10/24/10
Solitude
"The worst solitude is to be destitute of sincere friendship." - Francis Bacon"No man will ever unfold the capacities of his own intellect who does not at least checker his life with solitude."
- Thomas de Quincey
7/20/10
6/11/10
Cheap Sweater
This is a very kinbd of subjective pleasure that we derive from some things in life and many of those things happen to be free like sunsets, fresh snow or an ocean breeze. My intention is to remind myself of these virtues of the well-lived life.
6/10/10
Lazy Day
Jack Adams
Lazy Day
Jack Adams was born with a pencil in his hand…(well not really,but perhaps a crayon). But seriously, in case you haven’t noticed, every test you have ever taken, from a Spelling Quiz to an I.Q.Test,to S.A.T., to College Boards are all testing Left-Brain ‘linear’skills. Conceptual Skills, Imagination, Fantasy Fulfillment, Spacial Analysis, Over-View analysis, are all ignored. In fact, Right-Brain dominant folks are likely to be somewhat dyslexic, and even though…’Dyslexia and IQ are not interrelated’…such kids in school are assumed to be less bright.
Busy Mind Seeks Alpha
"MY MIND IS A RAGING TORRENT, FLOODED WITH RIVULETS OF THOUGHT CASCADING INTO A WATERFALL OF CREATIVE ALTERNATIVES! "
- MEL BROOKS, FROM BLAZING SADDLES.
- MEL BROOKS, FROM BLAZING SADDLES.
6/9/10
6/8/10
5/17/10
Common Courtesy
Everyday we meet with groups of people socially and professionally. How we interact plays a large role in
the impressions we create. Are we taken seriously or do people discount what we say? Does people’s
respect for us grow or would they prefer not to be around us any more? What can you control?
Follow these tips in your next group meeting:
1. Dress consistently with how you want to be viewed.
2. Arrive early—Being early is a stress reliever.
3. Put your cell phone away.
4. Greet everyone—Make sure to greet all members of the group with a warm smile, a firm handshake if
appropriate, and repeat his or her name.
5. Be friendly.
6. Show an interest in others—Ask questions, listen carefully to what is being discussed.
7. Introduce yourself— Be proactive and introduce yourself to others in the group.
8. Introduce others.
9. Wait to be seated—In a social setting ask the host or hostess where you should sit. You want to be
respectful of how they would like the group seated.
10. Body posture—Sit up straight. Poor posture is an indication of low self-esteem. Leaning forward
indicates interest. Crossed arms indicate disinterest or possibly anger. All of your body language sends
signals to the group members.
11. Focus your attention on the person talking—Maintain eye contact with the person talking to
demonstrate respect and interest in the conversation.
12. Don’t discount anyone’s comments—Don’t dismiss an idea just because it originates from someone who
has a different point of view. Remember everyone is different and the ability to think differently can
spark creativity and innovation.
13. Think before you speak— be a respectful listener and observer. When you do talk, carefully consider what you say.
14. Remember the “two second” rule- Don’t interject or comment until the person has clearly finished
speaking. A good rule of thumb is to wait two seconds.
15. Resist the temptation to monopolize the conversation. Instead, show an interest in others by asking questions. Then listen attentively and continue the conversation accordingly.
16. Include everyone when talking—When you are the one talking, be sure to share eye contact with each
person in the group. Each member will feel valued and included.
17. Don’t change the conversation—Unless there’s a clear indicator that the conversation is finished,
don’t change the topic. You don’t want people to feel you don’t have an interest in what’s being
discussed or you think what you have to say is more important.
18. Don’t start or participate in a side conversation.
19. Don’t get up to leave the table in the middle of a conversation. Wait until there
is a pause or a shift in the conversation. Otherwise your actions could be interpreted as a lack of
interest in the conversation and the person speaking may well take offense.
20. Take your leave — Make a good last impression.
Everything you do in a group setting makes an impression on everyone in the group.
the impressions we create. Are we taken seriously or do people discount what we say? Does people’s
respect for us grow or would they prefer not to be around us any more? What can you control?
Follow these tips in your next group meeting:
1. Dress consistently with how you want to be viewed.
2. Arrive early—Being early is a stress reliever.
3. Put your cell phone away.
4. Greet everyone—Make sure to greet all members of the group with a warm smile, a firm handshake if
appropriate, and repeat his or her name.
5. Be friendly.
6. Show an interest in others—Ask questions, listen carefully to what is being discussed.
7. Introduce yourself— Be proactive and introduce yourself to others in the group.
8. Introduce others.
9. Wait to be seated—In a social setting ask the host or hostess where you should sit. You want to be
respectful of how they would like the group seated.
10. Body posture—Sit up straight. Poor posture is an indication of low self-esteem. Leaning forward
indicates interest. Crossed arms indicate disinterest or possibly anger. All of your body language sends
signals to the group members.
11. Focus your attention on the person talking—Maintain eye contact with the person talking to
demonstrate respect and interest in the conversation.
12. Don’t discount anyone’s comments—Don’t dismiss an idea just because it originates from someone who
has a different point of view. Remember everyone is different and the ability to think differently can
spark creativity and innovation.
13. Think before you speak— be a respectful listener and observer. When you do talk, carefully consider what you say.
14. Remember the “two second” rule- Don’t interject or comment until the person has clearly finished
speaking. A good rule of thumb is to wait two seconds.
15. Resist the temptation to monopolize the conversation. Instead, show an interest in others by asking questions. Then listen attentively and continue the conversation accordingly.
16. Include everyone when talking—When you are the one talking, be sure to share eye contact with each
person in the group. Each member will feel valued and included.
17. Don’t change the conversation—Unless there’s a clear indicator that the conversation is finished,
don’t change the topic. You don’t want people to feel you don’t have an interest in what’s being
discussed or you think what you have to say is more important.
18. Don’t start or participate in a side conversation.
19. Don’t get up to leave the table in the middle of a conversation. Wait until there
is a pause or a shift in the conversation. Otherwise your actions could be interpreted as a lack of
interest in the conversation and the person speaking may well take offense.
20. Take your leave — Make a good last impression.
Everything you do in a group setting makes an impression on everyone in the group.
5/16/10
5/10/10
5/9/10
4/25/10
4/23/10
The Tet Zoo guide to Gekkota, part I
The Tet Zoo guide to Gekkota, part I
This is a site dedicated to things that fascinate me :
A few other gekkotan groups have sometimes been recognised.Teratoscincus was considered worthy of its own 'subfamily', termed Teratoscincinae, by Kluge (1987) [T. keyserlingiishown here; from wikipedia]. The Cat geckoAeluroscalabotes felinus of south-eastern Asia has also been given its own 'subfamily' on occasion, dubbed Aeluroscalabotinae (modern classifications generally include A. felinus in Eublepharidae). The name Phyllodactylidae has sometimes been used for the American leaf-toed geckos (e.g., Blair et al. 2009) and a group of African gekkonines have sometimes been referred to as the Ptyodactylini.
We'll look at gekkotan phylogeny later on. Much more to come. Coming next: voices, eggshells and cervical sacs.
For previous Tet Zoo articles on neat squamates see...
- Mosasaurs might have used the same microscopic streamlining tricks as sharks and dolphins
- Tongues, venom glands, and the changing face of Goronyosaurus
- Dinosaurs come out to play (so do turtles, and crocodilians, and Komodo dragons)
- Tell me something new about basilisks, puh-lease
- 'Cryptic intermediates' and the evolution of chameleons
- The Great Goswell Copse Zootoca
- Of giant plated lizards and rough-necked monitors
- Ermentrude the liolaemine
- Evolutionary intermediates among the girdled lizards
- Hell yes: Komodo dragons!!!
- Amazing social life of the Green iguana
- Arboreal alligator lizards - yes, really
- Pompey and Steepo, the world-record-holding champion slow-worms
Refs - -
Darren Naish - me - is, or was, a vertebrate palaeontologist, formerly based at the University of Portsmouth, UK. They still host my homepage, but have usefully deleted all the links to the pdfs I so lovingly uploaded (if you want pdfs of any of the papers listed there don't hesitate to email me and ask: eotyrannus at gmail dot com). From 1997 to 2006 I worked on the predatory dinosaurs of the Lower Cretaceous of southern England, focusing for my phd on the basal tyrannosauroid Eotyrannus. A full monographic description of Eotyrannus will be published one day. Between April and August 2007 I worked for Impossible Pictures, the TV company that produced Walking With Dinosaurs and other such projects, and right now (July 2008) I work as a technical editor and freelance author.
I like dinosaurs very much, but they're far from the only animals that I find interesting. I'm fascinated by all tetrapods and have some practical and research experience with Mesozoic marin
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