![Sunsets: Sunset seen at the coast in Novigrad, Croatia. Thin clouds turn a normal sunset into a sci-fi worthy sunset. [EOS 7DmkII: 400mm, f5.6, ISO 100, 1/2000 sec]](https://07cc0e.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/3A4A2828-down-cropped-2058-1146-e1443210710946.jpg?time=1669995662)
Sunsets are Illusions
What are sunsets? To human eyes, they are very cool optical illusions. Learn about light scattering, visual perception, and how to photograph sunsets.
Read MoreCategory: Arts and Humanities
The Art of Scientific Illustration
Scientific illustration is more than just cool artwork. It conveys technical details about research that other tools cannot.
Read More
Optical Illusions: Afterimage science + ghosts
Have you ever seen a ghost? How about an after-image? Our bodies aren’t perfect and they sometimes make mistakes, resulting in fun optical illusions.
Read More
Book Review: Never Home Alone
Never Home Alone is a 256 page deep dive into the mind of a chatty biologist. Every chapter focuses on a distinct use-case for biodiversity preservation.
Read More
Book Review: Science By the People
In Science By the People, Kimura and Kinchy describe their challenging research subject: understanding how people are impacted by science.
Read More
Book Review: Field Guide to Citizen Science
Book Review: Field Guide to Citizen Science: How You Can Contribute to Scientific Research and Make a Difference
Read More
Urban Animal Adaptations, the Musical
Adaptations! How do animals adapt to live in human cities? Which animal sings the best? Watch them audition for survival and try an experiment with ping pong balls and tongs! This video is brought to you by our very good friend Sophia Shrand, creator and star of the educational science comedy series Science with Sophie. In this episode, we learn how different animal adaptations help them survive and thrive in city environments. We also learn how many different animals Sophie can portray (a lot). Finally, the experiment is fun for…
Read More
Nuclear Radiation, Citizen Science, and Civic Engagement
In Japan after a nuclear radiation disaster Book Review: Radiation Brain Moms and Citizen Scientists: The Gender Politics of Food Contamination after Fukushima. By Aya Hirata Kimura. Durham: Duke University Press, 2016. Nuclear Radiation and Food Safety In March 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Japan triggered a tsunami that would result in a tragic loss of life. Water overtook the seawalls at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant and damaged critical systems. These events resulted in one of the worst nuclear disasters in history. Survivors near…
Read More
Seeking the Sasquatch
Book Review: When the Sasquatch Legend Teaches Us About Critical Thinking By Patricia Balbon (@watscicomm) Gordon, David George. The Sasquatch Seeker’s Field Manual: Using Citizen Science to Uncover North America’s Most Elusive Creature. Mountaineers Books, 2015. 176 pages. Paperback US$12.26. It’s late, and you’re seeking shelter for the night after a long hike. Something’s lurking among the shadows; pungent wafts of musk barrage your nostrils. In the soft mud, you glimpse a fresh footprint with claw contours. The fronds of a nearby fern are in shreds—could it be a bear?…
Read More
Reflecting on the Life of a Citizen Scientist
Smitten by Giraffe: My Life as a Citizen Scientist is a memoir by Anne Innis Dagg. In the text, she describes her pursuits as a citizen scientist, ranging from her first encounter with giraffe (the plural of giraffe used in Smitten By Giraffe is “giraffe”) as a child, through her studies at the University of Toronto in the 1950s, to her more recent projects. Dagg calls herself a citizen scientist, but like many other citizens scientists, she has in fact worn many hats in her long and exciting career: zoologist,…
Read More