Must be in the air. Anne Pearse Hocker just sent this piece from the Guardian about how they may be better at detecting tumors (visually, from X rays) than humans. Their rate of detection is something like 99%. Actually I am not surprised– much “Dinosaurian” visual acuity exceeds that of us mammals. And Tesla, everyone’s …
Tag: Darwin
Gratuitous Pigeon Photos
Handsome birds, “Lebanons”. I saw their like in Turkey a few years ago. Anyone know where I can find a pair or two for less than $250? Stupid regs make all imported birds impossibly expensive for all but the rich, and cause hoarding and inbreeding depression in the tiny gene pools that exist in the …
Fabre and Japan
This is not an analysis of the real importance, ignored these days except in Japan, of the pioneering ethologist of insects, the 19th century Provencal autodidact Jean Henri Fabre, who started life as a peasant kid herding sheep in the harsh hills of his home country, and later single- handedly invented the study of insect …
Domestic Animals: Diverse Phenotypes Imply Diverse genotypes
As anyone who reads this blog knows, I distrust the narrowing of the gene pool that comes from closed studbooks. Right now the Central Asian sighthound gene pool is vast and diverse; many want to cut it into several standardized breeds. One reason i fear regulation is because I work against this trend with dogs. …
I was just outside…
But I need to catch up a bit– hope I still have some readers. The stress of finding illustrations for Eagle (not to mention paying for them!)– has been acute, and I have needed large doses of dog- running and hunting to keep me sane. I think things are getting under control. Let’s see, bloggish …
Darwin’s Letters
Annie D just introduced me to this treasure trove of Darwin’s letters. She quoted a very youthful (twelve- year old) Darwin on– washing: “Just as I was going, she said she must ask me not a very decentquestion, that was whether I wash all over every morning — no — thenshe said it was quite …