It will be slightly hard, though, as I’m still taking in my first experience of the Middle East. Doha, Qatar reminded me a lot of Las Vegas, only hotter and much less interested in its visitors having fun (e.g., it is nearly impossible to find a beer there unless you are at an American hotel). You spend your time inside consuming vast amounts of air conditioning, and trying to imagine just how much water it takes to fuel the artificial lawns outside the window. The thing that most struck me was the oxymoron (no longer) of standing outside in a hot wind.

The more amazing experience was post-revolution Cairo. Many foreign tourists are unreasonably terrified of the place–due in part to media coverage of riots and protests–and their absence has damaged the economy. In fact, it’s a very safe place to visit–unless, perhaps, you deliberately stand in the middle of a protest in Tahrir Square (my picture above ...]]> http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/07/06/four-days-in-cairo/feed/ 4 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/06/25/off-to-doha-and-cairo/ http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/06/25/off-to-doha-and-cairo/#comments Sun, 26 Jun 2011 01:30:41 +0000 Chris Mooney http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/?p=19115 I’m at Dulles airport, about to board a plane to Doha, Qatar for the World Conference of Science Journalists. Then, a small group of us are going on to Egypt for a workshop on science journalism.

I’m not entirely sure how blogging will fare during all this–I return July 5. It may be easy and normal, or not so much.

I know Jon and Jamie will be pitching in, as always. Indeed, check out Jamie’s great fracking post (below), and look forward to more…

Meanwhile, I’ve just gotten back from the CFI Cruise to Greece.

Many ruminations to follow, I hope, about Greece, the latest Point of Inquiry episode (which it seems like everyone is talking about, though I’ve barely been able to keep up), and Jamie’s great guest blogging.

In the meantime, Happy Tuesday.

In May of 2007, I took a trip to Venice, Italy, to attend a friend’s wedding. I wasn’t going to be able to blog, so I called for guest bloggers. I selected Sheril Kirshenbaum, who proceeded to blog so successfully and so popularly that upon my return, I asked her to stay. She did, and the rest is four years of history–history that just officially ended today.

Now, May of 2011 approaches, and next week I depart for Venice, Italy, to begin the Center for Inquiry travel club’s Mediterranean Cruise, where I’ll be joined by our very own Phil Plait and Lawrence Krauss, among others. Appropriately enough, I’ve been referring to this as a tour of the “Geek Islands.”

And once again, it is time for another “Intersection” transition, albeit of a very different type.

In truth, the blog has already been evolving, as you may have noticed, over the past several months. I’ve been blogging much more, traffic has been much higher, and I’ve been taking on a new set of topics as well ...]]> http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/04/28/intersections-and-new-directions/feed/ 2 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/04/28/parting-ways-at-the-intersection/ http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/04/28/parting-ways-at-the-intersection/#comments Thu, 28 Apr 2011 13:12:16 +0000 Sheril Kirshenbaum http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/?p=17630 I’ve been blogging since 2006: First at The Nexus followed by four years at The Intersection with Chris. My writing has evolved tremendously since then, and in many ways, so have I.  Now I’m about to begin a new chapter..

I’m thrilled to announce I’ll be writing the monthly science column for Bloomberg View. This is the upcoming opinion page from Bloomberg News, led by David Shipley and James Rubin.

I’m equally delighted to announce I’ve joined Wired Science Blogs. My blog will launch in a couple of weeks, so for now I’ll say I’m very excited about the theme. (In the mean time, watch for clues coming via Twitter). Of course, since blogs exist in virtual space, I’m not really going anywhere and will just be a different hyperlink away.

It’s been incredible to share the terrific Discover network with so many esteemed colleagues and friends since 2009! Special thanks to Amos, Eliza, Ed, Phil, Razib, Carl, Henry, Corey, and of course, Chris for all of your support.  I also appreciate the warm welcome at both Wired Science and Bloomberg where I’m honored to be joining two new families of talented writers.

I’ve received several emails asking why I’ve been posting less. While it’s true I’ve had a busy Spring semester between the book’s debut, speaking engagements, and teaching responsibilities, be assured I am not slowing down. Rather, quite the opposite! I’ve taken on new projects that I’ll share more about soon. And I’ll also continue to blog emphasizing the conservation of biodiversity on a changing planet.

On Earth Day and every day, I truly believe there is much reason for hope.

Sheril

Tomorrow, February 9th at 6pm, I’ll be speaking at UT-Austin’s Science Study Break. By using film and television clips as examples, I’ll describe the science behind why we kiss and there will be giveaways as well!

On Friday, February 11 at 5pm, I’ll be speaking at Science in the Pub at The Cactus Cafe, also at UT.

And on Monday February 14th, I will be speaking at Hofstra University in New York. The Science of Kissing is a terrific topic for Valentines Day!

There will also be a lot of radio and television appearances over the next several days as well, so stay tuned!

Dr. Echols explained that some budgies–particularly in wild populations–fluoresce under UV light. As he describes in the video, this energetically costly characteristic may help with individual identification, social signaling, and mate selection.

At least since 2003, I’ve been working–including writing two of my three books–at Tryst coffeeshop in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington, D.C. And being a creature of routines, over time I’ve established my favorite place to sit–usually, on one of two wooden benches against the back wall of the place.

I’ve probably had ass planted in these seats for hundreds of hours in total over the years. Suffice it to say, it’s a multi-year routine; and the best coffeeshop I’ve ever worked in. When I chose to move back to D.C. this year after a multiyear jaunt across Los Angeles, Princeton, NJ, and Cambridge, MA, Tryst had something to do with it.

At the same time, as a second generation atheist,* I wasn’t brought up religious at all, and the number of hours I’ve spent in a church is…well, it depends on if you count architectural tours in European cities, but it’s surely a tiny fraction of the time spent at Tryst.

So it came as a total surprise the other day when, to ...]]> http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2010/12/21/never-knew-id-been-sitting-in-pews/feed/ 12