gregladen | December 5, 2007An intelligent new way to support the teaching of evolution
New journal Evolution: Education and Outreach debuts on 28 November
The world-renowned evolutionary scientist Niles Eldredge and his son Greg Eldredge, a high school science teacher, believe it's time to help science educators fight back against the strong pressure creationists exert on public education. So they joined forces with the scientific publisher Springer and, on Darwin's birthday in February this year, announced plans to publish a new journal, Evolution: Education and Outreach. ...
Details here, at WebWire
gregladen | December 5, 2007I just have to send my banking details.
Hey, this is from Japan. We trust these guys, right? I can do this, don't you think?
Greeting from Japan.
Having tried your phone and fax number as found in my country's
chamber/business directory but failed.
I am contacting you regarding a proposal to assist me receive funds. However, please be aware that this has nothing to do with scam as the English man will call it neither is it money loundering or any illegal act. The funds in question are from a very legal source.
I will send more details when you reply to me at hirojio666@yahoo.co.jp which is…
gregladen | December 4, 2007The suicide of a young man and the murder he committed before he killed himself are being blamed on a cult led by his mother.
Also disturbing, former members who spoke to CNN say they witnessed Ricky Rodriguez having sex with his mother, Karen Zerby, the leader of the sect now known as "The Family International."
The sect's activities and history are detailed in a newly released book, "Jesus Freaks." The sect was founded in California in the 1960s by David Berg, who referred to himself as "Mo," short for Moses. Berg was a self-proclaimed prophet.
Former sect members tell CNN Berg encouraged…
gregladen | December 4, 2007PZ Myers has posted his third grade class photo on his blog and asks the question, "can you find me?"
Here's the picture:
View Larger Image
I keep looking and looking, but I can't find him. He's harder to find than Waldo.
gregladen | December 4, 2007
After 27 years as a science teacher and 9 years as the Texas Education Agency's director of science, Christine Castillo Comer said she did not think she had to remain "neutral" about teaching the theory of evolution.
"It's not just a good idea; it's the law," said Ms. Comer, citing the state's science curriculum.
But now Ms. Comer, 56, of Austin, is out of a job, after forwarding an e-mail message on a talk about evolution and creationism -- "a subject on which the agency must remain neutral," according to a dismissal letter last month that accused her of various instances of "misconduct and…
gregladen | December 4, 2007According to this press release from Manchester..
Palaeontologist Dr Phil Manning, working with National Geographic Channel has uncovered the Holy Grail of palaeontology in the United States: a partially intact dino mummy.
Named Dakota, this 67-million-year-old dinosaur is one of the most important dinosaur discoveries in recent times - calling into question our conception of dinosaurs' body shape, skin preservation and movement.
The find is documented in the UK premiere of Dino Autopsy on Sunday 9 December at 9pm on National Geographic Channel. The special follows leading palaeontologists in…
gregladen | December 4, 2007
Microsoft Softens Response to Piracy from PhysOrg.com
(AP) -- Microsoft Corp. is pulling back from a system that disables programs on users' computers if it suspects the software is pirated, opting instead for a gentler approach based on nagging alerts.
[...]
Whenever Microsoft Softens you know something or someone is about to get bit....
gregladen | December 4, 2007Go to any bar and you'll see a lot of males standing and sitting around not mating. I'll bet you would have guessed that the reason they are not mating is that no females will mate with them for one reason or another. But there is the distinct possibility that they are very inconspicuously resisting mating opportunities. It turns out that males can do this .... avoid mating without conspicuous resistance ... more easily than females. For obvious reasons.
This could be why what has become (inappropriately) known as "reversed sexual aggression" often goes unnoticed, and a recent study of the…
gregladen | December 4, 2007... as in the internet address, not the concept of an IT company...
Some web site with an impossible name posts the list, the first few of which are here:
SYMBOLICS.COM in March 1985
BBN.COM
THINK.COM
MCC.COM
DEC.COM
NORTHROP.COM
XEROX.COM
SRI.COM
HP.COM
BELLCORE.COM
IBM.COM
SUN.COM
INTEL.COM
TI.COM
ATT.COM
GMR.COM
TEK.COM
FMC.COM
UB.COM
BELL-ATL.COM in August 1986
gregladen | December 4, 2007The allegations against the Rev. Ted Haggard and Sen. Larry Craig have a common thread: A 50-year-old former prostitute from Denver named Mike Jones claims he had sex with both. *
What are the odds of that happening?
[hat tip: CMF]
gregladen | December 4, 2007Researchers have discovered a form of DNA modification not previously known to occur in nature. Lab scientists often use the addition of sulfer to the DNA sugar-phosphate backbone to make the DNA resistant to nucleases (DNA-cutting enzymes) in order to use the DNA for other (i.e. theraputic) purposes. This was assumed to be something invented by scientists. IT turns out that bacteria do something like this in nature.
From an MIT press release:
... [researchers] were surprised to discover that a group of bacterial genes, known as the dnd gene cluster, gives bacteria the ability to employ…
gregladen | December 4, 2007The Kirtland's Warbler is now breeding in Canada after a 60 year hiatus.
Conservationists "thrilled" as Kirtland's Warbler returns to Canada
30-11-2007
Bird Studies Canada (BirdLife's Canadian co-Partner) has expressed delight at news that a pair of Kirtland's Warbler Dendroica kirtlandii have bred in Canada - the first in over 60 years.
The discovery of the birds -found at a Canadian Forces Base in eastern Ontario- has provided useful data for scientists researching the distribution of this species, listed globally as Near Threatened by BirdLife.
Kirtland's Warbler does not normally breed…
gregladen | December 4, 2007This topic is being discussed elsewhere, so I thought I'd post something on it:
Back to the future: Prairie grasses emerge as rich energy source
Mixtures of grasses make best source of biofuel
By Deane Morrison
Dec. 8, 2006
With shrinking glaciers and other signs of global warming upon us, the search is on for alternative fuels to stem the release of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
This week a new contender burst on the scene: diverse mixtures of native prairie grasses. A University team led by David Tilman, Regents Professor of Ecology, found that these grasses…
gregladen | December 4, 2007NEW YORK - Girls swept a prestigious high school science competition for the first time Monday, winning top prizes of $100,000 scholarships for their work on potential tuberculosis cures and bone growth in zebrafish.
It was the first time girls had ever won the grand prizes in both the team and individual divisions of the Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology.
...
The Siemens competition was begun in 1998 to recognize America's best math and science students. Finalists were chosen at regional competitions and flown to New York for a weekend that included bowling and a Broadway…
gregladen | December 4, 2007The small fragments of bone are spread out on a workbench in tiny pieces that could fit into a matchbox, betraying the size of their owner: a fearsome sea predator considered the Tyrannosaurus Rex of the oceans.
... a pliosaur, a reptile that swam the oceans 150 million years ago and was so big it could swallow a grown man in a single gulp. [note: there were no people living at that time -gtl]
Bits of pliosaur fossils have previously been found in Germany, Britain and Argentina, but never have as many been found as this summer in the Svalbard archipelago off northern Norway in the Arctic.
"…