Tag Archives: science
M is for Lise Meitner – Physicist, #AtoZ Challenge
Smithsonian Institution – (1878-1968), lecturing at Catholic University, Washington, D.C . Lise Meitner was born in Vienna on the 7th November 1878, and died in Cambridge, England, on 27th of October 1968. Her parents were Jewish. Lise was a clever little girl who loved maths and science – by the time she was 8 she already …
A is for Mary Anning, Fossil Hunter, #AtoZ Challenge
Welcome to the Extraordinary Women A-Z challenge 2017! I am taking part this year with two guest bloggers, the co-authors (Jan Dean and Michaela Morgan) of my new book, Reaching the Stars, Poems about Extraordinary Women and Girls. This first blog of the month is by Jan Dean: Her blog is about Mary Anning. Credited to Mr Grey in Crispin Tickell’s …
45 Days until National Poetry Day!
Are you a poet? There are only 45 days until National Poetry Day, and this year the theme is ‘Messages’. Do you have a message for the planet, or an animal? Could you write a message poem from an animal, or habitat, or the world, to humanity? I am collecting message poems of this type …
Z is for Zetek’s Treefrog
This brilliant photo of this little treefrog was taken by Dr Robert Puschendorf, Lecturer in Conservation Biology at Plymouth University, and is used by permission. Here it is again, peeking out from a bromeliad, so you can see where it lives – this gorgeous photo was taken by Andreas Hertz and is also used by permission: These are …
T is for Tricoloured Blackbird
This is rather a gorgeous-looking bird from North America – here is a male in a photo by Alan Vernon: The tricoloured blackbird is not related in any way to the Old World blackbirds found in the British Isles, which are a type of thrush. This bird is a little smaller, and its feathers glossier. It …
S is for Sparklemuffin
Of course there is an animal called a sparklemuffin! This is a serious blog! It’s a creature which is often disliked, but this particular specimen has earned the adoration of millions if not gazillions (*this fact not checked) of internet users. Really the only way to demonstrate the wonder of this creature is to link to a …
R is for Rockhopper Penguin
Rockhopper penguins are not like other penguins – they live on rocky, inhospitable places, mainly around the antarctic, so inhospitable these penguins have no land predators. Here is a wonderful picture of one by Robert Orr: As well as being the kookiest-looking penguin, their behaviour is different. They do not slide around the place on icy floes, and neither do …
Q is for Quino Checkerspot Butterfly
This is a rare good news story on the sustainability front – that of the 3 cm quino checkerspot butterfly, here photographed by Adam Braziel: Adam isn’t sure if this is the quino or the Wright’s checkerspot, but after making my eyes go whizzy looking at both species’ photos, Wright’s checkerspot is a different species altogether, …
P is for Pom Pom Cheerleading Crab
Oh! This little 2 inch crab is so beautiful, and so clever. This is a pom pom or cheerleading crab, endemic to Hawaii, in a photo by Hechtonicus: Pom pom crabs are tiny, about 2 inches wide, and they are inedible. They are not heavily armoured crabs – their carapaces aren’t strong, their legs are delicate. They have …
O is for Octopus
I adore octopuses – the most intelligent of invertebrates, their intelligence rivals that of the most intelligent primates. Here is a fabulous painting of one by Dru Marland – this is from a rather wonderful, fully illustrated book of poems, Inking Bitterns, available only from Gert Macky which I highly recommend, not just because I’m …
lizbrownlee - poet 