I just did some catalogue copy for a show by the wonderful sculptor Steve Kestrel at the Gerald Peters Gallery in Santa Fe, where many of my friends exhibit their work. I have a copy of the second work on this page.(Click to enlarge). This photo is of course nicer than these, taken on my …
Linkage
Here are some links collected while I was finishing the book. Derb muses on consciousness and wonders if dogs have souls. David Zincavage remembers a collector of armor and splendid mastiffs. Also from David: a man in Pennsylvania is evicted for having too many books: “Authorities in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., condemned John Puchniak’s apartment this year …
The End of Tamarisk?
Tamarisk (sometimes known as salt cedar) is an invasive plant species that has wrought great environmental damage in the western United States. This Eurasian native displaces native willows and cottonwoods along streams, uses much more water than they do, and doesn’t provide the habitat for birds and animals that the native plants do. One estimate …
Done and Back!
Well, not “done” exactly– there are those hundred illustrations and permissions (kill, kill!)– but I have just finished the first (pretty solid) draft of the eagle book well ahead of deadline, and can HAVE A LIFE (and a blog) again. Don’t expect too much today, but expect regular comment, links, and a lot of photo …
Adelie Penguin Diet Change
The NY Times today tells us of research on Adelie penguins in Antarctica by Dr. Steven Emslie of the University of North Carolina – Wilmington. For years Emslie has been studying Adelie penguin mummies (like the one pictured) that are preserved for tens of thousands of years in the cold dry climate of Antarctica. Lately …
Forest Fires and Archaeological Sites
The LA Times has a piece this morning on cooperative efforts between Forest Service and California Department of Forestry archaeologists and local tribes to reduce the damage that firefighting efforts can inflict on archaeological sites. Having knowledgeable people in the field who can direct bulldozers constructing firebreaks away from site locations can make all the …
Indonesian Coelacanth
Most of us have at least a passing familiarity with the story of the coelacanth, often referred to as a “living fossil”, a fish thought to have been extinct for 70 million years until one was caught in the western Indian Ocean in the late 1930s. Apparently many more have been caught there off the …
Another Rainbow
From Monday night. Didn’t quite have the umph to make a double this time.
The Ghost Pepper
The Chile Pepper Institute of New Mexico State University has made it official: the bhut jolokia, or “ghost pepper” from Assam state in India is the world’s hottest chile pepper. The spiciness of a chile pepper is measured by its capsaicin content, expressed in Scoville units. For example, your average jalapeno measures in the range …
OvoControl P
Reid spotted this one at LAT: Hollywood turns to birth control to clean up its (pigeons’) act. Francisco Vara-Orta writes, “Eager to reduce the neighborhood pigeon population and the mess that comes with it, Hollywood residents appear ready to try a new birth control method on their wild birds. “Beginning within the next couple of …