The sandworms of Arrakis

...have little to do with the substance of this post, other than that this microscopic bug part reminded me of them. It's one of about 30 awesome pictures of microscale weirdness to be found here.

The long-promised, oft-delayed Lick refractor post

...is not here. I ended up saying everything I wanted to say when I put the photos up on my Flickr page. If you have no idea what the heck I'm talking about, see here and here and here. The upshot is that on Sept. 15 last fall I got to put my eyeball on the end of this 57-foot-long telescope, and saw some stuff that is still blowing my mind four months later.

The observatory is open to the public. If you get a chance, go.

Super-heated science

Okay, this post is just a dummy repeater for this awesome Onion article, "Scientists Ask Congress to Fund $50 Billion Science Thing."

I'm not proud of that, but it had to be done. It's science.

Hat tip to Julian Hilliard, who was a fellow grad student back at OU, for the term 'ion reflux pronabulator', which he applied indiscriminately to any machine more complicated than a toaster. The thing in the diagram is the Platonic ideal of the IRP.

My afternoon with Apteryx

I spent most of the afternoon dealing with kiwis, genus Apteryx, in one way or another. I passed a few pleasant minutes photographing the MVZ's mounted kiwi.


Then I had a look at Richard Owen's 1841 monograph on Apteryx australis. Two things you need to know about kiwis:


1. Despite the genus name, they really do have wings. And their wings still have most of the parts they started with. More than those of an emu, anyway. The real "apteryx" (name means wingless) was the moa. Moas had the scapula and coracoid fused into a little splint, but no forelimb bones at all.


2. Their eggs are stupid huge. Above is an x-ray of a pregnant kiwi. I think it's pretty clear that the bird can't eat, drink, poop, or even breathe while that monster is in the pipe. It's science.

Below is one of these oddly disreputable-looking birds* sitting on its egg (image stold from here). Sorta like those weirdos at the gym that sit on the big plastic balls and pretend to be working out.


*Seriously. Every lovin' one of 'em looks like it might hit you up for spare change. I've never seen a picture of kiwi without thinking, "Dammit, boy, have some respect for yourself! Take a bath, shave and get a haircut! And for the love of Pete, put some pants on!"

I'm back

...and a lot transpired while I was away, both around me and back here in the world. I'll blog about it when I catch my breath. In particular, there is the matter of Amphicoelias to deal with. But slumber calls. Catch you on the flip side.

Later

I'm off to the field. For the first time in, er, five and a half years. Yeah, I know, pathetic. I didn't even own a digital camera the last time I went out, and I haven't scanned in any old photos of me doing the field thang, so I'm recycling this oldie, which was at least taken on the way back from the field.

I'll be back to the world Jan. 12. See you then.

Can a Twinkie pass the Turing test?

Probably not.

Hellboy online

At some point I ought to blog about my deep and abiding love of all things Hellboy. Comics, movie, art, mythos, the whole shebang.

In the meantime, here are some e-comics featuring HB.

Colliding galaxies

Sometimes it's good to remember that your problems don't matter. Although if you're just trying to get some perspective, this might be overkill.

Image and story here.

A missing term in the science of snark

I just coined a new term that characterizes lab-based genetic studies of limited scope or applicability: Drosophistry.

...and life beyond

Okay, belying what I just wrote, I always have time for highly evolved posthumans (the image above is borrowed from the link target). And while you're at it, go look up one of the greats in this weird, awesome field, Wayne Douglas Barlowe.

Update: Woah. The guy who painted the thing above goes by the handle Nemo Ramjet, and he has a lot more cool, weird stuff on his site. Freak out with your geek out.

Dr. Vector returns

To blogging, that is. My physical body is still on the East Coast. And I'm only blogging to point you in the direction of my Flickr page, where I have posted some pix from the trip. Here are a couple of teasers, taken from underneath and on top of two of Manhattan's famous skyscrapers.

Science is gorgeous

Even that stolid workhorse of the elementary classroom, the periodic table, can be a thing of beauty. This one is for sale in poster form. Check it out.

Matt's Law

Self-explanatory.

If you'd like a version of this image that hasn't had some wiseacre's verbal diarrhea squirted all over it, dig this:

Photoshop posts will continue until morale improves.