Monthly Archives: March 2011
counterfeit whisky
For Friday’s (March 25) issue of Science magazine, I wrote a story about some space scientists in Britain who are developing a detector for counterfeit whisky. Here’s the link – you have to be a subscriber for it to work. … Continue reading
slime molds are cute, too
1917? OMG!
The Oxford English Dictionary puts out regular memos when they update; in March 2011, they announce that OMG and LOL are among the new “initialisms.” Of course, being the OED, they’ve done thorough research on when these abbreviations first appear; … Continue reading
debit card fees
A friend sent me a link to this story about debit card fees – you know, the thing that this nonsensical poster is about. The article makes more sense than the poster, but I’m still not going to try to … Continue reading
interesting
“Interesting” can be kind of faint praise, but I’m excited that Smithsonian, one of my favorite freelance outlets, was ranked “most interesting” of the 225 magazines this one company does reader surveys on. I mean, if there’s one thing you … Continue reading
albatross update
You’ll be glad to know that Wisdom the albatross and her chick survived the tsunami. Whew. Here’s the Fish & Wildlife Service press release. Here she is her feeding her chick two days ago: Another 110,000 chicks and 2,000 adults … Continue reading
the world’s smallest farmers
I wrote this story two months ago and keep forgetting to post it. It’s about some social amoebas, formerly known as slime molds, that farm. They pick up the bacteria they’ve been eating and take the crop along when they … Continue reading
rolling down to old maui
Here’s that sea chanty, “Rolling Down to Old Maui,” sung by the great Canadian folk singer Stan Rogers: “We’re homeward bound from the Arctic ground, rolling down to old Maui.” The sailors have been catching whales in the Arctic, which … Continue reading
sad albatross news
Just five days after I wrote about that very old Laysan albatross mother, this sad news from Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, where she was raising her chicks: the tsunami swept tens of thousands of chicks into the water. (I … Continue reading
why you should know your audience
Yesterday I got on the Metro, saw this ad, and stared at it, utterly puzzled: Washington? What? Is it the city government? Washington Mutual? Former mayor Walter Washington? Isn’t he dead? I finally got it: They meant, you know, Washington. … Continue reading