Category Archives: Science!

My Organic Chemistry is So Rusty.

One of the funny things about being in a long-term, live-in relationship is how you can manage, sometimes, to do a single thing that manages to simultaneously irritate your partner and make them happy. I did so recently.

On a whim, I signed up for an online class. But not just any online class. A free, college-(senior)-level chemistry class. Prerequisite of “organic chemistry” listed. My friends JP and Jason are taking the class, and encouraged me to sign up. So I did. Then I tweeted about it.

Which is how poor Bill found out I was suddenly enrolled in this class. And was, understandably, a bit grumpy that not only did he find out about this via twitter and not, say, from me, he also was suddenly married to a woman who had homework again.… Continue reading →

The Obligations Surrounding “Scientist.”

It took sitting down to a hard cider tasting to help me figure out some of the answers to Dr. Janet Stemwedel’s questions (reproduced below) from over a week ago. I’d been contemplating it for awhile, had written some serious notes on the subject, but I hadn’t gotten it figured out completely. As I finished my night of cider and camaraderie, I had a much clearer picture.

For me, from the beginning, it all came down to communication. I suspect part of this is that I love to talk. I am not only a complete chatterbox most of the time in person, I keep a blog and many of the posts are… not short. On top of that, I love listening and reading. Stories are fascinating, whether I’m telling them or hearing them.… Continue reading →

Fun Photo Friday! Also, Links.

A long while ago, Bill and I had some friends in town and went to Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry. Today, I was digging through some old photos I had forgotten about, and came across this gem from that trip.

I had to laugh. Partially because of the game in the learning setting, partially because of what game it is, and partially because I suspect I have a TON of photos like this; computers showing more or something different than they’re supposed to be displaying.

Perhaps it allowed folks an even greater learning experience than normal.

Okay! Also! Two related links to share with you. Read one or both (they’re fairly similar!), and then weigh in on the one that is appropriate for you. Dr.… Continue reading →

Some Links

First find your tuatara. If you read nothing else from this list, read this one. It gives a really great, simple explanation of how to sequence an organism’s genome, in this case a tuatara lizard.

I think this is a cool post because it not only shows the iterative nature of science in a single moment, but also lays some groundwork for understanding what genome (or even gene) sequencing is. For those who read this blog and don’t know how it’s done, but are interested in gene-related issues (patented DNA/cDNA, genetically modified/engineered organisms), this is some good foundational material, even if it is not directly related to those things.

The other two links go together, and are both about a paper that recently came out about primate infanticide as a driver for monogamy.… Continue reading →

Six Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Lions

While that little “about” to the right mentions I have a couple of biology degrees under my belt, I think only a few of my readers know my obsession with lions, specifically. My obsession started just as I was finishing up my B.Sc. and took a study abroad to Kenya. There, some fascinating direct personal experience with lions changed my whole life’s course and goals. I ended up in a Ph.D. program in Chicago with a goal of learning everything there was to know about lions.

I left my Ph.D. program (where I spent a bunch of time reading journal articles about lions [and other things]) and launched this blog within about six months of each other. The launch was three years ago, on 1 June 2010 & the departure was at the end of 2010.… Continue reading →