I think we can all agree that science is a spectacular, wondrous thing. It’s also now a stylish thing, too, when you wear a pair of these DNA earrings. My personal favorites are the rainbow DNA earrings—which could do double-duty as science pride and gay pride, if you’re so inclined. Or they can just be awesome rainbow DNA earrings. That’s cool, too.
So, this week’s Friday Round-Up celebrates one of my heroes, Darwin. The well-known two legged take on the ichthys symbol is used by fans of evolution (can a scientific theory have fans? Does it matter if it does or not? It’s popularity’s kinda irrelevant; it’s still true…). Darwin Fish (Or Tonys, as all good Feeters know) are rough depictions of Ichyostega, the remains of which are important transitional fossils between tetrapods and fish, since they have a tail and gulls akin to fish but amphibian style skull and limbs.
So, I present to you my ten favourite crafts in honour of both Darwin and Tony…
I know a number of our American readers are unreasonably warm and toasty in some kind of freakish heatwave, but those of us in the Frigid North (and, one presumes, also in some parts of the southern hemisphere) still have over a foot of snow to deal with. So forgive me, oh sufferers of 80+ degree temperatures, for sharing this awesome thing I found! (Consider it a possibility for very early start on making a Christmas list?)
These scarves, made by Becky Stern (homepage, Etsy) display elemental emission spectra. Silicon, uranium, and mercury are currently in stock, but you can also get a custom one of any other element you like, with some delay and possibly a little extra cost. (I found this applet linked from the Wikipedia page, if you want to choose an element that appeals to you. I definitely want Cobalt, no question.)
Developed in 1869 by the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev to help illustrate commonalities in the various properties of elements, the Periodic Table has been both boon and bane to high school chemistry students around the world (my own experiences fell definitely to the “bane” side.)
Fast forward about 140 years, and we have a more modern version, and infinitely more useful, thanks to James the ComputerSherpa. In his first Visual Design class he came up with this little beauty – the Periodic Table of Storytelling.
James really did his research, turning to TVTropes.org for inspiration and information on “tropes” – which TVTropes defines as “devices and conventions that a writer can reasonably rely on as being present in the audience members’ minds and expectations.” Writers (and Hollywood types) can use these fictional elements to craft endless variations of story lines. Being a wiki, TVTropes has vast quantities of information and discussion threads, so James’ graphical version of the Periodic Table is a real timesaver.
Beyond the concept as a whole, I love the examples at the bottom, illustrating how one might describe certain shows, movies, games, etc, using formulas based on this Periodic Table. For instance, when you combine:
…and you get Star Wars. Not sure about the “Dragon” element on this one, but then, I have mentioned my chemistry is not my super power.
James very kindly put the image up for purchase as a poster – it would be fun to sit around with a bunch of geeks and work out formulas for various shows and book storylines. Maybe I’ll have to get one for my son to take to college in the fall, for he will surely find himself a gang of geeks to hand out with, and I wouldn’t want them to run out of things to talk about.
[Via: BitRebels]
I am in love (that’s the only Valentine’s reference you’re getting. I’m one of those awful smug-coupled types who ignores Val’s day because they can have romance any old day they want. Sorry.) with this Petri dish mini quilt by Rachel over at Cornflower Blue Studio.
It uses all different kinds of embroidery thread and quilting to make it a really touchable textured piece – perfect for people like me who always want to poke the squishy agar but normally have to refrain for fear of contamination; this one you can play with all you like.
Rachel is entering this piece into The Festival of Alabama Fibre Arts, where she will also be teaching a hyperbolic crochet class. I’m sure we all wish her well with the competition, and all of us not living in the Southern US are a little jealous that we won’t get to come learn from such an uber-geek-crafter.
Cornflower Blue Studio – Rachel’s blog
Cornflower Blue Studio Etsy Shop (Rachel also sells from her blog)
Never heard of a bacteriophage? That makes two of us. Rachael Penzo wants to change all of that! Calling them “the coolest thing in the entire universe”, she explained that bacteriophage is, in fact, a virus that attacks bacteria, e-coli in particular. She made this adorable “Teeto” (T2 is a type of bacteriophage) to pay homage to these little e-coli killers, and sent me several pictures of her Amigurumi Bacteriophage from her photobucket account.
Sadly, Rachael doesn’t have them on a blog, so this picture will have to suffice. He’s a cute little “bug” isn’t he?
EDIT: Ask and ye shall receive! Rachael decided to feature TeeToo here on Craftster, so you can read more about him and see more photos! She also mentions that this little guy will be featured in the Science Museum‘s Stitched Science display in Central London.
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