tales from the wild metropolis
This university town is always less crowded during the summer. Most students are at home or on summer internships, faculty and graduate students are using the break to slip away for some R&R or doing research at field sites, and there are no home football games to bring in alumni and supporters of the opposing... Continue Reading →
It seems to happen once each century. In 1775 the Redcoats showed up in Boston, the Beatles made a big splash about 200 years later in 1964, and in the sweet-spot in-between the House Sparrows (Passer domestics) arrived. . It’s difficult to believe, given current controversies and political grandstanding, but for a long time America had... Continue Reading →
A scientists’ work is never done. That’s because there’s always another layer to peel away, another stone to turn, another angle from which to view the situation. Case in point—nearly 200 years ago, Charles Darwin made the connection between the size and shape of a finch’s beak and the availability of the seeds they eat;... Continue Reading →
How can one small voice cut through the cacophony of modern metropolitan life? A recently published study, combined with some earlier work, suggests that contrary to what you might assume, the secret to city communication isn’t shouting. Urban background noise is heavily weighted toward the lower sound frequencies of 20 to 200 Hz—think diesel engines... Continue Reading →
One of the things I like best about traveling is hearing different accents, turns of phrase, the variations in cadence and rhythms of speech unique to a specific place. Now that there’s a Starbucks on nearly every commercial district corner, and big box stores are shading out the retail undergrowth, it can be easy to... Continue Reading →
Next-Door Nature 