gather - my Sciblings:
Brian will be there.
Grrrrl will be there.
Both SciCurious and Evil Monkey as well.
And Greg Laden.
And Janet, of course.
And Zuska and Tara.
James for sure.
And yes, Abel and Sheril and Dr.Pal.
Both Sciencewoman and Alice said they're coming.
Mo will do his best to come across the pond.
And there are probably going to be more - they…
clock | September 29, 2008Acoustic Communication In Deep-sea Fish:
An international research team studying sound production in deep-sea fishes has found that cusk-eels use several sets of muscles to produce sound that plays a prominent role in male mating calls.
Helping Dogs With Cancer May Benefit People:
A new study jointly conducted by Oregon State University College of Veterinary Medicine and the Oregon Health & Science University Cancer Institute may one day help not only our canine friends with cancer, but also people with the human form of the disease.
Deadly Rugby Virus Spreads In Sumo Wrestlers:
Rugby…
clock | September 28, 2008It is rare that the public sentiment decides immorally or unwisely, and the individual who differs from it ought to distrust and examine well his own opinion.
- Thomas Jefferson
clock | September 28, 2008When we met at the Zoo we took 47 short movie clips. Here are the first five and I will post the rest over the next few days: