The Brains

We spent part of the weekend skiing Loon Mountain in New Hampshire—lovely weather, fresh powder, and of course hordes of people. The whole trip was organized by someone in Nick’s lab, so I spent the evening in the company of budding neurobiologists. Brains talking about brains… especially after a few drinks… can be fascinating.

• Single brain cells respond to specific celebrities. For example, you might have a “grandmother cell” for Jennifer Aniston. Would the cell react to Jennifer Aniston together with Brad Pitt.
• Men may be more attracted to fertile women. A study determined that strippers earn more money during their peak of fertility, while strippers taking the pill did not experience the same fluctuations.

It is too bad I cannot remember all of the topics.

–havemorecake

An Art Deco Tour in New Zealand

While in New Zealand, Andy and I went on a tour in a town that was demolished entirely by an earthquake in 1931. They rebuilt the town in the up and coming style of the day–Art Deco. So, there’s a lot of interesting architecture to be seen.

At one point in the tour, we approached one of the buildings we were supposed to have been able to tour the inside of. The former business that occupied this space had been replaced with the sort of business that doesn’t open very early. As a result, I was treated to the image of a horde of architecture enthusiasts attempting to break into a girly bar:

nadj