Monthly Archives: August 2010
plants call herbivores’ predators
Plants are amazing. I said this to a friend yesterday and he corrected me: “Everything is amazing.” Which is true. Kidneys? Amazing. Meteorites? Amazing. DNA? Amazing. But, for now, let’s talk about plants. They’re amazing. They can communicate by releasing … Continue reading
coral reef update
My coral reef is finished! I dropped it off at Now and Then, a store in Takoma Park, Md., that sells yarn (and lots of other neat stuff). The only addition since my last update is the brown-black one at … Continue reading
birds have lice, too
A new study finds that bird lice have evolved cryptic coloration. (What you or I might call camouflage.) Read my tiny story about it here. Sulfur-crested cockatoos are awesome. This is my favorite fact about a trip I took to … Continue reading
museum tourist: national building museum
The National Building Museum is currently hosting an exhibit of Lego models of famous works of architecture. I haven’t been yet, because it costs $5, and I’m waiting for a time when I’m in the neighborhood with one of my … Continue reading
animal-like fossils from a really long time ago
Last week I reported on some strange rocks from South Australia that may preserve the oldest animal fossils. Or may not. Ok, nobody knows. But they look kind of like animals. Read about it here. I like that the function … Continue reading
business trip
Back in April, I went on my first work travel in ages. A magazine sent me on a big, exotic trip to…West Virginia. Ok, it doesn’t sound so exotic, and it’s certainly not very far. But it was fascinating. I … Continue reading
geology poetry
This week Sarah Zielinski, a fellow science writer who writes this blog, is fact-checking a story of mine over at Smithsonian. To do this properly, she felt she had to go to the Library of Congress and look up a … Continue reading
my moment of fame
Robert Krulwich is one of my media heroes. He’s been working in radio forever, telling entertaining stories about topics that are difficult to explain. These days, he reports for the science desk at NPR and cohosts Radiolab, which is produced … Continue reading
coral reef progress report
My own personal Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef now has four pieces: I’m pleased that I haven’t bought any new yarn for this. The caution tape is recycled, of course, and the bright orange and red acrylic yarns came from the … Continue reading
museum tourist: national geographic – da vinci
The National Geographic Museum used to have a permanent collection. I remember going in high school, looking at the nifty globe and various exploration-related things. (Ok, I admit, my memory is pretty shaky on what was actually in it. But … Continue reading