P for um...
Letter kindly Provided by triskellian
Plants (well obviously) - Do I need to say more here. They are the most interesting things, oldest living things, largest things, and they magically turn sunlight, CO2, and water into amazing complicated living things. Animals can go sulk in an inferior corner. If you've ever wondered about all those different names for the same plant have a play with - http://www.ipni.org/index.html
Physarum polycephalum - really, there aren't very many weirder things out there. Have a video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75k8sqh5tfQ. While I'm at it also have the sponge experiment (I'm cheating now) http://youtu.be/N462jZFr13k
Polypodiopsida - Latin names are not cheating I tell you.
Ferns. Primitive(ish), lacking in the dreaded Pollen and some of them have an interesting reproductive Process. Swimming gametes (sperm), that would be an animal thing. Nah. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRppDo1fhtM No need to watch the whole thing, you get the idea quite early. There's a whole mass of them from about two minutes though.
Provisional - I can't drive. I can make a car move but I have not passed any of those test things that indicate an ability to drive on the roads without constant supervision. I'm not sure I wouldn't need constant supervision even if I did pass. Most of the time this doesn't bother me, very occasionally it is a nuisance.
Patterns - no not on clothes, at least only rarely. Patterns in everything else are interesting though. Patterns in data especially, everything could be considered data but it nice when it someone has been through the effort of extracting things in to nice proddable numbers or at least something along those lines. For work I classify things and learn all about overly complicated standards and occasionally in my spare time I work on other things. If I actually get some of my current side project done this weekend then I may start to talk about it a bit more :-)
Panthera tigris - much as I go on about how conservation and in fact people in general should not spend quite so much time obsessing over the cute furry mammals… Tigers are just the best mammal. No arguments please. I won't quite say my favourite animal because there are os many interesting things out there that I think it would be unfair to try and declare a favourite. I'm amazed they've managed to get lists of top moments or species to save out of David Attenborough. The rest of the Panthera genus may tag along for extra cat value… and maybe some of their cousins as well :-)
Photographs - I like taking photographs. I'm never quite sure if I actually like any of my own photographs and I am painfully aware that some of the more lazy aspects of my personality do not help improve the standard of my photographs. I do have fun though and every so often nature gives me something so pretty or interesting that not even I can totally mess it up. I'm not so fond of the people or the buildings but I do take some photos in that direction as well. This is a recent picture I took of a building, you'll notice that quite a lot of it is hidden :-)
This is a slightly more recent picture of a damsel fly, you'll notice it is a lot less hidden. Also that I really am behind on my photo processing.
Poirot - I had to get murders into this list somehow. Poirot is not actually my favourite detective (to the extent that I have one favourite) but I do like that fact that he is completely insane and not actually a rounded character as such. The obsessive neatness and quirks and desperate attempts to escape from boredom are all character traits I like to see in a character, just possibly not all at once and along with a moustache, Belgian nationality and oversized ego. We can't have it all though :-) The Poirot mysteries I like to read the most are The Blue Train, Cat Among the Pigeons and Death on the Nile.
Potatoes - the best way to eat carbohydrate. Baked ideally but chips are also awesome.
Privacy - I like privacy. This seems a bit of an odd thing to say in a blog but there you go. I am quite a private person, please don't take offence if I don't tell you my entire life story while waiting for the train ;-)
Plants (well obviously) - Do I need to say more here. They are the most interesting things, oldest living things, largest things, and they magically turn sunlight, CO2, and water into amazing complicated living things. Animals can go sulk in an inferior corner. If you've ever wondered about all those different names for the same plant have a play with - http://www.ipni.org/index.html
Physarum polycephalum - really, there aren't very many weirder things out there. Have a video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75k8sqh5tfQ. While I'm at it also have the sponge experiment (I'm cheating now) http://youtu.be/N462jZFr13k
Polypodiopsida - Latin names are not cheating I tell you.
Ferns. Primitive(ish), lacking in the dreaded Pollen and some of them have an interesting reproductive Process. Swimming gametes (sperm), that would be an animal thing. Nah. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRppDo1fhtM No need to watch the whole thing, you get the idea quite early. There's a whole mass of them from about two minutes though.
Provisional - I can't drive. I can make a car move but I have not passed any of those test things that indicate an ability to drive on the roads without constant supervision. I'm not sure I wouldn't need constant supervision even if I did pass. Most of the time this doesn't bother me, very occasionally it is a nuisance.
Patterns - no not on clothes, at least only rarely. Patterns in everything else are interesting though. Patterns in data especially, everything could be considered data but it nice when it someone has been through the effort of extracting things in to nice proddable numbers or at least something along those lines. For work I classify things and learn all about overly complicated standards and occasionally in my spare time I work on other things. If I actually get some of my current side project done this weekend then I may start to talk about it a bit more :-)
Panthera tigris - much as I go on about how conservation and in fact people in general should not spend quite so much time obsessing over the cute furry mammals… Tigers are just the best mammal. No arguments please. I won't quite say my favourite animal because there are os many interesting things out there that I think it would be unfair to try and declare a favourite. I'm amazed they've managed to get lists of top moments or species to save out of David Attenborough. The rest of the Panthera genus may tag along for extra cat value… and maybe some of their cousins as well :-)
Photographs - I like taking photographs. I'm never quite sure if I actually like any of my own photographs and I am painfully aware that some of the more lazy aspects of my personality do not help improve the standard of my photographs. I do have fun though and every so often nature gives me something so pretty or interesting that not even I can totally mess it up. I'm not so fond of the people or the buildings but I do take some photos in that direction as well. This is a recent picture I took of a building, you'll notice that quite a lot of it is hidden :-)
This is a slightly more recent picture of a damsel fly, you'll notice it is a lot less hidden. Also that I really am behind on my photo processing.
Poirot - I had to get murders into this list somehow. Poirot is not actually my favourite detective (to the extent that I have one favourite) but I do like that fact that he is completely insane and not actually a rounded character as such. The obsessive neatness and quirks and desperate attempts to escape from boredom are all character traits I like to see in a character, just possibly not all at once and along with a moustache, Belgian nationality and oversized ego. We can't have it all though :-) The Poirot mysteries I like to read the most are The Blue Train, Cat Among the Pigeons and Death on the Nile.
Potatoes - the best way to eat carbohydrate. Baked ideally but chips are also awesome.
Privacy - I like privacy. This seems a bit of an odd thing to say in a blog but there you go. I am quite a private person, please don't take offence if I don't tell you my entire life story while waiting for the train ;-)