Archive for February, 2012

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Pet Custody Battles (and bad reporting)


29 Feb

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Posted in Marriage, Pets, Relationships | Comments Off

I have no doubt that custody disputes involving pets are on the rise. It makes sense to me. What does not make sense to me is the argument that the increase is due to “breakups in same-sex marriages, civil unions and domestic partnerships”.

Breakups have always happened between people living together but not married. Maybe because now that there’s actual legal status to these relationships, causing lawyers to be involved, lawyers think the fights are more common

Still better arguments are that more people own pets, and the way pets are viewed in society is changing from property to family.

The Voice (s2 ep5)


28 Feb

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Posted in Music, Television | Comments Off

It was the last night of the blind auditions. I feel a little bad for the people who audition later on, as the judges have only one or two spots left. They are pickier. There were people last night, who I am certain, if they had auditioned earlier, would have been chosen.

I was amused (though not surprised) to see that Kelly Clarkson will be one of the guest mentors on the show. I’ve heard rumors that she had a break with the American Idol folks, and I think this probably really confirms it.

Looking forward to the battle rounds.

Series Review: Rome


27 Feb

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Posted in Television | Comments Off

Finally finished watchingRomethis weekend.

The series was very good, and we are thrilled when we see either Lucius Vorenus or Titus Pullo in other shows and movies. (And no, I have no idea what the actors’ names are. They will forever be Vorenus and Pullo to me.)

There were some parts where the series lagged, and we wondered why we kept watching it. Then we would watch the next episode and go- oh yeah, that’s why.

The series ending was fulfilling. I liked how most of the storylines were wrapped up, and how some were brought full circle.

Sunday Mornings


26 Feb

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Posted in Critique, Writing | Comments Off

Besides my critique group, one of the things I love about getting up every other Sunday to come to critique is the chance to see Seattle wake up. Sitting in a Starbucks in SoDo, there’s a very diverse crowd. From the occasional take over from ravers to tailgaters during the football season, from the homeless to people meeting a real estate agent to fill out paperwork, from cops to yuppies, they all need their morning caffeine.
I often wonder how different this place is on weekdays. What’s the crowd like then? Do any of the Monday people spend hours here?

Blog Feature: The House of Two Bows


25 Feb

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Posted in blogging, Dogs, Pets, Writing | 2 Comments »

The House of Two Bows is called such because of their Shiba Inu Bowdu and their Basenji Bowpi. They are both beautiful dogs, and one of my favorite things about this blog is her pictures. For February, she’s taking one picture every day and posting it. My favorite so far is this one from just last Monday- Bowpi being chased by the mini-Aussies and a Sheltie. How adorable!

M.C. also tracks their pet spending and does some great reviews of different kinds of dog foods. If you’re interested in dehydrated dog food, this is where I’m going to direct you.

An Actual Waterworld


24 Feb

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Posted in Science | Comments Off

We’ve found Waterworld! GJ 1214b, in the Serpent Bearer constellation, has an estimated surface temperature of 446 degrees Farenheit, so life as we know it could not live there, but we are pretty sure the planet is mostly made up of water.

Water has a density of 1 gram/cubic centimeter. Earth, which has a lot of water, has a density of 5.5 g/cc. We estimate GJ1244b’s density to be only 2 g/cc. That’s a lot of water, including possible “hot ice” and “superfluid water”.

And GJ1214b is close enough to Earth that we should be able to study it more.

Where’s the Driver


23 Feb

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Posted in Technology | Comments Off

I have a soft spot in my heart forNevada. I lived there for 12 years, and learned many valuable lessons from “don’t gamble” to what a real service economy looks like.

While people may not agree with the morality of what is legal inNevada, the state’s policies have proven to be socially innovative.

Now, Nevadais being innovative again. They approved legislation this month authorizing autonomous vehicles. That’s right, inNevada, you could now pass a car moving on the highway that doesn’t have a driver. The tech may be years away, butNevada is ready and waiting.

Time Symmetry Breaking


22 Feb

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Posted in Science, Television | Comments Off

Attention Big Bang Theory writers. We know that Sheldon and Leonard, as our theoretical physicists on the show are often more involved in the physics surrounding black holes (hence their relationship with an astronomer and NASA engineer) but here’s something from real world of theoretical physics that all the boys would be interested in: time crystals.

Not the things from video games that let you travel through time, but perpetual motion crystals; crystalline structures that exist not only in three dimensions, but four. The math has been done, they’re theoretically possible. Now we just need to discover (or create) one.

The Voice (s2 ep4)


21 Feb

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Posted in Music, Television | Comments Off

I came in half an hour late, but last night I was more impressed by the talent than I’d been previously. But that might have something to do with the fact that we ended up on American Idol for half an hour last Thursday. It was awful- even though the judges seemed to like some of what we saw. C commented that he wasn’t certain how they could air that at the same time the Voice was on the air.

I was surprised Cee Lo was the only one to turn his chair around for We Are the Champions guy.

Archaeological Botany


19 Feb

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Posted in Science, Travel | 1 Comment »

Imagine this- you’re a botanist working at a major research university when one day you get a call from the archeology department. “Hi, we’ve found what we’re pretty certain was a garden over 2,500 years ago. Do you think you could tell us what kind of plants lived her?”

I think that call has to come first, because how are archeologists going to recognize that there’s pollen captured in plaster? As a pollen expert, how often do you get a chance to work on a project like this?

Do we need a new field of study for botany- archeological botany?

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