grrlscientist | May 12, 2007
The Asian snake, Rhabdophis tigrinus, obtains toxins from toads it eats and uses the potent chemicals as a defense against predators, according to a new study.
Image: Old Dominion University, Alan Savitsky.
[much larger image]
As long as you send images to me (and I hope it will be for forever), I shall continue to share them with my readership. My purpose for posting these images is to remind all of us of the grandeur of the natural world and that there is a world out there that is populated by millions of unique species. We are a part of this world whether we like it or not: we have a…
grrlscientist | May 12, 2007tags: Rhabdophis tigrinus, snake, toad, toxins, evolution
The Asian snake, Rhabdophis tigrinus, obtains toxins from toads it eats and uses the potent chemicals as a defense against predators, according to a new study.
The toxin-containing glands are clearly visible on this juvenile snake as a large ridge on the back of the neck. The snake is native to the toad-rich island of Ishima, Japan.
Contrary to popular belief, not all poisonous snakes actually manufacture their poisons. In fact, according to a newly published study, some snakes obtain their poisons from their diet and store them in…
grrlscientist | May 12, 2007tags: advertisement, bird, parrot, streaming video
I normally pass up streaming videos that are advertisements, but this one is so cute that I had to break precident and share it with you. This ad was a commercial for Budweiser beer during the 2006 SuperBowl game. But before you view it, let it be known that I hate Budweiser beer, but they do have some wonderful ad writers working for them [0:29].
grrlscientist | May 11, 2007tags: war profiteering, KBR, politics, streaming video
Ninety-nine dollars to wash a bag of laundry?? That's what it costs a soldier to get his laundry done for him -- because he is not allowed to do it for himself. This war is just one huge mess .. when will this country ever leave Iraq? After KBR and Halliburton have bankrupted the USA?
Progressive film director Robert Greenwald was scheduled to testify at a hearing on Thursday, 10 May about war profiteering. He requested to show a few minutes from one of his films, Iraq for Sale, but Republicans refused him. This is what Congress will not…
grrlscientist | May 11, 2007tags: human body farm, vultures, forensic science, Texas State University
Texas State University found that its plans to build a human "body farm" have been canceled due to fears of vultures flocking towards the smell of decomposing corpses. A human body farm is a facility where human corpses are placed out of doors and exposed to the elements so forensic scientists can better understand how the body decomposes over time. The nearby San Marcos Municipal Airport worried that the large circling birds could endanger aircraft while the neighbors were unhappy with plans to keep up to nine cadavers…
grrlscientist | May 11, 2007
"Fajada Butte"
The photographer writes; I have been bumming around the Four Corners area this week on a brief archeology/astronomy field trip between semesters. [This image is] from Chaco Canyon, the ancient Puebloan site in NW New Mexico. The crumbling walls of Hungoe Pavi, one of the Chaco "Great Houses", frame Fajada Butte in the distance. There is a site on the top of Fajada Butte that tracked the winter solstice, throwing a dagger of light across a spiral petroglyph.
Image: Dave Rintoul, KSU.
[larger image]
As long as you send images to me (and I hope it will be for forever), I shall…
grrlscientist | May 11, 2007tags: snail, bird, parasite, streaming video
This streaming video describes the life cycle of parasite worms that infect both snails and birds. Basically, these worms control their snail host's brain and thereby alter the snail's behavior such that it enhances the chances that it will spread the worm's eggs into a wild bird, its next host [1:21].
grrlscientist | May 11, 2007The decomposed corpse of a German man was found in his bed after nearly seven years, said police from the western city of Essen. The man was 59 and unemployed, and probably died of natural causes on 30 November 2000, which was the date he received a letter from the Welfare Office that was discovered in the apartment.
"No one missed him. No missing person report was ever filed," the police said.
I worry that this will be my ultimate fate as well, although I am younger.
Cited story.
grrlscientist | May 10, 2007tags: bipolar disorder, manic-depressive illness, mental health, molecular biology
Bipolar disorder depends upon small, combined effects from variations in many different brain genes, none of which is powerful enough by itself to cause the disease, according to a new genome-wide study. Despite this revelation, this new study shows that targeting one enzyme produced by one of these altered genes could lead to development of new and more effective medications.
The research, conducted by Amber E. Baum, Francis J. McMahon, and their colleagues, is the first study to genetically scan thousands of…
grrlscientist | May 10, 2007tags: bird of paradise, birds, streaming video
This streaming video shows the courtship behavior of several species of birds of paradise. From BBC's Planet Earth series [1:55].
grrlscientist | May 10, 2007
Anolis lizards, Anolis allisoni, from Cuba. A study in the journal Nature is shedding new light on how size differences between males (right) and females (left) may affect the lizard's ability to adapt to new environments.
Image: BBC News.
As long as you send images to me (and I hope it will be for forever), I shall continue to share them with my readership. My purpose for posting these images is to remind all of us of the grandeur of the natural world and that there is a world out there that is populated by millions of unique species. We are a part of this world whether we like it or not…
grrlscientist | May 10, 2007tags: art museum, humor, streaming video
This streaming video also shows us a little about most people's child-rearing techniques -- which leave something to be desired.
grrlscientist | May 9, 2007tags: Carnival of the Vanities, blog carnivals
The 242 issue of the Carnival of the Vanities is now available. This blog carnival links to the very best recent writing across the blogosphere, regardless of topic area.
grrlscientist | May 9, 2007tags: five-second rule, food, bacteria, microbiology
Have you ever heard of the five-second rule, where you can pick up food that has fallen on the floor within five seconds and eat it without risk of illness? Do you follow it? In 2003, a then-high school science intern at the University of Illinois, Jillian Clarke, conducted a survey and found that slightly more than half of adult men and 70 percent of adult women knew about the five-second rule and many said they followed it. Clarke then conducted an experiment to find out if various food became contaminated with bacteria after just five…
grrlscientist | May 9, 2007
"Western screech owl"
The photographer writes; The western screech owls are nesting in northern California, and this particular owl is giving the evil eye to the western gray squirrel climbing down the tree. Only the squirrel's tail was visible when the photo was taken by a remote camera just before dusk.
Image: Camera Trap Codger.
[larger image]
As long as you send images to me (and I hope it will be for forever), I shall continue to share them with my readership. My purpose for posting these images is to remind all of us of the grandeur of the natural world and that there is a world out…
grrlscientist | May 9, 2007tags: font type, font style, Helvetica
Did you know that today is the 50th birthday of that horrid font type, Helvetica? In honor of this seemingly auspicious occasion, Helvetica fans all over the world are celebrating (or reviling) it.
Those who love Helvetica claim that it sends a message of cool efficiency;
[Y]ou are going to get to your destination on time; your plane will not crash; your money is safe in our vault; we will not break the package; the paperwork has been filled in; everything is going to be OK.
However, those of us who strongly dislike it, see it much, much differently;…
grrlscientist | May 9, 2007tags: Julia Sweeney, humor, streaming video
Some religious humor that might appeal to you.
Julia Sweeney performs a hilarious and moving excerpt from her new one-woman play, "Letting Go of God." Sweeney is a comedian and playwright, well-known both for her stint on Saturday Night Live (She created the character "Pat.") and for writing and performing the hit Broadway show, "God Said Ha!" (produced also as a film). (Recorded February 2006 in Monterey, CA. Duration: 17:17)
grrlscientist | May 8, 2007tags: coconut oil, gasoline substitute, alternative fuel, Bougainville, South Pacific Islands
Have you heard about the clever people who live on the island of Bougainville, near Papua New Guinea? They are developing mini-refineries that produce a coconut oil to replace diesel fuel for their cars.
Unfortunately, because they depend upon imported fuel, shortages and high energy costs often cause many businesses to completely stop in this part of Papua New Guinea. But increasingly, the locals are turning to a cheaper and far more sustainable alternative to diesel: coconut oil. The coconut oil…
grrlscientist | May 8, 2007tags: Harry Potter, books, book review
One of my devoted blog readers must be able to read crystal balls because he mercifully sent me a book about Harry Potter. Even though I have been going crazy waiting for the next movie and the last book to come out in July, this gift is a book that I never thought of reading while I wait, a book that I would never would have heard about if he hadn't sent it to me, in fact. And thank goodness that he did send this book; I can re-watch the first four DVDs and re-read the first six books only so many times before I start to feel guilty about not indulging…
grrlscientist | May 8, 2007
Sombrero galaxy, also known as M104, is one of the largest galaxies in the Virgo cluster, about 28 million light years from Earth. The Chandra X-ray image (in blue) shows hot gas in the galaxy and point sources that are a mixture of objects within the Sombrero, as well as quasars in the background. The Chandra observations show that diffuse X-ray emission extends over 60,000 light years from the center of the Sombrero. (The galaxy itself spans 50,000 light years across.) Scientists think this extended X-ray glow may be the result of a wind from the galaxy, primarily being driven by…