Happy Darwin Day!

Happy Darwin Day, everyone!

Just a reminder that you can still get Evolver Zone gear at the EZ Store




Valentine's Day cartoons for scientists.

Valentine’s Day is coming up (so they tell me), and two of the most popular science cartoons have produced appropriate comics:

Or, perhaps you prefer to use the greatest Valentine ever made:


Do you know who sends me more paper junk mail than anybody else?

The David Suzuki Foundation.  Yep, the environmentalist organization which I’m sure has done many great things sends me regular junk mail asking for money.  Why?  Because a couple of years ago, my evolution class came up with a t-shirt and the students bought it, with the money going to charity.  The students chose the David Suzuki Foundation as one of the charities, and I made the donation.  Ever since then, they have been bombarding my mailbox with requests for more money.

The irony is two-fold here.  One, this is an environmental foundation that has probably killed several trees just bugging me, and two, because of the non-stop paper junk mail I won’t be giving them money again.


Another great move by NSERC.

They’re really on a roll!

NSERC sees researchers as out-source labour

NSERC slammed over new programs


Where was I? Round 2 answer.

Several people have correctly identified the location. Well done!

Here is a breakdown of the votes:

Spain: 8
Cuba: 6
Brazil: 5
Italy: 3
Ecuador: 1
Portugal: 1

The correct answer is Cuba. The first image was in Trinidad, and the others in Havana. The third was the Museo de la Revolucion.


Introducing Hackademe!

My latest online project: Hackademe!

Hack: A clever use of technology, software, or modified items to solve a problem or increase efficiency.


Academe: The community of scholars and students engaged in higher education and research; also known as academia or acadème.


Hackademe: A website devoted to sharing clever uses of technology, software, or modified items to solve problems related to information overload, time management, organization, productivity, and other challenges faced by academics on a daily basis.


Where was I? 2-3.

Ok, last clue. Looks like someone knows, but I won’t reveal the result just yet.

Choose from among previous guesses, or add a new one:


Where was I? 2-2

Only one guess so far (Spain)?  Must be a hard one.  Here’s clue 2:

Choose from among previous guesses, or add a new one:


News about E:EO.

Given that they have announced it on their Facebook page, I assume it’s ok for me to also mention it here.

I have officially resigned as Associate Editor and member of the editorial board of Evolution: Education and Outreach.

This was a painful decision, and not one that I took lightly, given how much I had invested in getting the journal going from the start. Not to go into detail, but the simple answer is that this was due to differences in opinion over content access policies. I will continue to contribute however I can to evolution education in other ways, and I wish the journal and my friends who have worked so hard on it all the best.


Where was I? 2-1

It’s time for another round of Where was I?.

Again, I will post up to 3 pictures that provide increasingly specific clues. Guess in the comments.