Calling 911 in the Maya World

In the early 8th century A.D., the great Maya city state of Tikal reached the zenith of its sophistication and power. Its kings sipped frothy chocolate and smoked elegant cigars in their chambers, listening to the music of trumpeters and drummers. Its painters rendered brilliant court scenes on vases. Its architects designed pyramidal masterpieces that [...]

Us, From Far Away

This is a photograph — meaning, it’s real — taken from 114 million miles away on the far side of the sun.  The brightest little dot in the lower left is the earth.  The less bright dot near it is our moon.  Click on it:  it almost makes you cry.

Bug/Blog/Bunfight

I thought I’d made the case against parasitic wasps with evidence and eloquence.  I thought that would be the end of it.  But no:  counter-arguments were made (even if insects did evolve first, Josie, I can still feel superior), gauntlets thrown down, aspersions cast (you think I didn’t notice “delicate flower,” Heather?), and lines drawn [...]

More Evidence of Awesome/Revolting World of Nature

http://abstrusegoose.com/125

In Defense of Insects

Five years ago, I was invited to speak at BugFest, the annual insect extravaganza at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, about my book, Buzz: The Intimate Bond Between Humans and Insects. One day before the Fest, (which features an arthropod Olympics, butterfly gardening and a “Cafe Insecta”) I was a guest on North [...]

Let Sleeping Neanderthals Lie

Last summer, while roaming around Ecuador on a magazine assignment, I had a rather strange experience at an old Spanish hacienda that doubled as a country inn. The owners took in paying guests to help finance the upkeep of the 16th century architecture, and an archaeologist-acquaintance had made a reservation for me there, knowing my [...]

More Parasites, More Ickiness

My apologies to all the delicate flowers out there. But here is a video that will actually make you feel sorry for a vampire bat.  Assassin bugs really do come by their names honestly.

Abstruse Goose: the Creation, Part 2

Abstruse Goose says:  The following sentence is false.  The preceding sentence is true. Then he adds:  The title text is true. He’s toying with us, isn’t he. Credit: http://abstrusegoose.com/244