Given that I wear a tribute to her work on my arm, it should come as no surprise that I try to sneak Rosalind Franklin’s story into my classes whenever I can, if for no other reason than to correct an incomplete history.  It was especially applicable this semester in my Scientific Thinking classes, as it raises many relevant issues involving research ethics, the understated role of women in science, and of course what is probably the most important biological discoveries ever.  A well written account of the story can be found here.  It is brief, but comprehensive, and was a required reading for my class.  On my final exam I included a question on Franklin, which I have been grading today.  The quality of answers has varied, but for the most part I have been pleased with the students’ responses.  And then I came to this:

After Dr Rosalind Franklin did much work on the DNA, she finally could find out new discoveries.  She had pictures of the DNA in her lab which was a completely significant invention at this time.

Ok.  Aside from the generic introduction, so far so good.  These aren’t science majors, remember.

Her boss took advantage of that and he managed on killing her in order to get all her work and he started to work on it.  He made an invention on the DNA and won the nobel prize based on her work.

Oh my.

All is lost, all is lost.  It’s all I’ve ever written.

I could take your money with dice and cards, but I never could beat you at cribbage.

You will be missed.  A lot.

no internet and no beer make brandon something something…

I went on a trip to the Fayoum, or Fayyum, a couple of weeks ago.  I thought it was an oasis, but it turns out it is just a big, salty lake.  Saw some more pyramids, but didn’t get to see the highlight I was looking forward to:  Wadi el-Hitan, or the Valley of the Whales.  This is a giant open-air museum where Jesus or the devil or someone scattered about fossils of whales with vestigial hind legs to test our faith.  Or something like that.  Anyway, we got turned around about 30 km before we got there because the bus drivers and the bus company decided we would not make it on the sandy road.  Supposedly this was all checked out beforehand and the green light was given, but arrangements have a way of changing here.  Anyway, it is something I definitely want to check out at some point while I am here.  Maybe if/when I ever have visitors we can hire a 4×4 and make a weekend of it.

I went on a trip with a small group a few weeks ago to Minia, in middle Egypt.  I know essentially next to nothing about any of the sites we visit on any of these trips, but it’s enjoyable just to go and learn along the way.  We saw a lot of interesting things, but were not allowed to take any pictures in some of the cooler places.  For example, the tombs at Bani Hasan, which are decorated with amazingly intricate paintings of scenes of funeral preparation, people working, wildlife, what appeared to be specific dance steps, and dozens and dozens of specific wrestling moves (which included old favorites, like the pile driver).  Another example was at Tounah al-Gabal, where there are catacombs that extend at least 3 km, and are filled with thousands upon thousands of mummified ibises and baboons.  Not to say that there wasn’t plenty to photograph.  See below.

One other thing that I found really cool/somewhat disturbing:  In many places we would find ourselves walking over ground that appeared to be covered in light red red rocks, so thick that you could not see the sand beneath.  Turns out they weren’t rocks at all, but the sun-bleached shards of must literally have been hundreds and hundreds of thousands of broken Roman era pots, or as our encyclopedic guide, John Swanson, called them, the “plastic bags” of the Romans.  Use and toss.  The joys of living in an empire built on consumption and excess must be universal.

I guess it’s been a while since I updated this.  Things have been pretty hectic here, with the term winding/crashing down, withdrawal forms to sign, exams to write, and various trips taken.  Today marks the beginning of the second week-long Eid holiday this semester.  If I understand correctly, the first Eid was a mark of celebration and this one is a mark of sacrifice.  Meaning that tomorrow the streets are supposed to begin running red with the blood of the lambs and goats and such that families will have hanging out in front of their dwellings for streetside sacrifice.  Yumm!  Carcasses don’t bother me so much, but I’m not one for watching the life slip (drip?) away from any animal.  Fortunately, I have heard from a few people that the practice is not quite as common in my part of town as it is in other areas.  Unfortunately, as I was walking around today I noticed several pickup trucks full of sheep driving around and stopping to pass the wooly beasts over and down to crowds of excited men on street corners.  You don’t win friends with salad here, either.

Here are a few pictures from when I visited the Giza pyramids a couple of months ago.  The last two show the silly things people either choose to do for a photograph, or which people are slightly coerced into doing by a tourism “policeman” who grabs your camera out of your hand and of course wants a big tip for the clever keepsake he has created for you.