convergent evolution is always interesting

neat article about what humans and insects have in common.  

also, some helpful science illustrations.  

if you can access journal articles, here is the original article that inspired scientific american. 

who needs sleep when there are meteor showers to see?

i probably will not be able to see them, but if you don't live in the land of perpetual cloudy skies (seattle, wa), then maybe you can enjoy these leonids between 12 am and 3 am on august 17th.  

Photograph by Tony Hallas, Science Faction/Corbis

crowd sourcing for bird identification. neat!

for all you tech savvy bird watchers, check out what cornell is doing and lend them a hand.  science! 

all those segments and legs

this guy could either be really fun to draw or drive you mad.  

a, Live female I. plenipes with 662 legs (captured by Rob Marek). b,c, Scanning electron micrographs of male I. plenipes: b, mid-section, dorsal aspect of segments (note dense setation and micro-sculpturation of intersegmental cuticle); c, mid-section, ventral aspect of segments showing paired appendages on each diplo-segment. d, Close-up view of ozopore, the opening to the repugnatorial gland, and surface structure of cuticular projection on posterior margin of segment. e, Male copulatory device (gonopods), which are modified legs (ninth and tenth pair); left anterior is shaded blue; right posterior is in yellow. Scale bars: a, 10 mm; b, c, 400 m; d, 50 m; e, 200 m.

science that makes you feel good.

this was an amazing episode of nature.  

not just people want friends.     

hike the huyck!

back in fall of 2010, i had an exciting opportunity to become an artist in residence at the huyck preserve. the preserve is located in the charming small town of rensselaerville outside albany, new york.

the preserve's residency program, called COMmunity.ENvironment.ART Natural History Artist-in-Residency, has clear goals for their artists.  they request that the artist-in-residence create a piece of work that gives back to the community, educates the public about science and environment, and expects an artist to immerse themselves into their science and natural history. 

during my stay i was able to dive into their research, gather inspiration from the forest, and had the luxury of spending my time creating illustrations based on science.  my work focused on researching and illustrating the ecology between the northern red oak and local weevils.  The piece I created will be used by the preserve in educational materials with the hopes that it inspires the public to take a closer look at their local environment.

being a young science illustrator, opportunities like this residency, are a great way to meet scientist, get exposure to the public, and gather unique experience that can be used to inspire creative illustrations.  i am excited when I discover opportunities similar to the one at the huyck.  it is experiences like this which will help me become an even more successful science illustrator.

gnsi-nw insect workshop

yesterday some members from the GNSI+ got together to learn about insects from wanda booth from the center for urban horticulture.  always a good time squeezing in learning and drawing on a cloudy saturday.

i did not have my nikon with me!  thank goodness for the smart phone.  here are some of the highlights.