Author Archives: Cath@VWXYNot?

About Cath@VWXYNot?

"one of the sillier science bloggers [...] I thought I should give a warning to the more staid members of the community." - Bob O'Hara, December 2010

Random bullets of questions

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Why does it so often happen that, after hearing a new word for the first time, I hear it again (and sometimes again and again) within the next few days? This week’s example: fiduciary. Heard twice from two completely different … Continue reading →

Posted in English language, personal, silliness | 6 Comments

Book Review Times Two

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Two today – one badly written book with an interesting theme, and one wonderfully written book on a topic I couldn’t get all that excited about. “Angels and Demons” by Dan Brown: 5.5/10 This guy can’t write* and needs to … Continue reading →

Posted in book review | 2 Comments

Friday’s Primate Party

Posted on January 25, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Two related stories from Primate Info Net this week. In Austria, a chimpanzee named Matthew Hiasl Pan (!!) is at risk of becoming homeless if the animal shelter he’s lived in for 25 years goes bankrupt. Private donors are willing … Continue reading →

Posted in apes, photos, Primate Party | 5 Comments

Embracing my inner primatologist

Posted on January 25, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

I first became interested in science through a love of animals. The first career I ever aspired to was James Herriot’s, followed by David Attenborough’s. This seems to be a common career path for many biological scientists; I’ve met several … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

Album cover meme

Posted on January 24, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Here’s a fun meme from Science Girl at Curiosity Killed the Cat: 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:RandomThe first article title on the page is the name of your band. 2. http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3The last four words of the very last quote is the title of … Continue reading →

Posted in cycling, meme, music, personal, photos, silliness | 13 Comments

Drum roll…

Posted on January 23, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

In a previous, rather jubilant post written on a very good day, I mentioned an exciting offer I’d just received. And here’s the scoop! I’ve been invited to start blogging on the Nature Network! (And I got the hockey tickets … Continue reading →

Posted in blog roll, career, meta, personal, science | 14 Comments

Technorati ping thing

Posted on January 22, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Please ignore this post, it’s just me claiming this blog on Technorati. Apparently you can’t delete posts once they’re up! Technorati Profile” rel=”me”

Posted in Uncategorized | 9 Comments

Transposable element awesomeness

Posted on January 22, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

That last post was just a warm-up; consider this my first real contribution to Nature Network. I’m also going to take the opportunity to insert lots of links to the more scientific posts on my other blog. Purely to give … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Transposable element awesomeness

All about me

Posted on January 22, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

This is my first-ever post, on my second-ever blog! Yes, last week I received an invitation out of the blue to start blogging on the Nature Network. And how could I refuse? It’s every scientist’s dream to get “published” in … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on All about me

Luck, or lack thereof

Posted on January 22, 2008 by Cath@VWXYNot?

The CBC is reporting that today is the most depressing day of the year. I have to confess to a case of the blahs over the weekend that continued into this morning. It’s been so rainy and dark (several people … Continue reading →

Posted in cycling, personal, Vancouver | 7 Comments