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Claude Lévi-Strauss has Died

When I was first reading about Anthropology as a budding Archaeologist, Claude Levi Strauss was old. When I went to graduate school, I was shocked to see Claude Levi Strauss walking around at conferences, being old and revered. Every decade or so since then Claude Levi Strauss would show up in one place or another. And now, at the age of 100, he has died. If you want to read one of the finest books ever written from the perspective of socio-cultural anthropology try Tristes Tropiques. It will blow you away. There is a very good obit here at the NYT. This is truly the end of an era,…

But what about the buffalo?

As you know, Mary of Peter Paul and Mary has died. So has Henry Gibson. Although I did go through a folk music phase ... worked in a folk-music coffee house for a while and everything (and I went to school with Kay Wilkie, I got a cat from Arlo Guthrie, and Pete Seeger was the first member of the nature conservation organization I started when I was a kid and so on) ... I was always much more comfortable in the Niel Young - Zappa part of the spectrum. Henry Gibson, who's heart was bigger than his 1970s period lapels, was a regular on Laugh-In, which was, at the time, a very funny TV show…

It lives! The ScienceBlogs Book Club has risen from the grave!

Well, looky here: The ScienceBlogs Book Club is back! From October 1 through October 10, we'll be discussing Autism's False Prophets, by Dr. Paul Offit. Dr. Offit will be joined on the blog by a panel of experts, and we're inviting all of you to join in by reading the book at home, and contributing your thoughts, questions, and comments in the 'comments' section of the posts. Our panelists will be reading them and responding. More good news: Columbia University Press is giving away 50 copies of Autism's False Prophets free to ScienceBlogs Book Club readers. Here are the details. Also, one of…

Help DonorsChoose out

This totally slipped my mind, and I've been meaning to mention it for a few days now, which makes the holiday weekend a perfect time to mention it. Seed Magazine and ScienceBlogs are supporting an effort to raise $10,000 for various science projects supported by DonorsChoose. To help the cause, all you have to do is to go to the Think Science Now website and vote for video profiles of scientists. Best of all, by doing so, you get to suck the money straight from an {enter "alternative medicine" and "antivaccinationist" mode} an evil, greedy, allopathic drug company {exit "alternative medicine…

The best Chick tract ever?

Jack Chick is old. After many years of turning out the most hilariously over-the-top Christian fundamentalist cartoons, you may think he's lost his edge, but if anything he seems to be getting even loonier. For example, check out his latest tract First Bite: Click panel for the tract in all its crazy glory! Yes, it actually has vampires in it! But, wait. Didn't Chick in the past do multiple tracts about how Halloween was the tool of Satan? On the other hand, this hilariously unhinged tract from 1991 features Satan as a serial killer, complete with chainsaw. On second thought, Satan as a…

Better late than never: Some serious ignorance of history on display

The ignorance and stupidity, they burn: Why, yes, actually, we did "allow" Nazi Germany to host the Olympics back in 1936. Hitler even presided over some of the ceremonies. The sign is so wrong that at first I wondered whether it was a Photoshop job, but apparently it's legit. I realize this photo is from around three week ago, but I didn't see it until Ed pointed me to it yesterday. Given my interest in World War II history and the Holocaust, you just knew I couldn't resist it once made aware of it. True, it's not as hilariously dumb as Tony Zirkle, but it does reveal a shocking level of…

Fighting superbugs-part 2

Yesterday I wrote about a research team that has developed a protein to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria by boosting the immune system. Now another research team from Rockefeller University has developed a modified viral protein called lysin to directly combat bacteria that thrive on a weakened immune system (such as that found in flu patients). They have developed forms of lysin to target bacteria that cause middle ear infections, strep throat, pneumonia and meningitis. The main idea here is to bypass the need to use antibiotics which run the more dangerous risk of producing antibiotic…

Election Coverage in Nature

Umm ... Seriously, the latest issue of Nature has a special section on the US presidential election, including another Q&A with the candidates: Barack Obama accepted Nature's invitation to answer 18 science-related questions in writing; John McCain's campaign declined. Obama's answers to many of the questions are printed here; answers to additional questions (on topics including biosecurity, the nuclear weapons laboratories and US participation in international projects) can be found at www.nature.com/uselection. Wherever possible, Nature has noted what McCain has said at other times on…

What do you people do all day, anyway?

I don't hear as much curiosity from the research community as I'd like to about what a librarian knows and does, but I do hear some. For that some, I suggest poking through the fourth annual iteration of Librarian Day in the Life. A wide variety of librarians blog, tweet, photograph, and vid about what their day is like. Don't just pay attention to the research-related ones, either. The more people who understand in their bones what public librarians, school librarians, and special librarians add to the communities they serve, the better off everyone is, librarian and community alike. So go…

Barbara Bear Says...

Science: The observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, and theoretical explanation of phenomena; Knowledge, especially that gained through experience. And these are the essence of the talents so sorely needed in our world; culturally, philosophically and economically. It is not the argument of stem cells or any particular research, but rather the innate curiosity that compels learning and thoughtfulness beyond the limits of the ordinary and mundane routine. It is this gift that has been lost by stifling Science; it is a gift of more richness than imaginable and a…

Welcome to the ScienceOnline 2010 Blog

The ScienceOnline conference brings together scientists, bloggers, journalists, writers, educators, students, entrepreneurs, and others to discuss the ever-expanding role of the Internet in the practice and communication of science, and to share new tools and practices that facilitate these goals. This year's conference will take place January 15-17 in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. With 250 registered participants including 25 of our own ScienceBloggers and a program ranging from a tour of the Duke Lemur center to sessions on citizen science, scientific visualization, and open…

And you thought the brown acid could mess you up

Pretty IA, Hall RC. Self-extraction of teeth involving gamma-hydroxybutyric acid. J Forensic Sci. 2004 Sep;49(5):1069-72. Guy and girl are hanging out. Decide to get smashed on gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), a CNS depressant of historical medical use that is currently used as a recreational drug, as a date rape drug, and by bodybuilders looking to boost their endogenous production of human growth hormone. Bodybuilders are so weird. At some point during their GHB-fueled escapades, eighteen of the girl's teeth are extracted from her mouth with a pair of pliers. Not one, not two, but…

Hot Puppet Action

Concerned that their male red bird of paradise, Paprika, might turn off female companions by repeating human words he learned from visitors, animal keeper Patti Cooper took matters into her own hands. First she crafted a sexy female red bird of paradise puppet, dubbed "Spice Girl." Then she convinced Paprika to call Spice Girl on a 900 number. Now Paprika is engaged in the right behaviors and the Bronx Zoo is making $2.99 for the first minute and $16.99 for each additional minute. No but for real, the bird got it on with a puppet... and is now displaying the proper courtship behaviors.…

Friday Deep-Sea Picture (07/13/07)

Not really deep sea so excuse the digression. From TNC/WWF As demands on oceans grow, it is important to ensure that their resources are being conserved and carefully managed worldwide. A new study led by The Nature Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund (published in BioScience) -- Marine Ecoregions of the World -- takes an important step toward that goal by presenting the first-ever classification system of the world's coastal waters. This new set of classifications will help conservation scientists recognize gaps in protection and set priorities for action, such as establishing…

Lesson #1 When Dealing With The Ocean...

...glance at a tide chart. Taking photographs of a wedding is a pleasant memory for new couples. But six happy pairs were left stranded for six hours on Wednesday while snapping away on reefs, 50 meters away from the bank of the Badaguan in Qingdao in Shandong province. The Hebei province couples and four photographers were too busy to notice the rising tide at Badaguan or "Eight Passes" seashore, the Peninsula Metropolitan News reported. A witness told the newspaper the couples looked excited when they first saw the tide was up and wanted to use the tidal waves as the…

Jellyfish Lake

Via Neatorama.. Jellyfish Lake is an isolated saltwater lake in the Pacific island of Palau. In the geologic past it was tied to the ocean acquring jellyfish.  These jellyfish have become an isolated population lossing thier nematocysts (stinging cells).  They thrive in the lake at high number due to the lack of predators. [from Rick Macpherson] The jellies have acquired algal endosymbionts in their tissue (same genus as the zooxanthellae in coral)... during the day, the jellies rise to the surface in masses and track along the surface of the lake as the earth rotates... at…

Friday Deep-sea Picture: the seamount flank

Welker Seamount peaks around 700m depth in the Northeast Pacific. Pillow lava is pictured here at 2700m depth, indicating an eruption on the seamount flank. The base is ~3500m. Gorgonians have settled nearby. Unidentified hexactinellid sponges with crabs and anemones are part of the habitat. This one below is relatively large. The lasers are set 10cm apart. This is one of many similar microhabitats at this depth range on the Northeast Pacific seamounts. Every sponge is an island. These image are from Alvin Dive 4033 on the NOAA Gulf of Alaska 2004 Expedition, courtesy of NOAA's Office of…

I guess sea cucumbers are all right

Because of my previous trumpeting many of you may believe I scoff at anything non-mollusca. Untrue! I say! Indeed, I am friend of all invertebrate. My favorite books on my shelf is Barnes and Brusca & Brusca. Just to prove I love all those squishy, squiggly, and slimey, I provide a link to the Sea Cucumber Expedition Blog (hat tip Jeff Ives). Tim Werner from the New England Aquarium is on a three week biodiversity trip to Madagascar. After your done loathing Tim for this, you should check out all of his recent discoveries inlcuding six foot sea cucumbers, two-foot sea stars, and "…

Meet Bowie, Canada's Newest MPA!

Bowie Seamount, Canada's newest Marine Protected Area. OTTAWA (AFP) -- An underwater volcanic mountain teaming with ocean life off Canada's Pacific Coast has been added to the nation's growing list of marine protected areas, officials said Tuesday. "Bowie Seamount is an oceanic oasis in the deep sea, a rare and ecologically rich marine area, and our government is proud to take action to ensure it is protected," Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn said in a statement.[...] The seamount, located 180 kilometers (110 miles) west of Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) in Canada's Pacific…

RIP Philip Jose Farmer -- From your scattered body go...

My Illinois homeboy, Philip Jose Farmer, died on Wednesday Feb 25. Please find linkage here: the obit in the New York Times and the announcement at his website. From the NYT: Philip José Farmer, a prolific and popular science fiction writer who shocked readers in the 1950s by depicting sex with aliens and challenged conventional pieties of the genre with caustic fables set on bizarre worlds of his own devising, died Wednesday. He was 91 and lived in Peoria, Ill. As a pre-adolescent sprout, I'd sneak out copies of my older brother's PJF paperbacks and devour them. The Riverworld series…

Air Guitar Hero Cranks It to 11

The 2008 Consumer Electronics Show wraps up today. As one might imagine, the show's replete with the coolest and most dubious of technology for the "Entertain Me!" masses. This Air Guitar Hero offering from "Nitrous Roxide" is a fine example of the dubious. Here's the explanation of the technology in a nutshell: Here's another demonstration. Why, oh, why did he opt for van Halen instead of Deep Purple? I'm a mere bio-idiot, so I'm hoping Doc Acoustically-Enhanced-Jim will weigh in on this deliciously geeky device. I'll just say that Nitrous Roxide needs a more believable wig. I can't…

Words of wisdom

Fewer open threads and more of this would make it clear why Atrios is popular. I started this blog and adopted this style in part because I thought it was important to introduce a more combative and caustic discourse on our side. I'd be quite happy and comfortable in a world where politics more closely resembled an academic seminar - that is where I come from, after all - but we don't live in that world and it's a tragic mistake to pretend we do. It's a tragic mistake to think most creationists will be won over by kind and supportive conversation over a cup of coffee, too, or by any kind of…

Christmas is over…for good

Don't ask me why, I just found this little story hilarious, and I didn't want to wait until Christmas eve 2011 to post it. While we're throwing around Christmas hilarity, this story is so ironic it made me giggle: The Next Person Who Says Happy Holidays Shall Be Punched In The Throat. It's not a humor piece, it's from an angry Christian who has simply taken the irrational obsession with Christmas being Christian to the unsurprising conclusion that saying something nice that does not promote his sectarian faith warrants physical abuse. Merry Christmas, crazy Christian…and I say it not…

Pope poll

Here's what we're used to: crazy poll choices that make the right answer obvious. Do you support attempts by atheists Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens to have Pope Benedict XVI arrested over his handling of child sex abuse claims? Yes, what happened to these children is horrific and the Pope should be held accountable for his role in the cover-up. 71% No, they are using the terrible tragedy of child sex abuse to pursue their vendetta against religion. 29% Next, we'll have a poll about adult rape cases in which one question tries to distract everyone from the guilty by…

Oh my, Ken Ham is pissed

Answers in Genesis hosts a version of the image above. Is there any plausible reading of this in which AiG isn't threatening to blow you away? Good that Ken Ham can take time away from his busy schedule of getting busted for tax evasion feuding with the international branch of his group to threaten anyone who wanders into his little corner of the interweb. Update: As my excellent commenters remind me, Ken Ham and Kent Hovind (similar as they may seem) are not the same person. I'm sure there's an interesting post in this about how we remember names, since I tend to mix up people with the…

Republicans in Kansas: a dying breed

As a retiring Republican state legislator endorses a Democrat to replace him, conservative activists go on the attack. Hack Republican commentator and former Party County Chair John Altevogt whines: "It doesn’t matter. I've never had any use for Ray Cox. It would please me greatly if he would become a Democrat. I didn’t have any use for him when I was chair of the party up here. In fact, we tried to get him beat several times." "Good riddance to bad rubbish," he added. "Sometimes you have to experience temporary losses to make long-term gains." This is why observers see a likely swing of…

Something to think about on Easter Sunday...

I usually tread lightly on theological issues here (outside of conflicts between monotheistic dogma & evolution), but the other day I heard an interview on NPR with John Dominic Crossan about the historicity of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Crossan does not believe in a bodily resurrection of the dead, and while this departure is going to irk a number of people who feel that Jesus "rising from the dead" is central to Christianity, Crossan brings up a number of problems with the conflicting accounts of what happened after the crucifixion in the four gospels. It's not anything you're…

Photo of the Day #147: Crested gibbon grooming a Malayan tapir

I could hardly believe my eyes this past Saturday; a male black-crested gibbon (Hylobates concolor) swung down from the miniature forest of its enclosure and started to groom the back and sides of a Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus). The tapir stood still while the gibbon picked over its hide for a few minutes, only to leave and do it again (at one point appearing as if it were riding the tapir). I'm sure this was to the tapir's relief to some small extent as it had been rubbing against a branch in the enclosure and appeared quite itchy (that it had some skin problem was definitely evident),…

It's never too early for a shameless plug

"Evolution Sunday" is fast approaching, and even though it's still about 2 weeks off I thought I'd just put up a note that I'll be speaking to the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism of Morris County for the event. My talk will primarily focus on contingency, human evolution, and where those concepts intersect religion, and the discussion is slated for 9:30-11:30 AM on February 10th. I'll be borrowing a bit from the "what we think about who we are" post and some of my other writings, but I've got a few other tricks (references?) up my sleeve, too. I know most of you aren't anywhere nearby,…

A new genus of self-destructing palm tree

I don't know very much about plants, but this is too cool not to mention; [A]n absolutely massive new genus of palm tree has been described from Madagascar that puts nearly all its energy into fruiting, dying after an explosion of flowers and fruit. The new genus is described in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society (unfortunately I do not have access), and LiveScience has a short piece on the discovery. You can check out some more details about this fascinating new palm at Further Thoughts. [Thanks to a kind reader I now have the paper and will have something up about it soon. The…

Photo of the Day # 69: Camarasaurus

Camarasaurus is a bit of an under-appreciated sauropod, not being nearly as famous as Apatosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Diplodocus, or a number of others. Still, during a recent visit to the AMNH I was struck by something about its skull that I hadn't noticed before; it has some very big holes. While it might be difficult to tell from this angle, the skull of Camarasaurus has a very large orbit and a very large nasal area, the bony struts running between the holes being relatively thin. While I'm not suggesting a direct evolutionary relationship, it did remind me of the skull construction of the…

It's not just Scienceblogs

This isn't exactly schadenfreude, it's more like merely recognizing the ungainly nature of the beast — but blog networks are always going to struggle a bit. Take a look at these posts from the Nature Network. It's not doom-and-gloom, it's just wrestling with the medium, as we've experienced here in recent weeks. I do have a solution for any financial problems, though: we just need to peddle more T&A and celebrity gossip, like Huffpo. Isn't that a bit illiberal, though, to build your brand on the backs of salacious stories about women? Not to mention the quackery and woo. Although I guess…

Photo of the Day #27: Female Gavial

Today's photo comes from the National Zoo in Washington D.C., the only place where I have seen the Gavial (Gavialis gangeticus) in captivity. This crocodylian is one of the most endangered in the world, and the National Zoo has a male and female pair (and I can only assume that the zoo staff hopes the two will breed). The above photograph is the female, males of the species having a bulbous growth or "ghara" on the tip of their snout. Outside of being a signal as to which sex an adult belongs, the ghara is also used in vocalizations the male makes and blowing bubbles during mating displays,…

Photo of the Day #6: Three tiger cubs and a tire

It's a whole new week, so I'm moving away from the artiodactyl theme (for now, at least) and the PotD will probably take on a more random aspect for a while. Today's photo is of the tiger cubs Terney (center, with tire), Changbai (left), and Koosaka (right), born at the Philadelphia Zoo a few months ago. They are Amur (or Siberian) tigers, Panthera tigris altaica, the largest of the extant tigers and also critically endangered. While the zoo notes that they contribute to tiger conservation initiatives like the Tiger Conservation Fund, it seems that these cubs will remain in captivity and…

A great example of a model

This picture has been all over the blogs. I don't want to talk about this picture too much - that has been done (a good summary discussion can be found at Bad Astronomy). Apparently, this is some type of rocket mistake or something. Although the picture is cool, it is not as cool as this simulation that someone made. Here is the best shot from the video: Maybe that picture didn't turn out so well. The point is that someone made a simulation (I assume it is a simulation, and not just an animation). How do you know if a simulation is any good? You look and see how well it compares with…

Uncertain Principles interviews non-academic scientists

Chad is posting some very useful stuff at Uncertain Principles. Basically, he has quite a few scientists that are not professors or such answering some questions. This is a great way for students to get a feel for what scientists actually do. If you don't subscribe to Chad's blog, you totally should. A great resource for physics stuff. Here are the interviews he has. I am not sure what the P stands for in PNAS, but the NAS is probably Non-Academic Scientist. If you are a high school or middle school student looking to do some type of report or presentation, this would be a great place to…

Odd things you hear on the radio

If I heard right, the radio offered an unusual explanation for a local traffic disruption. I was still only half awake, so it's possible that I misheard or misunderstood, but I believe that a mass exodus of slugs was said to be interfering with the morning commute. I made it in safely. An attempt to verify this with Google mostly turned up complaints from Britain about their wet summer and the slug infestations which have destroyed people's gardens. No mention was made of dangers to drivers. One Welsh paper managed to see the silver lining, pointing out that the bounding invertebrate…

Optimism

Here's your feel-good story of the day. (It feels even better if you're a fan of The Wire. And if you're not a fan of The Wire, then you've made a very big mistake.) The story is a helpful reminder that it's never too late to change your life: the mind is a gloriously plastic thing. Donnie Andrews was a stickup man with a .44 Magnum who robbed drug dealers and was sentenced to life in prison for murdering one of them. Fran Boyd was a heroin addict who shoplifted to get from fix to fix, passing her stupors in the shooting gallery and stash house that once was her middle-class home. Now they…

Liveblagging V: Driving Ms. Hazy

Steve Lyons, parent, grandparent: Words mean things. Otherwise things would be nonsense. This is a coup d'etat. Theory is redefined, treated as if they were facts. S&W gives all sides. Teach good science. Daniel Bolnick, professor at UT: 1500 members of 21st Century Coalition. Don't reintroduce S&W. JSTOR has a bajillion articles supporting evolution, none denies it. At this point, I went to see a press conference by the Texas affiliate of Focus on the Family (Focus on your own damned family!), and then to watch Genie, Texas Freedom Network, and a coalition of scientists talk…

Supertrain!

I didn't acknowledge the joy that I felt when I learned that we will, in fact, have Supertrain in California. High speed rail from SF to LA, with future routes to San Diego, and hopefully on to Portland and Seattle one day. It's awesome. The proposal has its flaws, not least that it isn't running to Oakland. Running the line through Oakland would've made northward expansion easier, since the terminus would've been on the mainland, and not isolated on a peninsula. Plus, I'm a fan of the East Bay. Still, pretty cool to be in the future home of North America's first truly high-speed rail…

Amy Bishop & oxidation

From The Boston Globe, Ambition fueled a smoldering rage: A friendship of sorts was kindled, based largely on a mutual interest in science. Over coffee and lunch, they would discuss Bishop's research and McCann's work in biotechnology. Bishop never spoke of her husband or growing family. During one meeting, Bishop listened patiently to McCann for a time before suggesting they switch topics. "She said, 'That's very nice, Isabel, but can we talk about oxidation?' '' she recalled, with a chuckle. "That one moment in time encapsulated who Amy was. She just couldn't connect with people.'' I would…

The rise of the neo-Neandertals?

Archaeology has a very interesting piece up, Should We Clone Neanderthals?. It begins with the nitty-gritty of ancient DNA extraction & sequencing, moves to the possible avenues of cloning, and of course the bioethical conundrums that we might be placed in. I know that there is an expectation that a neo-Neandertal will be some sort of "ape-man," but we should remember that the ancient Neandertals had greater cranial capacities than modern humans. I suspect thought that the biggest issue for a neo-Neandertal might be disease; "savages" brought back to Europe invariably died from Illnesses…

The Devil's Helpers

Two Are Charged With Helping Madoff Falsify Records: Two computer programmers who worked for Bernard L. Madoff's brokerage firm were arrested on Friday on criminal charges of helping perpetuate his long-running Ponzi scheme. The two men -- Jerome O'Hara of Malvern, N.Y., and George Perez of East Brunswick, N.J. -- were also sued by securities regulators, who said they had helped keep the Madoff fraud running for more than 15 years and took "hush money" to keep it secret. The criminal and civil complaints accuse the men of creating and maintaining the software that enabled Mr. Madoff to…

Kurt Vonnegut, R.I.P.

"All of the true things that I am about to tell you are shameless lies." Thus began Kurt Vonnegut's fictional Book of Bokonon, within his novel Cat's Cradle. The novelist, who, in 1997, told the New Yorker "People are sentimental about me now. I'm not waving my hands in the air looking for attention," passed away last night. So it goes. His greatest impact on me probably comes from Cat's Cradle, and Bokononism. Many times I find myself whispering "Busy, busy, busy" "whenever I think about how complicated and unpredictable the machinery of life really is." We live in an age of…

My enemy's enemy is my friend?

Because (primary) election season is almost upon us, one's mind sometimes turns to thoughts of coalition building. And sometimes, you can find allies in places you wouldn't normally think to look. For example ... I totally wouldn't think of Skeletor as my kind of politician. But, Skeletor's day job is being He-Man's mortal enemy. He's a natural enemy of the patriarchy! (You know Skeletor hates the patriarchy. The patriarchy imposes outrageous standards to which no one can live up easily. Case in point: Skeletor's ripped abs. Dude's a skeleton and he feels the need to have ripped abs.…

The obligatory poem from Emily Dickinson.

Although certain bloggers of my acquaintance are suspicious of Emily Dickinson, I think she's the bee's knees. It wouldn't be National Poetry Month without a selection from Emily. In case you're hesitating about clicking "Read on", I will entertain, in the comments, a discussion of whether the position Miss Dickinson advocates in the poem is an ethical one. And, a bonus fun fact: nearly every Emily Dickinson poem can be sung to the tune of "The Yellow Rose of Texas". Tell all the Truth but tell it slant -- Success in Circuit lies Too bright for our infirm Delight The Truth's superb surprise…

Salt

From a very interesting interview with Anthony Bourdain: AVC: Do you ever feel like your sense of taste or smell was diminished by your drug use? Bourdain: Who knows? I think, technically, male palates start to decline very early anyway, around 27 or 28. That's what God made salt for. On a related note, I used to work in restaurants, and was always fascinated by how my perception of saltiness would fluctuate over the course of a night. You get really sweaty working the line and, by the end of a hectic shift, nothing would taste salty enough for me. I'd sweated out so many electrolytes that my…

$5000 genome in 2009

Dawn of Low-Price Mapping Could Broaden DNA Uses in The New York Times. So of course I checked in on Genetic Future: There's an important message here between the lines: as technology drives the price of sequencing down, massive competition between platforms and service providers will almost certainly drive down the profit margins of sequencing providers. The real money will then be in providing sophisticated, up-to-date and easily understandable genome interpretation services. The best interpretations will come from the companies with the largest databases of genetic information, and with…

Galeras Erupts

An undated photo of the crater at Galeras. I am literally out the door, so I will fill this article a little more after my prior academic obligations, but there are reports of an eruption at Galeras in Colombia overnight. 8,000 people living near the volcano have been evacuated as INGEOMINAS moved the alert status at the volcano to "Red". Not much out there on the details of the eruption beyond this intriguing statement: Diego Gomez from the Pasto Observatory of Vulcanology and Seismology said that due to the atypical, non-explosive eruption, another eruption is imminent. Galeras the most…

No eruption at Mikeno in the Congo

Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Following up on a report earlier this week claiming that an eruption of Mikeno produced an avalanche that killed dozens, it appears that those reports were false. Current news claims that an overflowing river on Nyiragongo in the Congo produced an avalanche on the slopes of the volcano. This avalanche killed 46 people and have wiped out at least 200 homes and UN Peacekeepers in the Congo have been helping with the recovery from the avalanche. So, it seems that the landslide was caused by heavy rains rather than any sort of volcanic eruption…