Maki Naro is an artist, incurable geek, and lover of cooking, public radio, small animals, and Blade Runner. He comprises one half of the Sci-ence Webcomic's dynamic duo.
Last Tuesday, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) delivered a press conference and presentation that set hearts alight and renewed new hope in the search for the Higgs Boson, the legendary particle—part of the aptly named Higgs Field—that could make or break the Standard Model of Physics. Normally, I detest science-by-press-conference; I have been burned before. But alas, my job and my journalistic integrity demanded I follow the news.
Today the collective voice of reason’s tongue became that much duller. Christopher Hitchens died today; his final moments spent among friends. As a dying man he lived more than most healthy living people. He took responsibility for his mistakes, and placed no blame for his affliction. He burnt his candle at both ends, and oh, how we basked in his light.
On December 10th, 1815, Augusta Ada King, born Augusta Ada Byron, known later as Ada Lovelace, came into the world. Born the only legitimate child of poet Lord Byron, she would grow to become an accomplished mathematician, and arguably one of the first computer programmers.
Last I was here, it was for the anniversary of Galileo’s landmark, first observations of the moon via telescope. Today I have a story about another moon observation, one that involves debate, peer review, and comics. See, when I first set out to draw science comics, I had decided from the get-go that, like science, I would revise comics if new evidence came to light.
On November 30th, 1609, more than 400 years ago today, Galileo Galilei pointed his homemade “spyglass” at the moon. That night, he found himself staring at something that would change the way astronomers viewed the solar system forever.
Good news, everyone! The Story Collider, a monthly, NYC-based science storytelling show, is preparing to launch a magazine within the next few months. Not only do they want your science stories, but they want your comics about science stories. Here’s the official word from producer Erin Barker:
Portraits have never been my strong point. The ability to distill a likeness into a few lines or carefully placed brushstrokes is no easy task. For this reason, I highly admire portrait artists, and when awesome portraits of eminent naturalists and scientists pass my desk, I can’t resist.
Completely coincidentally (or so she would have us believe) Ashley published her amazing How Many Skeptics Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb post on the actual anniversary of the Edison light bulb. I pointed this out in the comments, not because I knew the date off the top of my head, but because I was asked to draw a comic about the event. Here it is below as reposted from Sci-ənce.org as reposted from the Txchnologist.
Now, let me just set one thing straight. Nikola Tesla is my boy.
But when the Txchnologist asked me to draw a comic about Thomas Edison’s contribution to the quest for electric lighting, how could I resist? See, Friday, October 21st was the 132nd anniversary of the Edison light bulb, and while Humpry Davy may have made the first electric lamp, but Edison made it practical. A veritable “shoulders of giants” story of innovation and serendipity.
Sorry for the lateness. This afternoon found me writing a long letter to a friend of a friend of a girlfriend about getting more involved in skepticism (Sorry the email is so long, if you’re reading this!). I think I gave some good advice, but I’m curious what you all think.
What would you recommend to skeptics who want to get involved in skepticism?
The ART Inquisition (or AI) is a question posed to you, the Mad Art Lab community. Look for it to appear Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 3pm ET. Photo courtesy of Shamey Jo, because I couldn’t find any other images to use.
A wise man once suggested that if you truly want to make an apple pie from scratch, you had to start at the beginning—the very beginning. Back when Carl Sagan uttered that famous line, all the while butchering that poor pie*, he was speaking of taking elementary particles and constructing atoms in which to bind into chemicals. This is sort of difficult. But what if we met Carl halfway?
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