Beyond Bones

Lecture – How to Walk on Water & Climb up Walls: Animal Movement & Robots of the Future by David Hu Animals have adapted and evolved to traverse their environments, taking advantage of physical laws with results that are startling and ingenious. Mechanical engineer and biologist David L. Hu will demystify the remarkable mechanics behind […]

Lecture – New Technology in Fossil Prep by David Temple Recent advances in fossil preparation have led scientists to uncover incredible detail in fossils that until now where not thought possible.   HMNS paleontologist David Temple will overview these new technologies and the amazing findings they have brought to science–including soft tissue, microscopic blood cells, […]

It’s October and in honor of our 31 Days of Death I’m exploring the deadly reputation of everyone’s favorite yellow berry. For at least a century now, it has been a common superstition among seafarers that to bring a banana on board a ship is bad luck. Nobody know’s where this myth came from, however […]

      Autumn represents sort of an ‘intermission’ in the sky, with bright summer stars setting at dusk, while bright winter patterns such as Orion have not yet risen.   The ‘teapot’ of Sagittarius sets in the southwest early in the evening.  The Summer Triangle is high in the west.   Meanwhile, the Great Square […]

Lecture – Beauty and Morphology of Insects by Erin Mills Characteristics and adaptations of these unique and misunderstood creatures will be explored by Erin Mills, Director of the Cockrell Butterfly Center. Living exotic beetles, giant katydids, walking sticks, hissing cockroaches, beautiful butterflies and other exciting arthropods will compliment this special presentation and tour of the […]

By Jeff Cummins, Horticulturalist at the Cockrell Butterfly Center   A sea of green surrounds people living in even the most urban environments, and yet almost nobody can see truly the plants. We see the trees, manicured hedges, or notice when our neighbor has taken a little too long to mow the lawn, but that’s […]

Every year thousands of visitors pass through our Morian Hall of Paleontology. Within the labyrinthine halls of this massive space they encounter some of the most famous ancient creatures known to science: Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, Stegosaurus, Megalodon, Mastodon and many others. The space is filled with so many gigantic wonders that it’s easy to overlook […]

Lecture – Facing the Past – Cases in Forensic Sculpture by Amanda Danning Forensic sculptor Amanda Danning performs facial reconstructions on skulls whose true appearance is unknown. She has worked on the most exciting anthropology finds in North America as well as contemporary criminal cases. Danning’s captivating presentation will combine history and technology, forensics and […]

In honor of the last day of Summer, I thought I’d investigate the pumpkin craze that is sweeping the nation even before Fall begins. In preparation for the coming season, grocery stores are stocking up on pumpkin scones, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cakes, oreos, coffee… you name, they’ve pumpkin-ized it. It seems like people are crazy […]

In honor of National Talk Like a Pirate day, I thought I’d explore just where the famous pirate accent came from and whether any real pirates spoke in the style we all associate with them today. After days of researching I have discovered that, in short, the answer is Hollywood and no. However, the story […]