Life Found Deep Below the Antarctic Ice...

Most Antarctic biologists were expecting this, and now it's confirmed.  An underwater lake deep under the Antarctic ice has been cut off from the rest of the world for at least 100,000 years.  Nonetheless, life still thrives there.  It will be interesting to see how the life forms discovered obtain their energy in that cold, lightless environment...

Macaulay Library is Online...

In the bad old days (before yesterday), if you wanted to listen to the Macaulay sound library (a huge archive of the sounds of nature: animals and birds, especially birds) you had to purchase expensive CDs.  Now they've gone and put it online – the whole library – complete with a nifty search capability that lets you search by either common name or Latin name.  I just spent a happy half hour listening to great recordings of all sorts of familiar animals and birds.

Now all we need is a way to search for sounds that we record, to identify the animal or bird by searching the library!

RIP Barney...

Barney, First Dog during George W. Bush's two terms, passed away yesterday at the age of 12.  The Bushs released this statement:

Laura and I are sad to announce that our Scottish Terrier, Barney, has passed away. The little fellow had been suffering from lymphoma and after twelve and a half years of life, his body could not fight off the illness.

Barney and I enjoyed the outdoors. He loved to accompany me when I fished for bass at the ranch. He was a fierce armadillo hunter. At Camp David, his favorite activity was chasing golf balls on the chipping green.

Barney guarded the South Lawn entrance of the White House as if he were a Secret Service agent. He wandered the halls of the West Wing looking for treats from his many friends. He starred in Barney Cam and gave the American people Christmas tours of the White House. Barney greeted Queens, Heads of State, and Prime Ministers. He was always polite and never jumped in their laps.

Barney was by my side during our eight years in the White House. He never discussed politics and was always a faithful friend. Laura and I will miss our pal.

I really, really miss having a class act in the White House...

Update 2/3/2013: Did you know that G.W. has taken up oil painting?  The Bushes released this painting yesterday (check out the signature)...