Why is it that so many of the major ornithology journals take their titles from a single species or genus, despite not having any particular focus on that species or genus? The Auk, The Condor, The Ibis, The Emu. You don't see journals of mammalogy calling themselves "The Elephant" or journals of entomology calling themselves "The Beetle" unless ( Read more... )

Woohoo! My thematic display on inter-species hybrids went up in the library today.

We've been arguing on the difference between a 'geek' and a 'nerd'. Please indicate your opinions in the poll below. And remember, this is for posterity so be honest.

Poll Geeks and Nerds

Ok, so I have never viewed the Discovery channel or their Discovery.com website as a citeable source by any stretch of the imagination, but I did credit them with generally trying to give accurate facts, even if the delivery were slanted in favour of one theory or another. However, this article has completely blown any faith I may have had in ( Read more... )

Intersting article on the possibility of assisted colonisation as a conservation method

If nothing else, the fourth paragraph on the second page answers my long-held question about the plural of "mongoose".

Why I love Unshelved:


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Book #65 -- Isaac Newton, Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy and System of the World, 680 pages ( Read more... )

NewCritters.com is a cool blog chronicling new species discoveries. Fascinating.

Ok, so cummingtonite is actually a real mineral. I honestly thought they were pulling my leg when I first heard that.

Did no one take a good look at that name before they finalised it?

Edit: For more hilarious molecule names, look here. Yes, there is a real substance called "moronic acid". Not to mention "fucitol", and "fucose kinase", ( Read more... )