Charles Darwin: Birthday Guy

"The overwhelming evidence at trial established that ID [intelligent design] is a religious view, a mere re-labeling of creationism, and not a scientific theory." ~ from Tammy Kitzmiller, et al. v. Dover Area School District, et al., Case No. 04cv2688

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Doubtless the blogosphere will be full of Darwin-related posts today, so rather than recreate the wheel, I'll tell you a little story... from whence the Science Dweeb evolved.

When I was very young, up until the age of three, I wore leg braces to correct a congenital hip defect, and was unable to walk very much. My mom, in her young and infinite wisdom, used to take me often in my stroller to the Smithsonian Institution, to see the dinosaurs at the Museum of Natural History.

The museum was free (which was ideal for our tiny family's meager budget) and I happened to love dinosaurs, even as a very little girl. I didn't go to preschool. I went to the museums with my mother. I knew my Monets from my Manets, too.

Apparently, I could identify most of the dinosaurs and animals in the main exhibits, and could pronounce their convoluted names with perfect clarity (not that I could repeat such a feat now-- the ravages of aging on the memory apply here) . The most oft-repeated story is about a class of older children, maybe sixth graders, who were visiting the museum with their teacher on a field trip.

My mother and I were in amongst the crowd, but I was totally concealed, being much shorter than everyone else (seated in my low-rider stroller). The teacher, taking her class past every dinosaur, would ask them: Now what is the name of this dinosaur? To which the entire class would not answer, but I did. I kept offering up the names to the questions, unseen by all, in my biggest little girl voice.

Finally, the teacher, wondering where the tiny voice was emanating from that kept saying things like "Brontosaurus!" "Triceratops!" and "Stegosaurus!", discovered me, hidden in the forest of taller children's legs, sitting in my stroller. The teacher asked my mother if I was a midget. I guess that was the only thing she could come up with, as to how a two-year-old could possibly know her dinosaurs so well.

Thanks, Mommy, for starting me out right in a lifetime of wanting to know stuff. I don't think I'll ever stop.

xoxo

***

Now when I'm outside and see a blue jay hopping about, being so fierce and territorial in his little birdlike way, I look at him and smile and remember that some of the dinosaurs I loved so much are still around. They're just a lot smaller than they used to be.

***

Today is Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. I don't have the energy or patience to discuss why Ben Stein and his moronic documentary is garnering any attention at all, and why Intelligent Design is even an issue that is still getting discussed, and why sometimes it seems like we haven't gotten very far at all since the Scopes Trial. I'm just going to wish Mr. Darwin a very happy birthday and celebrate that his discovery is still a candle burning brightly against the darkness of misguided and wishful thinking. (Note: I'm unapologetically not posting any pro-ID/anti-evolution comments here, so don't send them.)

An article that gives a nice overview to Darwin and his legacy is here. You can read more about International Darwin Day here. And for every single Darwin-related event in the SF Bay Area, check out evolve2009.org. And last, but not least, the young, bright legal mind at Thaumaturgic Ramblings was smart enough yesterday to post his Darwin Day Eve post, so catch his thoughts here. Survival of the fastest.

One particular event that caught my eye: there's going to be a very interesting lecture at the California Academy of Sciences, given by Dr. Kevin Padian, Professor at the Dept. of Integrative Biology, UC Berkeley, on March 24. Dr. Padian will be discussing his experience as an expert witness in the 2005 Pennsylvania trial, Kitzmiller vs. Dover, that ruled against the teaching of intelligent design in public schools. You can find out more about this event here. I've got my ticket.

And watch out for dinosaurs around you. They didn't really all become extinct... some of them evolved. Ain't that a kick in the head? I love it.

Orbiting Fomalhaut, or Things We Did on Jan. 1, 2009

I don't know how he did it, but The Boy wrangled us some tickets to the new Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences today. (I've been there three times already, and the lines to do anything there, including use the bathroom, are formidable. So I've not even been close to the inside of the planetarium until today.)

But whatever he did--bribe, kiss, look menacing-- The Boy knows that his little science dweeb Tangobaby enjoys nothing better than some good space-based entertainment. For those who remember the old planetariums with the spidery, imposing star projectors in the center of the floor, those days are gone. Instead are six state-of-the-art projectors cleverly hidden around the ceiling, creating the IMAX version of space travel for those of us packed into the stadium seating.

I miss the old-fangled projector, though. It was a childlike pleasure to think that an universe of stars was enclosed in a metal projector in San Francisco. The stars had to come from somewhere, right? The new show is modern, spectacular with lots of zooming and moving about the planets, and you get the added attraction of Sigourney Weaver's reading the narration.

As much as I was enjoying our trip through the universe, half of my brain kept going off and getting all distracted, wondering is that really Signourney Weaver's voice, or someone who sounds almost exactly like her, and if I really like Alien more than Aliens (I do), and how if it really was her voice, how cool it was (and entirely appropriate) that Ripley would be narrating our space journey.

The best part of the presentation was at the end, after the movie portion, when the planetarium guy (don't know what else to call him) told us about some very recent discoveries regarding exoplanets, or extrasolar planets. I had no idea that we've found so many, 333 planets to date. And two major discoveries by two different teams of astronomers on the same day (Fomalhaut b, which is 25 light years from Earth, and 130 light years away, the three planets orbiting a star named HR 8799).

Learning stuff like this just make me wish I was eight years old again, dreaming of being an astronaut or an astronomer, or wishing I could live several lifetimes just to see what we might discover over a span of a few generations. And I also think about a Pale Blue Dot, that no matter how much we discover about the universe, we're still just a mote, a speck. The real version of Horton Hears a Who!

Awesomely beautiful and fragile and rare, all at the same time.

Of course, I couldn't finish a post like this without another free association segue, so how about some David Bowie: "Life on Mars." I still don't quite understand the lyrics, but it's one song that does bring out the tiny feelings we have sometimes, that our lives are small. Small they may be, but not insignificant. And Bowie, I just love him, so that's reason enough right there.




I'm normally not a huge fan of cover music, but I really love Brazilian singer Seu Jorge's Portuguese covers of Bowie's music. You may remember his songs from the woefully underappreciated (and my favorite) Wes Anderson film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. (The Critereon Collection DVD has a ton of great extras to enjoy with the film itself.)

Magic Show or Spanish Inquisition

Tonight after work I went for a mani-pedi, especially because weeknights are better for a chance to hang out with my little friend C. She's at the nail salon with her mom after school.

We have our routine down now. She helps me pick out a nail polish color (she knows all of my favorites). Then she sits next to me while my feet are soaking in hot water, and she decides how she will "quiz" me, which is an extremely mild version of what I imagine the Spanish Inquisition might be like, except that my Inquisitor is a slender 8-year old girl wearing pink sweatpants and I, her captive, am just winding down from a long day of sitting in front of a computer and then coming home on the train. Usually our Inquisition starts with a spelling bee or she grabs a calculator to test my mathematics skills. You try doing long division or multiplication in your head while your hands are being worked on by a manicurist. It's not easy.

Tonight Little C. has a new addition in her quiz-meistering, a student's dictionary which is really more like a abbreviated almanac. She was dying to quiz me on the Periodic Table of Elements (little did she know that she wouldn't be able to stump me quite so easily because I loved chemistry) but before she got rolling, I made her look up what an atom was. Little C. didn't want to--she wanted to jump straight into the Inquisition (why am I never the quizzer? I guess it's the 8-year old's prerogative)--but I told her that if she didn't even know what an atom was, then there's no sense in talking about the Periodic Table of Elements. She reluctantly read the description of an atom aloud ("the smallest component of an element having the chemical properties of the element") before slamming me with two-lettered abbreviations (she got me on Fermium).

But then where the hell did these other elements come from: Ununtrium? Ununquadium? I thought Little C. was playing with me, but wouldn't you know it, there's a whole slew of elements that came out of hiding after I graduated college. It's hard to keep up, you know.

***

I was waiting for her to pull out her magic trick, but alas, no magic show tonight. The last time Little C. and I were together, I took her to the new science museum at Golden Gate Park. I think she liked the museum just fine, liked using my camera even more, and really liked the gift shop. But then I took her to the magic store down the street, Misdirections. I bought her one of those cheap plastic coin-hiding things. You probably had one when you were a kid. You pull out the tray and put a quarter in the hole. Then you slide it inside the case and there's some sort of lever that pushes a thingy-ma-bob and it hides the coin.

Little C. was very perfunctory with her magic trick, as she is with her Spanish Inquisition-style quizzing. She just kept hiding and unhiding the coin over and over again. It did not make for a very exciting magic show. Finally I told her, look, you've got to add a little pizazz to your act. Make up a story about this magic coin box.

"You mean I have to lie?" she says.

"No, not lie exactly," I try to explain. "You need to develop your patter. That's what magicians do. They have a fabulous story that helps to distract the audience so that they can't tell when and how a magic effect is done. The talking part of the act is called patter. You could also wear a sparkly ring or a fancy necklace and people would look at that too, and that would make it easier to trick them."

"Oh, good," she says, "because I don't want to lie." Bless her heart.

She went from having no patter at all to a fantastical 5-minute fable about a secret cave in Vietnam where behind a very special brick that only she could identify was this ancient carved jade magical box that hides coins through the use of mind powers, magic words (abracadabra just being one) and precise, flowing hand gestures. Actually, the story is so much more intricate than what I've described here. You're getting the condensed version because she does need to tighten her patter just a bit. I hesitate to say her act is a little boring, but because she's cute and very excited about her magic act, I pretend as if I've never seen this trick ten times already. Sometimes she goes around the shop and does her effect for each person getting a manicure.

I'm not sure which I enjoy better: the interminable magic act that consists of one very long and oft-repeated trick of hiding a quarter, or the incessant and thorough quizzing of a mind that's racking itself to do division to three decimal places without benefit of a calculator, or even a pencil.

Actually, I enjoy both forms of the Little C. Inquisition. It's not worth getting a mani-pedi without them. Although I need to buy her a few more effects for her magic show. I'm not sure whether the other customers appreciate her coin-hiding trick as much as I do.

***

ps.: It wouldn't be a proper post if I didn't free associate something here with a Monty Python skit, so for your general edification, I give you The Spanish Inquisition:

You'll Never Guess Who I Saw Friday Night

10:30PM. I'm on the N-Judah train coming home from downtown. Sarah Palin herself is about five feet away from me, wearing her red skirt suit, black pumps and trademark sexy librarian glasses. In her folksy manner, she's identifying the mavericks on the train, and the passengers are loving it. They're asking her about where the real Americans live (her answer: Alaska) and what she likes to read (her answer: everything). She's also talking about the Communists in America.

And you'll never guess who was sitting next to her! You guessed it: Joe the Plumber. But he had grown a head of dark, thick hair so I didn't recognize him until he pulled a wrench out of his pocket. (I thought he was Todd.)

Yes, Halloween night on the N-Judah. I also saw Amy Winehouse, Gwen Stefani, a cute girl bee with a skateboard and a pregnant nun, just to name a few more revelers.

However, I did not have my hands free to take photos of them for you and for that, I apologize because everyone looked festive and wild and was having a rollicking good time.

***

Returning home, my hands were full of books and information from the second installment of my Mental Stimulus Package (man, I forgot to tell you about the first part with Ben Frankin and the glass armonica. Next time.).

I went to The Leakey Prize Laureate Lectures, honoring Dr. Jane Goodall and Dr. Toshisada Nishida, at the Herbst Theatre. From the program description: The Leakey Prize was established in 1990 to reward intellectual achievement and express appreciation for research performed with courage and perseverance in the fields of ape and human evolution. Both Dr. Goodall and Dr. Toshisada Nishida will discuss the highlights of their pioneering careers. Through their diligent work, these scientists have shaped the field of primatology and uncovered pivotal findings that help us better understand one of our closes living relatives, the chimpanzee.

I don't even know where to start in describing the feeling of seeing Dr. Goodall on stage, speaking in her trademark calm, collected yet passionate story of her early years, her tutelage under Dr. Louis Leakey and the incredible faith he placed in her, and her deep desire to help reverse years of environmental damage and endangerment of many animal species, not just her beloved chimpanzees of Gombe.

If you're like me, you grew up reading Jane Goodall's books, watching her on National Geographic television specials. I also was secretly envious of her son, Grub, who got to spend his childhood living amongst the tribe of chimpanzees that Goodall studied for almost 30 years.


“The most important thing is to actually think about what you do. To become aware and actually think about the effect of what you do on the environment and on society. That's key, and that underlies everything else.” ~ Dr. Jane Goodall

I saw Dr. Goodall speak once before, when I was in college and she visited my university. Then the talk was about the chimps, and her work with them. The talk this year was different. Dr. Goodall travels about 300 days of the year, all over the world. She talks about preserving animal habitats and shared stories of the villages that her foundation has helped, encouraging safe farming habits, microloans to women, keeping girls in school and reforestation techiques, all of which have greatly improved the lives of villagers that had been deforesting areas of Tanzania and endangering the habitats of chimpanzees and many other animals. Her talk focused on how improving and educating the people has only served to enhance and improve the lives of the animals she struggles to save. Through the Jane Goodall Institute and her outreach program for children called Roots and Shoots, she has been doing extraordinary work outside the forests of Tanzania.

I could not help relating her talk to the tempestuous presidential campaign and the incredible need for effective and immediate science and math education for our kids to maintain our standing in the world as a leading nation (I won't even begin to address that Sarah Palin fruit fly debacle) not to mention the important contributions that studying chimpanzees, our closest living relatives on the evolutionary ladder, holds for the understanding of our own species.

It became vitally clear to me that not only are we poised to destroy an amazing link in evolutionary biolology (over 1,000,000 chimpanzees in 1960s down to about 200-300,000 today) but we are losing such a stronghold by not teaching our children how important science is in the real world to protecting the only planet we have. Our presidential election only emphasizes the polarity in our approaches to these crucial subjects.

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From a recent speech: “What gives me hope,” Dr. Goodall says, “is the amazing capacity of the human brain to come up with innovative solutions, the indomitable human spirit that fights back, and the resilience of nature.”

“It’s time to recreate the age of wisdom when elders would gather and ponder how any decision they would make would affect our future seven generations down the line,” says Goodall. Quoting the words of an Eskimo leader, she concluded: “Up in the north, the ice is melting. What will it take to melt the ice in the human heart?”

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After the talk, I stood in line for almost as long as the talk, to have a chance to finally meet Dr. Goodall. While in line, we all shared stories of growing up with Jane, what a powerful impression she had made on us, and what a singular experience it was to hear her speak. I signed up to become a member of both of her organizations.

While we waited in line, servers carrying trays of cookies and Halloween candy and apple cider kept us full of sugary treats. And then finally it was my turn to stand next to a childhood idol, have her sign my books and try not to be overwhelmed and cry.

She first signed a chimpanzee mask for Little Curly Girl, my niece. I told her the LCG was recently just two years old, so she signed it "with love" because in her words, "Being two years old means she should get lots of extra love." (Almost cried but didn't.)

Then she signed my books. I told her what an honor it was to be in her presence and then we had our photo taken together (which I'll post when I find it on her website). And then I walked to the train station in a bit of a wistful mood.

As I waited for the train, I looked at what Dr. Goodall had written in my book.

For Julie
Follow your heart.
Jane Goodall

And surrounded by crazily dressed adult trick-or-treaters, I did cry a little bit. Happy/sad crying.

***

"Change happens by listening and then starting a dialogue with the people who are doing something you don't believe is right." ~ Jane Goodall

Like Jane, I keep our fingers crossed for us primates. All of us primates. I think we can still pull it off and I think President Obama can help us get started.

Give a Kid a Camera

And she'll take 247 photos in 2 hours.

Yesterday Little C. and I went to the science museum as planned. I had shown her once before how to use my camera and told her she was welcome to borrow it, but she was very afraid she would drop it. But once I convinced her it was safe with the strap around her neck, she was a photographic mad-girl.

Some of the photos were blurry because it was hard for her to hold the camera and press the button at the same time because her hands are small. But that didn't dampen her enthusiasm much. We also worked out a way for me to hold the camera steady while she pressed the button. Teamwork! Here are some of the highlights:

The African chameleon (actually there are three in the exhibit and they are very very fun to watch!)

The coral reefs of the Phillipines

A lizard-y guy

Another lizard-y guy

This kid is crazy for penguins

This little guy was one of my favorites

A sting ray

She liked these zebras because they held still while she took her photo (being stuffed, as they were).

After the museum she ate a grilled hot dog that was almost as big as she was.
And then we went to the magic store.

I think we have a future Houdini in our midst.
I think the camera has nothing on the magic store now!

Abracadabra!

Name that Pumpkin!

I could not help but think that this is one of the more ingeniously wicked pumpkin carvings I've seen recently. It's cannibalizing right in my neighborhood for all to see. I'm a little envious... if I can remember correctly, my pumpkins were always kind of mediocre and common.

I am sure there are a few of you out there who can come up with a fun name for this Halloween pumpkin. I seem to only have ideas for Election Campaign Buttons these days.



My cabinet posts are filling up! But I need more good people.
And I keep thinking about what goodies I might possibly put in my little basket o'treats for the winner.



I think julochka, despite whatever other post I might appoint her to, is readily proving herself to be my Secretary of Campaign Buttons Extraordinaire.

***

I hope you all have fun starting NOW.



I'm ready for an action-packed few days off, starting with a musical date with my future Secretary of Cultural Awesomeness, Ms. Red Shoes and that great Irish rock band, Culann's Hounds. And a pint of cider.

And then a Saturday date with my buddy Little C., as I'll be her escort to the California Academy of Sciences I told you about. She was so excited for her first visit there that she begged me not to tell her anything about it, because then she'd be "too excited to sleep!" Now that is my kind of little science dweeby girl!

And then a bunch of other stuff I can't remember right now because I forgot to have a cup of coffee this morning and now it's too late for brain recovery.

Have a good weekend, folks, and don't forget to join my administration!

Science Dweeb

"My theory of evolution is that Darwin was adopted." ~ Steven Wright

Yep. You're looking at one. Science dweeb.

But this one had very nice eyeshadow on today. It was her first visit to the brand spankin' new California Academy of Sciences, practically in her backyard, in Golden Gate Park. She thought this outing was definitely worth dressing up for.

She's been loving this place since she was like six or seven years old, and especially was a big big admirer of the two-headed snake (it's dead now, sadly). And then the building was damaged in the 1989 earthquake, and the city slooooooowly designed and built a new one.

And now it's finally open, beautiful and perfect and crawling with lots of other science dweebs of every age.

You really don't know about the whole dinosaur fetish, but she's had it since she was about three years old and her mom used to take her in her little stroller to the Smithsonian.

Seeing a giant T-Rex looming overhead gives her such a thrill, still.

There's a very large and important exhibit on climate change, global warming and the rapid extinction of plant and animal species.

It's incredibly moving, impressive and depressing. And a must-see for anyone who wants to keep living on this planet, and not under a rock.

Downstairs in the Steinhart Aquarium, she found some friends who wanted to say "Howdy!" to you guys.

Like the...

Pacific spiny limpsucker

We don't know who this is but he lives with the limpsuckers.

The albino alligator

Waxy monkey tree frogs

Sea anemones and starfish.

OMG! Seahorses!

A tiny male homo sapiens reading an important book.

***

The science dweeb did not get to go to the planetarium or the rain forest aviary today.
The lines were a little too long and she was already too overcome by it all to continue.

So she had to retire to her fainting couch to recover.

Ah. Soon, soon.