who will be the martian champion?

I just got my new issue of The Planetary Report, and here’s my own report:
This October, a Russian sample return mission is leaving for a three-year round trip to everyone’s favorite Martian moon, Phobos. Along for the ride will be a small titanium container full of Earth organisms. Which ones will survive the radiation, the [...]

amazing, isn’t it?

I’ve officially signed up for the The Amazing Meeting 7. Barring any last minute disasters, this will be my second trip to the annual assemblage of magicians, scientists, performers, doctors, and odd ducks. The event is pretty much the de facto family reunion of what’s generally called “the skeptics movement.”
That’s a lousy name, but no [...]

no bunnies were harmed in the writing of this post

The subject of the ethics of animal experimentation in science and medical research came up on Pharyngula recently and a huge discussion was generated; currently more than 500 comments. Godwin’s law was invoked. It rained cats and dogs and there was a plague of locusts. Here are some of the points that were brought up. [...]

bright tattoo idea

At the grocery store checkout line today, the checker-outer was a thin young woman with very pale skin and bleached hair. I noticed one of her wrists had a tattoo that said “…eyes…” I liked that. Then I noticed the other wrist that said “…bright…” So I said the obvious thing, “Bright Eyes fan, eh?” [...]

birthday, mythology, bag o’ heads

Yesterday I gave mean-boy heads to birthday celebrants, a couple rollergirls, and a few random people. First we went to a Thai restaurant, where the waiter seemed particularly pleased to receive a head. The guard at the entry to Key Arena wanted to know if I had an alcoholic beverage in my bag, and I [...]

rodents rule

It had been a long time since I saw the Rat City Rollergirls, but a bout on my birthday was too good to miss. It was also the first time I’d seen them at Key Arena, where there must have been around 5,000 derby fans. Yes, they still stretch the proceedings out a very long [...]

i’ve been caked!

It was late and I was tired. Had to get up extra early for work yesterday. Had to stay up extra late for the Macbeth party. By the way, this party was in a house (building, I guess) that is attached to a truck tire service business. Old tires are plentiful, so the steep hill [...]

this birthday is goin’ down

Destroy all birthdays before they destroy you! Mine will be smitten with a ball-peen hammer and tossed into a ditch this weekend. It won’t come around again. Not if you do your job. Here are the details. First we bury it in noodles at a Thai restaurant, and drown it in peanut sauce. Four stars. [...]