Biomes Blog

Entry #1386

This week's water tower is found in Owosso, MI.

Burma (Myanmar) has been in the news a lot lately, so here’s a pretty good overview of what’s going on there.

Michael Moore shines on Oprah. Of course according to the wingnuts, he’s fat so his opinions don’t matter.

Idiot.

Morford: The Great American Hypocrisy Tour.

Entry #1385

My Marine Life Series on Daily Kos is up. It's on basking sharks.

DJ, in comments, informs me that the Biomes Blog is banned in China. Test your site here.

The Big Dog speaks out about the right’s latest fake outrage over the Moveon.org ad.

If Gore wins the Nobel Peace Prize, will he run for President?

Rhino, tickbird stuck in dead-end symbiotic relationship.

Entry #1384

You can watch the Democratic debate at Dartmouth College here. Mike Gravel cracks me up. I’m no fan of Joe Biden, but he did very well this night. I think Chris Dodd would make the best president of the whole crew, although I’m still waiting for Gore and will most likely vote for Edwards in the primary if Gore doesn’t run. It’s about 110 minutes long.

If I can ask a favor of the regulars here, get in the habit of clicking on the ad on the top right. Even if you close it without watching, it will send me a few pennies which I sorely need. Thanks. Out of 602 hits yesterday, only three people clicked the ad and only 35 took the male/female poll. It's not too late to vote, just scroll down.

Holy Cow. If you think creationists, scientologists and flat earthers are out of their skulls, take a look at the people who believe in the abiogenic petroleum theory. I’m surrounded by stupid.

Evolution:

iPod Shuffle:

1. The Voyage (Crash Test Dummies)
2. Multi-Colored Lady (Greg Allman)
3. Seven Days (Sting)
4. Babe (Styx)
5. Still Crazy After All These Years (Paul Simon)

Entry #1383

The he/she ratio of the Biomes Blog is 73%/27%. Find yours here. That site makes the point that although you would think a blog with a higher "he" than "she" ratio would appeal more to males, that's not necessarily the case. I think this blog shows this as I seem to have many more female readers than male.

Are you male or female?
	male
	female
pollcode.com free polls

Stuff You Should Know: Eleven great color legends.

Today’s slide show is called “The Face of Age”. Before you view the slides, look at the thumbnails. One of the faces is that of a 46-year-old. 5 Biomes points if you get it on your first try (honor system).

Calling Rudy. After eight years of the most disastrous president imaginable, if this guy is elected I swear I will slit my wrists.

Peanut Butter? Creationists are out of their freakin’ minds:

Entry #1382

Bill Maher’s “New Rules” is always worth a click, but this one ends with a great rant. And here’s a good clip from Jon Stewart’s show. And this one with Jon interviewing the Big Dog. Norm, at Onegoodmove, does a fantastic job with these.

Hey, check this out. A discussion of my blog is on the syllabus of Purdue University’s English 106 class.

Bush bombs at the U.N.

Listen to the world’s worst opera singer.

Rolling Stone has a good article up about John Edwards.

Here's a two-headed hound.

Entry #1381

Letters to the editor praising Bush are like gold nuggets.

"A badly written letter in favor of Bush is more likely to get into the paper than a badly written letter on another topic."

Diamond encrusted Mercedes.

So, does this guy like chess or what?

Check out this dancing silhouette illusion. It seems to be spinning clockwise, but every once in a while your brain switches the direction on you. See if you can figure this out.

Search Results: Someone found the Biomes Blog by googling “great horned owl harnk”. It brought them here.

Entry #1380

Spent the weekend in northeastern Massachusetts. Rockport is beautiful and the hotel screwed up our reservation but paid for a room at a local B & B with free meals, so that worked out well. Hiked Halibut Point Park.

And since we got a free night we decided to spend Sunday night in Salem, so long as I promised not to make fun of the people who think they are witches (they really do). We joined a group of people taking a night tour of haunted houses guided by a real ghostbuster.  It was run by a company called Spellbound Tours, whose ad says "Bring a camera and an open mind". Unfortunately I didn't possess either. Considering how rare haunted houses are, I thought it was pretty handy that the town has so many of them in a small geographical area. It was great to walk around with someone who knew the history, but sad that every person on the tour seemed to actually believe that ghosts exist. I did behave myself, though. And may have saved a woman from a raccoon. She was approaching it in a low tree saying  "here, kitty kitty kitty".

Not a kitty.

Entry #1379

I'm away for the weekend, so I'll just leave you with this:

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdgnieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

Ok, and this is the longest word in the English language. It’s the name of a protein:

Methionylglutaminylarginytyrosylglutamylserylleucylphenylalanylalanylglutaminylleucyllysylglutamylarginylly sylglutamylglycylalanylphenylalanyvalylprolylphenylalanylvalythreonylleucylglycylaspartylprolyglycylisoleucy lglutamylglutaminylserylleucyllysylisoleucylaspartylthreonylleucylisoleucylglutamylalanylglycylalanylasparty lalanylleucylglutamylleucylglycylglycylisoleucylprolylphenylalanylserylaspartylprolylleucelalanylaspartyglycy lprolythreonylisoleucylglutamiylasparaginylalanylthreonylleucylarginylalanylphenylalanylalanylglycylvalylthe onylprolylalanylglutaminylcysteinylphenylalanygllutamylmethionylleucyalanylleucylisoleucylarginylglutaminy llysylhistidylprolylthreonylisoleucylpriIylisoleucylglycylleucylleucylmethionyltyrosylalanylasparaginylleucylval yphenylalanylasparaginyllysylgyycylisoleucylaspartylglutamylphenylalanyltyrosylalanylgutaminyllcysteinyl glutamyllysylvalylglycylavlylaspartylserylvalylleucylvalylalanylaspartylvalyprolylvalylglutaminylglutamyllsery lalanyprolyphenylalanylarginylglutaminylalanylalanylleucylarginylhistidylasparaginylvaylalanylprolylisoleucy lphenylalanylisoleucylcysteinylprolylprolylaspartylalanylaspartylaspartylaspartylleucylleucylarginyglutaminyl isoleucylalanyylseryltyrosylglycylarginylglycyltyrosylthreonyltyrosylleucylleucylserylarginylalanylglycylvaly threonylglycylalanylglutamylasparaginylarginylanylalanylleucylprolylleucylaspaaginylhistidylleucylvaylalany llysylleucyllysylglutamyltyrosylasaraginylglycylphenylalanylglycylisoleucylalanylprolylaspartylglutaminylvaly llysylalanylalanylisoleucylaspartylalanylalanyglycylalanylalanyglycylalanylisoleucylserylglycyserylalanyliso leucylbalyllsylisoleucylisoleucylglutamyyylglutaminylhistidylasparaginylisoleucylglutamylprolyglutamyllysyl methionylleucylalanylalanylleucyllysylvalylphenylalabylvalylglutaminlylprolylmethionyllysylalanylalanylthre onylarginylserine

Entry #1378

This week's Marine Life Series on DailyKos is about caudal fins. And don't forget to take my poll.

I’ve added a small google ad in the top right corner. I’m trying to cover my hosting costs with this, so it would be nice if you clicked on it once in a while to send me a few pennies. Hanks!

Today’s slide show is a series of photos of endangered species.

Online couple cheated with each other.

Visit the Unicorn Museum.

Entry #1377

I’ve never watched “The View”, I never will watch “The View”, and generally I really don’t care about anything ever said on “The View”. But apparently they have a new member of the show, and based on this clip she’s dumb as a post. Forget about doubting evolution, this woman isn’t even sure if the Earth maybe isn’t flat after all.

Don’t forget to fill out your draft registration form.

Yay! Free Times.

This guy visited and bought something at 171 Starbucks in a single day. And made a film about it.

iPod Shuffle:

1. That's Me (Paul Simon)
2. Positively 4th Street (Bob Dylan)
3. Bitter Green (Gordon Lightfoot)
4. All Four Seasons (Sting)

Entry #1376

Stuff You Should Know: The Dancing Tree of Mortonhampstead (that's not it on the right, but I liked the photo).

Easy exotics is a guide to unusual but easy to keep pets and plants.

Pet Corner: Get your dog a fetch-a-bubble machine here.

Take this biblical quiz. I scored 27 out of 51. (via Sideshow)

Save the mountain walrus.

Entry #1375: Ansaaarrrrs Be Here

This be me with a lady 'n gentleman o' fortune at my education centaarr.  I've lost fifteen pounds since this photo was taken a few months ago. Yay for me, ya scurvy dogs.

For the answaarrr to the trivia booty from yesterday, the object's a backpack that turns into a seat when you be sittin' down. Aye, we fooled ye all and nobody be gettin' the doubloons.

And the interestin' thing about that there presidential chaarrrt? That scallywag Clinton be the only president in the last sixty years to leave office with a higher approval rating than when he began serving. A hearty "yaarrr" to the Big Dog, me mateys.

Captain Cook’s ship, The Endeavour, may have been found off the coast of me state.  For some reason the fact that he discovered breadfruit and a substitute for grog has stuck with me since high bucaneer school. (Yes, I went there as a wee privateer. Aarrr.)

How to be speakin’ pirate-like.

Avast, ya picaroons, read about some notorious pirates here.

Was Darwin a pirate? He once owned a very cool skull-topped walking stick that no scrog would 'ave.

Alas, I be doubting pirates use the phrase "very cool".

Pilates of the Caribbean

This be a pirate's coffee to waarrd off the rum 'eadaches.

A pirate's_keyboard be a simple thing, that even a keelhauled squiffy could use.

Take the pirate's lingo test to see if you are a real pirate. Twelve out of fifteen here.

Entry #1374

Trivia (10 Biomes points): What is it? ----------------------->>

Roger Ebert on Pete Seeger’s new biographical documentary.

The Big Fat Whale has a comic on Kansas classrooms.

This chart of the approval ratings of the past eleven presidents shows something kind of cool. Thoughts?

Your liberal media at work.

Entry #1373

This week's Marine Life Series diary is about remoras, called "The Sharksucker".

Lincoln Chafee quits the GOP.

Another great ‘toon by Tom Tomorrow.

You may have heard of Alex, the Grey Parrot. He was instrumental in some groundbreaking animal cognition studies for decades. He recently died at the age of 31, which I believe is fairly young for this species.

If you’ve got an hour and twenty minutes to kill, you can watch Derren Brown: Inside Your Mind. If this guy is on the level he’s amazing. That said, I don’t buy it for a minute, but he is entertaining.

[Update: Awww...they took the video down.]

Entry #1372

This week's water tower is found in Pequot Lakes, MN.

Don’t forget to vote in the annual blogger’s choice awards.

I check Baghdad Burning every so often to see how Riverbend is doing. But it’s become less and less frequent since she seems to have stopped writing months ago. Here’s her latest: She’s fled the country.

I came across this post about Ngazi. I first mentioned her in December 2003 in Entry #13.

Buy your bacon and eggs cufflinks here.