Biomes Blog

Entry #2663: Watch Some More Stuff

How to birdwatch.

Watch some more fantastic footage of the mimic octopus.

Watch My Blackberry is Not Working, it’s pretty funny.

Sunset on Mars.

Trivia answer: Las Vegas. And if you are skeptical, check out google maps at 36*07“00’N 115*02“30’W

Entry #2662: Watch Stuff

Trivia (8 Biomes points): In the suburb of what U.S. city was this photo taken?

Watch what happens to a MacDonald’s cheeseburger after it has spent a few hours in your stomach. Don’t watch this while eating.

Driving from San Francisco to Washington D.C in under five minutes.

Hump day musical interlude: Under Pressure, by two Kermits, a street performance by a homeless dad.

Entry #2661: Frozen Peepers

Tuesday coonhound blogging: Creole and Hamlet thinking the sun is making it warm outside. I heard the first spring peepers last week, and now it's back in the 30's and I'm worried about them.

You can listen to some spring peepers for about ten minutes here.

“Losing our Way” is Bob Herbert’s final column in the New York Times. And we lose another voice of reason in our national media.

You have to go back to the Scopes monkey trial to find a time when conservatives were as willingly scientifically stupid as they are now in their tea party days. It’s really quite stunning.

Entry #2660: The Screech of a Million Mosquitoes

Trees cocooned in spider webs in Pakistan trap so many mosquitoes that they could be used to reduce the risk of malaria.

Albino Monday: Hummingbird (via Hans), taken by a woman named Sadie McGee.

More fast food items compared to their counterparts in the ads.

Entry #2659: Fort Adams

Creole and friends at Fort Adams Park in Newport, RI. This is where Dylan went electric.

A simple explanation of how dinosaurs became extinct.

Entry #2658: On the Horizon

Since December 17, 2003, I've never missed a day on this blog. But postings may be short and sweet for a while. I'm putting together a huge deal for the next phase of the Biomes Center, and although I'll pass on the details for now, I'll soon be writing a book on how to buy a million dollar piece of property with no money in the bank. I'll make a fortune.

Meanwhile, keep sending in the links to keep me going. Like this one from Raj:

By pouring cement down an ant hill, researchers discover the amazingly complex structure of the underground colony.

Entry #2657: Sushi Lessons

I'm really getting into sushi lately, although I'll never be able to do the spider roll (softshell crab, with way too many recognizable exoskeleton parts). I'll also never be able to do tuna eyeball.

And if you're trying to learn about sushi, that link above, sushiencyclopedia, is a great resource.

Geek Stuff: Buy your light saber chopsticks here.

iPod Shuffle:

1. Like Everyone She Knows (James Taylor)
2. The Night I Heard Caruso Sings (Everything But The Girl)
3. Groove Dub (10,000 Maniacs)
4. My Car (Gin Blossoms)
5. The Promised Land (Bruce Springsteen)

Entry #2656: Foote's Passion

Animal of the week: The amazing mimic octopus.

Yesterday's trivia answer: The “sideburn” is named after General Ambrose Burnside. He was a Union General during the Civil War, became the 30th Governor of Rhode Island in 1866, and the first president of the NRA in 1871.

It’s been 25 years since I last saw Ken Burns’ documentary The Civil War. Plowing through his masterpiece again, the one thing that really stands out from the last time I saw this is historian Shelby Foote’s passion for this piece of history. He seems to love this war with an almost psychotic kind of glee, and it’s really quite endearing in a weird way. You can watch the entire thing here. It’s in nine parts, so start there and then look for the next episode in the series. Or just stream it on Netflix.

Entry #2655: Dog's Hair

Trivia (5 Biomes points): What facial feature is named after this guy?

He’s been on my blogroll pretty much from the time he started posting, but I thought I’d mention that Paul Krugman’s blog is a pretty spectacular effort.

Watch this video to see how NPR is like a dog’s hair. Wingnuts want to cut the $80 million spent on public radio to help curb the budget deficit (we know that’s not actually the reason, but let’s take them at their word). They don’t mention that we also spend $747 million on foreign public radio.

Hump day musical interlude: We No Speak Americano.

Entry #2654: Creole and Hamlet

Tuesday coonhound blogging: Who's dominant here, Creole or Hamlet? (Click to embiggen.)

Now we’re cookin’: The thirty worst cooking shows of all time, with video.

PBS’s American Masters is putting together a show about Jeff Bridges called “The Dude Abides”. Here’s a clip.

Think your gas tax is too high? Guess again.

Entry #2653: An Itchy History

SciAm explains how an earthquake can trigger a tsunami a thousand miles away.

The Great Wave off Kanagawa, by Hokusai, is a woodblock engraving, not a painting. It was created in 1830.

Albino Monday: Near-albino ruby-throated hummingbird.

Today’s long read is Of Lice and Men. An itchy history.

Entry #2652: Supreme Arrogance

This week’s Green Thing is the water pebble. Place it near the shower drain and it will monitor your water usage. Based on your average shower time, it will tell you when your time is up, and then shorten each subsequent shower by seven seconds, gradually training you to take shorter showers.

JFK quote on being a liberal.

A cool quote from Peter Walker.

Meet the fake capsized boat.

Entry #2651: Sort of Misty Hazes

Saturday’s slide show is about Indonesian children playing in sort of misty hazes.

Watch the trailer for the movie “Strongman”, a documentary about how the strongest man in the world bends steel and metal objects.

Pet Corner: We all know that chocolate is bad for dogs. Here’s why.

Animals painted on lips.

Entry #2650: Lying Fox

In case you weren’t aware that Fox (and other news organizations) are legally allowed to lie, they are.

‘Fox lawyers argued it was their first amendment right to report false information. In a six-page written decision, the Court of Appeals decided the FCC’s position against news distortion is only a “policy,” not a “law, rule, or regulation.”’

Facts and answers about single-payer health care, animated.

Geek Stuff: A Darth Vader toaster.

Watch the animated short film French Roast.

 iPod Shuffle:

1. The Water is Wide (Bob Dylan, live)
2. It Keeps You Runnin' (Doobie Brothers)
3. Candy Everybody Wants (10,000 Maniacs)
4. The Trouble with the Truth (Patty Loveless)
5. Landfall (Jimmy Buffett)

Entry #2649: God Hates Eelpouts

Animal of the week: The European eelpout gives birth to such large offspring because it is the only fish known to suckle its young. (via Hans).

The answer to yesterday's trivia was the Library of Alexandria.

God hates Japan.

The NY Times has an interactive photo collection of before and after shots of Japan after the tsunami.

The Times also has a very informative graphic on how a reactor shuts down and what happens during a meltdown, which is a must see if you want to know about these things.