education
grrlscientist | September 15, 2009tags: Pyrrhuloxia, Cardinalis sinuatus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Pyrrhuloxia, Cardinalis sinuatus, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 19 December 2004 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2004:12:19 11:18:31
Exposure Time: 1/319
F-Number: 11.00
ISO: 320
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
bioephemera | September 14, 2009An excellent post from language log:
I propose a voluntary ban on the use of generic plurals to express statistical differences, especially in talking to the general public about scientific results in areas with public policy implications.In other words, when we're looking at some property P of two groups X and Y, and a study shows that the distribution of P in X is different from the distribution of P in Y to an extent that is unlikely to be entirely the result of chance, we should avoid explaining this to the general public by saying "X's have more P than Y's", or "X and Y differ in P", or…
grrlscientist | September 14, 2009tags: Curve-Billed Thrasher, Toxostoma curvirostre, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Curve-Billed Thrasher, Toxostoma curvirostre, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Richard Ditch, 9 April 2009 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2009:04:09 16:05:57
Exposure Time: 1/319
F-Number: 4.50
ISO: 400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | September 14, 2009tags: nature, mammals, Antarctica, blue whale, Balaenoptera musculus, David Attenborough, streaming video
This amazing video clip from BBC's remarkable multi-part TV program, Blue Planet, shows the awesome size of the Blue Whale, Balaenoptera musculus, the largest creature in the sea and the largest creature that has ever lived. Narrated by the incomparable David Attenborough.
grrlscientist | September 13, 2009tags: Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, UFO, space aliens, argumentum ad ignorantiam, appeal to ignorance, AMNH, streaming video
The argument from ignorance, also known as argumentum ad ignorantiam ("appeal to ignorance"), argument by lack of imagination, or negative evidence, is a logical fallacy in which it is claimed that a premise is true only because it has not been proven false, or is false only because it has not been proven true.
The argument from personal incredulity, also known as argument from personal belief or argument from personal conviction, refers to an assertion that because one…
bioephemera | September 13, 2009
Okay, if you're anything like me, you don't have time to read the blogs you already follow. But I do recommend that everyone head over to SEED's Revolutionary Minds Think Tank, where Greg Smith is guiding a conversation on visualizing science.
That's where I found the video above, demonstrating the UCSD Software Studies Initiative's application of "cultural analytics" to Rothko's paintings. When the paintings are treated as data points over an artist's career, they can be compared and contrasted in untraditional ways, revealing new patterns and anomalies. Awesome find!
Here, Smith responds…
grrlscientist | September 13, 2009tags: Superb Blue Wren, Blue Fairywren, Malurus cyaneus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Non-breeding male Superb Blue Wren, also known as the Blue Fairywren, Malurus cyaneus, photographed at Grafton, Australia. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Steve Duncan, 14 August 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 w/ Nikkor 300mm f/4.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | September 13, 2009tags: conservation, environmentalism, global warming, ocean acidification, AMNH, American Museum of Natural History, New York City, A Sea Change, film premier
Image: A Sea Change [larger view].
Can you imagine oceans that have been emptied of all fish? What would life be like for other life forms on this planet if there really were no more fish in the sea? This is not science fiction: human-caused ocean acidification is already making its effects known. Sometimes known as the "wet underbelly" or "evil twin" of climate change, ocean acidification is caused by excess carbon dioxide from…
grrlscientist | September 13, 2009tags: religion, violence, genocide, fundamentalism, MtlRedAtheist, streaming video
This is the third in a series of videos that address some of the violent, absurd and atrocious Bible stories being taught to children in Sunday School around the world today. This video discusses the Sunday School Bible story of Noah's Ark and the Great Flood is an extremely popular children's story worldwide. It talks about how God became so fed up of his Creation that he decided to kill it all. It sort of makes you wonder why he would have created it in the first place since he is supposed to be omniscient. […
bioephemera | September 12, 2009
Perfect for kids, teachers, or paleontologists, this "Paleobet" by artist Rosemary Mosco is cute and educational! You can buy a Paleobet print here.
Thanks to reader Laura for the find!
grrlscientist | September 12, 2009tags: conservation, environmentalism, global warming, ocean acidification, AMNH, American Museum of Natural History, New York City, A Sea Change, film premier
Image: A Sea Change [larger view].
Can you imagine oceans that have been emptied of all fish? What would life be like for other life forms on this planet if there really were no more fish in the sea? This is not science fiction: human-caused ocean acidification is already making its effects known. Sometimes known as the "wet underbelly" or "evil twin" of climate change, ocean acidification is caused by excess carbon dioxide from…
grrlscientist | September 12, 2009tags: African Green-pigeon, Treron calvus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] African Green-pigeon, Treron calvus, photographed drinking on the Masai Mara, Kenya, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, 31 August 2006 [larger view].
Nikon D2X, Nikon 200-400 mm lens, ISO 200, f/7.1, 1/45 sec.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | September 11, 2009The cricket sang,
And set the sun,
And workmen finished, one by one,
Their seam the day upon.
The low grass loaded with the dew,
The twilight stood as strangers do
With hat in hand, polite and new,
To stay as if, or go.
A vastness, as a neighbor, came,--
A wisdom without face or name,
A peace, as hemispheres at home,--
And so the night became.
~ Emily Dickinson
This is the cutest event I've heard of for NYC: a night spent counting crickets and katydids.
What: NYC Cricket Crawl (counting 7 species of crickets and katydids in NYC)
Where: New York City area
When: Friday, 11 September 2009 at 7:…
ddobbs | September 11, 2009According to the just released Education Next poll put out by the Hoover Institution, public assessment of schools has fallen to the lowest level recorded since Americans were first asked to grade schools in 1981. Just 18% of those surveyed gave schools a grade of an A or a B, down from 30% reported by a Gallup poll as recently as 2005.
No less than 25% of those polled by Education Next gave the schools either an F or a D. (In 2005, only 20% gave schools such low marks.)
That's from a pretty good WSJ piece on recent surveys of parents about schools. Six months ago I thought this country was…
grrlscientist | September 11, 2009tags: Crested Tern, Great Crested-tern, Swift Tern, Thalasseus bergii, identify this bird, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Crested Tern, also known as the Swift Tern or Great Crested-tern, Thalasseus (Sterna) bergii, photographed at Michealmas Cay, Great Barrier Reef, Australia. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Steve Duncan, 24 August 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 w/ Nikkor 300mm f/4.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | September 11, 2009tags: travel, nature, Antarctica, Beneath the Frozen World, television, Jacques+Cousteau, streaming video
This video presents an exclusive full-length movie of Captain Cousteau's expedition to Antarctica (this is the third of four parts -- couldn't find any of the others). Narrated by Jacques Cousteau.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910-1997) was a French naval officer, explorer, ecologist, filmmaker, innovator, scientist, photographer, author and researcher who studied the sea and marine life. He co-developed the aqua-lung, pioneered marine conservation and was a member of the Académie franç…
grrlscientist | September 10, 2009tags: chemistry, elements, meet the elements, they might be giants, music video, streaming video
This is such a cute song that I would use it in my chemistry class if I was teaching this semester. This song, "Meet the Elements" is by the group, They Might be Giants, and it has a catchy tune that will help one to remember all those elements.
grrlscientist | September 10, 2009The cricket sang,
And set the sun,
And workmen finished, one by one,
Their seam the day upon.
The low grass loaded with the dew,
The twilight stood as strangers do
With hat in hand, polite and new,
To stay as if, or go.
A vastness, as a neighbor, came,--
A wisdom without face or name,
A peace, as hemispheres at home,--
And so the night became.
~ Emily Dickinson
This is the cutest event I've heard of for NYC: a night spent counting crickets and katydids.
What: NYC Cricket Crawl (counting 7 species of crickets and katydids in NYC)
Where: New York City area
When: Friday, 11 September 2009 at 7:…
grrlscientist | September 10, 2009tags: paleontology, fossils, dinosaurs, evolution, I am a Paleontologist, they might be giants, music video, streaming video
I have been remiss lately regarding music videos because I was in Finland for awhile, and then was otherwise preoccupied. But I just had to share this song with you; "I am a Paleontologist" is by the group, They Might be Giants and is one of many wonderful songs on their new album "Here Comes Science." If I was teaching biology or evolution this semester, I would use it in class.
You can order They Might be Giants' new album [CD/DVD], "Here Comes Science" from Amazon.
grrlscientist | September 10, 2009
Who: Toni Van Pelt, director of the Center for Inquiry's Office of Public Policy in Washington, D.C.
What: free public presentation, "Lobbying for Science and Reason on Capitol Hill"
Where: University Settlement, 184 Eldridge Street (and Rivington St.) [map] 273 Bowery site (that's at Bowery/Houston, just next door to an excellent Whole Foods branch [map])
When: 730pm, Thursday, 10 September
Toni Van Pelt is the director of the Center for Inquiry's Office of Public Policy in Washington, D.C. She will talk about her work as a lobbyist, promoting and advancing science and secularism. In her…