“The Thinker” on the Washington University Campus In the middle of one of the Washington University quads is this wonderfully whimsical re-imagining of August Rodin’sThe Thinker – a lanky looking rabbit, assuming the well-known, contemplative pose. Â I just returned from a quick trip to St. Louis and, while there, the sculpture caught […]
In last week’s “Biology Challenge”, I challenged biology teachers to contribute identifications and descriptions of the relationships illustrated in a photo of aphids, ants and milkweeds. Sure enough, within an hour the milkweed was successfully identified as Asclepias syrica and the aphids as Aphis nerii. A number of various Formica […]
Here’s a cool but complex ecological interaction directly involving at least three species going on in my backyard. (Olathe, KS) We’ve had a mostly cool and wet spring to date. The plant involved is about 0.6 m tall at this point and there is a large flower bud within these leaves. For this challenge, let’s […]
Last week I introduced a group of young people to a new world of wonder. It has been a short time since I noticed doing that, but in reality I have enjoyed a lifetime of “new world” introductions. You see, I spent the majority of my life (so far,) as a biology teacher. Though I […]
Lately I have been playing around with people that think kids should go outside and play!! Well, actually I have been listening to speakers that have been promoting this idea, and meeting with lots of folks that agree with this. […]