The Birds of “The Unfeathered Bird”

Rebecca earned her master’s degree with a focus in avian ecology at Binghamton University, worked at Cornell’s Lab of Ornithology, has conducted international research on birds overseas, and completed her PhD in avian physiology the University of Memphis. She now teaches biology at the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science & Math.

After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved, science and art tend to coalesce in esthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists are always artists as well. – Albert Einstein

Birdsketch by Rebecca Heiss (All Rights Reserved)I became a biologist for a reason. It was not that I was particularly good at the sciences, but that I was terrible at art. My stick figures were never going to pay the rent. Perhaps lacking the drive to master any one trade, I’ve dabbled, becoming proficient in a smattering of largely scientific endeavors. It is little wonder then, that Katrina van Grouw’s mastery of multiple fields makes me feel a twinge of jealousy. Continue reading “The Birds of “The Unfeathered Bird””

Let’s talk about books…

I will be providing a quick book review of a book that is very special to my older daughter and me, Rare Treasure: Mary Anning* and Her Remarkable Discoveries by Don Brown, for the Skeptically Speaking “Science Books for Your Gift List” episode. The episode will be available to download at 8PM (ET) tonight (Friday, 21 December 2012)

*The band Artichoke has a fantastic song about Mary Anning that is available to download for free (MP3 – 2.2MB).

UPDATE: According to the producer of Skeptically Speaking, KO Myers, my review comes up at 47:33 in the podcast. While I would be flattered by anyone downloading the podcast only to listen to my two minutes, I would strongly recommend listening to the other reviews, which I hear will include Bug Girl reviewing Spider Silk by Leslie Brunetta & Catherine L. Craig even though spiders aren’t bugs.

Dirty Minds: Your love life is supposed to be complicated

Kayt Sukel’s Dirty Minds is a book about neuroscience that has questions, not answers. That alone should be enough reason for you to pick it up. Sukel’s agenda is not to tell her reader how the human mind works. It is to convince her reader that our minds are complicated messes – they are dirty, in the cleanest sense of the term1. Our mind is the result of a rat’s nest of neurons bathed in a complex soup of hormones interacting with our environment. The point is not that our dirty minds have been solved, but that they are so damned interesting.

If you need another reason, a lot of the book is about sex2. Really, it is about research into the neurological basis of love. It covers relationships, parenting, even a wee bit of religion, and sex; but, when you say “and sex”, you might as well say “it’s about sex”.  Continue reading “Dirty Minds: Your love life is supposed to be complicated”

“The Power of Habit” Colored Glasses

When I first went over to the table of review copies at Science Online 2012 and saw Charles Duhigg’s The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do1 and How to Change It, I thought “Why would I want to read a self-help book?”2

Fortunately, The Power of Habit is not a self-help book, in that it is both informative and helpful. Duhigg invites the reader to view human behavior through the lens of habits through a seamless blend of compelling personal stories and scientific research. Duhigg convincingly argues that these principles worked for the people in the anecdotes and will work for you.

Viewing the world through the lens of habits added depth and understanding to an already moving experience I had earlier this year. In January, my wife and I visited a chemistry class at Hamilton Township High School in Hamilton, OH3 to talk about science and careers in science with the students4. Continue reading ““The Power of Habit” Colored Glasses”

The Mathematics of Life

The Mathematics of Life was mathematician Ian Stewart’s most recent book, at the time I received it; but Stewart is prolific, writing a new book every 57 minutes or so. The Mathematics of Life is now his second most recent popular science book. In my opinion, your enjoyment of this book will depend upon your expectations. Continue reading “The Mathematics of Life”