A Childhood by Harry Crews (also re-read: Florida Frenzy.) Harry Crews is probably in his seventies, a professor of writing in Florida, and grew up among the rural poor of north Florida and southern Georgia.A Childhood is his memoir of that. Somebody in the NYTBR said that it is “..about a part of America that …
Tag: Evolution
Feathered Dinos
Feathered Dinosaurs: The Origin of Birds— the best book on the subject yet, by Australian paleontologist John Long and magical artist Peter Schouten, best known here for his collaborations with Tim Flannery. You look at these and think: THIS is what they looked like. A mother Troodon attends the hatching of her eggs. Much behavior …
New Links
Blogging will continue to be a bit light as I am busy, am trying to get outside, and have Chas and Miss M coming tomorrow. But the world keeps producing the fascinating and the maddening… Science fiction giant Arthur Clarke died this week. John Derbyshire has a good quirky remembrance of him here. I think …
Sunday Links
We have all heard the legends of dolphins helping drowning humans. Now one appears to have helped guide stranded whales to safety. John Wilkins, who posts at the interesting evo- blog Evolving thoughts, went to see Richard Dawkins lecture and had some critical thoughts. I can’t resist quoting: “In particular I was annoyed that those …
AR, ID, and Evo
In the fascinating blog “ERV”, scroll down the post to the header “Tard Fight”, where blogger S. A. Smith gives us the edifying spectacle of two creationists bashing each other over Animal Rights, one arguing that if evolution is right then so is PETA and the other, I guess, that Jesus was a veggie and …
Running and Hunting
A Scientific American blogger wonders if we run in such things as marathons because once, we ran down other animals. Elizabeth Thomas got there years ago. HT Walter Hingley for the SciAm link.
Bird Origins
Birds are older than you (or Alan Feduccia) think.
John Burchard on Mule Birth
Dr. John Burchard puts in a scientific perspective on the mule birth below: “Not exactly my area of expertise, but … “Mule sterility results AFAIK from mismatched chromosome sets. I don’t know thedetails in this particular case, but in general any considerable difference inthe arrangement of homologous genes on the chromosomes causes problems atmeiosis because …
McLoughlin!
My old friend John McLoughlin, zoologist, evolutionist, novelist, and artist, came down to visit from his hideout in the northern mountains to visit Magdalena (always referred to as “Down Among the Wild Men”) for the first time in 23 years. He brought his three daughters and his grandson, and a fine time was had by …
Lesbian Clone Lizards..
.. is what Libby and I call Cnemidiphorus neomexicanus and her relatives. We are not being rude, but literal. Neomexicanus is described on page 319 of the newest edition of the Peterson Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians as being “ALL FEMALE”. Patrick explains: “For example, believe it or not, there are no male Whiptail …