Summer is still winning

I'm still enjoying the long, lazy summer days… If anyone has emailed me and not had a reply, sorry; I will get round to it. 'Till then here are a few things I could have posted about but didn't.

For those with an interest in religion, Philip A. Harland (Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Ancient History at York University, Toronto) has a podcast giving a historical context to The New Testament based on his course lectures. His blog is Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean or you can start with Podcast series 1: Paul and his communities.

Uzza's Notes has a list of Rape Prevention Tips along with the current humorous deconstruction of the Gospel of Matthew.

The first images from yesterday's flyby of asteroid 21 Lutetia by the Rosetta probe are on The Planetary Society Blog. Can't wait to see the hi-res colour!

Finally there's a new piece of wall art with an evolutionary theme:

BIG BANG BIG BOOM - the new wall-painted animation by BLU [9:55]


OK, I’m off to band practice. Have fun! Grow into these trousers... >>

Laugh and be educated

Just before he died, the much missed Douglas Adams gave the following talk about his experiences tracking down endangered species. I have never seen this video before, though Adams' Last Chance To See is an old favoutite.

You don't really need to watch, just listen, there are no slides or photos. It's simply Adams talking, mainly without notes, and the stage lighting could have been better.

But in his talk, Adams recapitulates and updates Last Chance. It's '''king brilliant!!!

However it's an hour and a half long so get comfy, with refreshment close at hand, and enjoy. If you listen to nothing else, make it the 'Yangtze river dolphin' from 43:45ish onwards.

Douglas Adams: Parrots the Universe and Everything

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Via Skepchick. Grow into these trousers... >>

Fossils, Genes, and Gaps

I've posted before about Neil Shubin's remarkable work in uncovering fossils from the time when vertebrates made the transition from water to land, about 375 million years ago, and a fascinating story it is. Here's a recent lecture given by Shubin at UC Berkeley in March 2009.

The Great Transitions in Evolution:

Note: the first 5 or 6 mins is someone introducing the person who introduces the person who introduces Neil Shubin, so skip forward to 5:30 or so.
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Via Atheist Media Blog. Grow into these trousers... >>

What Darwin's theory tells us about ourselves

Many thanks to the Atheist Media Blog for posting this oldish (1998) but remarkable discussion on the meaning of evolution as applied to humanity.

Covering ground from evolutionary development to the appreciation of music this round-table talk gets a triple AAA from me.

Chaired by Melvyn Bragg, historian and broadcaster - now Lord Bragg and Chancellor of the University of Leeds.

On the panel are:
Steven Pinker, professor of psychology at MIT - now at Harvard.
Meredith Small, Cornell professor of anthropology.
Steve Jones, biologist and a professor of genetics and head of the biology department at University College London.
Sir Jonathan Miller, theatre and opera director, neurologist, author, television presenter, humorist and sculptor (if you are unfamiliar with Miller, watch this).

The Darwin Debate (1/5)


The debate continues below the belt:

The Darwin Debate (2/5)


The Darwin Debate (3/5)


The Darwin Debate (4/5)


The Darwin Debate (5/5)
Grow into these trousers... >>

Bacteria

Love 'em or hate 'em, they are as much a part of us as the skin, liver, brain and gonad cells which carry our own DNA.

Watch Bonnie Bassler speaking at TED:

Discovering bacteria's amazing communication system

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via Pharyngula. Grow into these trousers... >>

A Darwinian Easter egg

"An egg collected by Charles Darwin during his voyage on HMS Beagle has been rediscovered at Cambridge University." - BBC News

Photo credit: The Guardian; The University of Cambridge.

You may ask what kind of bird lays that kinder egg? (And is the toy inside a bit of a yolk?)

So I tried to find out.

News reports say the egg's origin was traced back to a friend and contemporary of Darwin's, Alfred Newton, a Professor of Comparative Anatomy at Cambridge. His notes reveal:

"One egg, received through Frank Darwin, having been sent to me by his father who said he got it at Maldonado (Uruguay) and that it belonged to the Common Tinamou of those parts."

Frank Darwin was, I guess, Francis Darwin, Charles' third son, who received the egg from his father and passed it to Newton for the collection at Cambridge, where it lay in obscurity till earlier this year.

Now, the tinamous are a large family of South American birds with 47 recognised species, though none are called the 'Common Tinamou'. There is a tinamou named Dawin's Nothura, Nothura darwinii, but this is an Andean species and not from Uruguay where the egg was collected.

The Tinamou Research Group website notes two Uruguayan species: the Red-winged Tinamou, Rhynchotus rufescens, and the smaller Spotted Tinamou, Nothura maculosa. The video in the BBC report shows two rather moth-eaten museum bird specimens and doesn't identify them, but the Spotted Tinamou seems to match well in size and colouration.

Nothura maculosa. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons.

The eggs too match with Darwin's:

Nothura maculosa - eggs. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons.

At the Internet Bird Collection you can watch a couple of videos of Spotted Nothura, and at the foot of that page is a recording of it's song. The BBC quote from Darwin's notes that the bird had a "high shrill chirp". Ear piercing I would have said.

So have I identified the correct species? I don't know, I'm not an ornithologist and comments are welcome. Seeing as how they went to the trouble of videoing the museum specimens, the BBC could have identified it and saved all the hassle but then I may not have had such an enjoyable, two-cup coffee break this morning.

Happy Easter! Grow into these trousers... >>

A nice synopsis - Evolution/Creation

Via LGF, I was tipped off about this video on The Basics of Evolution. It's from QualiaSoup, a YouTuber who deserves more attention. He's not bad.

It's a good presentation of evolutionary biology with the bonus of clarifying the misconceptions of some religious points of view.

Evolution


For those unfamiliar with the banana and crocoduck arguments, there are further educational videos below the belt:

Do not feel obliged to watch all of this, but:

See ~3:50 for the hilarious crocoduck
God must exist... because the crocoduck doesn't!


And look ~2:30 in for cola cans and bananas (FFS have they never heard of the Cavendish?)
The Way Of The Master : Atheism (Part 1 of 3)


You may now feel the need to wash your brain. This is perfectly normal!

BTW, my earlier thought that the Rational Response Squad had been pulled from YouTube was misinformed and JREF have been reinstated (thought it's still unclear to me why they were pulled in the first place - a copyright issue?). Grow into these trousers... >>

A fishy story about sex

Recently there have been news reports of fossil finds which show that, 380 million years ago in the Devonian, fish were reproducing by internal fertilization and giving birth to live offspring. PZ Myers had a good post on this, see 'Exposing the intimate details of the sex lives of placoderms', and Nature have released a video describing the fossils and their interpretation. Watch it on YouTube:



F**king ancient fish! This of course raises questions as to the lineage of land vertebrates such as ourselves. The majority of fish reproduce externally by spawning (the aquarium guppy is another exception though I'm sure there are more). Amphibians can vary. Most spawn, though the females of some frogs and salamanders can take up the male's sperm packet to fertilize their eggs inside. The unusual caecilians all practice insemination, though some species then lay eggs whilst some give birth to live young. Reptiles, birds and mammals all copulate, sometimes with surprising variety.

But there remains one important question I have to ask.

Did Tiktaalik fuck? Inquiring minds would like to know.
(And if so, did the guys dress to the left or to the right?)
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Thanks to Atheist Media Blog for the video link. Grow into these trousers... >>

God & the Universe

This is the last of Richard Dawkins' short videos which I'm posting to celebrate Charles Darwin's bicentennial.

Harrumph, and the only one of this series I have much of a gripe with. Watch it first; YouTube or hi-res:



Dawkins asks "Has human evolution come to an end?" [0:59]. The answer to that question is a simple no.

Like all living things humanity is a halfway house between what was before and what is to come. All life balances on the edge between change and extinction. Brain size and fecundity are not the sole answer and given the fate of the dinosaurs, luck has large part to play. Grow into these trousers... >>

Evolution in a minute

Seed Magazine has an interesting series of articles to mark Darwin Day but this remarkable video is worth a look above all.

From its formation 4.6 billion years ago, the video follows the history of the Earth noting evolutionary milestones on the way. Then, zzzip, they compresses the timescale to fit everything into 1 minute.

This screenshot is at about 30 seconds - there's a lot about to happen in the next 30.--------------------------
Via Pharyngula. Grow into these trousers... >>

On Creationism

Part 4 of Dawkins on Darwin on YouTube or on hi res.

Grow into these trousers... >>

Why Darwin Was Right

More from Richard Dawkins in recognition of the legacy of Charles Darwin.

If you prefer, here's the hi res.

Why Darwin Was Right [2:07]
Grow into these trousers... >>

Fossils & Darwin

Richard Dawkins continues his series of short videos:

Watch on YouTube or go here for hi-res.

Richard Dawkins on Fossils & Darwin
Grow into these trousers... >>

The Importance of Charles Darwin

In 2009 the science of evolutionary biology sees two major celebrations. On November 24^th it will be 150 years since the publication of On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin, and this Thursday (12^th February) would have been Darwin's 200^th birthday. Were he only still here to marvel at the advancements made in the biological sciences following his insight into the interconnectedness of living things.

Here's Richard Dawkins in a short [2:07] video on 'The Importance of Charles Darwin'. Watch it on YouTube or go to National Geographic for hi res.


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More of these short videos to come. Thanks to Sandwalk for pointing them out. Grow into these trousers... >>

Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life

David Attenborough's documentary on Charles Darwin and evolutionary biology aired last night. As a televisually impaired person (no TV) I've just caught up on the BBC's iPlayer. And it's well worth seeing. Lavish modern footage is intercut with excerpts from Attenborough's earlier works to guide us through Darwin's scientific insight. Here and there though some topics are a bit rushed but given the 60 min time slot this is perhaps understandable. I would have liked a more convincing explanation of the way radiometric dating shows the age of rocks, but then the development of the eye is covered quite adequately. After that we are very quickly bounced from Gregor Mendel to DNA analysis but Attenborough pulls a great finale out of the bag. The short sequence below comes towards the end and recapitulates evolutionary history.

Thanks to The Lay Scientist for pointing out the link.

The Tree of Life.
Grow into these trousers... >>

Here's a more rational view of Charles Darwin

You folks with tellys should be getting ready to tune in - 01 Feb 2009, 21:00 on BBC One.

Nature Video: David Attenborough on Darwin
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Via Pharyngula. Grow into these trousers... >>

Lots to do in 2009

Just a reminder that 2009 is The International Year of Astronomy, so pay them a visit and see what events might be in your area.

The daily podcast is up and running and well worth a listen. Just now I'm listening to Who Ordered the Dark Matter and Dark Energy? with Fraser Cain and Pamela Gay from Astronomy Cast.



In addition, 2009 will see the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Darwin on February 12^th and the 150^th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species on November 24^th. Watch out for lots evolution themed things this year like the current exhibition at The Natural History Museum.

Happy science year! Grow into these trousers... >>

Tiktaalik revisited

A while back I mentioned the fascinating find of an early tetrapod fossil by Neil Shubin and his team. Intermediate between the lobe finned fish (think coelacanths) and the first land living vertebrates, Tiktaalik displays the characteristics of common ancestry which all amphibians, reptiles, birds, monotremes, marsupials and mammals have inherited. Though we may be distant cousins rather than share direct lineage, Tiktaalik and ourselves are a part of the same family.

Shubin's previous talk, interesting though it was, was for his book promotion. Here's a talk which is much more polished. Sit back for an hour and watch good paleontology at work.

Year of Darwin - Neil Shubin, Ph.D.


PS - there is a long intro, so skip to ~0:03:45 for the real start.

Via PZ Myers. Grow into these trousers... >>

Female evolution

A new fossil find in Northern Ethiopia from 1.2 million years ago gives an insight into human evolution and specifically the female of our species.

A fossil pelvic bone from the aptly named Homo erectus (it means walking upright), shows that the females were physically adapting to the larger brains of their offspring. A larger brain needs a bigger head and the mother has to accommodate this . The birth canal of the fossil is described as bigger than previously anticipated based upon a male fossil pelvis (err?).

It had been thought that H. erectus was a slender species, an adaption to aid heat loss in the hot African sun, but it was known to have had a large brain. Clearly a narrow pelvis would limit the brain size of the newborn so this discovery may herald the beginnings of more a human-like foetal development, another aspect of the link between mother and child.

My 'below the belt' thoughts continue below the belt.

A wider pelvis is what gives the ladies that alluring sway of the hips. Sure it has a place in human evolution, it's the wiggle in the walk. It beats the magic-apple-eating rib-woman theory anyway.

The Big Bopper - Chantilly Lace - 45rpm

Note: I'll be watching for an update at Afarensis.
Grow into these trousers... >>

More creationist nonsense

Via The National Secular Society and Telegraph.co.uk.

Third of teachers would give creationism the same status as evolution in classrooms

Concludes an email poll by Teachers TV.

What? I hope the respondents were PE teachers or have nothing to do with biology or any other science. Why do I fear I am wrong? (Note: it was 31.1%. That is not one third, it's nearer 3 out of 10. Good start Teachers TV).

So a proportion of teachers feel it is acceptable to hold back scientifically aware students while they pander to superstitious belief! Why are those children taking science in the first place, are they advised that way? Kind of "It's good to have a science qualification and biology is easy. None of those damn formulae and stuff." If true that is bad advice for the children. If it's not true then surely remedial classes, at the pupils expense (or their parents) would be more productive - why opt to study biology when your background understanding is lacking?

I followed this up by watching the featured video on Teachers TV School Matters - Adam Rutherford on Evolution and Creationism.
Whilst it starts well it descends rapidly into murk.

Michael Reiss appears early on and I still think he's wrong. In fact Jeremy Pritchard and Randal Keynes seem to be the only sane voices.

Next appearance was from the inappropriately named creationist organisation 'Truth in Science*' who mailed their propaganda to all schools in the country a couple of years ago. Fifty nine schools responded that it was a "valuable classroom resource". OK there are thousands of schools in the UK but 59 responded positively, and that is 59 too many. I hope some of those head teachers were joking. Or was it the PE teachers again. I doubt it. Truth in Science produces some very modern looking science videos which are just eye candy to draw the unaware into bullshit. The sensible move would be to bin it and forget it. It's about as valuable as Harun Yahya's fishing lures (more on this some other time).

The program had also contacted various faith schools/organisations to see if they would enter into dialogue. The answer? No, not one of them. None would even offer an opinion. That says a lot about closed mindedness. Only one teacher, seemingly found at random taking a school trip round the Natural History Museum, was willing to speak about his faith and it's just blustering apologetics.

On to a school classroom where the teacher had won an award, and the lesson looked like good fun till it was polluted by a 'chaplain' misinforming a young man about the evolution of the eye. The teacher then claimed it was a case of playing devil's advocate, so what is happening? Are the kids being taught biology or debating skills?

Should creationism be taught? Yes, as part of a study of comparative religion, contrasting mythologies from around the world. I have no argument with that, social studies are important. History, especially the history of science is anther field where creationism has a place. Teaching how modern thought has developed (evolved) from Dark Age belief can give an insight into the scientific methods used today.

But classroom time in real science is too valuable to waste on primitive ideas which make no contribution to understanding.

Only one thing left to say:

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* this link has the rel="nofollow" attribute so Google will not count it as any kind of positive endorsement. Grow into these trousers... >>