May 22, 2013 • 19,739 notes • the-science-llama
the-science-llama: Super Moon— June 23, 2013Be sure to look out for the Moon these next few months as it approaches Perigee, because the full moons during these times will appear exceptionally large. The Moon will be at its Perigee, or closest approach, in July 23 and it will reach full moon only a few minutes after it passes this point in its orbit.These ‘super moons’ not only appear larger because they are physically closer but, combined with a full moon, the mind can play tricks on you to think they are much larger. This phenomena is called the Moon Illusion. Try to catch these full moons as they rise/set because the illusion works when there is an object in the foreground, like a tree, building or mountains. Stargazing Events for 2013

the-science-llama:

Super Moon
— June 23, 2013

Be sure to look out for the Moon these next few months as it approaches Perigee, because the full moons during these times will appear exceptionally large. The Moon will be at its Perigee, or closest approach, in July 23 and it will reach full moon only a few minutes after it passes this point in its orbit.

These ‘super moons’ not only appear larger because they are physically closer but, combined with a full moon, the mind can play tricks on you to think they are much larger. This phenomena is called the Moon Illusion. Try to catch these full moons as they rise/set because the illusion works when there is an object in the foreground, like a tree, building or mountains.

Stargazing Events for 2013

May 22, 2013 • 14,312 notes • manicpixiedeathbitch

manicpixiedeathbitch:

  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the stone
  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the chamber
  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the dementors
  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the triwizard tournament
  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the returning
  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the creepy childhood
  • Harry Potter and the voldemort can u not with the horcruxes and just die already jfc

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May 20, 2013 • 60 notes • kwinikwinikwini

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May 20, 2013 • 1,689 notes • climateadaptation

Discovery, Animal Planet, and History Channel exposed for killing animals for profit

ikenbot:

jtotheizzoe:

climateadaptation:

These channels are failing the spirit of conservationism and education. They are failing inspiring awe in young people. Failing much needed inspiration in a very confused and conflicted world.

These shows are failing their core values, their main purpose, which is leadership in environmentalism and cultural education. Far worse, they are failing millions of young people - millions - who look up to them.

Please join me in asking Discovery, Animal Planet, and the History Channels to stop, apologize, and correct.

That’s an important read up there, folks. These “reality” shows are feeding an outdated and unscientific view of predator species. These are channels founded on principles of education and conservation (TLC, of course, left the building years ago). Are they willing to sacrifice that for what appears to be gratuitous bloodsport?

Like any media, you can vote with your eyeballs. And if you support any kind of rights for wild animals and natural spaces, you can not support these programs. If the account above is true, shame on these networks.

It speaks to part of a larger issue with nature films. The amazing footage we see in shows like Africa, Planet Earth, and Frozen Planet is rarely the result of serendipity. It involves years of careful research and preparation to maximize the chances of capturing nature’s majesty on camera, and what is captured is highly edited to create story, drama and emotion. These are uniquely human interests, and nature doesn’t include them in her original script.

That’s not to say we are being fleeced all the time. People like Sir David Attenborough take these concerns very seriously, and constantly strive to find the balance between entertainment and true nature in every varying instance. What we watch is real. But is it REAL?

I wonder how many people realize that, for instance, the famous polar bear birth scene from Frozen Planet was filmed in a zoo? Disney’s adorable Chimpanzee movie was not a documentary, but rather spliced together to create an emotional tale of adoption. Jason Goldman put together a great collection of opinions on the matter.

How far can we take allowances to deliver good edutainment before we are delivering bad science? The “reality” shows surely fail the test. But the others? What do you think?

Damn, I mean considering these are the same dudes putting out irrelevant series after another it feels like their purpose is to flood the brains of anyone watching with mindless, pointless bullshit.. this comes to no surprise. Still pretty damn fucked up though.

Bastards.

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May 20, 2013 • 366 notes • plasticdonut

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May 19, 2013 • 15 notes • babyyyslothh
babyyyslothh: 😭😭😭 #theoffice #seasonfinale #lastepisode #EVER #wah

babyyyslothh:

😭😭😭 #theoffice #seasonfinale #lastepisode #EVER #wah

May 14, 2013 • 165 notes • matthen
matthen: How do Centrifugal and Coriolis forces affect the motion of particles as the speed of rotation is varied?  This animation shows how the underlying grid of my previous post is warped at differing speeds of rotation. Note the square grid when there is no rotation. [code] [video]  

matthen:

How do Centrifugal and Coriolis forces affect the motion of particles as the speed of rotation is varied?  This animation shows how the underlying grid of my previous post is warped at differing speeds of rotation. Note the square grid when there is no rotation. [code] [video]  

May 13, 2013 • 233 notes • amnh.org
amnhnyc: This year, as you’ve probably heard, billions of cicadas will soon emerge all along the Eastern seaboard after living 17 years underground. By emerging en masse—some say there may be as many as 1 million cicadas per acre—these so-called Brood II cicadas are more likely to overwhelm predators, including other insects, birds, small mammals, turtles, and frogs, thus helping to ensure species survival.Keep reading here to learn all about periodical cicadas. Pictured: A Magicicada specimen from Brood X, 2004, looks similar to those cicadas you might see this year. (Bundschuh) As much as I cringe at bugs….this is not something to miss.

amnhnyc:

This year, as you’ve probably heard, billions of cicadas will soon emerge all along the Eastern seaboard after living 17 years underground. By emerging en masse—some say there may be as many as 1 million cicadas per acre—these so-called Brood II cicadas are more likely to overwhelm predators, including other insects, birds, small mammals, turtles, and frogs, thus helping to ensure species survival.

Keep reading here to learn all about periodical cicadas.

Pictured: A Magicicada specimen from Brood X, 2004, looks similar to those cicadas you might see this year. (Bundschuh)

As much as I cringe at bugs….this is not something to miss.

May 12, 2013 • 30,478 notes • gifak-net

(via juliasegal)

May 12, 2013 • 619 notes • jtotheizzoe

jtotheizzoe:

Happy Mothers Day! Here’s some of the best and most interesting moms in the animal kingdom. Send some love to the Homo sapiens that made ya today!

  • Harp seals have to care for their fluffy, marshmallow-like pups in an icy, scary world patrolled by polar bears. The little snowy cotton balls have to gain weight fast in order to survive the cold and avoid predators. So their moms help them gain five pounds a day for the first 12 days by feeding them milk that is 48% fat! How is that even liquid?! It’s like feeding them butter. Oh, and the moms don’t eat for the whole time!
  • Queen bees are some of the hardest working moms in terms of pure reproduction. If a fertilized (and therefore female) bee egg is laid in a special honeycomb receptacle and continuously fed a secretion called “royal jelly”, it will develop into a queen. That queen will mate with one or many drone males, storing their sperm to lay as many as 2,000 eggs a day (both fertilized female workers and unfertilized drone males) to stock the hive. That’s a lot of kids to look out for.
  • Elephants never forget … that they carried their young for 22 months, the longest pregnancy term of all mammals. A 22 month pregnancy. Just let that sink in the next time your back hurts a little. Of course, that’s nothing compared to the frilled shark, who can carry its young for as long as 3.5 years, probably because it’s so terrifying that it doesn’t want to scare its children to death.
  • Earwigs aren’t known for being a particularly heartwarming species, but the females are unique among non-social insects for attending to their larva, helping them hatch, feeding them regurgitated food, guarding them until they molt into adults, and even allowing them to eat her if they are starving. Of course, sometimes they have been known to eat their eggs to, so it’s not all cuddles and kisses in earwig families.
  • Orangutan moms and babies might take the cake for pure cuteness. I know we aren’t supposed to humanize animals and read our emotions into their lives, but come on. There is something very close to love between mothers and children among these, the most playful of great apes. Orangutan mothers take seven years between pregnancies, and will care for their young for at least two years among the treetops. For the first four months they never break physical contact with their young, and build a new nest of leaves and twigs every night for fresh, comfy orangu-snuggles. Best ape ever (they love puppies!)

(images via Wikipedia, Shutterstock)

(via the-science-llama)