I have been meaning for some days now to point your attention to my new article in the June issue of Scientific American called, “What Is A Species?” The hard copy is worth tracking down because it’s got a lot of excellent illustrations and sidebars. SciAm has the full article online for subscribers, and I’ve posted the text over at carlzimmer.com.

There’s so much I could say on the topic–pointing out how the recent news on polar bear extinction raises the question of how distinct polar bears are, for example–but I am scurrying in the shadow of a rising wave. (Attention people of Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle: please look at my book tour schedule!)

Continue reading “It’s Come to This: I’m Outsourcing Blogging to Australia” →

Jaana writes, “I am a chemist and work on the legislative side of science. I also have a bit of a temper, so when choosing this tattoo, the choice was obvious. It’s a modified version of the chemical hazard sign for ‘explosive’ and while hidden under a lab coat most of the time, depicts my personality quite well.”

Click here to go to the full Science Tattoo Emporium. 

Originally published May 28, 2008. Copyright 2008 Carl Zimmer.

Lea writes:

“I am an evolutionary biology graduate student working with some of the world’s earliest known HIV samples, trying to clarify the early evolutionary history of the virus. I was inspired by an elegant circle tree phylogeny my PI put together for a publication submission and I decided I had finally found something I connected with enough to get permanently put on my body.”

Click here to go to the full Science Tattoo Emporium. 

Originally published May 27, 2008. Copyright 2008 Carl Zimmer.

As I mentioned previously, I’ll be moderating a panel at the World Science Festival in New York on Thursday. It will be about art, science, and homeland security.

In 2004 artist Steven Kurtz was accused of terrorism when police came across bacteria and biological equipment in his house. After the terrorism charges were dropped, Kurtz still faced charges of mail and wire fraud until last month.

Kurtz will be speaking for the first time in public about the case since the charges were dropped, and he’ll also be joined by critic Eugene Thacker and bioethicist George Annas. Here are the specifics on the time and place…

Continue reading “Bioart in the Age of Terrorism: Details At Last” →

Mike writes, “I know that I’m supposed to provide some sort of explanation, but I feel like everyone can probably tell that this is DNA. Every once in awhile someone will ask what’s on my arm, in which case I respond that it’s a futuristic staircase. Then they stare quizzically and I laugh.”

Click here to go to the full Science Tattoo Emporium. 

Originally published May 25, 2008. Copyright 2008 Carl Zimmer.