On the Microbial Road

Blogging briefly from Chicago. Today’s talk at the Field Museum went well–I managed to lure a fair number of people inside from a beautiful spring afternoon to hear me talk about a gut germ. I also had a chance to walk through the fabulous Shedd Aquarium. The Field Museum has an acquarium of its own–filled with 520 million year old creatures. They set up three gigantic screens on which they have a mind-blowing animation of Cambrian animals–slithering, flapping, wiggling, and looking quite alien. I found it mesmerizing. The animators have a movie you can watch online, but if you ever get a chance to see it in person, do so.

Yesterday’s talk in Boston was also fun–and it was even blogged! But I must warn you–prepare for a picture of a serious geek.