grrlscientist | July 2, 2007tags: Harry Potter, computers
Those of you who love Harry Potter might be deceived into downloading a worm onto your computer via infected USB memory drives. If users plug these drives into their Windows PCs, they are liable to infect their machines with the appropriately named Hairy-A worm.
Infected USB drives contain a file named HarryPotter-TheDeathlyHallows.doc, a word document that displays the phrase "Harry Potter is dead", instead of the much-desired manuscript. While the unfortunate computer user is worriedly contemplating that disturbing message, the worm begins casting its evil…
grrlscientist | July 2, 2007tags: teratornis, Argentavis magnificens, birds, ornithology, giant bird
Dr. Kenneth E. Campbell, (one of the discoverers) in front of the 25 ft. wingspan Argentavis magnificens. Display from the Natural History Museum, Los Angeles. The feather size from such a bird is estimated to have been 1.5 meters long (60 inches); and 20 centimeters wide (8 inches). [larger]
Image source.
Discovered decades ago and formally described in 1980, Argentavis magnificens is the largest bird known. It lived six million years ago during the Miocene period throughout Argentina. It is nearly the size of a…
grrlscientist | July 2, 2007tags: employment, urban dictionary, modern euphemisms
As our workforce has become increasingly hostile towards the very workers that it depends upon and our world at large has become hostile to the very idea of individuality, there have been new words developed that hide the true function of those who seek to destroy modern civilization as we know it. Below the fold is a list of a few of these euphemisms that were sent to me by a reader for you to enjoy;
Blamestorming
: sitting around in a group, discussing why a deadline was missed or a project failed, and who was responsible.
Seagull…
grrlscientist | July 2, 2007tags: Birds in the News, BirdNews, ornithology, birds, avian, newsletter
I don't want you to worry, but I did not work on Birds in the News this weekend. I know, I am bad (bad bad bad), but considering how little traffic I have this week, it seems best to postpone BITN until next week!
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007tags: blog carnival, writing
The 247th issue of Carnival of the Vanities is now available for your reading pleasure. This blog carnival focuses on the very best writing published recently on a blog, regardless of topic. I am pleased to report that they selected a submission from me to be included in their list.
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007
This rating, oddly, is because I used these words (to answer my previous question, no it does not seem to pick up words below the fold);
sexy (7x)
ass (6x)
poop (5x)
porn (4x)
Well, now that I have forever ruined any remote chance that I might have had to become gainfully employed (ho-hum), I am done goofing around.
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007
This rating is because I used these very dangerous words;
sexy (6x)
ass (5x)
poop (4x)
Okay, let's see if it picks up nasty words that appear below the fold;
sex
xxx
handcuffs
whips
dominatrix
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007
I have a boring rating because I only use these very scary words;
hell (4x)
dangerous (2x)
sexy (1x)
Dangerous??
I can't help it, I am compelled to try to raise my rating to something more respectable;
porn porn porn porn
poop poop poop poop
boobs boobs boobs boobs
ass ass ass ass ass
naughty naughty naughty naughty
sexy sexy sexy sexy
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007tags: oceanography, plastic bathtub toys, duckies
Have you seen one of these duckies? (May be bleached white by now).
If so, please report your find to researcher, Curtis Ebbesmeyer.
Image: Simon de Bruxelles.
If you live in Great Britain, you could earn a £50 (US$100) reward if you find a plastic duck on the seashore during your upcoming holidays.
It turns out that a flotilla of thousands of yellow ducks, green frogs, blue turtles and red beavers (all of which are bleached white by now), each branded with the logo "The First Years", are headed your way after bobbing around the Pacific,…
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007tags: blog carnival, birds, birding, ornithology
The 52nd edition of I and the Bird blog carnival is now available for your reading pleasure. As usual, they included one (and only one) of my many submissions, along with lots of other essays that you are sure to enjoy.
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007tags: book review, birds, birding, ornithology
Gulls are found nearly everywhere, from their usual haunts on the shorelines of oceans, lakes and rivers, to newly tilled fields, garbage dumps and sewage treatment plants. Due to their ubiquity, they are popular among birdwatchers, but gulls are often challenging to identify because they can take up to four years to mature, and they have different plumages each year. They also have seasonal differences and individual variations in plumage as well. Further, considering that, for most people, one "seagull" looks just like all the others,…
grrlscientist | June 29, 2007tags: vocabulary, online quiz
I did well on this quiz -- how about you? How did you score?
Your Vocabulary Score: A
Congratulations on your multifarious vocabulary!
You must be quite an erudite person.
How's Your Vocabulary?
grrlscientist | June 28, 2007tags: Mika Brzezinski, news, Paris Hilton, streaming video
MSNBC's news anchor, Mika Brzezinski, refuses to report on the Paris Hilton story on the Morning Joe show, even though her bosses made it the lead story -- against her wishes. Perhaps more people in the media & news outlets should follow Mika's example and stop reporting non-news stories about worthless people like Paris, who is an obscenely rich and self-centered brat. [3:01]
grrlscientist | June 27, 2007tags: blog carnival, medicine
The June issue of All Things Medical blog carnival is now available for you to enjoy. They included several pieces that I wrote, so this is good. So be sure to go over there and give them some support!
grrlscientist | June 27, 2007Okay, a frequent commenter on my blog, Bob O'Hara, has started writing his own wonderful blog, called deep thoughts and silliness. Bob is an English statistician who lives in Finland. So far, he has made a great start because he wrote a fun entry about using statistics to predict the number of pages in the last Harry Potter book (which you all know I am awaiting breathlessly).
grrlscientist | June 27, 2007tags: Icadyptes salasi, giant penguin, ornithology, birds, avian
Two fossils recently discovered in Peru reveal that early penguins responded differently to natural climate change than scientists would have predicted. The larger skull, Icadyptes salasi (top), would have been fearsome to encounter because this penguin stood over five feet tall, and had a seven-inch beak, and is one of the largest penguins ever described. Compare this new penguin species to the smaller skull (below), which is from the modern-day Peruvian (Humboldt) penguin, Spheniscus humboldti.
Image: PNAS / Daniel Ksepka…
grrlscientist | June 26, 2007tags: Scientific American, free magazine
The July issue of Scientific American is avilable for download as a PDF for free. They are introducing an appealingly bright, colorful design and open layout along with deeper changes in content that make the magazine an even more valuable resource for understanding the pivotal role of science and technology in the modern world. This offer only lasts until the 30th of the June, so be sure to get yours while you can.
grrlscientist | June 26, 2007tags: hell, humor, streaming video
This streaming video is Rowan Atkinson's sketch about the Devil Welcoming People to Hell [3:04]
grrlscientist | June 25, 2007tags: blog carnival, books
The 4th edition of the Festival of Good Books is now available. They were so kind as to include a piece that I wrote in their round-up.
grrlscientist | June 25, 2007tags: blog carnival, life
The most recent installment of the Observations on Life blog carnival has been published. They were so kind as to include one of my pieces along with their other links that you will enjoy.