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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 9.17
On September 17th, 1683, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (a.k.a. the Father of Microbiology) first described “animalcules,” which we now know as protozoa (although animalcules sounds cuter!). Gabriel Vahanian dies at 85; key figure in ‘God Is Dead’ movement – From Amy. Creationists Boycott Dr. Pepper over “Evolution of Flavor” Facebook Ad – They must have a lot of free time, considering…
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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 9.12
Today in 1952 was the first reported sighting of the Flatwoods Monster in West Virginia. I’m not going to give away the secret because this is a fun read, especially at the end when Joe Nickell from the CSI gets involved! The Science of Pomato Plants and Fruit Salad Trees – From Elyse. Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repeal Has Had…
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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 9.10
On this day in 2008, the Large Hadron Collider booted up for the first time. Ever since then the world has been driven into chaos by the mad scientists who control the tiny black holes! Wait, oh, nevermind. Secularists are not atheists – I don’t think atheists should be excluded from the secular movement just because people don’t like us,…
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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 9.5
On September 5th, 1666, the Great Fire of London finally stopped. It had raged on for four days, destroying thousands of homes and 87 parish churches. The record states that only 6 people were killed but it was likely more than that because some people were probably completely cremated and the deaths of non-rich people generally weren’t recorded. You can…
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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 9.3
Happy Labor Day, everyone! On September 3rd, 1976, the Viking 2 landed on Mars to take pictures, analyze soil, and search for life. You can read more about that here. Fun With Christianists: Things You Can Learn in a Christian ‘World History & Cultures’ Textbook (Part 1) – From bibliotequetress. The Throwaways – “Police enlist young offenders as confidential informants.…
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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 8.27
On August 27th, 1875, American biologist, suffragist, philanthropist, and all-around great person Katharine (Dexter) McCormick was born. She was the first woman to graduate from MIT with a bachelor of science degree, and in later years she used her substantial inheritance to fund research for the birth control pill. She also gave money to MIT to build the Stanley McCormick…
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Skepticism
Skepchick Book Club: The Violinist’s Thumb
Welcome back to the Skepchick Book Club! This week we’re discussing The Violinist’s Thumb: And Other Lost Tales of Love, War, and Genius, as Written by Our Genetic Code by Sam Kean. If you’ve read the book or you happen to know a lot about the history of genetics, please join us in the comments to discuss. A few interesting…
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Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 8.22
On August 22nd, 565 CE, the earliest known allegation of a “monster” in the River Ness was reported by St. Columbia. Of course, you all know what happens to that story hundreds of years later. In science history, in 1989 the first ring of Neptune was discovered via Voyager 2. (And now I have the Interplanet Janet song in my…
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