FieldNotes: Jurassic World, and other strange animals...

The White Elephant of Rucheni by John McKay at Mammoth Tales:

On a Renaissance map of the world, there is a small white elephant standing near the Arctic coast of Russia. How it got there is a mystery. Is it a mammoth, or does it symbolize something else? The solution is like a jigsaw puzzle. We have many pieces of evidence, in different colors and shapes. But it's not clear that all of the pieces belong to the same puzzle and, in any case, too few pieces have survived for us to be able to construct a clear image of the thinking that led the artist to place that elephant in the frozen north. Perhaps the most important clue that we have to work with is that the elephant occupies a position that mapmakers had previously reserved for a monster that we now call the walrus......

You've Never Seen Anything Like This: The Synchronous Fireflies of the Smokies by Paige Jarreau at FromTheLabBench:

Waves of twinkling lights flashed all around me. First at a distance, then filling my entire field of view, a living undulation of male Photinus carolinus fireflies pulsed like miniature sputtering candles, on display for the females resting in the foliage on the forest floor. The male fireflies, flying above the forest floor, flash quickly four to eight times, and then all together go dark. The females, resting in the foliage, blink twice in response, just as all the males have gone dark. This is one of the most visibly brilliant forms of communication in the insect world......

Are Pigs Really Like People? by Greg Laden at Greg Laden's blog:

We hear this all the time. Pig physiology is like people physiology. Pigs and humans have the same immune system, same digestive system, get the same diseases. Pigs are smart like people are smart. Pigs are smarter than dogs. And so on. Ask a faunal expert in archaeology or a human paleoanatomist: Pig teeth are notoriously like human teeth, when fragmented. Chances are most of these alleged similarities are overstated, or are simply because we are all mammals. Some are because we happen to have similar diets (see below). None of these similarities occur because of a shared common ancestor or because we are related to pigs evolutionarily, though there are people who claim that humans are actually chimpanzee-pig hybrids. We aren’t. .....

Why is it raining lampreys in Alaska? by Sarah Keartes at Earth Touch:

A strange phenomenon is unfolding in Fairbanks, Alaska, where several foot-long Arctic lampreys have reportedly "fallen from the sky". But while these odd-looking fish have inspired their own Sharknado-esque horror movie, the explanation here is actually quite tame. Also known as cyclostomes (meaning "round mouths"), lampreys are some of the most primitive vertebrates alive today. They don't have jaws, but instead boast a round, sucker-like mouth covered in an array of keratin "teeth" (the same protein that makes up your hair and fingernails). It's no surprise that Alaskan locals were a bit unnerved by their newly airborne visitors, but Lamprey Conservation Management assures us that there's a perfectly reasonable explanation: hungry birds are to blame..............

6 Reasons That Floating Ocean Plastic Cleanup Gizmo is a Horrible Idea by Chris Clarke at KCET:

It's all over the internet these days: a floating boom to be set out in 2016 between Korea and Japan to collect improperly discarded plastics. The two-kilometer float, to be deployed off Tsushima Island in the Korea Strait, is a bit of a test run for much larger versions the creators hope to moor in open oceans around the world within the next five years.....

10 Extreme 19th Century “Cures” for Deafness by Jai Virdi-Dhesi at From the Hands of Quacks:

The nineteenth-century introduced a tremendous number of treatments boasting cures for irremediable deafness. Some of these cures were advised by aurists (specialists of the ear); others were tested home remedies or marketed as proprietary nostrums. Below is a list of some of the most extreme measures that were once popular treatments.....

The Dueling Weathermen of the 1800s by Peter Moore at Nautilus:

Very few in scientific circles would have heard of William C. Redfield’s name before the publication of his storm paper in 1831. A New York businessman, he had made his name with his Steam Navigation Company. Redfield’s steamers plied up and down the Hudson, from New York to Albany, carrying passengers and freight. Redfield’s success had come through his natural instinct for innovation. In the 1820s, the early years of steam, passengers had been wary of traveling too close to the engines, worried that they might explode—as they often did. Redfield’s solution to the problem had been simple but effective. He had designed “safety barges” for the passengers to travel in, precursors of the railway carriages of the future, drawn in strings behind the steamer. Over time, as safety standards had improved and passengers had become more confident, he had switched his tactics: moving the passengers back into the steamer and filling the barges with cargo..........

The Diprotodontids: Marsupials Go Large by Christopher Taylor at Catalogue of Organisms:

Prior to the arrival of humans, the Australian fauna included many strange, and often dramatic, animals that are sadly no longer with us. Enormous python-like snakes, monitors that would have made a Komodo dragon look underwhelming, drop bears, and of course the notorious demon duck of doom. But among the most iconic of Australia's extinct fauna were the Diprotodontidae, heavyset herbivores that included the largest of all marsupials. Diprotodontids are sometimes referred to in the popular press as giant wombats, but this is a bit misleading: though more closely related to wombats than any other living marsupials, they were a quite distinct group of animals (besides, they shared their world with actual giant wombats that reached the size of a cow). A potentially more appropriate descriptor that has been suggested is 'marsupial rhinos', though at least some diprotodontids were decidedly not like rhinos either.......

Who’s afraid of bisphenol A? by Puff the Mutant Dragon at Puff the Mutant Dragon:

For years now, many environmentalists and consumer advocates have called on the government to ban a chemical called bisphenol A or BPA. It’s found in various plastics like polycarbonate and the epoxy resins that line the inside of tin cans, and so it leaches into various foods (especially canned foods) at low concentrations. The FDA and the EU have concluded several times it was safe at the levels present in food. In response, some folks accused FDA of surrendering to industry pressure. New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof claimed that “Big Chem” was blocking action by FDA and deliberately exposing Americans to dangerous chemicals. “In my reporting around the world,” Kristof wrote, “I’ve come to terms with threats from warlords, bandits and tarantulas.” But chemicals like BPA scared him much more than any of those......

Plants don’t have problems by Iida Ruishalme at Thoughtscapism:

As a preteen I wished that all humans would disappear from the planet and the beauty of nature would be left to flourish unhindered. I imagined I would be offered a big red button and I could annihilate the human race with a push (a spectacular technological feat at that, as it would not have any other effect on our planet). I knew which would have been the Right choice. The clear separation of ‘natural’ and ‘artificial’ or ‘man-made’ and their difference in value were obvious to me......

Why green spaces are good for your kid’s brain by Chris Mooney at Washington Post:

When it comes to the physical and psychological benefits of being exposed to nature — and especially to scenery that is filled with lush plant life — the evidence lately has been rolling in. Recently we reported on a study by Australian researchers showing that brief 40 second micro-breaks, in which students looked at computerized images of a green roof, led to improved performance on an attention-demanding cognitive task......

Introducing Eco: An ecosystem sim where everyone must nurture a shared planet by Jeffrey Matulef at Eurogamer:

Eco is one of the most ambitious and original concept I've seen in a while. It tasks players with manipulating an ecosystem with one catch: all players on the server are working in the same environment. If the community fails to nurture the nature, it's permadeath for everyone and a new planet is spawned. Each time a server is started, it begins at the dawn of civilisation. There will be some ecological disaster looming on the horizon, such as a flood, drought or meteor, several real-time weeks away. The community must advance their civilisation enough to thwart these deadly threats or it's bye bye cruel world for everyone.......

How do urban bats cope with city lights? by Jason G. Goldman at Conservation:

The common pipistrelle, Pipistrellus pipistrellus, is a wide-ranging bat, making its home in city and country alike across most of Europe, Northern Africa, and into Southwestern Asia, possibly all the way to Korea. But even though the tiny bat – its mass ranges from just 3.5 to 8.5 grams – is widespread and isn’t a species of conservation concern, it might be a good indicator of how well a species can get along in the city.....

Can Dog Bite Prevention Actually Prevent Dog Bites? by Julie Hecht at Dog Spies:

Wear your seat belt. Glop on sunscreen. Maybe you do these things even though you remember the “good ol’ days” when seat belts were optional, even though you dislike the feel of sunscreen (like yours truly), and even though there aren't any immediate, tangible benefits. But you're trying to be responsible. When you wear a seatbelt or apply sunscreen, you could, ostensibly, add a check to the columns, ‘Working to Decrease Chance of Auto-Related Death or Injury,’ and ‘Working to Decrease Chance of Skin Cancer.’ While there are no guarantees, these and other risks are identifiable, and over time we've developed strategies to ward against them. 'Avoiding Being Bitten By a Dog’ should also have its own column......

Why we still collect butterflies by Andrew Warren at The Conversation:

Who doesn’t love butterflies? While most people won’t think twice about destroying a wasp nest on the side of the house, spraying a swarm of ants in the driveway, or zapping pesky flies at an outdoor barbecue, few would intentionally kill a butterfly. Perhaps because of their beautiful colors and intricate patterns, or the grace of their flight, butterflies tend to get a lot more love than other types of insects.....

by at :

Jurassic World opened this week - here is some of the bloggy discussion::
A Paleontologist Reviews 'Jurassic World' by Shaena Montanari at Forbes
Yes, Jurassic Park's Bad Dinosaur Science Still Matters by Brian Switek at io9
Jurassic World and the Build a Better Fake Theropod Project by Darren Naish at Tetrapod Zoology
Sci-fi and Jurassic Park have driven research, scientists say by Elizabeth Jones at The Guardian - Jurassic World
How Accurate Is ‘Jurassic World?’ We Asked A Dinosaur Expert by Victoria McNally at MTV News
'Jurassic World' misses an opportunity by Darren Naish at CNN
What We've Learned About Dinosaurs Since Jurassic Park Came Out by Shaena Montanari at Forbes
Before we build Jurassic World we need to study recent extinctions by Tamara Fletcher and Caitlin Syme at The Conversation
Don’t Let ‘Jurassic World’ Ruin The Franchise: A Guide To Judging Movie Sequels by Walt Hickey at Fivethirtyeight
Here’s The Real Science Behind Jurassic World by Joshua A. Krisch at Vocativ
A Paleontologist Deconstructs 'Jurassic World' by NICHOLAS ST. FLEUR at NY Times
How ‘Jurassic Park’ Nearly Drove the Chilean Sea Bass to Extinction by Alex Swerdloff at Munchies
Guest blog: A Missed Opportunity for Paleontologists by Sarah Werning at The Integrative Paleontologists
Why Jurassic World is a scicomm failure by Travis Park at Blogozoic
'Jurassic World' Has Awesome Dinos, Iffy Science by Laura Geggel at Live Science


And if that is not enough, more readings for later this weekend:

This 1783 Volcanic Eruption Changed The Course Of History by David Bressan at Forbes
Being Lactose Intolerant in the Land of Cheese and Chocolate by Amanda Baker at Frontiers for Young Minds
How L.A. Works: Coyotes by Jason G. Goldman at Los Angeles Magazine
Please Enjoy Your Flight Over Dwarf Planet Ceres by Nadia Drake at No Place Like Home
George Washington’s Oh-So-Mysterious Hair by Robert Krulwich at Curiously Krulwich
Sorry, “skeptics”: Global warming may not be so great for plant life after all by Chelsea Harvey at The Washington Post
Is the “Ecomodernist Manifesto” the Future of Environmentalism? by Michelle Nijhuis at Elements
The Serengeti ecosystem enters the realm of big data by Jason G. Goldman at Conservation
How is Creativity Differentially Related to Schizophrenia and Autism? by Scott Barry Kaufman at Beautiful Minds



Critics say that a new study linking creativity and mental illness is lacking by Arielle Duhaime-Ross at The Verge
Do Creativity And Schizophrenia Share A Small Genetic Link? Maybe by Angus Chen at Shots
The Persistent Myth of the Mad Genius by Carol Tavris at Skeptic
The Gas They Pass (Hopefully) by Doctor Ramey at David Ramey, D.V.M.
These 6 'Body Farms' Help Forensic Anthropologists Learn To Solve Crimes by Kristina Killgrove at Forbes
Meet the Reporter Behind That Bogus Chocolate Study by Nicole Collins Bronzan at ProPublica
The Many Dilemmas of the Practicing Scientist by Anjali Sarkar at City Creatures
More Quantum Weirdness by Steven Novella at NeuroLogica Blog
The human sex ratio at conception and the conception of scientific “facts” by Steven Orzack at The Node
The Lies Maps Tell by Helen Fields at The Last Word On Nothing
The art and science of animating life by Stephen Curry at Occam's corner
18th Century Spanish Horse Skeleton Discovered in St. Augustine by Nina Fedrizzi at Horse Collaborative
The Story of the Horse by JARRETT A. LOBELL and ERIC A. POWELL at Archaeology
Humanity’s Most Problematic Attempts to Get All the Water by Yvonne Bang at Nautilus
A Science Blogger Survey by Jessica M. Budke at Moss Plants and More
Five Things We Still Don’t Know About Water by Richard Saykally at Nautilus
Will we ever find the biggest dinosaur? by Mike Taylor at Sauropod Vertebra Picture of the Week
Why Paleontologists Get Riled Up Over This 'Heretical' Pterosaur Concept Art by Graham Templeton at Motherboard
Meet the scientific storytellers who can make the public afraid of anything—for a price by Ethan Gilsdorf at BoingBoing
Hovering Hawkmoths Slow Down Their Brains to See in the Dark by Helen Thompson at Smithsonian
134,000 saiga antelope dead in two weeks. What is the probable cause? by Henry Nicholls at The Guardian
Are Brown Anoles in Florida Really Driving Green Anoles to Extinction? by Ambika Kamath at Anole Annals and Are Brown Anoles in Florida Really Driving Green Anoles to Extinction II: What Biogeography and Evolution Have to Say by Jonathan Losos at Anole Annals
A Climate Change Data Visualization Gains National Landmark Status by Jen Christiansen at SA Visual
Ticked Off--What We Don't Know About Lyme Disease by Dr. Judy Stone at Forbes
The Real Lesson of the Stanford Prison Experiment by Maria Konnikova at The New Yorker
The longest cell in Andy Farke by Matt Wedel at Sauropod Vertebra Picture of the Week
How the Ocean Cleanup Array Fundamentally Misunderstands Marine Plastics and Causes Harm by Max Liboiron at Discard Studies
Getting Cultured by Jennifer S. Holland at The Last Word On Nothing
The Silicon Valley Race to Build a Fake-Meat Burger That Just Might Save the World by Daniel Fromson at Grub Street



Molecular Jek-yls and -hydes by Michelle M. Francl at The Culture of Chemistry
On Being Remembered: Huxley, Busk, & Scientific Friendships by Paige Fossil History at Fossil History
From Dolly To Fluffy To The Woolly Mammoth? Cloning Since 1997, Part I and From Dolly To Fluffy To The Woolly Mammoth? Cloning Since 1997, Part II by Ulli Hain at Science Extracted
Arsenic poisons the wells and the people in Peru by Mollie Bloudoff-Indelicato at Al Jazeera America
Tiger sharks’ refined palates may be sending them on a 7,500-km migration by Katherine Ellen Foley at Quartz
First circadian clock transplant allows E. coli to keep time by Colin Barras at New Scientist
Science to Parents: Let Your Kids Run a Little Wild by Jessica Leigh Hester at CityLab


Previously in this series:
FieldNotes: a view to spotted horses in the morning
FieldNotes: The Word For World is Blue (or is it Gold?)
FieldNotes: Golden Mean, polite middle-ground, and optimal numbers of legs.
FieldNotes: speeding up and slowing down time
FieldNotes: from Captain Ahab to Jeff Goldblum, chasing the giants
FieldNotes: this is not your grandparents' neuroscience!
FieldNotes: Brontosaurus in, Food Babe out.
FieldNotes: Rogue Microwave Ovens Call Home
FieldNotes: Let the sleeping apes lie
FieldNotes: one thing leads to another leads to another
FieldNotes: Seductive Allure of Seductive Allure of Neuroscience Explanations
FieldNotes: do African horses do flehmen at the sight of Derby hats?
FieldNotes: How The Bird Got Its Beak
FieldNotes: When Snakes Had Legs...
FieldNotes: Only before the bicameral mind evolved could people fall for Bohannon's cheap stunts
FieldNotes: Water, fire, origin of life, origin of cooking.


Images: Waldseemüller's morsus, 1516., and Velociraptors by Universal Pictures/Amblin Entertainment. Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.