Website of the Week: Ecological Society of America

Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Photo credit: Kip Evans, NOAA/Department of Commerce

This week’s website is the Ecological Society of America.

The ESA, founded in 1915, is a well-respected professional organization in the ecology community. I had the good fortune to meet the current president of the ESA, Dr. Norm Christensen, when I was in graduate school. Norm is an amazing person. Most ecologists have a tendency, I think, to be pessimistic about the future. Not Norm. He embodies the “win-win” philosophy that I believe is so crucial to solving our world’s environmental problems.

For more about a career as an ecologist, check out the ESA’s flyer for high school students interested in ecological careers. If you need to write a report on topic like acid rain, coral reefs, or biodiversity, visit the ESA’s Fact Sheets. And if you’re thinking about an advanced degree, read Walter P. Carson’s advice for “…How to Apply to and Get Admitted to Graduate School in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.”

More weird animal names

Of all the posts I’ve written here at Mama Joules, Weird animal names has been the most popular. So, I thought maybe you’d enjoy some more! Read about these animals and thank your parents that you weren’t saddled with these monikers:

“Fat” is the last name of Psammomys obesus, also known as the Fat sand rat, a rodent living in the sandy, salty deserts of northern Africa and the Middle East. Fat sand rats are sought as research animals for the study of diabetes.

Psammomys obesus by Tino StraussThis photo was published under the CC-BY-SA-2.5
Doesn’t Nine-banded armadillo sound better than this mammal’s other informal name, the Common long-nosed armadillo? It's even been referred to as the poor man’s pig! Fun fact: When pregnant, Nine-banded armadillos always carry four identical babies. Another fun fact: A South American relative (Dasypus pilosus) is stuck with an even worse name: the Hairy long-nosed armadillo.

Some species of horned frogs, including the South American ornate horned frog, are commonly known as “Pac-Man frogs” because they resemble the round video game character that gobbles everything in its path.

Ceratophrys ornata by avmaierThis photo was published under the CC-BY-2.0
Australia’s Bridled nail-tail wallaby (so named for its pointy tail) was thought to be extinct from 1937 to 1973, when a small population was discovered in central Queensland. There are about 450 Bridled nail-tailed wallabies alive today, according to The State of Queensland Environmental Protection Agency (reference: Recovery Plan for the bridled nailtail wallaby (Onychogalea fraentata) 2005-2009 [Note: this is a .pdf file]). What a wonderful species recovery story – and a nice reminder that it’s never too late to start protecting wildlife.

Earth Island Institute's Lorax Challenge

As part of their New Leaders Initiative, the Earth Island Institute is sponsoring the Lorax Challenge. Groups of two or more young adults (ages 12 – 20 from the United States, Canada, or Puerto Rico) are invited to share their ideas for saving the planet. Entrants must submit an “action plan” that includes items like a description of the project, the names of the team members who will put this plan into action, a draft budget, and a timeline. You could win $1,000 to turn your dream of saving the planet into reality! Five grand prize winning teams will be awarded trips to the University of Florida to attend a five-day environmental boot camp. The deadline for entry is midnight, May 31, 2008. Good luck!

[UPDATE: 3/3/09 -- Some of these links were broken and have been deleted or updated. You can read about the winners of the 2008 contest at the Earth Times.]

Website of the Week: Earth Island Institute’s Brower Youth Awards

I found this great opportunity for young adults ages 13-22 over at the Earth Island Institute. The EII, founded in 1982, operates under this motto: "Innovative Action for the Environment."

If you are a young environmental leader living in North America, you should consider applying for the EII’s Brower Youth Awards. These awards, given annually, honor six young environmental activists for their achievements in environmental advocacy and the promotion of environmental justice. Action and measurable results are key; grades and research are not. You could win a trip to California for the awards ceremony in October, a $3,000 cash prize, and meet people to help you further your environmental vision. But don’t delay; the application deadline is May 15, 2008.

(And if you’ve got a great idea to save the planet, but you haven’t quite put your thoughts into action yet, stay tuned! I’ll have another great opportunity for high school students on Monday.)

I like caterpillars

Today, I am pleased to announce that I have a guest blogger!

"Kerm" is 6 years old and likes to "play fun games and jump on the couch." Kerm's favorite subjects in school are science and math. When I interviewed Kerm, this is what he had to say about caterpillars:

I have a caterpillar in my room because I like studying the earth around me and I like studying bugs. I want the caterpillar to change into a butterfly. If it doesn’t, then it will probably turn into a moth. Between those two times [from caterpillar to butterfly or moth], it will turn into a cocoon. If it is a moth, I will let it out late at night. If it is a butterfly, I will let it out in the day. I feed my caterpillar leaves. Last night, I saw it nibbling on one.

If you are studying caterpillars, you might want [to read] these books:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle
From Caterpillar to Butterfly, by Deborah Heiligman and Bari Weissman

Photo credit: BurningWell.org

Know your sources

When I am researching a blog topic (or any other science topic, for that matter) on the Internet, I tend to gravitate toward sites with addresses that end in .edu or .gov. Why? I assume that, on average, these sites will be more credible sources of information than ones that end with .com.

Now, I'm not saying that every school or government site has useful or timely scientific information. Nor am I saying that you should ignore all .com science sites (because then you'd never come and visit me!). But you need to know where your information comes from.

Let's say, for example, that you want to learn more about the adverse health impacts of tobacco smoke. And let's pretend that your search engine pulls up an impressive looking site with lots of drop-down menus and flashy graphics touting the health benefits of smoking. Maybe the site even has an impressive sounding name, like the Center for Happy Healthy Smokers. Should you believe what you are reading?

Somewhere on the site, you should be able to find the organization that is funding the research. And that's valuable information for you to have.

Let's say, again hypothetically, that the Center for Happy Healthy Smokers is fully funded by a tobacco company. Are their conclusions suspect? Maybe, maybe not. But you should use caution. At best, you know that the Center will be tempted to bias their findings in favor of tobacco use. At worst, they might suppress research or conclusions that don't fit their intended message that tobacco is healthy.

But dot-coms aren't the only websites with agendas. Every website has a bias, a slant, a direction that it is trying to point you. Recognizing this will help you to make informed choices about whether to trust what you read.

At Mama Joules, I want you to enjoy science. And, without intending to, I'm going to point you toward biology and environmental science and ecology, because that's what I know best. That's my bias. I think environmental science is awesome; physics, not so much. I do try to overcome my biases, but I still have them.

And so does everyone else.

I think Mama Joules needs a slogan ...

This isn't a typical Friday post for me, but then, it hasn't been a typical week for me either. Since I've been sick, I've had lots of time to think. I've been contemplating putting up a Mama Joules page on MySpace (I think MySpace could use a little more science, don't you?), which led me to think that maybe we need a slogan over here at Mama Joules central.

These are just off the top of my head, so don't be bashful about commenting. Let me know which (if any) of these grab you:

“Mama Joules is a place for sharing ideas, because science should be fun.”

"A place to share ideas for making science fun."

“Teaching science, one atom at a time.”

"Give a man fission and he'll have a meltdown in a day. Teach a man fission and he'll have power for life." (OK, so I got a little carried with that one ... )

“Because science should be fun.”

"Sharing science, exploring ideas."

“Sharing ideas, exploring science.”

"Sprinkle some science into your day."

Thanks in advance for your input and have a great week-end! :)