thesecondface

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a detailed list of things i hate

hot weather

high temperatures

heat

warmer than average conditions

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▪︎ Cameo: Venus and Love, Lid of a Cup.

Date: 1600-1700

Artist: Giovanni Ambrogio Miseroni

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Paul Emmanuel’s ‘Nocturne’

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By using antibodies from a human donor with a self-induced hyper-immunity to snake venom, scientists have developed the most broadly effective antivenom to date, which is protective against the likes of the black mamba, king cobra, and tiger snakes in mouse trials. Described in the journal Cell, the antivenom combines protective antibodies and a small molecule inhibitor and opens a path toward a universal antiserum.

Continue Reading.

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expedition is going well, i'm finally touching grass (and a lot of fossils)

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three-phase inclusions (methane gas, liquid petroleum, solid bitumen) within quartz crystals

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Submitted comment: “I wanted to submit this paper from 2021 which is like. one of the single most aggressive academic papers I have ever seen; for context there are as I understand currently two main strains of thought as to where life first evolved— in submarine alkaline hydrothermal vents, or in above-water volcanic hot springs. The author here I believe is one of the original proponents of the hydrothermal vents hypothesis, defending it against some recent publications from the hot springs camp criticizing it for lacking evidence, and it gets. heated. The whole thing is kinda nuts but this paragraph in particular actually had my jaw actually drop reading it”

Here we counterface all the arguments made in recent papers from the very well-funded and promoted groups militantly opposed to AVT. One of these papers offers the advice “Don’t try to prove an idea is right. Instead, try to falsify it”. Fully cognizant of Popper’s “Reason and Refutation”, this has long been our own mantra, though notably unshared across the community. As an example of good faith, Branscomb and colleagues wrote, “arguably the key virtue of the alkaline hydrothermal vent (AHV) model as a scientific hypothesis regarding the initial steps in the emergence of life is its essentially unique vulnerability to disproof. It places all of its chips on the claim that certain naturally arising, but experimentally reproducible, geochemical circumstances do produce castles of mineral ‘cells’ in which three key, undeniably life-like chemical disequilibria are ‘abiotically’ generated and maintained. If it proves not to be possible to experimentally substantiate these conjectures, then we may expect interest in the theory to wane.” Furthermore, falsifiable predictions of AVT were listed in Russell that would, if demonstrated, “reveal embarrassing missing links, or even leave the AVT as just one more casualty of the general theory of natural rejection.” We look forward to similar commitment and clarity from the wet-dry polymerizing pond people. However, we do admit to being impressed over the one prediction made by this group—viz., Dimitar Sassalov’s promise that Harvard University “will soon have the equivalent of a living thing in the lab at the chemical level”. We will be particularly interested to hear what bearing such an artifact might have on the putative ‘first universal ancestor’, its evolving progeny and the geochemical/geophysical disequilibria responsible for its emergence?

The “Water Problem”(sic), the Illusory Pond and Life’s Submarine Emergence—A Review (Russell, 2021)

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american puritan names have nothing on the first name of this 17th century dutch woman artist i just read about. my girl Tesselschade ('texel damage') named after the shipwrecking of her father's 44 trade ships on the coast of the island Texel in 1593.

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Brazilian kimberlites in thin section

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i've always wanted to visit the beautiful city of chicago because i love their citation style

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Tonight's tiny craft is a @pardalote -inspired beaded form (in progress)! Clearly I need a lot of practice before my beadwork is anywhere as neat and uniform as theirs, but it's still very fun and rewarding, and a nice use for scraps and offcuts.

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Look at this beautiful grey heron I saw the other day. Plus the money shot (well...) of heron eating a little fish.

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i beat myself up for not knowing enough about my special interests a lot but then i remember the average person off the street has no idea what the carboniferous is and i feel better

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Got really, really into gouache recently, to the point where I cannot stop painting, PhD be damned. Following some very excellent tutorials from Ruth Wilshaw and getting results like this (which, insane! Not at all my usual standards! These paintings do not taste like disappointment and futility!) Incredible how meaningless squiggle can become trees and squashed diamonds can become waves. Feel like I got a new lease on life from this hobby which is always nice :)

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Masahisa Fukase, 1970s

from Wonderful Days

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Ngl i prefer the 2016 version purple on the right.

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By canvasoul