Biomes Blog

Entry #3197: Otter Speaks

102 things not to do if you hate taxes.

Tacoma zoo otter talks, has weird otter voice.

Portraits of classrooms around the world.

Entry #3196: In Birmingham They Love the Governor

Which has more caffeine? I scored 6 out of 8.

James Fallows tells us why Bill Clinton’s speeches succeed. Basically, it’s because he doesn’t assume his audience are a bunch of idiots.

iPod Shuffle:

1. Kathy's Song (Simon & Garfunkel)
2. All the Wrong Reasons (Tom Petty)
3. Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
4. Groove Dub (10,000 Maniacs)
5. Void in My Heart (John Cougar Mellencamp)

Entry #3195: Stay Classy Republicans

This is a bumper sticker that started appearing last spring, mainly in the south. According to the designer, it’s not racist.

Roger Ebert thinks that women are better than men, and he makes a good case.

There’s a story in my town about a snapping turtle that has a local resident’s grandfather’s initials and date caught (1918) carved into its shell. I’m not sure if either of these stories are true.

Entry #3194: Zombie Fish

Support zombie research. The biologist in the video is seeking help in her studies on zombie fish, fish whose brains are infected with a parasite that makes them act weird, thus attracting the attention of birds (the parasite’s intermediate host).

Meet this year’s winners of the Bulwer-Lytton fiction contest for bad writing.

Hump day musical interlude: We’re NASA and We Know It.

Entry #3193: Therefore Sign

Adam Winrich combines the musical talents of the harmonica and whips, and shows you how Indiana probably got his scar.

See who voices the Simpson’s characters.

Stuff you should know: Punctuation marks that you probably didn’t know existed. This one is the “therefore sign”, and upside down it means “because”.

Entry #3192: Myth Romney

Albino Monday:Melanistic barn owl (on left) is one in a million.

Barney Frank introduces us to Myth Romney.

Scott Adams (Dilbert’s creator) buy’s a minivan.

Feeding Opal. Watch a video I made of my impossibly tiny ocotpus we caught a few weeks ago. I'm teaching him how to hunt.

Entry #3191: Hermit Crab Migration

On The Big Think, Bill Nye explains why creationism is not appropriate for children.

He boiled for your sins.

I’ve never heard of Intelligent Life Magazine before, but was introduced to it through this article on the casting genius of Alfred Hitchcock.

Hermit crab migration, via The Boy:

Entry #3190: Getting to Know Joe

The biggest surprise for me watching the DNC was the devastating Joe Biden. My biggest criticism of Obama choosing him for VP is that you need to pick someone who will pick up where you left off after your eight years are up, like when Gore won in 2000. He convinced me the other night that he can pick up the dem flag.

Entry #3189: We Don't Want To Go Back

The incomparable Charles Pierce says that congressman John Lewis' speech was the most important one of the entire DNC, even though it happened early on the last day of the convention, so pretty much nobody actually saw it.

Entry #3188: The Big Dog Speaks

Entry #3187: Sinking Fast

A Pew Research Center study has found that the middle class has suffered its worst decline in modern history. 62% of the country’s wealth was held by the middle class in 1970, today it is only 45%.

Geek stuff: Why Batman may be the most absurd of all superheroes.

Hump day musical interlude: Throwing rocks with the other hand. I look like this when I try.

Entry #3186: Tilting at Empty Chairs

Tom Tomorrow has an overview of the Republican convention.

The Tea Party lives on -- and as a result, our economy is in jeopardy.

Michael Moore on Clint Eastwood’s delusional speech at the RNC. Despite all his great accomplishments in film, Eastwood has probably ensured that future generations will remember him as the crazy old man growling at an empty chair. John Stewart weighs in.

Entry #3185: Debt and Greed

Albino Monday: Leucistic barn owl.

CNN airs the most ridiculous statement I’ve ever seen on television.

Today’s long read is Debt and Greed: How Romney and his private equity firm staged an epic wealth grab, destroyed jobs, and stuck others with the bill, by Matt Taibbi.

September's architectural eyesore of the month.

Entry #3184: No End In Sight

Kumi Yamashita creates sculptures that form shadows of faces.

I finally got around to seeing the documentary “No End in Sight”. The guys in this aren’t lightweights. These are men and women within the Bush administration, and people on the ground in Iraq who were trying to do the right thing, and who are now spilling their guts on camera. 

Gallup finds that 46% of Americans believe in creationism. I find it hard to fathom that there are this many people who are this dumb. I’d have guessed it was limited to the 27 percenters. Lance has a theory about this kind of thing.

Entry #3183: Cats and Humble Bees

Heinz has come up with a new “dip and squeeze” ketchup packet that will replace those “tear at the corner” ones we’ve used for decades. I couldn’t care less since I don’t use them, but the best line in the story is:

“To develop the new packet, Heinz staffers sat behind one-way, mirrored glass, watching consumers in 20 fake minivan interiors putting ketchup on fries, burgers, and chicken nuggets.”

Darwin on cats and humble bees.

Years ago I used to post a lot of funny and unusual road signs. This one wins.