Tiny Flame

Foundation Beyond Belief

2009-08-28T13:25:00.007-05:00

I'm really excited about a new non-profit organization on the horizon. It is called Foundation Beyond Belief and is the latest fabulousness from Dale McGowan. I first met Dale almost a year ago when he came to Iowa to do a few of his Parenting Beyond Belief seminars. The Foundation will continue the movement started by the PBB seminars with a nonreligious parent education program but will also provide a means for members to donate to selected charities. As stated on the information page for the organization, "Foundation Beyond Belief is a new 501c3 charitable and educational foundation created (1) to focus, encourage and demonstrate humanistic generosity, and (2) to support a nationwide nonreligious parent education program." They are currently running an opening funding drive and will have the initial launch on October 1 with the full launch to come on January 1. Check out the website and make a donation at http://foundationbeyondbelief.blogspot.com/.

Pickles and Puffs

2009-06-30T14:32:00.004-05:00

I just found a fabulous new crafty blog with free patterns called Pickles! I first found out about it through Apartment Therapy (which I also love and frequent) when they posted a picture and link to this fabulous knitted puff! According to Pickles, puff is the Norwegian word for stool and is also the word for the first piece of furniture I will be knitting! It looks so comfy!

Where are the lady scientists?

2009-06-29T13:54:00.007-05:00

I really love Threadless and their fantastic, hilarious tshirts! In fact, I own quite a few of them. I was, at first, really excited to see a reprint of a shirt named, "Run, Scientists, Run!" and was just about to buy it. But, then I came to the crushing realization that one little detail means that I can't buy it.

Here's the image:
Funny, right? But, wait, why are ALL the scientists dudes? This is something I have blogged about before. Finding images of female scientists is almost impossible - even on hilarious tshirts with a crowd of scientists. I guess the image could be suggesting that the giant, mutated mouse is about to take revenge on the male scientists while all the ladies continue their work back in the lab? I'm thinking that it's more likely that the artist just didn't think to put a lady in there which is, of course, absolutely within his artistic right. But, come on, world, let's get some lady scientists on funny shirts, too!!

Baby Baas and Yarn Festivals

2009-05-13T09:41:00.004-05:00

Cute Overload has delivered again! Check out that baby lambie!! The little one has reminded me of the Iowa Sheep and Wool Festival happening this June. My sources tell me it is fantastic and that I can both see sheepies and get fabulous yarn! Check out their website at http://www.iowasheep.com/Festival.html.

Featured Blog

2009-05-06T10:36:00.003-05:00

My friend, Kelly, has just started blogging and her blog is beautiful!! Check it out at http://chosenhome.net/

Yummy Tea!

2009-05-06T10:15:00.003-05:00

I used to work in a lab where I couldn't have drinks just sitting around on my desk. Now that I'm working away from a lab, I can sip from a cute mug all day long! I have been trying out new tea flavors and can't get enough of Revolution teas! I particularly like the Earl Gray Lavender and the Sweet Ginger Peach. They have samplers available as well so you can try different flavors without committing to an entire container of one. I tried the sampler of samplers and have found a few more flavors that I need to order. Check them out at http://www.revolutiontea.com/index.html

Saving the local economy

2009-05-05T12:40:00.006-05:00

"The idea is to commit $50 each month to locally owned businesses, total. Maybe that means rethinking where you currently invest your money, opting to pick up that birthday card or pair of jeans in a locallly owned business instead of the big box you’ve been going to. Or maybe it means eating out once a month because you realize slamming the breaks on all spending stalls economic recovery. It’s just that simple."

http://www.the350project.net/home.html

Blogging Again

2009-03-26T14:33:00.004-05:00

So, in case you haven't noticed, I have fallen off the blogging wagon for a while. But, luckily, that really adorable piglet squid has been hanging out and looking cute in case you happened to check in. To make up for some lost time, I'm going to post a few links to some really cool stories from the news that I've been hanging on to in the hopes that I would have a chance to include them.

Darwin’s Wake Splashed Artists, Too

This is a cool article from the New York Times about an exhibition showing how Darwin's work has been portrayed in so many ways through art.

Liked the Show? Maybe It Was the Commercials

This is another article from the New York Times about how we tend to like entertainment better when it is broken into smaller segments. So, while the commercials may be annoying, they may also be helping you to enjoy the show!

Energy Secretary Serves Under a Microscope

Also from the NYTimes, this article looks at the new Energy Secretary to see how he is transitioning from a Nobel prize-winning scientist to a Cabinet member. My favorite quote is “A Nobel scientist is more likely to figure out Washington than a career politician is to figure out how to deal with carbon sequestration,”

Piglet Squid!

2008-10-27T15:44:00.004-05:00

Even the name is cute! Piglet Squid! Thanks to Cute Overload for, once again, bringing fabulousness to my attention.

I Heart Wine

2008-10-24T13:28:00.006-05:00

Check out this fabulous heart (as in the organ) - shaped wine glass! Okay, I can see how some people might be freaked out by this product. But, I love it! It is called Petit Coeur or Little Heart (awwww) and is by Etienne Meneau. Here is the link.

The Dawn of Agriculture was the Dawn for More Women's Cavities

2008-10-24T09:31:00.006-05:00

The ScienceNOW Daily News just summarized an interesting new finding recently published in the journal Current Anthropology. Apparently, the switch from hunting and gathering to agriculture meant that farmers and their wives had access to more carbohydrates, which can contribute to tooth decay, as well as a rise in fertility in women. Some of the effects of pregnancy can also lead to a higher incidence of cavities. So, combined - more carbohydrates and more pregnancies - created a higher incidence of cavities among women.

"A new study has found that women have had worse dental health than men ever since our ancestors became farmers about 10,000 years ago. That wasn't just because their diets and eating habits changed, as researchers previously believed, but because women who settled on farms were more fertile than nomadic hunter-gatherers. A boost in fertility meant farmers' wives were pregnant more often, which caused changes in their hormones and saliva secretion that rotted their teeth, according to a report in this month's issue of Current Anthropology."

You can read the full ScienceNews report here.

Scoutie McScoutersons

2008-10-22T10:50:00.017-05:00

I introduce our new baby boxer - Scout. I decided on her name years ago and have finally been able to bestow it. She is named after one of my very favorite literary characters - Mis s Jean Louise Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. I'm pretty sure she is the cutest creature in existence. She is 9 weeks old today and joined our family a week ago. The kitties are pissed.

The Salary Disparity

2008-10-21T14:31:00.008-05:00

From today's PhD Comics:

Really, there are so many things wrong with this that I don't know where to begin. I should be clear that I don't mean to say that the graph is incorrect but that I can't believe what it says about our society. I understand that football brings in a lot of money to schools and they have to pay the money to get the good coaches. But, I think this really shows how much our society as a whole values entertainment over education. I love football, really I do. But, that doesn't mean that I think we need to spend as extravagantly on it as we do. Then there is the fact that the green line is so overpowering that one might not even notice that the categories for tenured and un-tenured professors is broken by gender. This means that there is enough of a difference in salaries between males and females - with the same degrees - to warrant separate categories. Then there is the fact that the professors are separated by gender but none of the other categories are. Graduate students in a program all make the same so that is clear why there is only one line. But, does data just not exist on the gender breakdown on salaries for those positions or are they so predominated by men as to be skewed? A quick search on Google revealed an article from 2007 with the following information: "The American Council on Education says eighty-six percent of presidents last year were white; seventy-seven percent were male." Wow, only 23% of all of the higher learning institutes in this country are led by women. I at least feel lucky to be at one of them although Iowa has yet to elect a woman to the United States Congress. But, that's another story for another post.

Disheartening news about understanding science

2008-10-15T09:55:00.002-05:00

According to an article recently written for The Scientist, even those who have graduated with degrees in science cannot define the very components that make it work. The idea of a hypothesis was most frequently correctly defined but that of theory was most often mischaracterized. Many defined a theory as something unproven or not based on much evidence. It's no wonder the general public misunderstands what we mean when we talk about a scientific theory if those in the field don't even understand that it is (as defined at Wikipedia) " a testable model of the manner of interaction of a set of natural phenomena capable of predicting future occurrences or observations of the same kind, and capable of being tested through experiment or otherwise verified through empirical observation." In short, that means that we have seen these things happen and the theory is our best way of explaining all of the phenomena associated - as in, the theory of gravity and the theory of evolution.

You can read the full article here.

Ode To Beaker

2008-09-11T10:29:00.006-05:00

I have always been a huge fan of Beaker - that poor little assistant to the crazy scientist on the Muppets. As evidence of my love, I provide a picture of myself with Beaker. So, I was thrilled to find this hilarious video of multiple Beakers meeping Ode to Joy. I highly recommend it!

Arctic Ice

2008-06-11T09:56:00.002-05:00

While salt on an icy sidewalk might help you gain some footing, unfortunately, salt in the ocean could bring devastation to the Arctic. From the ScienceNOW daily news, here is an article about the melting of the Arctic permafrost which is necessary for life for many plants and animals (including humans).

Peter Sagal and Who Hears a Girl?

2008-05-29T09:33:00.003-05:00

I really do love Peter Sagal who I listen to as often as possible on NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me!" A friend recently sent me a story from NPR that I had missed and it gave me yet another reason to love Peter Sagal. In the article, he talks all about how few girls/ladies/women get to save the day in Hollywood movies. The article was spurred by the movie Whoville where the mayor has 96 daughters and only 1 son but, of course, it is the one son that the movie follows and the one son who saves the day. I haven't seen the movie myself, but I think Peter pretty much summed it up as something I will choose to miss in his fabulous rant. Here it is.

OMG!! Puppy!

2008-05-12T15:27:00.002-05:00

Okay, I know I've been missing again for a while and I know that the last thing I posted was a cute animal picture from Cute Overload, but I just couldn't help posting this. Look at that cute little miniature puppy!

Excellent!!

2008-04-24T14:54:00.002-05:00

That's really about all I can say about this:

Thanks as always to Cute Overload for the heads up.

Pom pom socks - the next step.

2008-04-22T15:29:00.003-05:00

Check out these fantastically cute socks which I must make! For other knitters, the pattern is over at The Purl Bee here.

So you think you know fonts?

2008-04-17T10:33:00.004-05:00

I am a firm believer in the power of fonts. Check out this fun game to test your ability to recognize fonts at http://ajax.sayitaintslow.com/fontgame/

Never Fug: My Love for Gwyneth Paltrow

2008-04-16T15:13:00.005-05:00

I really love the ladies over at Go Fug Yourself. They frequently cause me to spit out my coffee (on accident, of course) when I am reading their hilarious commentary. I often find myself screaming at them to get out of my head except for the fact that, if they were really in my head, I would be endlessly witty. I also love the fact that they each will often admit little secrets about things they aren't supposed to like but really do anyway. So, today was one of those days where Jessica admitted a secret and I, once again, screamed at her to get out of my head. The subject was Gwyneth Paltrow. Apparently Jessica (notice how I am referring to her as if I know her) and I share a serious love of all things Gwyneth. Unfortunately, the post was about her cover picture on Vogue which, I will admit, does make her look a little like an alien and, as Jessica aptly pointed out, her head appears to be floating. But, I can't help it, I love it!! She looks fabulous even as a floating-headed alien!
Check out Jessica's commentary here.

A case against free will.

2008-04-16T10:55:00.005-05:00

I believe that free will does not exist. That's not to say that we don't make decisions. But based on the appearance, at least, that we live in a cause and effect universe, I believe it follows that our actions are an effect of a particular cause. The lack of free will is not the same thing as predestiny, however. I'm not saying that all of our actions are planned out from the beginning, just that the actions we take are based on the information our brains have at that time. A recent article from ScienceNOW Daily News talks about a study done that shows from brain imaging that brain patterns showed a decision before the subject is conscious of the decision. You can read the article here.

*I am also posting this over on another blog to which I contribute - www.justatheists.com.

Babies are funny.

2008-04-14T13:58:00.002-05:00

In honor of the birth of my niece, I bring you two of my favorite baby videos from YouTube.

Debating Faith but not Science

2008-04-14T12:08:00.004-05:00

As a clear indication of the values of our country, last night Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama participating in a debate about faith but have still not agreed to discuss science. My last post was an article about how high schoolers have serious misconceptions about genetics which I think is a symptom of the country as a whole. To stay competitive in the world, the United States is going to have to put more of an emphasis on the importance of science education and science advancement. But, these topics don't seem to be of much importance to any of our potential leaders and certainly not to our current leader. For more information on the campaign for a science debate, check out this website.

Misunderstanding Science.

2008-04-14T12:01:00.002-05:00

The following article is from the NewsBlog at The Scientist. Go to the source here.

Ge-what-ics?: Nation's teenager

Posted by Bob Grant

A significant portion of American high schoolers have seriously flawed ideas about genetics, according to a study conducted by the country's largest society for genetics professionals.

The study, which was published in this month's issue of Genetics, contained some fallacy-ridden quotations from the student essays. Here are some of the notable examples:

"When people who cannot have children and want their own from their own blood, meaning having their genes, what will stop them from putting some cells into a cow to get their child?"

"Genetics create a perfect being. Change the genes. Make that child perfect. There's no better solution to an impending health care crisis. A perfect child means that health care can be focused on an aging generation of people. What we can have is a sea of people who all look brilliant, who are all smart and who all have perfect eyes, nose and lips. It's a perfect society, what more could we want?"

The American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) reviewed 500 essays on genetics submitted by ninth through twelfth graders for the National DNA Day Essay Contest in 2006 and 2007, and found that more than 50 percent of submissions contained at least one "obvious misconception" concerning the study of genetics. Approximately 20 percent contained two or more misconceptions.

The essayists were asked to answer one of three questions: 1) Why is it important for everyone to know about genetics? 2) If you could be a human genetics researcher, what would you study and why? 3) In what ways will knowledge of genetics and genomics make changes to health and health care in the United States possible?

According to the ASHG report, many students misunderstood the complexity of genetic research, including biotechnology and genetic engineering, and failed to accurately portray concepts related to heredity and patterns of inheritance -- such as the fact that even simple traits are usually influenced by multiple genes.

The authors of the study wrote that "a strategic effort to improve secondary genetics education is especially needed," and encouraged working scientists to become more involved in K-12 classroom education.

The winners of this year's essay contest will be announced on April 25th, coinciding with National DNA Day.

And, I'm back.

2008-03-18T11:39:00.002-05:00

I have definitely been a slacker in my blogging duties. It has been an interesting few weeks and I just haven't been able to devote a lot of time to the blog. But, I have blogging feeling once again. So, what have I been up to?
I finished grad school, had some vacation where I read a lot, knit a lot, and got my new sewing machine up and going for some fantastic but totally unusable dish towels and coasters, and finally started a new job!
Now that I'm back in frequent contact with a computer, I'll be posting again. I have also started blogging on another site at www.justatheists.com. Check it out!

a letter

2008-02-29T10:11:00.003-06:00

Dear Tiny Flame,

I'm sorry for my absence in the last week. I've been busy, okay? I'm sorry I haven't called or written or really even given you much thought but I promise you'll get my attention next week. Just wait a few more days...

Yours truly,
Jaime

Call for a Science Debate

2008-02-21T13:13:00.006-06:00

Science and technology are such an important part of our society and integral to its advancement. That's why a number of people are calling for a debate that focuses on science. I am not convinced that we have to have, or even should have, an entire debate about science, but I do think that it needs to at least be addressed in a debate by more than a few questions. If you agree, please go to www.sciencedebate2008.com and show your support.

Musical Shades

2008-02-19T13:38:00.002-06:00

How would you like window coverings featuring The Ramones?

Or Johnny and June?

I'm also a big fan of the cutie Boston terrier in the top picture and the Dwell perusal in the bottom. These fabulous shades are available at this Etsy store.

Our Fishy Friends

2008-02-19T11:10:00.003-06:00

As someone who currently works with zebrafish and who is also a big fan of everything Natalie Angier writes, I really like this article in the NYTimes about how many evolutionary advances we owe to the fish. Things like a head, paired sensory organs, paired appendages, and hinged, muscular jaws were all premiered by the fish. But, like Ms. Angier, I still don't feel the need to jump into a lake.

Comical Science

2008-02-19T09:21:00.003-06:00

A while back, a friend sent me a link to this great comic and I have become a big fan.

Yesterday, a new comic went live and it is both sad, realistic, and relevant to topics I have written about here.

Valentine's Day in Iowa

2008-02-14T17:30:00.005-06:00

A rose petal in the snow is Valentine's Day in Iowa.

A response to Why Hillary?

2008-02-13T11:24:00.005-06:00

I have been a strong Hillary supporter from the beginning. I was just told by another blogger that the only argument he ever hears in favor of Hillary is that she is electable. I feel as though I have fought against the idea that she is not electable from the beginning. I think, at this point in the campaign, it may seem more realistic that she could be electable, but, especially in the beginning of the campaign, I heard more people say that they would like to vote for her but just didn't think that she could win. Although not always stated, the implication was always that Americans are not yet willing to vote for a woman to be President. I voted for Hillary, and would do so again, because she has been willing to fight for what she believes. She has been a strong advocate for women and children, has fought to make adoption more available, has fought to make sure contraception is accessible, and has fought to make sure education is effective. She has been outspoken about human rights, including women's rights around the world, as well as providing for those under the poverty level. She is a strong lady who has not been afraid to fight against the still pervasive idea that she can not be as effective in a position of power as a man. While I would never vote for someone for any single reason, the fact that she is a woman is a factor on top of all of the other things that I support about her. I think it is about time that we seriously consider a woman to be as qualified as a man to be our Commander in Chief. I think that it is very interesting that I have heard Republicans say that they would support Obama over McCain but not Hillary over McCain. I don't really see Obama and Hillary as so different from each other as I do either from McCain. I think that Hillary has a history of being misrepresented and held responsible for mistakes that her husband made. Hillary Clinton is not Bill Clinton and it is unfair to think that she will run the country in the same way he did just because he is her husband.

Hillary and Sexism

2008-02-12T11:09:00.000-06:00

The recent situation where David Shuster said that Hillary's campaign has "pimped out" Chelsea has got me to thinking about the way that Hillary's actions are perceived. I have certainly never heard of Jenna and Barbara Bush referred to in that way, or any of the other candidates who take their kids up on stage with them while campaigning. But, in all of those cases, it is the father who is up giving the speeches while the mothers are perceived as watching over the kids and bringing them up to form the happy family unit as the crowd cheers. In contrast, when mom is actually asking her daughter for help, Hillary is accused of pimping out her daughter who, by the way, is 27 years old and certainly capable of making her own decisions about whether or not to campaign for her mother. What about in the last election when Jenna and Barbara helped campaign for their father? Why is this any different and how could it be any more of a situation of a daughter being used for campaign purposes? Ultimately, I think it absolutely was a sexist statement and I support Shuster's suspension because of it.

Feministing.com has been doing a "Hillary Sexism Watch", including a post on the Chelsea story, and you can check it out here.

It's Funny Because It's True.

2008-02-12T10:16:00.001-06:00

Compassionate Conservatives?

2008-02-11T11:07:00.001-06:00

This picture just scared the crap out of me and will likely give me nightmares.

So sleepy

2008-02-07T14:56:00.000-06:00

I just saw a picture of these pillows and prints over at Apartment Therapy with a link to the store at Sleepyheads. They look so cozy and make me feel so sleepy but in a really great, napping in the sun with the window open on a cool beginning of summer day kind of way.

Animals on display

2008-02-05T13:13:00.000-06:00

I'm not usually a big fan of animals on walls but I can appreciate these versions at Rock Paper Scissors and Girl Savage.

Seriously Flawed Priorities

2008-01-30T10:12:00.000-06:00

"Instead of simply pursuing their traditional roles in teaching, research and service for the common good, and expecting to be rewarded accordingly, faculty are now being expected to respond to the vagaries of what funding agencies set as their priorities. This emphasis on institutional fund-raising as a new faculty responsibility distorts and perverts the already skewed faculty reward system that now preferentially rewards those faculty who compete successfully for externally funded research grants and contracts, at the expense of those faculty who make significant and noteworthy contributions in their more balanced and traditional teaching, research and service roles."

Unfortunately, I cannot credit the author of the words above because they were sent to me as an example of why they system of academic research is seriously flawed and the author remained anonymous. But, I agree that this is the direction the system seems to be going and it is detrimental not only to those who would like to be involved in good research but also to those who are trying to find ways to keep their labs afloat amidst increasing difficulty in finding and obtaining funding.

I believe that the inability for scientists to concentrate on doing good science, rather than worrying about finding funding and directing research toward what will most likely get funding, is directly responsible for a decrease in the ability of the US to stay competitive worldwide in the sciences. (See this article) How can we even think about educating the public about science or staying competitive worldwide if we are too busy writing grants to think about teaching or are too busy tailoring our research to what is most likely to be funded rather than truly being passionate about science?

Squirrlie McSquirrelster

2008-01-25T18:03:00.000-06:00

I did not have a good week. But, this picture I just saw over at Cute Overload went a long way toward making it better.

Women in Science

2008-01-21T12:51:00.001-06:00

As a female scientist, the topic of women in science is one that is frequently on my mind. I plan to blog here both about that topic and about science in general. I just ran across this post from The Scientist about how few women are blogging about science. According to the post, only about a fifth of the blogs at www.scienceblogs.com are written by women. Those blogs are almost entirely about science so that doesn't count female scientists writing about science in addition to other random topics on blogs like this one. I'm curious about how the percentage of women blogging at www.scienceblogs.com would compare to the percentage of women bloggers overall. Are women blogging about other topics at a higher frequency and, if so, is the lower number in science reflecting the type, number, or some other characteristic of women in the field?

As a side note, I just looked at Google images to find a picture of a lady scientist and found an almost complete lack of cartoon images of women doing science. I did find some pictures of actual lady scientists but cartoonists apparently prefer to draw male scientists - particularly with one extreme or the other of crazy to no hair. I did find a cartoon of a female scientist who made a bong out of an Erlenmeyer flask. At least that is amusing even if her boss is a dude with no hair.

Feed the animals!

2008-01-17T09:52:00.001-06:00

Just by clicking a button on this site, you will help provide food for rescued animals in shelters. The sponsors of the website pay for the food and care.

Does this mean Mark and Roger will be buying a house?

2008-01-16T17:04:00.000-06:00

Rent will have run for nine hundred thirty thousand, one hundred eighty minutes when it finally steps off stage on June 1. Read about it here.

Misogyny in the news

2008-01-16T16:05:00.000-06:00

Bob Herbert wrote a op-ed for the NYTimes today titled "Politics and Misogyny". His point is that, of course misogyny is rampant in our society and it is shocking that gender issues have come to the forefront of the media's attention only after Hillary's trip to New Hampshire. He asks, "Where has everybody been?"

I completely agree with the sentiment. Misogyny is pervasive in our society and is found as cultural norms in some societies. I think it is easy for some people to overlook misogyny happening on a daily basis around us and like to think that they are above that even as they are taking part in some of the stereotypes that contribute. Blatant sexism, particularly when it includes violence, is more easily identifiable and, thus, more easily denounced and punished than subtle sexism. But I think subtle sexism can also have serious effects in the long run for a society because of the failure to notice it which leads to its repetition and pervasiveness.

So, while I agree with the general idea of what Bob Herbert has said, I do take issue with his denouncement of all things having to do with, as a friend recently summed it up in his own blog, "the skin trade." I will start by saying that my fellow blogger and I don't entirely agree on all aspects of the treatment of the skin trade, but we do agree that prostitution and pornography should not be illegal. Herbert refers to Nevada as the "misogyny capital of America" which I think is an overstatement anyway, but I don't think that the presence of legal brothels is necessarily misogynistic. In fact, I would be in favor of completely legalizing brothels to insure that all women are protected by regulations that are meant to do just that, protect them. Instead, by criminalizing prostitution, women are often forced into situations where they are not protected in any way from the men who may be violent, have no access to health care or necessary supplies, like condoms, to prevent disease, and are often completely taken advantage of as in situations like this where teenage girls were forced into prostitution. I think that the fact that legalized prostitution is so distasteful still to our society is a result of our Puritanical aversion to talking about sex for pleasure more than it is about misogyny.

To end, I would like to go back to what I agree with Bob Herbert and say that the misogyny found in the military, particularly in the form of violence toward subordinates, is disgusting and completely unjustifiable. I agree that we need to be taking sexism much more seriously and, particularly considering its high occurrence in the military, making sure it is a part of the greater conversation (about society as a whole and not just choked-up candidates) as we elect our next Commander in Chief.

Save the animals!

2008-01-16T15:14:00.000-06:00

I'm a pretty big fan of the World Wildlife Fund. Partially because they are kind enough to take care of the pandas that a friend adopted for me and partially because they have seriously fantastic ads like these:

I shall call him Squishy and he shall be mine and he shall be my Squishy.

2008-01-15T15:09:00.000-06:00

What more could a girl want than a giant, squishable shark? Or, monkey, or duck, or frog... Oh, maybe a panda, but they don't have those.

Check it out at squishable.com!

Young Punks

2008-01-15T13:29:00.000-06:00

Check out this article from Venus Zine about Care Bears on Fire, a band of two 12-year olds and a 13-year old, on the verge of fame.

"When they reached their cathartic encore of “Baby Animals,” Sophie sweetly sang, “I like piglets/I like kittens/I like tadpoles,” until the pace quickened, the lyrics snarled, and she began shredding and screaming with a ferocity that would make Slayer jealous of her authentic tween tantrum."

Awesome!

Here is another story about them from NPR Music which includes an audio clip of one of their songs. NPR describes their music as "noisy punk rock" which I partially agree with but feel like the "noisy" descriptor makes it sound like that is a bad thing. It's punk rock - of course it will be noisy, that's what makes it so great!

The Privileged Political Pundit Drinking Game

2008-01-15T11:00:00.000-06:00

I just saw this fantastic drinking game by the fabulous ladies over at Feministing and wanted to pass it on here. Drink up!

Drink anytime someone refers to Clinton's teary moment in NH as "crying," "sobbing," "weepy," or "contrived."
Take a drink for every "magical negro" reference to Obama.
Take one drink anytime someone calls Clinton "shrill" or "screechy."
Chug one whenever you hear of, see, or read Maureen Dowd. Always.
Two drinks anytime anyone expresses the sentiment that Edwards is at a disadvantage because he isn't black or female.
Take a shot when a pundit refers to Clinton as (or implies she is) a nagging bitch or cackling witch.
Drink for any lamenting that white-dude voters are being ignored.
Take a healthy gulp every time someone describes Obama as "clean" or "articulate."
Take two shots whenever someone implies that women only vote with their vaginas.
Warning: Do not watch Chris Matthews under any circumstances--doing so could induce alcohol poisoning.

Considering Women as Front-Runners

2008-01-11T09:04:00.000-06:00

When I first read Gloria Steinem's article about Hillary Clinton in Tuesday's New York Times, I thought it was a fantastic piece. I have since discovered that the response to the article has been as varied as the political climate these days is explosive. Bringing up issues of sex and race are devisive topics anyway, but especially so this year. I do think that Hillary can't get a break either way. If she is tough to try to show that she has what it will take to run the country, she is called a bitch and people think she is not acting human. If she gets choked up when she is absolutely exhausted on the campaign trail, then some view her as calculating and faking it to try to get more votes or, in the opposite extreme, as too weak under pressure. This in a campaign where articles have been written about how low her v-neck sweater was cut and how her makeup looked on a particular day. None of this matters. What matters is how her policies stand up to the other candidates policies and how effective she would be at implementing them. I am, in no way, suggesting that we need to de-sex the political process and view everyone based only on their policies. I think the fact that she is a woman is an important factor and is one of the reasons I chose to caucus for her. I say one of the reasons because I want to make it clear that I think voting for someone just because she is a woman is as bad as not voting for someone just because she is a woman. But, that said, the fact that she is a woman was absolutely a factor in my decision. I think it is about time that people started paying attention to the fact that we do not have equality for women yet, even if it may seem that we do. On average, women still get paid less than men, have fewer top executive positions, are not as likely to get tenure or funding in academia, and consistently have to fight against the constantly changing expectations of being working or stay at home mothers. None of this has to do with whether or not Hillary Clinton is qualified to be President of the United States of America, but it does absolutely factor into the voters' expectations of whether or not the President can be effective with two X chromosomes. I think we need to pay attention to the fact that she is a women, not because of how it will affect how she would do the job, but because it is about damn time we seriously considered a woman for the job.

Hyperbole is the best thing that ever happened to me!

2008-01-10T14:01:00.001-06:00

I admit to occasional exaggeration. For example, the other day I nearly died when I had to edge past a raccoon that was staring me down from across the driveway. Along this same line, I have recently had a number of things that were the best thing that ever happened to me. A few weeks ago, while visiting my sister and brother-in-law in Georgia, I allowed my brother-in-law to convince me that a late night, drunken trip (my sister was sober and drove us) to Krystal Burger was a good idea. After eating one of these bad ideas, I proclaimed it to be the best thing that ever happened to me. It really did hit the spot, at the time. Just yesterday I realized, while knitting a fabulous new scarf, that my very small gauge knitting needles were the best thing that ever happened to me. And now, today, I will tell you that my new Moleskine daily planner is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I struggled with choosing a planner this year as I have recently returned to paper. I decided on the daily planner in the limited edition red and have been using it exhaustively ever since. I like having all of those days to flip through and think about how much of the year is ahead of me and wonder about what those days will bring.

A forgotten blog?

2007-09-18T12:05:00.001-05:00

Right. So, I really do intend to write here much more frequently. I don't have anything of substance to post here today so I'm just going write about the things I've been doing.

In August I went to Camp Quest of Minnesota and had a fabulous time minus the part where I got stranded in the Minneapolis airport. I have so much to say about the camp that I don't have time to write it now. Hopefully I will have more on that later.

I recently read The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman and am looking forward to the next two books in the series. I have been trying to avoid the trailers for the movie so that I won't spoil the images I get while reading but I definitely just went ahead and spoiled it by searching on Google for the book to make sure I spelled the author's name correctly. Luckily I just saw the picture of some of the actors and only briefly so hopefully the images won't stick. Right now I'm reading The Canon by Natalie Angier. I'm only in the first chapter but I love it! The subtitle is A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science and her love for science is clear. It is refreshing to read about science as an exciting field as opposed to the, at times, overwhelming details of science on a day to day basis. Maybe I will decide to continue loving science after all! Next up on the reading list is God is Not Great by Christoher Hitchens because I'm going to hear him speak in October.

I'm listening to Ani DiFranco's album Reprieve because I'm going to her concert tonight. Woo hoo! It's a good album although it's pretty mellow (musically, not lyrically) and I really do love it when she rocks out a little more.

I recently tried a green tea martini made with green tea flavored vodka. I do not recommend this drink. I also tried two beers new to Iowa from the New Belgium brewery in Fort Collins: Fat Tire and 1554. Both were fabulous and totally worth the hype. The Fat Tire is an amber ale and was very smooth. The 1554 is a Brussels style black ale and was chocolately deliciousness.

That's all for the update for now. More here later...(hopefully!!)

First post

2007-08-05T11:28:00.001-05:00

I am terrible at coming up with names. You will notice that the title of my first post is very original. I spent days trying to come up with a name for the blog just so that I could start it and finally landed on this after I looked through some quotes I had recently written down.
The first is from Robert Green Ingersoll, a noted 19th century Freethinker:

I admit that reason is a small and feeble flame, a flickering torch by stumblers carried in the star-less night, blown and flared by passion's storm, and yet, it is the only light. Extinguish that, and nought remains.

The second is from a poem by Dylan Thomas that I have loved since the first time I read it.
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightening they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

While I won't promise to never again quote others, my hope is that this blog will be primarily my own thoughts about the things that I think about the most - that is science, secularism and the need for more ladies in both of those fields. I'm sure the list will go on.