I recently asked Nature Boy when he had last seen a doctor. He answered, “Not since the final season of House M.D.” Other British Columbians share a similar rate of…
Category: Science Scribe
We obsess over celebrities’ tribulations and ignore widespread horrors
The killing of Cecil the Lion by big-game hunters in June outraged the world. Thirteen-year-old Cecil lived in Hwanga National Park, Zimbabwe, where he was a major attraction for wildlife…
Poppies stay in style year round
I recently visited the Jimmy Choo and Christian Laboutin footwear displays in a much-trumpeted Lower Mainland department store. When a staff person approached me, I expected the usual “Can I…
Subjective time moves at its own pace
‘When I play Candy Land with my five-year-old, time creeps,” she says. “A game lasts only 10 minutes, but it feels like two hours to me.” My friend is describing…
Pace of modern communications outstrips what the modern human brain evolved to deal with
Social media have democratized publishing. Now, anybody can spontaneously share their thoughts, opinions, photos, witticisms and criticisms, as well as what they ate for breakfast, with the world. This accessibility…
Erosion inevitable on park’s sea-side cliffs
We live in a part of the world many other people envy us for. We have ocean, mountains, beach, forests, a pretty darn awesome year-round climate for a place just…
BC Ferries vessels join illustrious list of ships used to study B.C. waters
The Queen of Oak Bay ferry joins a long, illustrious list of vessels used for marine research off our coast. The B.C. Ferries vessel was recently outfitted with scientific instruments…
Infectious disease plays starring role in pop culture
Nature Boy lurches into the kitchen. Flu-ridden, his eyes are puffy and bloodshot, snot bubbles at his nostrils, and he breathes noisily through his mouth. “Can I get you something?”…