| The Bay Citizen: A Green Idea That Sounded Good Until the Trees Went to Work The New Zealand Christmas tree thrives in San Francisco, but is destructive as well. Nonetheless, it is not easy for a homeowner to gain city permission to remove one. feeds.nytimes.com |
Russia Defers Razing of Seed Repository A modest reprieve for a seed bank that is home to the world's largest collection of European fruits and berries. feeds.nytimes.com |
Grassley Backs Renewable Electricity Standard A bill that would require utilities nationwide to generate at least 15 percent of their electricity from renewable sources like wind, solar and biomass by 2021 is gaining more Republican support. feeds.nytimes.com |
Mystery Bird: Wilson's warbler, Wilsonia pusilla | GrrlScientist A daily mystery bird demsytified! This gorgeous but tiny neotropical species has an impressive taxonomic history to share with youWilson's warbler, Wilsonia pusilla, photographed at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary, Brazoria County, Texas, United States. Image: Joseph Kennedy, 29 September 2010 [would you like to see this bird with binoculars?].Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/500s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400Question: This stunning North American species has experienced a taxonomic migratory history that rivals its seasonal migrations. Can you tell me a little about that?Response: Wilson's Warbler, Wilsonia pusilla, a common neotropical migratory bird, has experienced a rather impressive taxonomic migration since it was first described nearly 200 years ago by the American ornithologist Alexander Wilson. In his description, he assigned this species to the genus Muscicapa. But a couple decades later in 1838, the French naturalist and ornithologist, Charles Lucien Bonaparte, moved this species to its current genus, Wilsonia (named for Wilson). But almost immediately afterwards in 1840, zoologist Thomas Nuttall moved this cute little bird to the now-defunct genus Sylvania. But that classification didn't stick, either, because by 1845, many naturalists had placed this species into another (now defunct) genus, Myiodioctes. But in 1899, the American Ornithological Union returned this taxonomically-migratory species to Wilsonia, where it has remained since. Embedded below is a 2 minute radio program about the migration of the Wilson's Warbler (also including the species' lovely song), thanks to my friends at BirdNote Radio:If you have bird images, video or mp3 files that you'd like to share with a large and appreciate audience, feel free to email them to me for consideration.GrrlScientistguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
And now, a few words from the grandfather I wish I had In this video, recorded in February 2010, we see Dr Mandelbrot develop a theme he first discussed at TED in 1984 -- the extreme complexity of roughness, and the way that fractal math can find order within patterns that seem undefinably complicated.Benoît B. Mandelbrot died a few days ago from pancreatic cancer in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was 85. He was a French and American mathematician (and a citizen of both countries), best known as the father of fractal geometry. Dr Mandelbrot coined the term "fractal" to refer to a new class of mathematical shapes whose uneven contours could mimic the irregularities found in nature. "I decided to go into fields where mathematicians would never go because the problems were badly stated," Dr Mandelbrot said. "I have played a strange role that none of my students dare to take." In a seminal book, The Fractal Geometry of Nature [Amazon UK; Amazon US], published in 1982, Dr Mandelbrot defended mathematical objects that he said others had dismissed as "monstrous" and "pathological." Using fractal geometry, he argued, the complex outlines of clouds and coastlines, once considered unmeasurable, could now "be approached in rigorous and vigorous quantitative fashion." Dr Mandelbrot was considered an outsider for most of his career. But he was also a Sterling Professor of Mathematical Sciences, Emeritus at Yale University; IBM Fellow Emeritus at the Thomas J. Watson Research Center; and a Battelle Fellow at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. "If you take the beginning and the end, I have had a conventional career," Dr Mandelbrot said, referring to his prestigious appointments in Paris and at Yale. "But it was not a straight line between the beginning and the end," he continued, comparing his own career trajectory to the rough outlines of clouds and coastlines that drew him into the study of fractals in the 1950s. "It was a very crooked line." In this video, recorded in February 2010, we see Dr Mandelbrot develop a theme he first discussed at TED in 1984 -- the extreme complexity of roughness, and the way that fractal math can find order within patterns that seem undefinably complicated.TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck on design, Jill Bolte Taylor on observing her own stroke, Nicholas Negroponte on One Laptop per Child, Jane Goodall on chimpanzees, Bill Gates on malaria and mosquitoes, Pattie Maes on the "Sixth Sense" wearable tech, and "Lost" producer JJ Abrams on the allure of mystery. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. Closed captions and translated subtitles in a variety of languages are now available on TED. Watch a highlight reel of the Top 10 TEDTalks.GrrlScientistguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |