Ken and I are just back from a wonderful few days in Rhode Island. Holly invited Ken to speak in the University of Rhode Island biology seminar series and we were delighted with the chance to visit the coast, meet some of Holly's students and colleagues, eat seafood, and most of all, spend real time with her, who we mostly see only virtually, and her husband Kevin.
A few of the things we pondered:
- Why is Elroy the dog digging that trench under the bushes in the back yard?
- White, tomato or clear clam chowder?
- If there are multiverses, and you die on every one of them, are you still immortal?
- Do dogs have self-awareness?
- Why are oysters so genetically diverse?
- What's worse, hurricanes or blizzards?
- Can science writers be advocates? Can they avoid being advocates?
- Are Maine lobsters better than Rhode Island ones?
- Why do so many genetic results point to polygenic causation when so many genes are conserved? Or, why are so many genes conserved when polygenic causation is ubiquitous?
- Does anyone understand quantum mechanics?
- Why do we live so far from Rhode Island?
And a few of the things we saw:
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| View from Beavertail lighthouse |
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| If I were a bee, I would be unable to pass this seductive hibiscus by (it is a hibiscus, isn't it?). Such lovely modularity, too. |
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| Cliff Walk; we pretended the Newport mansions behind us weren't there. |
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| Ken, Kevin and Holly: Were they talking about quantum mechanics or where to have our next meal? Can't remember. |
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| Elroy; a great dog, he's even written a book (and you can follow him on Twitter: @ElroyBeefstu). No doubt, dogs have self-awareness. And so much more. |
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| Or maybe they were talking about who makes Bad Boy vodka. |
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| We try to forget how landlocked Central PA is. |
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| And then we tried hard to figure out what this gull was eating, but failed. Crab? Skate? Mermaid's tail? |
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| The mesmerizing view of the indefinite, if not infinite sea... |
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| Before coffee, draped in hydrangea from the gorgeous bush in the front yard. |
Thank you so much, Holly and Kevin. Such a fine weekend.
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