Brian Switek
Brian Switek is an ecology & evolution student at Rutgers University.
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Posts by this author
December 31, 2007
You know you've got a unique book on your hands when the cover spots a eurypterid snagging a jackalope from under the cab of a Ford pickup carrying a disgruntled ammonite while dinosaurs stomp towards a "last chance" food & gas stop in the background. If you're a fan of artist Ray Troll,…
December 31, 2007
In about 6 hours I'll have to start remembering to date everything 2008 instead of 2007, but otherwise the year will tick over like another mile on an odometer. I don't really have many resolutions, at least not moreso than a list of things I've been wanting to do for some time and haven't yet…
December 31, 2007
When I was a kid nearly every dinosaur book and documentary had at least one common phrase that was uttered over and over again; "Dinosaurs have been found on every continent, except Antarctica." By 1986, though, this could not longer be stated as the ankylosaur Antarctopelta oliveroi was…
December 30, 2007
Revered and reviled, the wolf embodies the concept of the "noble savage," a sort of respectable wildness that is both admired and feared. Presently many populations of wolves in North America continue on at the indulgence of our own species, humans essentially exterminating as many wolves as they…
December 30, 2007
As much as I love the mount of Barnum Brown's famous Tyrannosaurus skeleton at the AMNH, one of my absolute favorite reconstructions is the one pictured above from the Maryland Science Museum in Baltimore. While many Tyrannosaurus mounts have their heads high up in the air, perhaps even with jaws…
December 29, 2007
The evolution of life on earth has no direction and no predetermined end; what is adaptive today might not be tomorrow, and the scores of extinct creatures preserved in the rocks of this planet attest to an ongoing process that results in what Charles Darwin rightly called "endless forms most…
December 29, 2007
The Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) is one of the most most endangered big cats, and while there are many laws and programs that seek to protect the animals poaching is still a problem. Earlier this year NPR featured a short report on this problem, but it's not only scientists that are concerned…
December 28, 2007
Despite all the work I put into it this evening, my post on whether evolution is directed or not is still unfinished. I've completed most of it, but I want to go over it again and choose my words carefully as I know I'm considering a topic that has spurred a large amount of debate, although it…
December 28, 2007
Following up on yesterday's post on marsupials, here's a photo of two Gray Kangaroo (Macropus sp.) at the Turtleback Zoo in New Jersey. The largest macropod to have ever lived, though, was the extinct Procoptodon goliath, a short-faced giant that would have stood about 10 feet tall when upright.
December 27, 2007
The famous footage of "Benjamin," a Thylacine that died in captivity due to neglect on September 7, 1936. It was the last known living member of its species.
Convergent evolution can be a tricky thing, and one of the most celebrated examples of it (at least among creationists) is the case of…
December 27, 2007
Ecological conservation has never been more important than it is right now, but perhaps "conservation" is the wrong term for the movement. To use the word "conservation" implies that something remains to be conserved, that there are still parts of the world that can truly be called Wild, but as…
December 27, 2007
Lions (Panthera leo) are big cats most famously known for their social structures, a pride consisting of many females (two females from the Philadelphia Zoo picture above) and one male (or a coalition of several males) living together. Unlike other gregarious carnivores like the spotted hyena (…
December 27, 2007
Sorry for the lack of new material, everyone. The past few days have been a little hectic and I didn't think I had internet access at the place I'm currently staying, but it turns out that I actually do (I made a rather silly mistake). I'm using an old laptop that can only be described as an "…
December 26, 2007
When the issue of creationism raises its ugly head (either in the form of young earth creationism, intelligent design, or another variant) it usually involves the first chapters of the book of Genesis, specifically the special creation of humans and the Noachian Deluge. There's much more in Genesis…
December 26, 2007
While not as vibrant as some of my other Cheetah photos, I love this shot of one of the three cats at the Philadelphia Zoo. All three individuals are brothers and are part of a coalition, a group that often is more successful at obtaining a territory in the wild. Just any territory won't do,…
December 25, 2007
[I know I posted this the other day, but I couldn't find a more fitting clip.]
December 25, 2007
I wasn't quite sure to put up here on Christmas Day, but I thought this shot of the three Philadelphia Zoo tiger cubs worked best. Indeed, I hope those of you celebrating today (or around this time of year in general) not only get what you want/need but also have the time to enjoy it, the young…
December 24, 2007
"...you will find him wrapped in terrycloth in a small apartment, yowling for food whenever his bowl fails to sufficiently yield the desired quantities of nourishment."
Unfortunately I neglected to take a holiday photo this year (oops!), but happy holidays to you, dear reader, and I look forward…
December 24, 2007
I'm delighted to inform everyone that Cole, the little ginger kitten in the photo above, has been adopted into a loving home. Unfortunately, though, Beatrice (see below) has yet to find a home and is back in the apartment for a few weeks to recuperate. We had Beatrice for a few months and will…
December 24, 2007
...or not, but either way there's an interview with yours truly up on Page 3.14.
[Also, if you want to stay abreast of my latest writings and those of my fellow Sciblings, add the ScienceBlogs Latest Post Widget to your own blog or website.]
December 24, 2007
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) was likely behind the slaughter of three Amur Tigers (Panthera tigris altaica) , an adult female and two cubs, involving two separate incidents in Chongqing, China during the past week. Last Thursday an adult female tiger was found by park officials, the…
December 24, 2007
For those of you who haven't seen the Barosaurus mount at the AMNH, the adult skeleton is rearing to protect a juvenile from an Allosaurus, and this is the skull of that juvenile. I don't know how much material from it was actually found (not yet, anyway), but as you can see it's a bit dusty.…
December 23, 2007
Wolves have always had a bad reputation, often being cast as bloodthirsty villains despite their relatively shy demeanor when humans are around. Indeed, of all the large carnivores present in North America, wolves are among the least threatening, and people generally have more to fear from moose…
December 23, 2007
... I could always feign being "born again" and write a crummy evangelical "non-fiction" book. I stopped by Barnes & Noble today to pick up a last minute Christmas gift that led me into the depths of the religion section, a section that's about 3 times as large as that devoted to science and…
December 23, 2007
A light in the ceiling illuminates the holes in the skull of the towering Barosaurus mount in the Grand Rotunda of the AMNH. The trip into the city yesterday was tiring, but it was definitely a lot of fun, especially since I got to hang out with my fellow dino-nerd Amanda (and her boyfriend) in…
December 22, 2007
Today's photo is of the famous sail-backed pelycosaur Edaphosaurus from the Permian red beds of Texas. As if its sail wasn't enough to puzzle paleontologists, the fact that the neural spines bear "cross bars" further adds to the mystery (I know of no other animal that has exhibited such a feature…
December 21, 2007
[Note: Wow; apparently I hit a bit of a nerve, but that's a good thing. I hope the comments keep coming in. Like many of you mentioned I think Nature and Science are good "pop" journals that introduce new research to a wide audience over a wider range of topics, but I am often disappointed by how…
December 21, 2007
As was evidenced by the long list of books that I've read this year, I've taken in a lot of material, and picking the 10 best books is a bit of a challenge. What makes a good technical book doesn't make a good popular science book, but overall there were a few that stood out from the rest to become…
December 21, 2007
The Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus) is usually identified by light-colored markings on its face and chest that sometimes cause the bear to look like it has glasses on, although not in this individual (which, to be honest, bears something of a resemblance to Jeremy Irons). Naturally occurring…
December 20, 2007
Ah, freedom... well, relative freedom anyway. I just polished off the last exam of this semester and won't be headed back to the classroom for about a month, although I'm anything but relieved. I still have a tangle of red tape (made all the more appropriate being that I'm at Rutgers) to fight…