Charlie and Me – 365 Days of Darwin

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 1 Comment on Charlie and Me – 365 Days of Darwin
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The die is cast, the votes are in, and the winner and grand Champion of the Great Darwin Beard Challenge is the affable, notable, not-quite-quotable (in polite company) Kevin Zelnio of Deep Sea News. It was a tough fight all around, and the three survivors put out some impressive beards, but it was Kevin by a chop. Congratulations Mr. Z, you are the fittest.

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Blood and Brains – can vampires survive a zombie apocalypse?

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 42 Comments on Blood and Brains – can vampires survive a zombie apocalypse?
Popular Culture, Science

This post was chosen as an Editor's Selection for ResearchBlogging.org

The scenario is familiar to us all – Some sort of disease begins in a small town or large city, it spreads rapidly, infecting everyone in its wake, the infected become mindless, murderous creatures, hellbent on consuming or converting everyone they encounter, the walking dead. Finally, through some heroic effort, the survivors either turn back the tide or find a stronghold from which the human race can be rebuilt. It is the Zombie Apocalypse.

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The Serpent and the Platypus

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 17 Comments on The Serpent and the Platypus
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ResearchBlogging.org

Longtime readers know that I get really excited by clear (or not so clear) cases of convergent evolution. Pound for pound, convergence is the most persuasive evidence for the truth of evolution out there; different lineages finding novel paths to the same solution. While I mostly talk about convergences in morphology, genetic convergence is often even more fascinating. Enter the bizarre case of the serpent and the platypus.

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A curious case of convergent evolution?

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 17 Comments on A curious case of convergent evolution?
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ResearchBlogging.orgThe title of this post is followed by a question mark. That is because what follows is not a statement of fact but a puzzle that I have been mulling over in my head since a photograph was published early last year. I do fervently hope the authors of the paper will forgive me for not citing the picture directly, the full citation can be found at the end of this post. I do this only because I want to lead off with a mystery.

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Getting a sense of porpoise

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 62 Comments on Getting a sense of porpoise
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One of the discussions that occurred while socializing at ScienceOnline’09 regarded my personal feelings towards dolphins. Not surprisingly, whenever non-marine people find out I’m a marine biologist, the conversation always turns to dolphins, after which the person is surprised (shocked, appalled) by my lack on fondness for the sea beasties. The excessive hearting of charismatic … Read More “Getting a sense of porpoise” »