Bits and Pieces
jlynch | September 29, 2006
Does any reader have a scan of this picture of William Butler Yeats? I've seen it on some versions of the complete works of Yeats, but the only version I can find online via GIS is 404ing and is small (~300x300). Also, does anyone know the providence of the photo? Email me at john dot lynch at gmail dot com if you have any leads. Thanks.
jlynch | September 28, 2006
Today marks the 15th anniversary of the death of one of the great musical artists of the 20th century, Miles Davis.
jlynch | September 28, 2006Over at the World's Fair, Ben and David have posted results from their taking of the Earth Day Ecological Footprint quiz. Here are my results:
CATEGORY / ACRES
FOOD / 5.4MOBILITY / 1.7SHELTER / 6.9 GOODS/SERVICES / 7.9 TOTAL FOOTPRINT / 22
IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON. WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE ACRES PER PERSON. IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 4.9 PLANETS.
At least I'm doing better that the US average ... but that's not really saying very much!
jlynch | September 27, 2006
Just got back from a pleasant evening spent with my fellow SciBling Chris Mooney. Chris gave a great talk here in Tempe which not only gave the gist of his book, The Republican War on Science, but also detailed positive ways in which things can be changed. Needless to say, scientists bear some of the load in changing things.
Following the talk, I got to meet some of my readers (and also readers of Chris' blog) and to hang with Chris and some of his family for a few hours. Pictured above are I, Chris and his (somewhat evil looking but good guy) uncle Tom Cole at a local hostelry after a beer…
jlynch | September 25, 2006
Today marks the birth (in 1791) of Théodore Géricault, one of my favorite painters. Best known for Raft of the Medusa (see above, properly titled Scene of Shipwreck), Géricault's short career came to an end at the age of 33, not before his completion of a haunting series of portraits of asylum inmates, this ghoulish depiction of two heads, and a study of truncated limbs:
In an unplanned coincidence, my honors class is discussing Scene of Shipwreck today, in particular the artistic decisions Géricault made.
jlynch | September 24, 2006Over at Fark.com someone posted a link to a game called Line Rider (you can play it here). Then someone posted the movie below. Someone has too much time on their hands!
jlynch | September 15, 2006
Where in the world is this, and why have I posted this image today?
Answers later, but post your guesses.
Update: Yes, it is the Galapagos Islands (though South is "up"). On today in 1835, the HMS Beagle, carrying the young naturalist Charles Darwin, arrived at the islands. To quote Darwin:
The distribution of the tenants of this archipelago would not be nearly so wonderful, if, for instance, one island had a mocking-thrush, and a second island some other quite distinct genus, -- if one island had its genus of lizard, and a second island another distinct genus, or none whatever; -- or if…
jlynch | September 14, 2006Your life-jacket can be found under your seat, but please do not remove it now. In fact, do not bother to look for it at all. In the event of a landing on water, an unprecedented miracle will have occurred, because in the history of aviation the number of wide-bodied aircraft that have made successful landings on water is zero. This aircraft is equipped with inflatable slides that detach to form life rafts, not that it makes any difference. Please remove high-heeled shoes before using the slides. We might as well add that space helmets and anti-gravity belts should also be removed, since even…
jlynch | September 13, 2006Sort of busy today with teaching stuff, so in lieu of anything I have to say, here are some things to check out:
John Wilkins has a four part post on why creationists are what they are [1] [2] [3] [4]. He also takes on the Pope's latest expectoration on evolution.
RPM takes on PZ regarding evo devo here.
Tara outlines creationist mis-use of Semmelweis.
Bora tells the tale of his son and the Pledge of Allegiance
Nick discusses the drop in science funding since 2001 ... I wonder what happened then?
That should keep you amused for a while.
jlynch | September 11, 2006Once again I find myself agreeing with Ed Brayton, in this case over PZ Myers' comments on Ken Miller. Frankly, some of the comments in the original thread at Pharyngula show a shrill insistancy that characterizes many real creationists. Atheism, it seems, coats the mind in a wonderful certitude, a belief that one's lack of belief is the Truth, that all religions are Evil, and that science has something to say about the metaphysical. I should know ... I was an atheist once. The problem is, there is no Truth, all religions are not Evil, and science should be by definition silent on…
jlynch | August 30, 2006Long-time readers may remember that over the summer my SciBlings and I raised funds for K-12 science projects using DonorsChoose.org. With the start of the school year, we're hearing back from the teachers. Below are two notes I recently received:
Dear Dr. Lynch, I cannot thank you enough for funding this project for my students! I told them that our new aquarium is on its way, and they can scarcely contain their excitement. Your generosity will enhance their learning and growth throughout the entire year. Thank you for giving my children this opportunity. Joyfully, Cheryl Bommarito Klein (…
jlynch | August 27, 2006
Some of you may have read this New York Times article about a 23 year old Korean by the name of Jeong-Hyun Lim who plays a mean version of Pachabel's Canon in D. I'm not a huge fan of electric guitar, but this is certainly impressive.
jlynch | August 24, 2006
Some readers may recognize this image - BBC test card F, shown since 1967 while the station was off the air. As one BBC reporter noted, a "never-ending game. The poker-faced, Alice-banded girl locked in eternal combat with the gurning stuffed clown. It's reminiscent of the feudal knight taking on Death at chess in Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal ... only with noughts and crosses, in colour, after the pubs shut."
My way of saying I may be off the air for another day or two and thus have to post the Friday poem late.
jlynch | August 19, 2006If, like me, your teenage years were spent listening to 80's music, (and you thus remember when MTV used to play music) this site will probably bring back memories - a listing of 80's videos available on YouTube. Prepare to walk down Amnesia Avenue.
jlynch | August 6, 2006Reader #100,000 since my move to ScienceBlogs passed through at 16:17:49 MST. The reader was at Hamline University in St Paul MN, and I think I know who it is (Hi Ed! Comment if it was you).
I guess I'll just take the opportunity to thank all my readers over the past seven months.
jlynch | August 4, 2006It's Friday and I feel like a poem. Many readers may know Malcolm Lowry from his 1947 work Under The Volcano which was rated one of the 100 greatest novels of the twentieth century. Lowry was also a poet and authored one of my favorite poems "We Sit Unhackled, Drunk and Mad to Edit" which I dedicate to Abel Pharmboy and his Friday Fermentable.
We Sit Unhackled, Drunk and Mad to Edit
Notions of freedom are tied up with drink.
Our ideal life contains a tavern
Where man may sit and talk or just think
All without fear of the nighted wyvern;
Or yet another tavern where it appears
There are no No…
jlynch | August 2, 2006We have a new SciBling, David Dobbs over at Smooth Pebbles. Wander over and say hi!
jlynch | July 28, 2006After spending time with my DSL provider yesterday, it looks like my line came back automagically over the night. I'm having it checked out this afternoon nonetheless, but I'm hoping I can stay connected until then at least.
While I Was gone, plenty happened here. Two quick posts worth highlighting: Ed outlines a legendary poker game (and highlights the genius that is Phil Ivey) while David over at The World's Fair has been choosing articles from The Science Creative Quarterly for each of us SB-ers. Check them out here, here and here and introduce yourself to the wonderful world of SCQ.…