September 1st, 2008, 10 Comments »
Watch this CG footage from the Discovery Channel, depicting a 500 km-wide asteroid striking the Earth. Note how it peels away the Earth’s crust like you might dig the skin off an apple with your fingernail.
If you don’t watch until the end, here’s the punchline. That’s happened at least six times in Earth’s history. Fingers crossed, eh?
July 30th, 2008, 1 Comment »
There’s a ten-foot mural painted on the side of a building that I often pass while walking home. Tonight I finally snapped a photo of it:
I always smile when I see it, because it reminds me so much of the famous Dramatic Chipmunk:
I’d look worried, too, if I faced imminent extinction. It was apparently painted by the James Bay Youth Action Team (who have no Google juice at all). Maybe a Victoria resident can tell me how long it’s been there? I doubt it’s a re-imagining of the chipmunk, but I’m curious.
The Vancouver Island Marmot is a bit of a poster boy of wilderness conservation in BC. According to Wikipedia, it’s one of the most endangered mammals on the planet, though there’s apparently cause for optimism.