Month: April 2016

“Why do you have to wear words [on your T-shirt], Milo?” “Names are important.” “These aren’t names.” [courage, persist, seek, freedom, relentless] “Every word is a name.” “How do you figure?” “Every word names an object, an action, a quality, a quantity, a condition …” “So, why are names important?” “Nothing could be more important.”…

The beetle family Ptiliidae is a marvel of evolutionary miniaturization.  Adults are less than 2 mm long and distinguished by the reduced hind wings, a narrow blade fringed with long hairs. These unusual hind wings are still capable of directed flight, like their larger beetle relatives, but detailed morphological study may reveal many other details of miniaturization.…