Catching the Big Fish, by Meghan

And boy, do I mean big fish. The Whale Shark is the largest living fish species in the world. The largest specimen ever caught was 41.5 feet long, though stories exist of Whale Sharks close to 60 feet long. That is a BIG fish!






Don't worry though, kids; these guys are filter feeders, so no need to fear for your limbs.

December 17, 1843...

On this day in 1843, Charles Dickens' classic story "A Christmas Carol" is published.

Dickens was born in 1812 and attended school in Portsmouth. His father, a clerk in the navy pay office, was thrown into debtors' prison in 1824, and 12-year-old Charles was sent to work in a factory. The miserable treatment of children and the institution of the debtors' jail became topics of several of Dickens' novels.

In his late teens, Dickens became a reporter and started publishing humorous short stories when he was 21. In 1836, a collection of his stories, Sketches by Boz, later known as The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, was published. The same year, he married Catherine Hogarth, with whom he would have nine children. The short sketches in his collection were originally commissioned as captions for humorous drawings by caricature artist Robert Seymour, but Dickens' whimsical stories about the kindly Samuel Pickwick and his fellow club members soon became popular in their own right. Only 400 copies were printed of the first installment, but by the 15th episode 40,000 copies were printed. When the stories were published in book form in 1837, Dickens quickly became the most popular author of the day.

The success of the Pickwick Papers was soon reproduced with Oliver Twist (1838) and Nicholas Nickleby (1839). In 1841, Dickens published two more novels, then spent five months in the United States, where he was welcomed as a literary hero. Dickens never lost momentum as a writer, churning out major novels every year or two, often in serial form. Among his most important works are David Copperfield(1850), Great Expectations (1861), and A Tale of Two Cities (1859).

Beginning in 1850, he published his own weekly circular of fiction, poetry, and essays called Household Words. In 1858, Dickens separated from his wife and began a long affair with a young actress. He gave frequent readings, which became immensely popular. He died in 1870 at the age of 58, with his last novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, still unfinished.


http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/a-christmas-carol-is-published

Freshwater Sharks, by Meghan

Though we like to think of sharks as ocean-dwellers, there are some sharks that can survive in freshwater, like the testosterone-fueled Bull Shark. Many experts consider Bull Sharks to be the most dangerous sharks in the world, and they are one of three shark species most likely to attack humans.




Yeah, and these little puppies can live in freshwater. They have been found up to 1,750 miles up the Mississippi River in the USA and 2,500 miles up the Amazon River to hang out in Peru. Wow.

S'darn cute!

I just stumbled upon this blog from a friend on Facebook:
This Animal Is Awesome

(Warning: For some reason, page 1 of the blog has nudity. So the link goes to page 2. Now you're just curious, I know. I just didn't want to be inappropriate.)

Here are some highlights for your viewing pleasure:








P.S. Check out their ARCHIVE!

Today in History, 1512...

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, one of Italian artist Michelangelo's finest works, is exhibited to the public for the first time.


Michelangelo Buonarroti, the greatest of the Italian Renaissance artists, was born in the small village of Caprese in 1475. The son of a government administrator, he grew up in Florence, a center of the early Renaissance movement, and became an artist's apprentice at age 13. Demonstrating obvious talent, he was taken under the wing of Lorenzo de' Medici, the ruler of the Florentine republic and a great patron of the arts. After demonstrating his mastery of sculpture in such works as the Pieta (1498) and David (1504), he was called to Rome in 1508 to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel—the chief consecrated space in the Vatican.

Michelangelo's epic ceiling frescoes, which took several years to complete, are among his most memorable works. Central in a complex system of decoration featuring numerous figures are nine panels devoted to biblical world history. The most famous of these is The Creation of Adam, a painting in which the arms of God and Adam are stretching toward each other. In 1512, Michelangelo completed the work.

After 15 years as an architect in Florence, Michelangelo returned to Rome in 1534, where he would work and live for the rest of his life. That year saw his painting of the The Last Judgment on the wall above the altar in the Sistine Chapel for Pope Paul III. The massive painting depicts Christ's damnation of sinners and blessing of the virtuous and is regarded as a masterpiece of early Mannerism.

Michelangelo worked until his death in 1564 at the age of 88. In addition to his major artistic works, he produced numerous other sculptures, frescoes, architectural designs, and drawings, many of which are unfinished and some of which are lost. In his lifetime, he was celebrated as Europe's greatest living artist, and today he is held up as one of the greatest artists of all time, as exalted in the visual arts as William Shakespeare is in literature or Ludwig van Beethoven is in music.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history




For an extra awesome look at the Sistine Chapel, check out this blog post by Ms. Julia.

Sloth Fact #2, by Meghan

There are two main species of sloths, categorized by whether they have two or three claws. Two-toed sloths are a little bigger, but Three-toed sloths have two extra vertebrae that allow them to turn their heads almost all the way around! Awesome.

Why is November 19th so far away?!

I do believe I must own this poster.

Watch the trailer here:

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2799962393/

(I am not embarrassed to admit that I cried a little the first time I saw this.)

How these days grow long...

I think that a defining characteristic of many nerds is their tendency toward fixation. Simply put, we get to be a little bit obsessed about the nerdy things we love. Like Julia and her wolves. Man, that girl... obsessed. Haha, joking of course, as I am the queen of nerdy fixations. Take my current music obsession, for example.

Oh, Brandi Carlile, I have an absurd amount of love for you. Watch these videos, and you may fall in love with her too.



04/19/09@ The State Room (First time I saw her live- SO AWESOME- though this video is not mine.)


This is one of the most sad, beautiful songs I have ever heard. Love it.

Wolves, Part III

The title of this post should actually be "Nature Knows Better." And because of people that disagree, wolves are being endangered, but only here in the West. This articled entitled "The Big Bad Wolf Makes Good: The Yellowstone Success Story and Those Who Want to Kill It" by Chip Ward details it eloquently.

Read the article, but this gist is this. Wolves are, in fact, a key part of the ecosystem in Yellowstone and the surrounding areas. (Imagine that!) Without them, there is literally less water. Fewer wolves mean more elk. More elk mean over-grazed willows. Fewer willows mean fewer beavers. Fewer beavers mean fewer dams, fewer dams mean fewer wetlands, fewer wetlands mean fewer fish, birds, bugs, and amphibians, as well as less water distribution. You push that first domino, and the whole bunch topples.

Wolf reintroduction wasn’t a scheme designed to undermine vacationing elk hunters or harass ranchers who graze their cattle on public lands. It wasn’t done to please some cabal of elitist, urban environmentalists eager to show rural rednecks who’s the boss, though out here in the West that interpretation’s held sway at many public meetings called to discuss wolf reintroduction.

Let’s be clear then: the decision to put wolves back in Yellowstone was a bold experiment backed by the best conservation science available to restore a cherished American ecosystem that was coming apart at the seams.

When wolves were reintroduced into Yellowstone in the mid-nineties, the ecosystem bounced back. They were taken off the endangered species list, and hunters were free to shoot to kill. In August of this year, they were put back on the endangered species list by the federal government. There are, of course, objections from local farmers and hunters, and the article addresses them well. But ultimately, nature knows better:

Think of wolf reintroduction, then, as a kind of hinge-point between the two paradigms. After centuries of not leaving the natural world’s order to chance, micro-managing wherever we could, we are now encouraged to take a chance on Nature, to trust the self-organizing powers of life to heal ecosystems we have wounded....We now understand far better the many ways in which nature’s living communities are astonishingly connected and reciprocal. If we could only find the courage to trust their self-organizing powers to heal the wounds we have inflicted, we might become as resilient as those Yellowstone wolves.

I just searched google images for "wolf hunting." Don't worry, I covered my eyes before any actual tears fell, but needless to say, I'll never do that again. I did find this gem, though:
Oh, buddies.

If Bears Had Opposable Thumbs We'd All Be Screwed!

The Future Is NOW!

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Michio Kaku
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes 2010 Election Fox News

Also, check out this article: Invisibility Cloak Upgraded

Happy Shark Week!

Nerds love sharks. Hell, even non-nerds love sharks! Why? Because they are awesome.

Dating back to more than 420 million years ago (yeah, that's right, before dinosaurs), there are now 440 known species of sharks, with at least one species found in each of the world's seas. The smallest known shark is the dwarf lanternshark; at its largest it is only 6.7 inches long. The Whale shark, at the other end of the spectrum, is the largest fish in the world, growing up to almost 40 feet long.

Little guy:


Big guy:


Yep, sharks are so awesome that the Discovery Channel dedicates a whole week to them: Shark Week!!! (Sidenote: the Discovery Channel itself is pretty awesome.) With so many great shows about sharks, it could be hard to choose which one to write about here, but for me, the choice was pretty simple.

My favorite shark species is the Great White. They seriously blow my mind. Who needs fictional monsters with these guys around?


Weighing (on average) 1800-2400 lbs and reaching lengths of more than 20 feet, we're talking massive predators here. Now, imagine these guys flying 10 to 15 feet out of the ocean. Seems impossible, right? Oh my friend, you would be wrong.



Haha, just kidding. But really this time:



See how easy it is to choose a shark show? Pick the one with the flying sharks. Like Ultimate Air Jaws, in which "World-renowned shark photographer Chris Fallows uses high-tech cameras to track the incredible agility and velocity of Air Jaws, a flying great white shark. The expedition reveals these sharks spend a lot of time near tourists in South Africa."

This is Shark Week's third Air Jaws special (check out Air Jaws and Air Jaws 2: Even Higher), and they just keep getting better. Using a Hollywood special effects camera that can slow down images up to 40 percent, Ultimate Air Jaws shows spectacular footage of this beautiful, terrifying hunting strategy.

Beginning in the deep, sharks monitor the surface above and launch like a missile when suitable prey enters their range. Reaching speeds of up to 25 miles per hour, these 1 ton fish can launch themselves fully out of the water, up to 15 feet into the air. They are hunting Cape Fur Seals, and though the attack seems like an impossibly fatal blow, the seals have roughly a 50% chance of survival, relying solely on the pressure wave created by the approaching shark to give an advance warning. The population of seals at the False Bay seal island averages around 60,000, and only 600-800 seals fall victim to these shark attacks; approximately 1% of the population.

In Ultimate Air Jaws, not only do you get to see amazing footage of these incredible attacks, but you also get to see the crazy shit that this guy does to get these shots. Seriously, this guy is nuts! I want to marry him.


So, shark nerds and non-nerds alike, tune in to the Discovery Channel to check out Ultimate Air Jaws and the other AMAZING shows that Shark Week has to offer. HAPPY SHARK WEEK!!

Polar bears and dogs playing

OH MY! This blew my mind. Also, I love that guy's steaz.

Nessun Dorma, Luciano Pavarotti

I don't usually love opera, but this song gets to me every time.

Foxes: Part 1, by Julia

Foxes and wolves are my favorite wild animals. And I have neglected the fox for too long. I will not, however, disappoint. These two videos illustrate why I daydream about befriending a fox in the wild.

Haven't had your fill of useless knowledge?

Try THE AMAZING FACT GENERATOR!

Beethoven "Moonlight" Sonata op 27 # 2 Mov 3 Valentina Lisitsa

Word of the Day!

Singeing

What a strange looking word! Right, Meghan?

Sloth Fact #1, by Meghan

Sloth Fact #1: One of the sloth's few defenses is that it spends most of its time in trees, keeping hidden from predators. This is good, because once spotted by a predator, a sloth's chances for survival drop dramatically, especially on the ground where its average speed is only 0.15 mph. Luckily, the sloth only descends from the trees for one specific reason: to use the bathroom. It will climb down from the trees, dig a small hole (in the same place it used last time), relieve itself, and climb back up to its leafy home. Luckily, the metabolism of the sloth is so slow that it only has to do this once a week.


Come on, how could you not love this guy?

HP Awesomeness, by Meghan

I think that one central part of nerdom (or at the very least a subset of nerdom) is a passion for books. Now, nerds don't all love the same type of books; our preferences cross the spectrum from dictionaries to comic books, science fiction to the classics, poetry to textbooks.

Many of us nerds, in my opinion, the best of us nerds though of course I am biased, are the Fantasy nerds. Yes, I am a Fantasy nerd. Not of the highest caliber in general, but in one specific category, I rank pretty high. The Harry Potter nerds.



So, of course, I totally appreciate other Harry Potter nerds. Like the ones who made this wonderfully clever video. Indy Mogul, you are a friend of mine.



Love it.

Dear Meghan,

Now, brace yourself. Sit down, be sure that you are in a place where high pitched squeals aren't terribly inappropriate. No seriously, take a deep breath. Try to stay calm. Maybe grab a tissue.

Meet the sloths from Amphibian Avenger on Vimeo.

I know Costa Rica is on your list of places to go. Perhaps this video bumped it to the top of the list? Although you've said it before, and it's true now more than ever, you would get absolutely nothing done if you were a worker at this magical facility. And everyone around you would have to wear earplugs.

You're welcome,
Julia

Sabretooth Tiger, presented by Julia

Sabretooth tigers like to dance. I was reading about it in the National Geographics.
{Breathe Owl Breathe}


BONUS! Behold this awesome video for their song "Own Stunts."

Breathe Owl Breathe - Own Stunts from Magic Central on Vimeo.

I love how funny and serious and sweet this band is. They have stolen my nerdy heart by writing songs about extinct animals, werewolves, ghosts, capes, squirrels.... the list goes on. Oh AND if at some point cute lead singer Micah writes a song about sloths (see previous post) it will be thanks to me and Meghan. ha HA!

WOLF HAT!

CAPES!

You might not know about these amazing creatures yet...

Oh, but you will...

Mind Blown. by Julia

Clickity. I've seen so many images of the Sistine Chapel, but this is like seeing it for the first time, and the closest I'll get to the real thing for right now.

And clickity here for some art that's more my style. Man, I love the internet. I'm how many miles away from the San Francisco MOMA? But I can still look through its collection! Sigh.... I'm in heaven.

Just stopping by to say...

Hi, Buddy!

Hey, guys, remember Island of the Blue Dolphins?

Wolves: Part 2, by Julia

Today I have not one, not two, but THREE fun facts about wolves. I hope you are learning to love them as I do.


Fact 1:

The gray wolf is the largest member of the canine family. The male's average weight is 100 pounds and his length varies from 5 to 6.5 feet; the female averages 80 to 85 pounds and is 4.5 to 6 feet in length.
- Art Wolfe, www.artwolfe.com

(Um, seriously. If your heart didn't just melt, you might not have one.)

Fact 2:

Newborn gray wolf pups will remain in their protected den for the first two months, after which they are moved to a rendezvous site, where, under the watchful eye of adults assigned to their care, the youngsters have more freedom to explore their surroundings.
-Tim Fitzharris

Fact 3:

Wolves are highly social animals and rarely engage in any activity alone. The pack migrates and hunts together, each member keenly aware of its status within the group. Packs are usually made up of between 7 and 15 individuals, the numbers depending on variable such as available food and the general wolf population within a region.
-Dieter Holl, F1 ONLINE

BONUS!
Were you wondering what the best song about turning into a wolf is? Well do I have a video for you!

(Blitzen Trapper, Furr)

Supernovas, by Meghan

Ready to have your mind explode like a massive dying star? Trust me, if you are going to have your mind blown, this is the way to do it.

Massive stars die in a "cataclysmic nuclear explosion"that cause a burst of radiation that often outshines an entire galaxy before eventually fading over weeks or months. During this time a supernova will let off as much energy as the Sun is expected to emit over its entire life span.

If you are amazed by that, just wait until you see it.

Supernova 1994D

Cygnus Loop Supernova

Supernova Remnant N 63A Menagerie




Supernova Remnant G292.0+1.8 (one of 3 Supernova remnants in the Milky Way.)

As a human, I feel a little ripped off. This is how stars get to go out, and we get to go out like this:

Check out our old pal wikipedia to learn more about dying stars (and dead humans):

Sharks: Part One, by Meghan

It is not a lie that sharks "fall asleep" (quotations necessary) when they are turned over on their backs. For several species of sharks, being inverted puts the shark into Tonic Immobility," an "unlearned behavioral response characterized by a state of immobility and torpor." "Tonic immobility can be induced by various procedures which place the subject in an 'unnatural' posture or situation, which has the effect of altering the usual course of its sensorimotor and emotional interchanges with its environment" (http://www.springerlink.com/content/hv211n88926r5563/fulltext.pdf?page=1). Studies were originally completed on Lemon sharks, but later studies proved a similar response in Tiger, Great White, and Smooth Dogfish sharks as well.

So, if you place a shark in an "unnatural posture or situation," its senses are flooded and it will drop into a catatonic state.

WHAAAAAAAAAT?

I know, it may sound like a lie (it did to my friends, thus inspiring the title for this blog) but I swear to you on all of my Harry Potter paraphernalia that I am telling the truth. Check it out here. This crazy awesome guy uses the tiny electromagnetic pulses created by the metal glove in the salt water to overload the senses of this shark and perform this incredible feat:



Marine biologists, such as the one you just saw, use tonic immobility as part of their research methods to place various tracking devices on the sharks. And humans are not the only ones to use this insane biological response to achieve their purposes; Orcas have also learned of the benefits of tonic immobility. Often in their hunting of Mako and Great White sharks, the Orcas will work to invert the shark, cutting off its ability to fight back, and allowing them to feed.


Did you just say "Whaaaaaaat" again? I thought you might. Yes, yes, tonic immobility seems impossible, but alas, nothing is impossible here on liesaboutsharks.

Wolves: Part One, by Julia

Perhaps the first post on this blog should explain why it's not a lie that sharks fall asleep (sort of) when they are flipped upside-down. But that is Meghan's responsibility. So I am hereby christening this blog with the first of a series: Lies About Wolves.

Fact #1:
Gray wolves are built to travel and to hunt. A perfect combination of physical attributes--long legs that result in a powerful stride, big feet that ensure traction over difficult terrain, and strong musculature--allows these sturdy animals to reach sprinting speeds of up to 45 miles per hour.

-Daniel J. Coxl, NaturalExposures.com

Crazy, right?! If this simple fact does not impress, surprise, or intrigue you, just don't read this blog. If, however, it just blew your mind.... well, welcome to the pack. (Fact: nerds cannot resist a good pun. Or a bad pun.)

And now, here are some totally sweet wolf pictures I found on Flickr:
1, 2, 3.