"Impact from the Deep" by Peter D. Ward

http://www.chicagocleanpower.org/ward.pdf

This short article from Scientific American, by Peter D. Ward, provides short overview with clear illustration of the mechanism of Mass Extinction he describes in detail in his book, Under a Green Sky: Global Warming, the Mass Extinctions of the Past, and What They Can Tell Us About Our Future.

Mass Extinctions have fascinated me since I was a little boy reading about Dinosaurs,  Peter Ward's books are the primary way I indulge that fascination as an adult.

I recommend the pdf if you want a short concise explanation, but strongly suggest the book if your looking for a deeper understanding, or if like me your fascinated by Mass Extinctions or Paleontology.

Colossal Squid

I saw the summaries of this BBC story, about the eyes of Giant Squid, some time ago, looked at it closely for the first time today, no puns intended.

I had not realized before this that the Giant Squid is not the largest.

That privilege belongs to the Colossal Squid as far as we know.

This is best site I have found, http://squid.tepapa.govt.nz/ it was referenced at link below.

This site, http://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/2008/04/30/hooks-and-suckers/ shows good pictures of the hooks or claws from on the arms of the Colossal Squid.

I find cephalopods among the most interesting and intriguing of sea creatures, my favorites are the Cuttlefish.

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep-sea_gigantism

Are Cephalopods the Craftiest Critter?

Video by Roger Hanlon, produced by Flora Lichtman from Sciencefriday

In my opinion, Cephalopods are certainly the coolest animals extant, extant is a concise way to say "currently living".   Cephalopods include Octopus,  Squid,  Cuttlefish, and Nautiloidea.  Cuttlefish are my favorite, they seem to me to be the most sophisticated of the Cephalopods.
 
The Cuttlefish ability to camouflage is so advanced they can virtually disappear.  The also can put on displays that shame electronic devices.



As this short clip from Nova demonstrates.

Though Nautiloidea, such as Nautilus and Allonautilus, are a passion of a Mentor of mine Peter D. Ward.  Article here coauthored by him about the Allonautilus.

In a future post, I will show some of the connections between the study of Stones (Lithic) and Cephalopods.

Jules Underwater Lodge

Whether your into scuba diving, marine ecology, eco tourism, or not Jules Underwater Lodge is simply cool.

Imagine spending the night underwater, about 30 feet down, with windows to view the sea life and all the comforts your used to at home.

They are also paired up with Aurora Aerospace to provide zero G flights, like astronauts use for part of their training, as a package deal.