Monthly Archives: March 2014

Boundaries and boxes

Posted on 31 March 2014 by Frank Norman

No-one likes to be pigeonholed but the tendency to pigeonhole, or put things into boxes, comes naturally to us and can be valuable, within reason. Categories I think pigeonholing gets an overly bad press. The word has a pejorative ring, … Continue reading →

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The Maison Des Girrafes Caption Competition #16

Posted on 31 March 2014 by Henry Gee

I am sure Heidi (large dog) and Saffron (small dog) are saying something to each other, but I was out of earshot, and the noise of the surf was too great for me to hear it…

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Moon Boy

Posted on 30 March 2014 by Stephen

After splashdown at 4:51 pm on 24th July 1969 the Apollo 11 astronauts returning from the first moon landing  had to don full-body Biological Isolation Garments before they could leave the conical command module that was bobbing in the Pacific Ocean. … Continue reading →

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The Cupcakes of Mitosis

Posted on 30 March 2014 by Henry Gee

Tomorrow, Crox Minor is having a bake sale in aid of her favourite charity Children of Peace. This afternoon she and Mrs Crox made loads of cupcakes … some of them on the theme of mitosis. Here are two cupcakes, … Continue reading →

Posted in anaphase, Apparitions, cell division, children of peace, cupcakes, Domesticrox, metaphase, mitosis, Science Is Vital, Silliness, yourtosis | Comments Off on The Cupcakes of Mitosis

Costa Rica: Part 2- river adventures (“Don’t cross the river, if you can’t swim the tide…”)

Posted on 30 March 2014 by Steve Caplan

No visit to Costa Rica would be complete without visiting the fascinating rivers than run through the luscious rain forests. However, there are a wide variety of river adventures, some of which I would warmly endorse, whereas others – well … Continue reading →

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In which outrage finds focus: petition about the Daily Mail Peiris/Aderin-Pocock affair

Posted on 27 March 2014 by Jennifer Rohn

Most of you have probably heard about the crass article that appeared in everyone’s favorite working mum- and immigrant-bashing rag (that’s me firmly in its sights, then, for embodying both evils simultaneously), the Daily Mail. Which one, you ask? Because … Continue reading →

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Questions?

Posted on 27 March 2014 by Cath@VWXYNot?

A group of geeky colleagues assembled in the lobby after work last night and headed down to Vancouver’s Railway Club for Café Scientifique. This monthly science outreach event encompasses talks about everything from biodiversity to genomics to chemistry to particle … Continue reading →

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Living on the Edge of Equilibrium

Posted on 26 March 2014 by Athene Donald

Last week my bike got a puncture. So what, you might ask. In itself this is totally trivial, but it also represents the way the trivial gets in the way of everything else. A puncture for me represents potential disaster. … Continue reading →

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Anatamogenic

Posted on 25 March 2014 by Henry Gee

When Crox Minor and I visited the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons recently, I bought a copy of The Knife Man, by Wendy Moore, a biography of John Hunter, whose collection forms the nucleus of this remarkable … Continue reading →

Posted in chthonic, effluvia, eldritch, hunterian museum, ichor, john hunter, Research, royal college of surgeons, the knife man, wendy moore, william hunter, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Anatamogenic

In which satellite models trump circumspection: the case of MH370

Posted on 25 March 2014 by Jennifer Rohn

The strange disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH340 has captivated the world, myself included. In an era of instant information, it’s sobering that an entire Boeing 777 could just vanish. I am sure I am not the only one who … Continue reading →

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