Not too long ago I posted about the device above – a cool looking glass bulb which supposedly uses light to scare away flights. That claim hit my skeptical nerve, and I discussed it in my previous post. Over the past weeks I’ve been researching reasonable methods to test this claim – and like much of my research – I procrastinate and end up watching TV. But every once in a while it pays off; and to my amazement I stumbled upon the Mythbusters and their Bug Special (Season 8, episode 26). One of their mini-myths was exactly this – that bags of water can scare away flies! The test was designed pretty well, however the concept as to why it would have worked is flawed. As I discussed in my previous post, flies would and should be able to handle refracted and reflected light. The “invisible wall” theory did not hold up as you can imagine and the bag of water did zero to repel flies – and it might have actually attracted a few who were looking for a droplet or two of moisture around the edges. I am still left wondering if the motion of scattered light would have any effect on fly behavior (however unlikely). Looks like I missed my opportunity for a Mythbusters consult!
Alex Wild posted a few days ago about the “freelensing” photography technique. You can get some really cool results, especially with creating the illusion of miniatures – but so far I haven’t been brave enough to give it a shot (no pun intended). I came across this impressive compilation of Haitian images on NPR today that is both tilt-shifted and stop-motion!
*Update* – If you were previously subscribed to any posts, it looks like you will have to re-subscribe. I have decided though to skip on the entire-blog subscription and just stick to individual posts.
It’s always something. I updated my theme the other day and a glitch in the software caused a crash. Everything was put back together by the Southern Fried Scientist, but now I need to pick up the pieces and find a new theme to host my page. Stay tuned, I need to rebuild, and it will probably take me a day or two to get everything back to working order!
Welcome to the new year, and nearly a full year of blogging! It’s amazing how fast the time flew by, but again it always does. As you likely noticed December turned out to be my weakest posting month with a whopping 2 posts. Resolution: more posting!
Now I haven’t started blogging about music (for those who get the Wilco reference), but I am taking us back to the ghost moth of previous posts.
How about $2,000? Or maybe you know an undergrad who needs this? BioQuip offers a yearly scholarship to “encourage [undergraduate] student interest in entomology”, but guess how many people applied last year? 3. And sadly that’s actually high, I’m pretty certain that the award has gone unclaimed in years past. Chris Fall of BioQuip made this announcement a few days ago at the Entomological Collections Network meeting in San Diego (which was wonderful, more to follow on that and the EntSoc meetings!) ((OK, OK, I know my posting has been sparse lately))
The word needs to get out, so I will do my part. It would be great to see more professors, grad students and enthusiastic undergrads asking BioQuip about their stash of free money! Go here and here to see how you can apply. Spread the word.
Well, not really. In actuality I don’t collect butterflies, and especially not these giant birdwings. They are stunning animals, but aside from being huge, they are also expensive (the average specimens go for about a hundred bucks). The newsworthy part of this story is how much it went for at auction. Before I tell you the price… this is a rare aberration of a rare butterfly (the forewing is almost a solid green blush, which is freakish). But…it’s still just a butterfly.
Here are some screenshots from one of my favorite podcasts, The Moth! For those who aren’t aware of it, you should check it out – and be surprised that it’s not actually entomology related. True stories told live on stage that range from hilarious to heartbreaking. BUT, they have made an appearance on my GOP – who can tell me why?
While I gear up for more posts of substance, enjoy this brief video from the California Academy of Sciences butterfly collection. Dr. Norm Penny does a wonderful job of sharing some of our gems, it’s just too bad the video isn’t any longer (or about moths!).
Check out this trailer for the film “Se Quema el Cielo” – “The Sky is Burning”. A documentary about the rehabilitation of the Guancaste rainforests in North Western Costa Rica. It looks like a beautiful film…now I just have to find a copy.
Comments are closed 
