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PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.
…and this is a pharyngula stage embryo.
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Random Quote
The intelligent beings in these regions should therefore not be surprised if they observe that their locality in the universe satisfies the conditions that are necessary for their existence. It is a bit like a rich person living in a wealthy neighborhood not seeing any poverty.
Stephen Hawking, A Brief History of Time (New York: Bantam, 1988), p. 124.
Recent Posts
- Botanical Wednesday: Is everything weird in Australia?
- Carnival of Evolution 47
- Mary's Monday Metazoan: So…you don't like pink?
- Gaily frolicking squid
- Near-death, rehashed
- Friday Cephalopod: Onward! Upward!
- Another creationist list of lies
- Modular gene networks as agents of evolutionary novelty
- Botanical Wednesday: an alien forest
- Mary's Monday Metazoan: Needs shortcake
A Taste of Pharyngula
Recent Comments
- Amphiox, OM on It never ends — Bemidji is afflicted with the toxin of creationism
- Mbee on Botanical Wednesday: Is everything weird in Australia?
- David Marjanović on An ontogeny of toilet drain behavior
- Stanton on It never ends — Bemidji is afflicted with the toxin of creationism
- David Marjanović on Another creationist list of lies
- David Marjanović on It never ends — Bemidji is afflicted with the toxin of creationism
- Sven DiMilo on Botanical Wednesday: Is everything weird in Australia?
- Nerd of Redhead, OM on It never ends — Bemidji is afflicted with the toxin of creationism
- Owlmirror on It never ends — Bemidji is afflicted with the toxin of creationism
- Amphiox, OM on It never ends — Bemidji is afflicted with the toxin of creationism
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Blogroll
Other Information
We have a monthly award here on Pharyngula, in which commenters can nominate and vote for one of their own as the best and most interesting and most deserving of acknowledgment. It's called the Order of the Molly, after the late Molly Ivins, who was also one of those people most of us know only from her writings, but with whom we also wish we could have a conversation…and you know they'd be great at it, too.
So here's the list of people we look forward to in the comment threads—people we might all think to emulate.
| Date | Winners | Sample comments |
| February 2007 | Kristine Harley | →"Smart, good looking, dancer, what more could you ask for?" →"whose wit, humour and writing skill always makes her an enjoyable and enlightening read" |
| Scott Hatfield | →"the guy consistently shows grace and class" →"a very good writer, has diplomacy and a clear, concise argument style, let alone the best disposition among atheists" | |
| March 2007 | Blake Stacey | →He's a smart feller.
→whenever I'm reading a comment and thinking "Right on, man" I come to the end and there's his name. |
| Hank Fox | →He's funny and always includes a thought provoking statement with clarity and logic. →Very bright guy who comes up with the greatest metaphors to make his points. | |
| April 2007 | Torbjörn Larsson | →I, too, would like to cast a vote for Mr. Diacritical, Torbjorn Larsson, not for any one post but for the overall excellence of his contributions. And his wit. And his cool name. And his hair. I bet he has nice hair. →Having read some of his offerings, I have to say it would not surprise me in the slightest should TL turn out to have access to more than one mind at any given moment. He's, um, really smart. |
| May 2007 | Kseniya | →I'm going to vote for Kseniya based on insightful, relevant posts and reasonably conccluded thoughts. →Kseniya, who is insightful and very, very funny. |
| BronzeDog | →Bronze Dog gets my vote this time, along with Kseniya. They both have insightful things to say (and I REALLY like BD's atavar...) →Bronze Dog has long been deserving of one - I go for him this time. | |
| June 2007 | Ichthyic | →I have no great problems with that fishy fellow, Ichthyic. Just as PZ has fed me nuggets of evo-devo which I kinda sorta understand, Ichthyic has graced me with partially understood fish knowledge. →There's something very fishy about this Ichthyic guy, but he gets my vote. I'll get the tarter sauce. |
| July/August 2007 | Brownian | →Brownian, per moi, for frequent displays of erudition and piquant humor, and for... well, just look! →I have decided to pray that Brownian is recognized with a well-deserved Molly. |
| Zeno | →I'll cast a vote for Zeno as well, and here's part of why I urge you to cast your vote for him. →Zeno. For a persistent part of the Pharyngula phenomenon, pestering the poor paupers of pseudoscientific phantasies, and paradoxically phun physico-math posts. | |
| September 2007 | David Marjanović | →David Marjanović single handedly thwarted an invasion staged by the Moon Commies (they live on the moon, are green, and are actually more like Stalinists than commies), and he laughs at my jokes. →I also vote for David Marjanović. Why? To quote the Simpsons: "no one who speaks German could be an evil man". And in addition he speaks at least two other languages as well! Apart from his language skills he provides some very insightful comments and he also faced John A. Davison and his (Davison's) trusty lackey VMartin in a mammoth thread a few months ago. That's determination, folks. |
| October 2007 | Cuttlefish | →Anyway, my vote this month is for Cuttlefish, because s/he's a lyrical gangsta.
→I was going to nominate Cuttlefish even before I saw everyone else voting for Cuttlefish, too. His/her poems are not only funny, but s/he's got a sense of rhythm Pope would envy (that's Mr. Alexander, not Mr. Ratzenberger). |
| November 2007 | Sastra | →Sastra. Everything s/he writes is interesting and insightfull.
→It seems like every time I see a comment by Sastra, I say to myself, "Who is this person, who knows so much of science?" |
| December 2007 | Dustin | →Dustin++! He often makes me laugh, which would surely be a qualifying trait.
→I vote for Dustin, the current popular boy in the class. For consistent wit, logic and all round grammatical correctness (plus Mr Shrek sometimes makes him sick which means we have something in common). |
| January 2008 | MAJeff | →I think MAJeff has been quite active and fabulous this go-round, and add to the pile of votes in his favor.
→I vote for MAJeff. His commentary has been insightful, witty, useful, illustrative, provocative, informative, and challenging. (And at times he pissed me off, until I thought about what he was saying and after thought found myself agreeing.) |
| February 2008 | Truth Machine | →I'm gonna nominate Truth Machine, in particular for his tenacity. I get bored with a thread or something, and weeks later he'll still be going at it. →There are so many names, of course, but there can be no finer sight in the blogosphere than checking a few day old thread, and scrolling down, only to find about 30 posts by this guy - taking names (of literally everyone) with his barbed rhetoric and kick-you-in-the-nuts grandiloquence. |
| Mrs Tilton | →I will go for Mrs Tilton. I may not always agree with her (although quite often I do) but when she does not she does make me think. →Mrs. Tilton always thrusts, cuts, parries, and dissects with ladylike precision. Many good choices out there, but my vote goes to her this month. | |
| March 2008 | Glen Davidson | →Glen D, definitely overdue. I bring him up for a Molly almost every month, I think. His frequent posts are informative, thoughtful and intelligent -- except for sudden Tourette-like bursts of scathing vitriol -- and then calm back down to academic discussion. This used to bother me a bit, but I'm now at the point where I see it as a charming quirk.
→He deserves one at least for the sheer effort he puts in day in and day out, not only here, but on his own blog as well. |
| April 2008 | brokenSoldier | →For touchning, honest and enlightening posts - not least answering that Quaerar fellow on the papist post: Broken Soldier.
→I'd like to second the nomination for BrokenSoldierfor being patient, thoughtful, lucid and perhaps even kind in the face of layered stupidity. |
| May 2008 | Etha Williams | →As always, it's hard to pick one person without implicitly slighting twenty, but though she be new to the 'hood, small in stature and too young to buy a beer, my vote for May has gotta go to our hugely personable, imposingly bright, and unfailingly eloquent little sistah, Etha Williams.
→Etha Williams comes out of nowhere and stuns me with erudite comments. |
| June 2008 | windy | →For weeks now, I've thought that windy deserved recognition for a level-headed discussion about the evolution-of-altruism question, and in particular for pointing to the literature which argues that (some of the things called) group selection are mathematically equivalent to (some of the things called) kin selection. (OK, so I think the theoretical ecologists made the point more clearly, but still, I appreciate the references.) So, yes: a Molly for windy! →There's been lots of good comments and commenters, some by newcomers, some by those already of the Order… But windy is overdue for induction, for comments both witty and wise. |
| Bride of Shrek | →Bride of Shrek, definitely. I always catch myself nodding at her posts even when I don't agree! (Not nodding off... just nodding like "Yeah, yeah, I can see that.") And frequently entertaining, too. And intelligent! We should all be so intelligent! →I think Bride of Shrek deserves it for consistently witty and intelligent posts. | |
| July 2008 | Owlmirror | →I'll join the chorus and vote for Owlmirror for his/her epic tragicomedy "WAFERGATE OR CEILING CATLOLIC IS WATCHING YOU MASTICATE".
Has anyone ever won a Molly for writing a play in the comments before? →I'd really like to see Owlmirror win this months Molly. Almost everytime he/she comments I'm nodding to myself thinking "Yeah, that's a point I hadn't though of". He/she has the intelligent lateral thinking thing down pat and I love that- it challenges you. |
| A special acknowledgment goes out to our four guest bloggers in August: Danio, LisaJ, MAJeff, and Sastra. They were the blogbearers while I was slacking off somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, and for this they receive my thanks. They are no longer merely Pharyngulites or Pharynguloids, but deserve the honorific of Pharyngulords. | ||
| August 2008 | Rev. BigDumbChimp | →Who's the sexy chimp who types like a gimp? Rev. Daaaamn right. Who is the man who's fingers type like big ol' hams? Rev! Can ya dig it? I'm talkin' about Chimp, baby! →Rev. BDC for me! He comments on a lot of the blogs I read, and the other day I started wishing there was a Molly for the whole Internet. Thanks Brother BDC for being consistently awesome! |
| September 2008 | Patricia | →This month's Molly should go to Patricia, for generally refreshing snarkiness if nothing else. Keep fighting the good fight, babe. →I'd like to add my vote for Patricia - always fun when she joins in ! |
| Nick Gotts | →I vote for Nick Gotts. Anyone who has the patience to deal with Scott from Oregon regularly deserves some sort of award. →Nick Gotts for the molly. His tenacity and persistence in tackling fundamentalist lunacy is extremely admirable and a pleasure to read. Blunt, brutal, yet entertaining. | |
| October 2008 | SC | →It's about goddamn time SC had a Molly! →Although I usually end up nominating several people, this time around I am limiting myself to just one; SC. Her consistent reminders, for those of us who need them, that a thoughtless, "innocent" misogyny is unacceptable, are just possibly going to make a few people think. And once a prejudice has been dredged up from the subconscious it can rarely stand too much thought. |
| November 2008 | Emmet Caulfield | →Based on my limited time I've been able to spend here over the past month, I nominate Emmet Caulfield. If nothing else, for his participation in the boobies thread the other day. Hilarious. →Gotta be Emmet Caulfield, he had me a few months ago at "abbatoir for lettuces". That one still cracks me up. |
| December 2008 | Nerd of Redhead | →I say Nerd of Redhead for graciously admitting a mistake and then challenging Pete Rooke to do the same. It was classy and awesome. →I don't get around to posting much these days but I'm always lurking around reading and this month, for all around wittiness, intelligence and logic, I nominate Nerd. |
| January 2009 | Wowbagger | →I'm voting (again!) for Wowbagger. Pretty much anytime I read one of Wowbagger's posts, I think "yeah...". →I have to put in another vote for Wowbagger. He just impresses me with almost every comment. |
| February 2009 | Removed by request | |
| March 2009 | Janine | →My vote this time goes to Janine of many names. Anyone who can repeatedly deal with someone like Barb deserves the nod, and the ability to turn a Survivor thread into a running discussion of oral sex and lesbians only reinforces the talent. →Janine, largely because I keep looking at her name wondering why I'm missing the OM that must be there somewhere, ya know. |
| Josh | →Josh for the Molly. He makes me wish I has not left Geology to marry and move to the wilds of Maine. What a long time ago that was. Not only is he good at the explanations he is so calm with these bozos. They aren't listening but I sure am. →Josh gets my vote for explaining how the noachian flood couldn't possibly have put fossil clams on top of Mt. Everest or laid limestone beds in Indiana. | |
| April 2009 | Bill Dauphin | →Bill Dauphin is long overdue. →My vote this month is for Bill Dauphin just because he is long overdue. |
| May 2009 | Kel | →As many others have said, Kel has been a stalwart and a reliable source of good stuff. →Kel has absolutely taken the time and effort to rack up a Molly-worthy body of work. |
| June 2009 | Jadehawk | →This time, I nominate Jadehawk, who's both harsh and understanding, and who takes no prisoners.
→Jadehawk doesn't have a molly yet? Preposterous! This must be rectified. I vote for Jadehawk |
| Smoggy Batzrubble | →He's funny and always includes a thought provoking statement with clarity and logic. →Hi, I vote for: Smoggy Batzrubble. His posts are always entertaining and are guaranteed to give the 'liars for jesus™' conniptions. | |
| July 2009 | 'Tis Himself | →And 'Tis Himself, who is such an assured hard-ass, I assumed he musty already have a Molly. →I'll support SC, OM and put in my vote for 'Tis Himself. There are times when I disagree, but when he's right he's right. What's more, he supports his stand well. |
| August 2009 | Carlie | →Carlie - calm, kind, clear-thinking (and I agree with her virtually all of the time) →Carlie for her calm, reasoned, and gracious comments. |
| strange gods before me | →takes on the tough issues and adds an interesting perspective (and I agree with him virtually all of the time) →manages to pwn Walton repeatedly without ever losing his rag (which I can't), and enhances any thread to which he (? - I've a feeling sgbm has been identified as male, but I'm not sure) contributes. | |
| September 2009 | Desert Son | →And Desert Son should be crowned king. Failing that, a Molly will do. →Desert Son, whose substance is solid and style is soothing |
| Feynmaniac | →Speaking of deserving, Feynmaniac is long long long overdue. →I have had very little time to read lately, but once again nominate Feynmaniac. He is among the few commentators I always read | |
| October 2009 | Lynna | →For October, my nod goes to Lynna for her timely and comprehensive posts on the Mormon involvement in gay-discrimination campaigns in this thread and others. →This month I will nominate Lynna for her excellent work on exposing Mormon hypocrisy |
| November 2009 | Aratina Cage | →Another vote for Aratina Cage here, for consistently intelligent, clear and incredibly patient comments and replies. →I also vote for aratina cage , having just read yet another thread where he articulated my thoughts better than I would have. |
| December 2009 | John Morales | →"John Morales of the next! He's very sagacious, and deals with people in a more controlled manner than I ever could" →"John Morales, who is long overdue." |
| Leigh Williams | →"Leigh Williams for going after creationists. It's fun to see them get their ass handed to them by a Christian." →"For this month however I shall turn lesbian and vote for the deliciously salacious Leigh Williams." | |
| January 2010 | Paul W. | →For January, Paul W gets my vote, even though he plays hell on my beer supply with his tl;dr posts. (As in "Shit, it's another 3 page post by Paul W. Better get another beer before I dig in!") →I was blown away by Paul W's work on this non-Pharyngula thread. Read it, then read his comments here. Then vote for him as well. |
| February 2010 | AJ Milne | →Again, I vote for the perennial Molly bridesmaid, AJ Milne. →My vote for February goes to AJ Milne, for his February awesomeness, his prior awesomeness, and because he wuz robbed for the January Molly. |
| March 2010 | Josh, Official SpokesGay | →My nomination for March is Josh, OfficialSpokesGay. When he's serious, he's brilliant in his ferocity and always on point. When he's not so serious, his humour brings smiles and lifts spirits, and he is unfailingly compassionate. →Josh, Josh, JOSH! I've been banging this drum for a couple of months now, but our Official Spokes Gay definitely deserves recognition for his awesome-sauce. |
| April 2010 | Caine | →Caine, Fleur du Mal for both the quality and the quantity. →Caine, Fleur du Mal, who lives up to her moniker by skewering the illogical posters. |
| May 2010 | Ol'Greg | →Ol'Greg, of course. She has deserved an OM for months. →my vote for May Molly goes to Ol'Greg, for her honest insight, and her delectable pipes! (I'm referring to her talented singing voice, for those that need the clarification). |
| June 2010 | Cerberus | →Once again, I'm om nom nom(inating) Cerberus for two reasons:
1) She is consistently thought provoking. 2) Her birthday was a day or two ago and this is my gift to her. →I normally do not cast a vote, because there are always so many worthy posters, but one poster in June went so far above and beyond that I am determined to raise my voice this time: Cerberus. |
| July 2010 | Aquaria | →I vote Aquaria, for kickin' ass, taking names, and not giving the names back. →I vote Aquaria for her general awesomeness and for using the expression "fuck right off" on the homeschooling thread, which pretty much captured my sentiments but which my residual pearl-clutching won't allow me to say. |
| a_ray_in_dilbert_space | →ARIDS for being the most patient OM NOM ever. →As I have for several months I'm nominating A_Ray_In_Dilbert_Space for general intelligence, good writing, and always being a bride's maid instead of a bride. | |
| August 2010 | Gregory Greenwood | →For August Molly, I'm going to give my vote to the wise and wonderful Gregory Greenwood, who is always a pleasure to read. →This month I'm gonna go with Gregory Greenwood. Seriously dude, you're probably the sharpest person here! |
| September 2010 | Walton | →Walton, who has grown intellectually a lot ever since he first showed up at Pharyngula, and despite his often-contrary viewpoints, he can take part in a reasoned discourse, and with grace. →I would like to add my voice to the votes for Walton (definately the winner of the Most Improved Pharyngulite Award[tm]. It was fun to take the journey with you. Also, I always enjoy your posts)! |
| October 2010 | Mattir | →Mattir for intelligence, wit and spirit in her writing →I will once again nominate Mattir, for her fierce demeanor, sniny teeth, and eloquence. |
| November 2010 | DominEditrix (Unfortunately, this is a posthumous award; Neith Hammond, who posted as DominEditrix, died suddenly that month.) | →I will have to throw in my chip for DominEditrix. I enjoyed Neith's posts more than I can say. I did not know she had died.
This is not a sadness vote. It's a vote because she deserves it, and it's the last time I can vote for her. →I, too, vote for a posthumous Molly for DominEditrix. I always loved reading her posts, and I miss her presence here a lot. |
| NigelTheBold | →nigelTheBold, Captain Smug, who should have been mollied the last two times, for outstanding work in many a thread, notably the Oprah Troll one. Nigel is a delight, with witty, sharp writing, all with a wonderful noir flair. →I haven't been around much this past month, but I'm gonna go with Nigel the Bold because he has deserved a Molly for the past 2 months at least. | |
| December 2010 | Antiochus Epiphanes | →Antiochus Epiphanes for intelligent discussions and wit. →I would like to nominate Antiochus Epiphanes for exceptionally and consistently high-quality posts, filled with humor, insight, with just a splash of snark. |
| January 2011 | Iain Walker | →Iain Walker is getting my vote. His posts are always a joy to read and I always learn something. This is a good example of his writing. →Iain Walker, for his eloquence and clarity of thought. Always a pleasure to read and one of the many reasons why I still keep coming back to this blog. |
| Ing | →Ing for snark beyond compare. →There are a couple of other candidates that shined in January but Ing outshone them all. | |
| February 2011 | SallyStrange | →SallyStrange for intelligence and good writing, particularly on womens' issues →SallyStrange for damn fine writing. |
| llewelly | →Llewelly for wit and snark used appropriately. →llewelly, who had several smackdowns in addition to his usual charm and humor | |
| March 2011 | onion girl | →'Cos she is awesome, whether she's talking about social work or glitter or anything in between. →I echo onion girl, for work plonking trolls and conveying a usefully practical perspective on mental health and social work issues. Also for being a wonderful organizer of the Mid-Atlantic Usanian PharyngulaHorde activities. |
| CJO | →His (sic) has broad knowledge of many topics, and his scholarship relating to the New Testament is formidable (even though I'm not quite convinced that Jesus is a myth). →I'll join the chorus/echo chamber for a long overdue Molly for CJO. | |
| April 2011 | Dhorvath | →My OM nom fo April goes to Dhorvath for his wonderful eloquence →Dhorvath has such a great talent for challenging people in the most amazingly thoughtful way. |
| Raven | →raven is a tireless fighter for rationality, takes no shit off fundie nitwits, and pounds them senseless with facts. →I am definitely jumping on the raven bandwagon this time around. | |
| May 2011 | Audley Z. Darkheart | →She of the awesome nyms: Audley Z. Darkheart for sheer creativity in invective if nothing else. →Audley Z. Darkheart for consistently fighting the good fight and having patience beyond measure when it comes to MRAs. |
