Honest Scientists

Oh, Buzzfeed.  You slay me.  This top 17 list appeared in my Facebook feed last week and I was laughing so hard.  It's all true.

I'll make a few ammendments:

1. Behind moneywall?  Or an interestwall.  Sometimes you just don't want to wade through reading the whole paper and you just ask your boss which paper says what you want.  They rattle it off and you blindly copy it down.

2. Or it was the only dye we had.

6. And post doc kept an unintelligale notebook.  In fact, all scientists do.

9. Yup.

13. Fisher Scientific owns everything except my life.  That is owned by the NIH.

Enjoy!

http://www.buzzfeed.com/kmallikarjuna/how-to-science-as-told-by-17-overly-honest-scientists

What's wrong...

... with this picture?

Read more here!  LINK

Glass Microbiology

Luke Jerram is an artist who creates sculptures and installations, as well as live projects.  His most recent collection, entitled "Glass Microbiology" was recently purchased by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.  He has created glass replicas of the viruses HPV (human papillomavirus), HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), and influenza in addition to the parasite that causes malaria, and an E. coli bacterium.  Scientists know what these microscopic organisms (yes, I'm going to choose to call a virus a living entity) and are widely discussed in the scientific world.  However, these pieces of art now bring this information to a wider group of people.  They're beautiful!

Luke Jerram's Glass Microbiology site: http://www.lukejerram.com/glass/

Article about his work: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2276348/Glass-Microbiology-Luke-Jerrams-delicate-deadly-viruses-recreated-blown-glass.html#axzz2KBDwXso2

E. coli bacterium

Close

What are you doing on February 15th?  I know what the asteroid 2012 DA 14 will be doing - coming within 18,000 miles of Earth's surface.  It might sound far, but it's actually closer to us than the moon and some satellites. 

The asteroid is believed to be about 45 meters (~ 148 feet) in diameter, but will not be visible to the naked eye.

Check out its path and more information at NASA's Near Earth Object Program here: http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news174.html

Many small objects come close to Earth every year.  To give you a flavor of what is really going on in space, here's an article from TIME magazine discussing this very topic: http://science.time.com/2013/02/05/duck-close-shave-with-an-asteroid-coming/

The asteroid Mathilde, taken by the

NEAR spacecract on 6/16/97

Remote Camera

These photographs were taken by Anup Shah using a remote camera.  They are gorgeous!

See more here!  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2252061/Anup-Shah-Close-photographs-African-wildlife-stunning-light.html

Ooooh.

Christmas Eve Eve is like this guy staring at a ladybug.

The Bounty Sinks!

I'm way behind on this story, but I figured most people hadn't heard about this, either.  Or maybe I was too drawn into the disasters of Northern NJ and NYC to really notice Sandy problems further south.  Regardless, let's take a moment to look back again on a beautiful replica ship.

The story of Mutiny on the Bounty is one of my favorites.  I've read many testimonies about William Bligh and Fletcher Christian and continue to get really excited when I see research (and more research!) coming out of the populations from Pitcairn and Norfolk Islands.  If you aren't familiar with the story, read the trilogy (which is a fictional account, but will hook your interest to read so much more!)

Unsurprisingly, the Bounty itself did not survive the mutiny.  The mutineers, lead by Fletcher Christian, ran the ship ashore at Pitcairn Island and then burned it so no trace of their crime would be left behind.  For the 1962 film starring Marlon Brando, a replica of the Bounty was built for filming.  Since then, this beautiful ship (see below) was used in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, for rentals and tours.  Unfortunately, the Bounty ran into trouble during Hurricane Sandy and sunk off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina on October 29th, 2012.  All but two crew members were saved by the Coast Guard.

CNN.com news story: http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/29/us/sandy-bounty-ship/index.html

Here are a few pictures of the Bounty!

A reason for exercise

Last week's Nature magazine had a series of articles on aging.  One article (LINK!) says that with all the research, most scientists agree on two things:

1. Just about everyone will experience mental decline, typically in memory, by age 60.
2. Aerobic exercise delays/slows mental decline.

Go outside and run!

116 Years Old!

Here are some highlights from the year 1896:

- Utah becomes the 45th U.S. state (January 4th)
- Opening Ceremonies for first modern Olympics are held in Athens (April 6th)
- Queen Victoria becomes the longest reigning monarch in Britian (September 22nd)
- William McKinley is elected president of the United States by defeating William Jennings Bryan (November 3rd)

You know what else happened?  Besse Cooper was born.  She joined the women's suffrage movement at age 24.  She married in 1924, had four children and was widowed in 1963.  She became a school teacher during World War I.  She also claims eleven grandchildren, thirteen great-grandchildren and amazingly two great-great granchildren!

In January 2011, Guinness World Records gave her the distinction of the oldest living human.  She died peacefully on Tuesday, December 4th, 2012, aged 116.

What an amazing life!!

LINK to her story on CNN.com: http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/04/us/georgia-oldest-person-dies/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

LINK to her story on ABCNews: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/05/15690486-worlds-oldest-woman-besse-cooper-dies-at-116-in-georgia-nursing-home?lite

Not quite Old Tom Parr, but her story is one for the record books!

Serengeti Story

I have a thing for books.  It's tragic, really - I'll spend $50 in Barnes and Noble without batting an eye.  This is why Viggle and their B&N gift cards are excellent.  Look into it.

Anyway, I caught this synopsis for "Serengeti Story: A Scientist in Paradise" in last week's Nature magazine.  Now, I want it.  The book is written by Anthony Sinclair who has spent 50 years studying this area of East Africa.  The book covers its ecological, social, political and economic history.

One day, I'm going to the Serengeti.  Absolutely.

Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Serengeti-Story-scientist-paradise-ebook/dp/B009SNGLDK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1354635237&sr=8-1&keywords=serengeti+story

Serengeti's Official Website: http://www.serengeti.org/

Giant Sequoias

National Geographic is publishing some majestic pictures of the 3,200 year old and second largest Giant Sequoia 'President' in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. 

Link, The Daily Mail summary: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2235452/Giant-sequoia-National-Geographic-pictures-giants-forest-Sierra-Nevada.html

Link, National Geographic: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2012/12/sequoias/quammen-text

Preview Shot:

Walking Again

::waves::  I'm back from a short blogging break.  I have three manuscripts in various levels of review/publication so I was very focused on that work for the past few weeks.  But, I'm back now!  Just in time for Thanksgiving!

I recently listed to a podcast on exoskeletons ("Stuff You Should Know").  As science minded as I am, I originally thought they were going to tell me how crustaceans and bugs made their hard skins, but exoskeletons also refers to the design of robotics to help human achievement.  These are machines that a human would physically wear while doing work.  DARPA recently asked for designs that will help soldiers carry heavier loads for longer periods, walk faster, and jump higher. 

One area they are truly amazing is helping those with paralysis to walk again.  Their muscles no longer respond to their central nervous system due to the severing of their spinal columns, but the robotics, acting as bones and muscle, can respond to other cues, such as leaning forward.  Here's an article from the New York Times about their progress.  Fascinating.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/12/technology/wearable-robots-that-can-help-people-walk-again.html

Hurricane Sandy

As a citizen in the City of Brotherly Love, apparently I'm also a target for Hurricane Sandy.  Her 5-day prediction cone is centered squarely on Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia.  The hospital I work at sent out a multi-page, power-point-esque document yesterday outlining their emergency preparedness.  They've never done that before, which made me wonder just how big this storm was (quite honestly, I'd barely heard a blip about Hurricane Sandy before 3pm yesterday).

I love the names that are coming out about it right now.  Superstorm!  Diane Sawyer broke into local news last night to light up Philadelphians' ears with that one.  Today, CNN is calling it "Frankenstorm."  Very clever - that whole hurricane merging with cold front right around Halloween angle.  "Perfect Storm" was also bandied about on CNN this morning - saying it was twenty years later than originally suspected.  I'm not sure I understand this reference?

Anyway, since I'm sitting in the bulls-eye, I'll be sure to pass along some fun pictures like I did for Hurricane Irene.

Until then, here's a snapshot of Sandy right now.

Facebook Hugs

I was reading a message board thread this morning where the original poster was going through a hard time.  Lots of the responses were "hugs," which I feel is a little sad and empty in this internet age.  However, the folks at MIT (yes, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology came up with this gem), have invented a new coat that will give you a squeeze whenever someone on Facebook "likes" something you posted.  It's a merging of the virtual world and reality. 

No, it's not coming on the market any time soon, but you can read about this latest product here.  http://www.geek.com/articles/geek-cetera/like-a-hug-jacket-receive-a-hug-for-every-facebook-like-2012107/

Here's the coat.  Very puffy and impractical for summer, but perhaps good for those cold Bostonian autumns and winters!

Imagine if it "poked" you instead?  That would be really annoying.  Does Facebook still even have the "poke" option?

National Geographic Photography

More entries are posted on the website for National Geographic's Photography contest.

Here's my new favorite:

Water droplets on plants after the rain.  They look like champagne glasses.  Absolutely beautiful!

This reminds me that I've recently seen advertisements for Nikon's Small World Gallery.  It's nearing time to see more of the microscopic world through the eyes of scientists, beautiful colors, and fascinating lenses.  More info from Nikon here: http://www.nikonsmallworld.com/.

Stunning.

National Geographic is currently accepting submissions for its annual photography contest (LINK!)  First prize is $10,000 and a trip to NG Headquarters to participate in a photography symposium.

The website also has galleries up to the view the submitted photographers and so many them are breathtaking.  Check them out!

Here's one of my favorites:

Tropical Storm Leslie Live!

It seems like many of my posts are about hurricanes right now... it gets that way in late August/early September!

My husband and I married at this resort in Bermuda.  They are currently waiting to be hammered by Tropical Storm Leslie and have decided that a live webcam is the way to show off the storm.  Beautiful resort (The Reefs, www.thereefs.com) and it looks like a nice sharp picture if you want to see the craziness that happens.

I hope for no major damage at that hotel and that everyone stays safe on one of my favorite islands!

Webcame link: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/chasercam-live

Naming Lunar Plains, Martian Mountains

In the spirit of Neil Armstrong, I recently reread some information about the Apollo missions and the moon itself.  The names of the seas (aka "maria") are so ethereal: Tranquillitatis (tranquility), Frigoris (cold), Humorum (Moisture), Imbrium (Showers) and Ingenii (Cleverness).  What I did not appreciate until today was that all maria on the moon are named for either states of the mind (tranquility, cleverness) or water (moisture, showers).  Who knew?  Not me!

Since we are currently moving beyond the moon in space exploration, scientists are needing to name aspects of more distant heavenly bodies.  Luckily, the International Astronomical Union has rules in place!

Mercury mountains are given names meaning "hot." = ex. Caloris Montes (mountains of heat)

Venus canyons are named in honor of goddesses. = ex. Ishtar Terra (Ishtar is the Babylonian goddess of love), Aphrodite Terra (Aphrodite being the Greek goddess of love and beauty)

Mars craters get their names from villages on Earth.  = ex. Ada (Oklahoma), Ajon (Russia), Bombala (Australia)


Read more about the tales of woe surrounding these naming philosophies here: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v488/n7412/full/488429b.html

Naming is always a fun task for scientists.  Read here about the funny names we give proteins.

Hurricane Isaac

It made it.  I knew it had a chance once I saw that the prediction cone went over Key West, Florida and into the Gulf of Mexico.  The warm waters there help strengthen storms.

As of 1 pm EDT, Hurricane Isaac has maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (Category 1 on the Saffir-Simpson scale) and its minimal pressure central pressure is 976 MB.

SETI at Home; Folding at Home

Want to help out science on a daily basis just by using your computer?  These are two options that are available to you - I find both to be great causes!

SETI, or the "Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence," has been collecting and analyzing radio signals from all over skies since the 1960s in the hunt for other intelligent life in our cosmos.  Unsure where exactly to point the telescopes or what frequency to find information on, SETI has more data than it can possibly go through.  Instead of filling up the processing capabilities on a few computers, these scientists have decided to spread out the information on many computers across the world.  Your computer, which will still functions normally while performing SETI analysis in the background, can be one!  Look it up, sign up, and check it out here: http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/

Biological scientists study proteins every single day.  Each one is created as a string of amino acids, but then folds up on itself to create a 3-dimensional structure capable of fulfilling some function (Lost?  Check out my Central Dogma post!)  Each string of amino acids folds into a shape that is specific, but we still don't understand many of the links between amino acid sequence and final, 3-dimensional shape.  Programs exist to model protein folding, but they require large processing capabilities.  Much like SETI@home, Folding@home also works by breaking down a large job into many smaller jobs capable of being run in the background on your home computer.  The information gained from these models can be helpful for future treatments in all sorts of human diseases.  Find out more on their website: http://folding.stanford.edu/English/HomePage