Blue Planet Journey

  The dioramas at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science focus on the taxidermy mounts and on the manufactured and painted habitats. But there is also behavior featured. Predation is an ecological process that results in a +/- situation. One individual gets a net benefit, and the other receives a net loss. Think of the situation in the photo above. The mountain lion and her cub are receiving a benefit from the deer. The deer, on the other hand, is experiencing a loss. Predation is not limited to encounters that result in nature "red in tooth and claw."  Herbivory and parasitism also result in a +/-. But herbivory and parasitism don't catch an audience's attention like classical predation. Predatory behavior captures the "oohs" and "aahs." Here's what you'll find in the dioramas on the second and third floors of the DMNS. Arctic fox beginning a pounce to catch a rodent under the snow. A golden eagle brings a cottontail to the nest. Bald eag...

  It goes without saying that natural history museums are full of experts in their fields, and that one person's area of expertise is another person's area of total ignorance. I pick up my grandson from the Denver Museum of Nature and Science  (DMNS) on a regular basis, and we spend many hours roaming the halls. Over time, I've noticed some errors, inconsistencies, and puzzling displays. I recognize that, unlike something on a screen that can be altered with a few keystrokes, displays are complicated things to change. But, step one has to be noting that they actually should be changed. I'm going to go out on a limb and propose some changes. These suggestions sometimes will be in my area of expertise, and sometimes will not. I'm going to start with one that is absolutely not within my expertise, but caught my attention because of my experience. It starts off with... a plesiosaur skeleton. Signage for this plesiosaur, Thalassomedon haningtoni , discovered in 1939 in ...

A younger Bob Timm working on his PhD project at UC Davis. Over time, the number of people you interact with grows and grows.  Your brain registers these interactions.  Superfluous or incidental interactions go into short-term memory (or don't register at all).  Sometimes we remember snippets of conversations, a face, or a situation, but that's enough. On the opposite end, however, are interactions that have profound impacts on you.  Although these impacts could be direct or indirect, and positive or negative, they shape you. They affect your future behavior.   One form of positive interaction is the mentor. The Cambridge Dictionary defines a "mentor" as "an experienced and trusted person who gives another person advice and help, especially related to work or school, over a period of time."  Another way of looking at a mentor is as "a trusted counselor or guide." I received notice last week that Professor Howard Wiegers was...