Do Insects See Color?

How doth the little busy bee
Improve each shining hour,
And gather honey all the day
From every opening flower!
~Isaac Watts, "Divine Songs"

White cars attract more insects than cars of other colors. Or so it seems to me (owner of a white car). Just today there was an assassin bug crawling across the inside roof of the car. This of course, forced us to pull over so my younger son and I could relax after my older son (an entomologist at heart, even if not in practice) rescued said bug and set him free.

I noted that there seemed to be far more bugs in and around this particular car than others we've had. Which started a discussion as to whether or not bugs see color. My older son, expert that he is said "Of course they do. The also see ultraviolet and infrared. And bees, for instance can see the colors of flowers."

"Ha!" said I, "You learn something new every day!" (Voilâ! Blog post for today!)

Not all insects can see all colors. It depends on what type of eye they have. Bees, it seems, have the best insect vision of all.

Note: Assassin bugs are very cool as bugs go.

Something else I learned: Insects are not more commonly drawn to white - cars or otherwise.

Why "Station Wagon?" (Friday 10-14)

It's a Dream Wagon....this '49 FORD with its heart of steel and the new FORD 'FEEL'
Feel that safety!
And feel that comfort!
Feel that power!
It's steel, steel, steel.
It's sealed against dust."
~1949 Ford Station Wagon Ad

What is the reason for the name of "station wagons?"

Originally known as "depot hacks"- light commercial vehicles that were popular at train stations because they could carry passengers and quite a bit of luggage. Station wagons were first built in the 1920s. Ford built it's first station wagons in 1929.

After WWII, station wagons became a desirable family vehicle. Station wagons remained popular through the 50s, 60s and into the 70s. They began to lose popularity due to the oil issues in the 70s and were finally replaced as "the" family car by the minivans introduced in the 80s.

Note: Station Wagons are called Estate Cars in the UK.

Emo to be Banned in Russia!

"Not all scars show, not all wounds heal Sometimes you can't always see The pain someone feels"
emo quote

Emo is, apparently, a state of mind. And a music style. Difficult to define, but it involves teens and angst. Emo is short for emotional. The urban dictionary has this to say about emo. There is plenty of information available online so one can draw ones own conclusions. As they have in Russia, although they have reached a completely wrong one.

I think the Russian government is overreacting a little bit. Outlawing angsty, emotional teens that listen to depressing music and dress kind of strange? Good luck!

Note: Some things never change.

Bonus Post for Wednesday: Stocking is the New Planking

The soul never thinks without a picture.
~Aristotle

Stocking.

Woman winks, sips and waves spoon (at the same time).

Stocking is self-explanatory once you see the site.

Had to look up "planking" but that is something extra learned today.

Note: Anyone can stock, planking looks a little more involved.

Not All Shiitake is the Same

Not presume to dictate, but broiled fowl and mushrooms - capital thing!
~Charles Dickens

Shiitakes mushrooms are grown 2 ways, on hardwood logs or on sawdust blocks.

Highest quality shiitakes are grown on oak logs. It takes 6-18 months to colonize the whole log which is then soaked to produce mushrooms. Moisture in combination with cold triggers the reproductive cycle of the mushrooms. A log can produce for four years yielding larger crops as the log matures.

Sawdust blocks are made of sawdust (surprise!). The blocks are inoculated then incubated for 1-4 months. They are then soaked in water to produce mushrooms. Some nutritional content may be added during this process, because the sawdust grown shiitakes are not as full of protein and vitamins as the log grown mushrooms.

Note: There are a plethora of recipes available for shiitake mushrooms. My favorite thing to do with any mushrooms is just to throw a few in to whatever I am cooking.

Something else I learned: If you are buying shiitake mushrooms at the grocery store, you are most likely getting the type grown on sawdust blocks (no matter how expensive they are).

Labels for Education

"In this world of plenty every human being has a right to food, clothes, decent shelter, and the rudiments of education."
~ Elizabeth Cady Stanton

I have been clipping Box Tops for Education for years and it seems that every time I bring groceries home, there are even more products sporting the very distinctive image.

I don't know if there actually are more, but it does seem like it.

This week we had a different brand of cereal than I usually buy and I scanned the empty box before throwing it away just in case there was box top proof. Instead, I saw something that said "Labels for Eduction." I looked more closely - because the proof is not nearly as distinctive as the box tops. I clipped it just in case but found out that my sons school is not part of the program.

You can learn more about Labels for Education here.

Note: I have a plastic bag full of Box Tops proofs in a chip clip hanging on the side of the fridge. This makes it easy and (fairly) convenient to collect them. When the clip starts sliding down, I know it is time to send them in to school.

Something else I learned: There are some pretty good coupons available at the Box Tops web site.

The Best Part of Waking Up is Coffee in Your Mouth

No coffee can be good in the mouth that does not first send a sweet offering of odor to the nostrils. ~Henry Ward Beecher

Because I agree wholeheartedly with the above quote, after the post about drinking coffee in space, I got to thinking about olfaction and wondered about smell in space. Can astronauts enjoy the smell and taste of a good cup of coffee, or any foods and beverages?

Apparently not. Not because the odor molecules behave differently but because their sinuses fill with fluid in the lack of gravity. NASA calls it "odor boredom."

It doesn't look all that tasty anyway - maybe it's better the way it is.

Something else I learned: Space Smells Funny

Saturday is a Difficult Day to Learn Something New

What I learned yesterday (Saturday): It is difficult to learn something new on Saturdays.

Two weeks in and twice I have not had a chance to learn a new thing on Saturday. I gather information readily, but that is not the same as learning. Next week, I will try harder, or continue to learn 2 things on Sundays.

Drinking Coffee in Space

A morning without coffee is like sleep.  ~Author Unknown

How to enjoy your morning coffee in space:

Cool!

Something else: It looks like washing your hair in space is a real pain!