Ze Frank

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Jan 5-11, 2020

/ Melanie Marttila / 1 Comment

It’s that time of the week again—time to pop your mental corn! Give yourself the gift of thoughty, and welcome a happy Friday with a satiated brain 🙂

How to capture a ghost particle. PBS Space Time

Alex Fox relates how nuns are converting their convent into a wetland to fight flooding in New Orleans. The Hill

Geology In shows us the incredible crystal caves of Naica, Mexico.

That time the Mediterranean Sea disappeared. PBS Eons

Zaria Gorvett: medications that change who we are. BBC

Markham Heid explains why you wake up at the same time every night. Medium

Why a strong immune system may mean more severe cold symptoms. SciShow

Elle prints an excerpt from Anna Wiener’s Uncanny Valley: dispatches from the front line of Silicon Valley sexism.

Jason Beaubien: with their land in flames, aboriginals warn fires show deeper problems in Australia. Indigenous land management practices could have mitigated the disaster. NPR

Graham Redfearn reports that the Australian bushfires have reached Kangaroo Island where several species of unique wildlife are threatened. The Guardian

Tim Sohn: how Tom Mustill became “The Whale Detective.” Outside online

Moon Child shares 33 photos of weird and rare flowers that look like something out of a fairy tale.

Ze Frank brings the awkward and hilarious with the mating dance of the ostrich.

Thank you for visiting and I hope you can take away something to inspire your next creative project. Or … maybe something amusing 🙂

Until next tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories.

ThoughtyThursday2019

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Dec 15-21, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s Boxing Day! I got up early this morning to go shopping (my once annual spree) and am now ensconced for our family get together. Take some time to get your mental corn popping with these thought provoking (or just plain fun) links.

Juli Fraga wants to help you conquer your social anxiety over the holidays. NPR

Lisa Wood Shapiro recounts her quest for clean air. Wired

Andrea Romano explains how long you should take off work to feel productive again. Travel and Leisure

Matthew Gault: the best optical illusion of the year will mess with your head. Vice

Alexandra Ossola: can algae save the planet by changing the way we eat? Quartz

Jaymi Heimbuch shares macro photos of snowflakes that reveal impossibly perfect designs. Treehugger

PBS Space Time considers the validity of cosmological natural selection (i.e. that black holes create new universes).

The fuzzy origins of the giant panda. PBS Eons

Chris Baraniuk: corvids could be the smartest animals other than primates. BBC

Joshua Rapp Learn explains why birds sing to their eggs and how these songs might help their offspring survive climate change. Smithsonian Magazine

Find out all about Leonard, the mudskipper, with Ze Frank.

Thank you for taking time out of the holiday whirlwind to stop by and peruse the offerings.

Until next week, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories 🙂

ThoughtyThursday2019

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Dec 1-7, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s the first post-NaNo thoughty Thursday and the videos have taken over! Time to get your mental corn popping, people 🙂

Annalee Newitz explores the possible future of public spaces on the internet: nothing lasts forever—not even on the internet. The New York Times

Dr. Becky covers the history of how we discovered what the speed of light was.

Quantum physics simplified. Arvin Ash

Michael Greshko lists the top 20 scientific discoveries of the 2010s. National Geographic

Insulin should be cheap. Here’s why it’s not. Verge Science

SciShow Psych delved into Alice in Wonderland Syndrome.

Global News’ full coverage of the 30th anniversary commemorative ceremony at École Polytecnique.

Christian Yates explains why your dog may be older than you think. Quartz

Nick Dunlop shares the spectacle of the starling and falcon dance. Murmurations aren’t just mesmerizing, they’re defensive strategies, too!

Pets talk about the holidays. Ze Frank

Thank you for visiting. I hope you found something to inspire your next creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

ThoughtyThursday2019

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Oct 13-19, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

And now, a small but intriguing set of links to get your mental corn popping.

Brown dwarfs are space’s strangely important oddballs. SciShow Space

NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir in all-woman spacewalk. BBC

Eve Conant shows us the best and worst countries to be a woman. National Geographic

The discovery of homo naledi changes the human story. It’s okay to be smart

Diana Beresford-Kroeger says trees hold the answers to many of life’s problems. The Globe and Mail

Jessica Stewart: the largest eagles in the world have talons bigger than bear claws. My Modern Met

Cecelia Rodriguez shares 20 outstanding wildlife photographer of the year 2019 images. Forbes

True Facts about the sand bubbler crab. Ze Frank

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you found something entertaining or interesting to fuel your next creative project.

Until next time, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

ThoughtyThursday2019

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 29-Oct 5, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

A substantial curation of stuff to get your mental corn popping.

Claire Landsbaum interviews Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey on how far #metoo has yet to go. Vanity Fair

Teresa Write and Bob Weber: names of children who died in residential schools released in sombre ceremony. CTV News

Jason Lyons says that to pay attention, the brain uses filters, not a spotlight. Quanta Magazine

Chelsea Wald: why red means red in almost every language. Nautilus

Atossa Araxia Abrahamian says, the dream of open borders is real—in Svalbard. The Nation

Dan Charles: how Penn State is cutting greenhouse gas emissions and saving money. NPR

Brian Fagan recounts the bizarre 77,000-year history of the bed. Quartz

Ian Campbell reports on the continuing outrage that “hallway healthcare” continues at Health Sciences North. CTV News

Ashley Strickland has hope for the first all-female space walk scheduled for later this month. CNN

It’s black hole week on SciShow Space news: is the hypothetical “Planet 9” actually a primordial black hole? And … the assassin black hole (that’s not sinister at all, is it?).

Dr. Becky shares all of the latest discoveries about Jupiter’s aurora that Juno has facilitated. And the outtakes at the end are hilarious 🙂

And Physics Girl gets to see the world’s largest optical lens (going in the LSST).

Brendan I Koerner: how cities reshape the evolutionary path of urban wildlife. Wired

Kelly Richmond-Abdou tells the tale of a couple who spent 20 years replanting a forest for animals to return to. My Modern Met

Mario L. Major reports on the Australian stingless bees building stunning spiral hives (and no one’s quite sure why). Interesting Engineering

Jason Bittel lists five animals with amazing senses. Popular Science

Cats in therapy from the ever entertaining Ze Frank.

Thank you for the visit and I hope you found something to entertain or inspire your next creative project.

Be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

ThoughtyThursday2019

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 22-28, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

Welcome back! It’s time to get your mental corn popping.

Michael Hobbes: everything you know about obesity is wrong. Huffington Post

Arvin Ash explains why we dream.

Erin Brunch explains how the “feelings wheel” reveals the complexity of your emotion. Confession: I was more interested in this for character development rather than personal development. Well and Good

SciShow Space news considered the impact (pun intended) of an ancient asteroid on Earth and the possibilities for feeding people on Mars.

Joe Pappalardo takes a squirm-inducing look at the parasites trying to control our brains. Popular Mechanics

Melissa Kent: Autumn Pelletier tells world leaders to “warrior up” to protect water. CBC

Paige Embry reports on the honeybee’s most fearsome enemy. UnDark

Michael S.A. Graziano considers the octopus: an alien among us. Literary Hub

Ze Frank gives us the True Facts of the ogre-faced spider.

A Space of Their Own, a New Online Database, Will Feature Works by 600+ Overlooked Female Artists from the 15th-19th Centuries. Open Culture

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you found something to inform or inspire you next creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories.

ThoughtyThursday2019

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Mar 10-16, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to get your mental corn popping!

Jessica Conditt: Good Omens and the art of avoiding Armageddon. Engadget

ASAP Science exposes the biggest lie about climate change.

 

Michaeleen Doucleff reveals how Inuit parents teach kids to control their anger. NPR

Dr. Brian Goldman interviews Alan Alda about teaching doctors empathy on CBC’s “White Coat, Black Art.”

SciShow Space looks at three solar systems astronomers can’t quite figure out.

 

Noor Al-Samarrai: a medical manual linking medieval Ireland to the Islamic world has been found. Atlas Obscura

Philippe Bohstrom reports that the beads found in 3,400-year-old Danish graves were made by King Tut’s glassmaker. Haaretz

Use your head … and your butt … like Nancy, the bolas spider. Ze Frank

 

Until next week, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Feb 17-23, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

Thoughty Thursday’s here with a mixed bag of edutainment to get your mental corn popping!

Jamie Shreeve: if life exists beyond Earth, how do we find it? National Geographic

SciShow reveals what scientists have discovered to date about Stonehenge—and how much more remains to be learned.

 

Sharanya Deepak investigates how climate change has put Kashmir’s saffron under threat. Eater

David Roberts looks at the California coalition tackling one of the hardest, unsexist aspects of climate policy. Vox

Messy Nessy Chic profiles the real ice queens: women who conquered the cold wearing corsets.

SciShow Psych looks at the enneagram personality types and the science (or lack thereof) that supports them.

 

Ross Andersen reveals how scientists are totally reconsidering animal cognition. The Atlantic

Last weekend, I shared a picture of two pileated woodpeckers dancing around a tree trunk on social media. This is what they were up to 😉

 

Sarah Zhang figures out why we think cats are psychopaths. It’s just “resting cat face.” The Atlantic

True facts about the lemur. Ze Frank. Man, I’ve missed these!

 

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you found something inspiring in thoughty Thursday.

This weekend, I’ll be posting my monthly next chapter update.

Until then, be well, my friends.

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 16-22, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to pop your mental corn. Get those creative connections ping-ponging around that skull of yours!

Jim C. Hines shares lessons from a viral #metoo tweet.

Michael Hobbes: everything you know about obesity is wrong. The Huffington Post

ASAP science teams up with Gigi Gorgeous to explore the science of being transgender.

 

Marie Heinen: Doug Ford, no power grab is worth undermining Canada’s solid foundation. The Globe and Mail

The Ottawa Citizen provides an update on the tornadoes that touched down in Ottawa and Gatineau: it’s devastating.

SciShow explains why the weak nuclear force ruins everything.

 

In SciShow Space news: cryovolcanoes on Ceres and Iridium flares.

 

Ryan F. Mandelbaum reports that scientists gave MDMA (ecstasy) to octopi … and learned something profound. Gizmodo

True facts about the cuttlefish. Ze Frank

 

And that was your edutainment for the week.

Until next Tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories 🙂

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 2-8, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

The thoughty is a little more substantial this week.

Jim C. Hines considers all that “pro-life” encompasses, or what it should.

Darius Foroux says, the purpose of life is not happiness, but usefulness. Medium

Emily J. Smith: the art of being completely alone. Medium

Christopher D. Connors lists the ten qualities of an emotionally intelligent person. Medium

Brian Handwerk reveals that the benefits of probiotics might not be so clear cut. The Smithsonian Magazine

Sarah Chodosh explains how much your food waste harms the environment. Popular Science

Jane C. Hu goes inside the all-female trek to the north pole. Wired

New Evidence of Water on Jupiter! SciShow Space

 

Eric Mack celebrates NASA’s 60th anniversary: all about the space agency’s past, present, and future. CNet

True Facts: Bobbit Worm and Polychaete Pals – Ze Frank

 

I hope something in this modest curation got your mental corn popping.

Until next Tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

thoughtythursday2016