Parasites+Radiolab!

Posted on September 8, 2009June 30, 2021 by Matt Kristoffersen

Radiolab and parasites. A match made in parasitic heaven. If you haven’t discovered this excellent radio program, check out the first episode of their sixth season. During the first 20 minutes of the show, I persuade the hosts of the show, Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, that parasites are not degenerate or evil, but rather sophisticated creatures that have a huge influence on humanity and the entire natural world (the basic message in my book, Parasite Rex). The rest of the show delves into some particularly cool parasite tales. Check it out.

Where Did All the Flowers Come From?

Posted on September 7, 2009May 28, 2020 by admin

The New York Times, September 7, 2009

Link

Throughout his life, Charles Darwin surrounded himself with flowers. When he was 10, he wrote down each time a peony bloomed in his father’s garden. When he bought a house to raise his own family, he turned the grounds into a botanical field station where he experimented on flowers until his death. But despite his intimate familiarity with flowers, Darwin once wrote that their evolution was “an abominable mystery.”

Darwin could see for himself how successful flowering plants had become. They make up the majority of living plant species, and they dominate many of the world’s ecosystems, from rain forests to grasslands. They also dominate our farms.

Continue reading “Where Did All the Flowers Come From?” →

Schrodinger’s Tat [Science Tattoo]

Posted on September 5, 2009June 30, 2021 by Matt Kristoffersen

Berg writes, “I’m a big fan of quantum mechanics (regardless of how little I truly understand it), so getting a tattoo of Schrodinger’s cat seemed like a no-brainer. It’s on my right forearm, which means it ends up being a good conversation starter after a quick handshake. Either people get what it is right away, or I have the pleasure of explaining ‘No, it’s not two cats fornicating, it’s one superpositioned cat,’ which is fun in its own right. Huzzah!”

Click here to go to the full Science Tattoo Emporium.

Robert Wright Speaks…

Posted on September 5, 2009June 30, 2021 by Matt Kristoffersen

…about the recent goings-on at Bloggingheads. If you don’t want to listen to an hour and 15 minutes of discussion about how a couple of creationists ended up on Wright’s site, he has also distilled his comments in writing, here in a discussion forum.

I deeply appreciate all the comments and emails people sent to ask me to reconsider my decision to part ways with Bloggingheads. But it’s not as if I’ll be vanishing from sight. In fact, I plan to explore new ways to write and talk about science (details to come).

We writers don’t disappear so easily.

The Tangled Bank: A Podcast

Posted on September 4, 2009June 30, 2021 by Matt Kristoffersen

If you don’t already subscribe to Science and the City, a podcast from the New York Academy of Science, do so. They pick a great mix of intriguing topics, from the origin of the solar system to the physics of kite-flying. I was delighted that they gave me a call for their latest podcast to talk about The Tangled Bank. Our conversation ranged from the evolution of eyes to the power of good science illustrations. Listen here.