Extreme Science® Blog

If you notice on the front page of ExtremeScience.com we now have video news feeds of the top stories directly from Reuters. I decided it was time to put it up there ever since the news story (with awsome video footage) of the otherworldly-looking “prehistoric” frill shark captured by the Japanese scientists was all over the Internet.

Well, the video feed so far has proved to be a real find. As of today there was a fantastic and timely video story about the recent capture of a previously little-known species of deep sea squid, called the “Colossal Squid” (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni). This is apparently a different species than the current world-record invertebrate - Architeuthis dux (the Giant Squid http://www.extremescience.com/giant-squid.htm).  This one is WAAAYYYY bigger. According to an interview with Dr. Steve O’Shea (teuthologist) this is the largest specimen of squid ever seen by humans and is most likely a male of the species. From what is known about squids in general the females are usually much larger than the males. So this Colossal Squid, as big as he was (10 meters long and weighing at least one tonne) there are probably more, much larger females squids of the same species lurking in the vast, inky depths of the oceans. If you missed the video on Reuters you can see it here…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0l_sMGXPvpA

You’d have to have spent the last decade of your life with your head buried in the sand if you don’t know about Steve Irwin, “The Crocodile Hunter”. His over-the-top enthusiasm and trademark, “Crikey!!” exclamation made him an extremely well-known, if somewhat controversial, TV personality around the world. You probably also know that he was killed by a stingray while filming an episode for is TV series in the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia - “in the thick of it”.

I’ve never commented publicly about him, nor about his untimely death, but feel I need to, especially with the upcoming televised special airing his final episode and a 2-hour long tribute to him to be simulcast on the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet (January 21). I think it’s appropriate here, given the similar nature of his work and mine (except for the TV show, but I have one for Extreme Science in the works right now - stay tuned!)

I so seldomly watch TV because I have so little time for it. My children, however, frequently tuned into Steve’s show, but I never sat down and watched it all the way through with any regularity. I have to say I was impressed and inspired. Like so many people who enjoyed Steve’s TV program I fell in love with him. His affable, gregarious personality was infectious and a pleasure to watch. 

I learned of his death the morning it happened when my husband blurted out the news with alarm while sitting down with the newspaper. My heart sank to my feet. I was crushed and devastated. I hugged my husband, who knowingly and silently comforted me. He, too was shocked and upset. Later in the afternoon I found myself going online and wandering to the Discovery channel website to find out why, why, why. And maybe to get some kind of solace.

I read through the Crocodile Hunter forum and wept with all the others who were grieving for him.

I was still crying a week later and still find myself painfully choked up when recalling the news. Steve was alternately hailed and blasted publicly for his methods and called some pretty derogatory things for some of his ‘antics’. Even in the days and weeks after his shocking death critics publicly lashed out at him for his methods. 

Granted there’s room for discussion and disagreement over Steve’s methods for creating wildlife awareness, but no one can question his passion, enthusiasm and wholehearted dedication to wildlife conservation and education. The Crocodile Hunter did more for increasing awareness and visibility for wildlife than any other public figure since Jacques Cousteau. It was disrespectful to his grieving widow, Teri, and their daughter Bindi to level harsh criticisms against him publicly stating that, “He got what was coming to him”.

You can fault the methods, but you can’t fault the man.

Rest in Peace, Steve.

Happy Monday to you! I woke this morning to a news report that a new study has found yet another benefit to eating dark chocolate on a daily basis - it helps prevent blood clots. The key substances found in dark chocolate that provide these cardiovascular benefits are flavonoids; “Flavoniods keep cholesterol from gathering in blood vessels, reduce the risk of blood clots, and slow down the immune responses that lead to clogged arteries.”

You may be thinking, “why on earth would we find this kind of a health benefit in chocolate? It’s candy! Haven’t we been told all of our lives that candy is junk food?”

Because candy gets such a bad rap we forget that chocolate is a prepared food item that is derived from plants, just like fruits, vegetables, nuts and grains. If you think about it in those terms it makes sense there would be benefits to our health from consuming chocolate. Unlike other forms of chocolate, dark chocolate contains the highest amount of cocoa, so if you’re going to indulge go for the dark. 

If you’re a lover of dark chocolate (like me) then this is more good news that’ll make you feel O.K. about indulging.

Apparently, dark chocolate is the best source of flavonoids - even better than green tea, black tea, red wine, and blueberries.

Bon appetit!

I’ve decided it’s time to take the plunge into the world of “Blogging”. I get TONS of e-mail from visitors to ExtremeScience.com and there’s just no time to respond personally. Some of the questions I get are really interesting so I’ll try to post them here, as well as any answers or comments I can reasonably research.

PLUS, there’s always something fascinating happening in the world of extremes. Anything that I think my visitors would enjoy reading about or discussing is fodder for my new blog. If you have suggestions or stories you want to share - this is the place!  Some of the topics covered on Extreme Science are also (surprisingly) controversial. I can appreciate people having opinions and respect opposing views, but only if expressed in civil terms. I’ve seen too many forums and blogs where controversial issues spiral downward into foul-mouthed, mud-slinging flame sessions.  

I get a lot of visitors from around the world, including a lot of kids so this blog is going to be squeaky clean!! I will be policing posts and all comments that are submitted will be reviewed and have to be approved before posting.

Wish me luck on this new venture! Thanks to all my loyal visitors for your continued support.

Elizabeth