01.30.2006/21:54
Coastal changes
"We may be losing part of our beaches, we may lose our coastal wetlands, and our coastal forests may change permanently to a different kind of ecosystem."

01.29.2006/15:29
Don't blow it
The issue of soft tissues for your soft tissues.

01.28.2006/22:01
When Worlds Collide
Interesting look at how these two bits of the internet cross paths: here and here.

01.27.2006/18:19
Breathe in!
"The Food and Drug Administration said the Pfizer Inc. insulin, to be marketed as 'Exubera,' is the first new way of delivering insulin since the discovery of the hormone in the 1920s."

01.27.2006/14:02
What's yours?
We just returned from the annual conference of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, an organization for folks that do what PASA does, that is, present concerts, performances, etc. Like most trade group conferences, there are professional development sessions, a trade show floor, etc., and like most arts conferences, there are showcases of performers, both at the conference hotel and sprinkled throughout the city.

We saw, as usual, dozens of performances, some outtakes and some full length. Jackie Lyle and I have been attending this conference almost every year since 1989, and she observed upon our return at midweek that so much of what we saw reflected the sense that everybody had to have a "gimmick." Opera companies that had rock synth, dancers that all fly around in the air or bounce on balls, classical musicians that sort of play jazz, jazz musicians that reflect classical training, etc. Is this a reflection of the shorter attention span of our time? A phase of the moment? An indicator that culture as we know it is being shucked aside? Or did we just go to the wrong stuff? (Or did we only go to stuff that had the gimmick to attract us?)

01.27.2006/12:46

Subway sketching
On the F train, Manhattan.

01.27.2006/12:45

No 1. Train
My friends Shantell Romero and Jackie Lyle head downtown on the No. 1 subway in New York City.

01.27.2006/12:43

Ellis Island
Registry area upstairs at the Ellis Island Immigration Museum.

01.26.2006/15:59
Ah, aria
Fine wool from opera-exposed sheep.

01.26.2006/15:56
Spider pix
"Cave wolf spiders share a special adaptation - their spiderlings have a row of comb-like teeth on their claws that perfectly match the spaces on the multi-branched hairs found on the mother's back."

01.25.2006/16:09
Hook 'em
Fish stories.

01.25.2006/09:36
Can't stop
"I'm addicted. They should pay the billion dollars and get it over with."

01.20.2006/09:32
Have a rice day
Nice flash intro for a restaurant site.

01.16.2006/20:31
Voyeur resource
Nice collection of interesting webcams.

01.16.2006/20:27
Hang in there
Rare bats.

01.12.2006/20:49
Street of dreams
Chokuegambo.

01.12.2006/17:29
Up in the sky!
"Small human ancestors known as hominids had to survive being hunted not only by large predators on the ground but by fearsome raptors that swooped from the sky."

01.12.2006/11:56
Silver bullet
Who wouldn't want one of these?

01.11.2006/09:55
No longer singing
Birgit Nilsson, R.I.P.

01.10.2006/15:24
Not even a friendly peck
Don't kiss your chickens.

01.10.2006/15:21
A mighty wind
"By making this purchase, Whole Foods Market is taking a huge step toward advancing corporate renewable energy purchases."

01.9.2006/15:39
Howl
If you're in Austin, TX, here's what to do when you see a coyote.

01.8.2006/11:29
Googlebators, et. al.
Slang of our time: Urban Dictionary.

01.7.2006/14:45
Hobbit Feast
Second breakfast and all the other meals, plus three movies. (via the indispensable Fark)

01.6.2006/15:27
Read it and weep
Literary sub-genre: The Silver Fork Novel.

01.6.2006/14:56
Bird identification dialogue
"We're not sure what kind of hummingbird it was. Maybe if we were like Audubon, we could just blast it... 'Hey, little feller, what were you?'"

"What about a digital camera?"

"Naw, won't kill 'em."

01.6.2006/14:35
Check it out
The books most borrowed from libraries.

01.6.2006/13:52
Gone but not forgotten
Lou Rawls, R.I.P.

01.5.2006/12:41
Misssspelllled
Troublesome words, and why each is a problem.

01.5.2006/12:39
Cool, eh?
What's cool. In Canada.

01.5.2006/12:36
Yo! Horns!
A game-of-the-century that actually lived up to its hype. (I actually stayed awake for the whole thing!)

01.3.2006/10:18
Take a fun spin!
Last night I dreamed that New Iberia undertook to host an annual Propellor Festival. Beany caps, anyone?

01.1.2006/23:15
Railroaded
I hate it when this happens.

01.1.2006/17:40
Good for your table
Learn to cook Thai food.

01.1.2006/16:46
Better than Hummers
"Their lives were extended several times by dust devils that blew away dust that covered their solar panels, restoring their ability to generate electricity."