Taylor and Mazzy

Does anyone else think that the new Taylor Swift single (“Lover”) sounds like a lamer version of the Mazzy Star song “Fade into You”?

(And yes, I could google to find out if anyone else does think that, but I’m too lazy.)

For the lawyers out there, I will note that I am not alleging actual plagiarism, just noting similarities between the two songs in terms of the 3/4 time signature, the use of piano, and the overall tone of the vocals.  

Heron Spearfishing

Here we see a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) holding what I think is a Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) in a tributary of the Potomac.  Close examination reveals that the heron has not bitten the fish, but rather has apparently speared it.  The heron walked around with the fish like this for a few minutes, presumably waiting for it to die, then dropped it back into the water to eat it.

I have to wonder if there have been any scientific studies of this type of spearfishing by birds.  (I imagine that there have been although I don’t know the scientific literature well enough to say.)  I recall that it was was once proposed, and then dropped, as a potential feeding behavior for certain types of long-jawed pterosaurs (although I can’t find a link for this).

Mockingbird on Razor Wire

I have had a Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) picture on the blog before, but this bird ups the ante by perching on razor wire.

I imagine that, since Mockingbirds prefer a more open habitat than other songbirds, Mockingbirds are more likely to be seen silhouetted against the open sky, creating opportunities for striking photos. 

  

Colleges That Need Renaming

In my work, I am constantly paying attention to the names of institutions of higher learning.  Over the years I have concluded that there are certain colleges whose names aren’t quite right, and would benefit from some readjustment:

*Denison University should rename itself Denisovan University, in honor of our lost hominid cousins, the Denisovans. 

*The College of Wooster should rename itself the College of Woofter, in honor of a guy with whom I went to high school. 

*Purdue University should rename itself Perdue University, for, well, chicken reasons.  (And isn’t that what most people think already?)

*Baylor University should rename itself Balrog University, in honor of the evil creature from The Lord of the Rings.  Furthermore, “Baylor” sounds like “baleful”, and a balrog is nothing if not baleful.  Indeed, “baleful” is one of those early Dungeons & Dragons-type words, like “ilk” and “denizen”, calling to mind the game’s very early days, when the name “balrog” was given to a Dungeons & Dragons monster, before it had to be renamed for copyright reasons.  

it is even rumored that if you say “baleful Balrog” five times, the ghost of E. Gary Gygax will appear to award you 100,000 experience points, and/or exile you to the Slaad-Infested realm of Limbo.

First Impression Part Two

It dawns on me that the premise of my last post, that one never gets a second chance to make a first impression, is contradicted by the title of the song “Karn Evil #9: 1st Impression—Part 2”.

  Despite having been a fan of ELP for decades, I did not realize until I researched this blog post that the full name of the band is officially spelled out using an ampersand, as “Emerson, Lake & Palmer”.

Should Emerson, Lake & Palmer have used a serial comma?

Is a serial comma even possible with an ampersand?

Words of Wisdom IV

You never get a second chance to make a first impression.

You do, however, get a first chance to make a second impression. 

Daytime Moon

Weeks ago I took this picture on one of the occasions when the moon is visible during the day.

Upon zooming, one can see the high level of detail that can be obtained with modern cameras, with not only maria but individual craters clearly visible in the picture.

We constantly hear in the media about supermoons, the phenomenon in which the moon appears slightly (though not, in my experience, noticeably) larger than normal.  And sometimes we hear about the various seasonally-named full moons, like the Pink Moon.  But we never hear about the daytime moon, which to me is much stranger.  

When I see the moon suspended in the daytime sky, I feel as if I am on some alien planet where I don’t belong. 

But then, I usually feel like that anyway.