Ecology & Zoology

Squid Eggs Are Surprisingly Like Chicken Eggs

The Cephalopod International Advisory Council is convening in Vigo, Spain even as I write. Yes, I wish desperately that I were there right now! At least I can follow along by wistfully reading the abstract book, which they were kind enough to post. Let ...

Blog Post - Danna Staaf - Sep 9 2009 - 8:11am

Washington, Ho! We're off to study the squid...

(And by "we" I mean "other people in my lab, not me.") Humboldt squid showing up off Washington State wasn't just a blip on the radar--apparently they're still there, and the local fishermen are happy to haul them in. Luckily ...

Blog Post - Danna Staaf - Sep 11 2009 - 6:36pm

Squid Smarts--More Elusive than Octopus

"How smart are squid?" I get this question a lot, and I always hedge the answer. The obvious dodge, of course, is to say: what does "smart" really mean and how would you quantify it in a cephalopod? Complexity of puzzles solved? A readi ...

Blog Post - Danna Staaf - Sep 14 2009 - 12:45am

"Sixty Foot Ghost"--Giant Squid Art

So there's this big art competition in Grand Rapids, MI. Artists make art, show it in one of numerous venues, and everyone who wants to can cast a vote. The piece winning the most votes lands the artist a $250,000 prize. One of the pieces is a life-si ...

Blog Post - Danna Staaf - Sep 14 2009 - 7:17pm

Self-Awareness In Animals

In a recent LiveScience article the following statement was made: "And while metacognition can involve self-awareness, the "I" part of the equation isn't a necessary ingredient, Smith said. Scientists are not sure if other animals posse ...

Article - Gerhard Adam - Sep 15 2009 - 4:19pm

Squididae?

You may recall classical Linnean taxonomy with the mnemonic "Kings Play Chess On Funky Green Squares" (or one of the racier alternatives) or perhaps you simply committed it to memory: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species. But if ...

Blog Post - Danna Staaf - Sep 16 2009 - 2:17am

How Locusts Fly And How It Can Help Us Get To Aerodynamic Micro Machines

If you want to create a micro-aircraft that flies with the maneuverability and energy efficiency of an insect (and you know you do) decoding the aerodynamic secrets of insect flight is key because optimization through evolutionary pressures over millions o ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 18 2009 - 2:50am

The Most Passionate Sixteen-Arm Embrace

Did you know that Isabella Rossellini writes, co-directs, and stars in a show about reproductive behavior and conservation? The show is called Green Porno. Yes, really! It has just come to my attention that Season Three includes a squid episode! It's ...

Article - Danna Staaf - Sep 18 2009 - 9:25am

Slime vs. Ink

A Maui News article about the Hawaiian language caught my attention (okay, the attention of my google squid alert) with this sentence: Waihee is usually translated as "octopus water," but there's a story about a man being killed by a squid w ...

Blog Post - Danna Staaf - Sep 19 2009 - 1:24am

Jaipur pink city of India has its own hisotry and plants of medicinal importance.

The history of Jaipur goes back to 1150 A.D. when Amber was wrested from Meena chief of Susawat clan by the Kakil Dev, son of the Dhula Rai of Dausa. Dhula Rai was Kachhawa Rajput belonging to Gwalior Royal family. He was first Kachhawa Prince who entered ...

Blog Post - Ashwani Kumar - Sep 20 2009 - 2:17am