Amyrlin Seat... legit style

Today I finished my very first costume:

Which is inspired by this lovely lady's costume:

I modified the McCall's M5155 pattern and added a hood all on my own. I do not suggest doing this by the way, find a hood from another pattern! The stole is courtesy of my bestest friend Sarah- Thanks love!
If you have no idea what I am speaking of, or showing you pictures of, please watch "Legend of the Seeker" and read both the Sword of Truth series and (more importantly) The Wheel of Time. And yes, my Amyrlin was a Green before ascending!

School's In!

As I'm sure all of you know, it is that time of the year again. A time when kids and adults have the same feelings about returning to that room (usually without windows) where our brains will be filled with information we will immediately forget once tested on. But instead of being filled with dread or even, excitement that will fade in a week, try this:

is from http://www.spoonsisters.com/product/513200.html
These adorable paper clips will brighten up any students day and maybe start a conversation with that cute guy (or girl) sitting next to you!

Thanks for reading and have a geeky day!

Just for Drew!

Amazing new marine reptile (NOT a dinosaur!)

Here is a link to the scientific paper released last month on Albertonectes vanderveldei an amazing elasmosaur from Alberta, Canada!
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02724634.2012.658124
Elasmosaurs are the long-necked versions of plesiosaurs, which are ancient marine reptiles... not dinosaurs. If you need more help understanding the difference please see http://www2.fiu.edu/~longoria/gly1101/Mz-reptiles.htm for a technical but brief summary of Diapsids (dinosaurs and modern lizards) and Euryapsids (marine reptiles).
 This is a little basic and does not mention modern birds which is increasingly becoming more and more important as seen in this UC Berkeley article concerning just how closely modern birds (or avian dinosaurs) and non-avian dinosaurs are related:
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/diapsids/avians.html

Introducing (drum roll) Today's Plug!

So I'm going to attempt to "plug" something that I believe to be awesome everytime I post. It could be a website, a scientific paper, a business, or a just a groovy idea!

is Girl Genius! http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20021104,
a really well-thought out web comic series that also prints and sells their story in graphic novels! I appreciate the story that the creators Kaja and Phil Foglio tell because of the heroine's drive to do the right thing is a very important factor. Almost every page guarantees a laugh and the steampunk theme is great-looking! The art style is a little old-school but very detailed and the colors always please. Overall I'd give it a 9/10!


In other news, Eureka, a SyFy show about a regular sheriff who protects a town of super-geniuses from themselves and each other's creations, just finished their 5th and final season. If you haven't already seen this show I suggest you give it a chance! It can be found on Netflix or Hulu+ minus season 4 because I suspect that they are trying to sell DVDs first.

ComicCon finished this year with lots of cool reveals and here is one of my favorites:

I love that they got "real" actors to play in this live-action trailer! The main female is the actress that plays Susan in the Narnia movies, Anna Popplewell. Halo 4-6 is being produced by 343 Industries, a Microsoft supported company that was advertised as being put together purely to make the next three Halo games. Halo 4 comes out November 6, 2012 but here is a website advertising jobs with their company still: http://www.microsoft-careers.com/go/343-Industries/190537/ .

Thanks for reading and have a geeky day!

The dawn of a new reign! Welcome to ScienceGeekdom!

Hey Everybody! My name is Danielle Serratos and I'm a regular girl from the country just south of Dallas/Fort Worth (Texas) who rode/trained/competed on horseback, learned to scuba dive at age 15 and am currently a Masters student in paleontology at the University of Alaska- Fairbanks.

I love many things in life but there are three things that I am impassioned about:

1) Paleontology! and SCIENCE in general... to me, science has always been about discovering what is around the corner of never-ending space. 

2) Education and public outreach! There are a lot of problems in the world but a definite lack of open-mindedness seems to me to be the root of a lot of those problems.

3) Sexual Equality- because as I progress through my education and career in Academia I have noticed one thing... women get the short end of the stick all to often in this world. 

Hot summer fun at TRF, Texas 2009

So, hopefully these things are interesting to you and you'll want to read more of the lovelies that come sprouting out of my brain just like Athena: crazy, beautiful, and shouting to be heard!

If you are curious as to why there is a picture here --->

it is because I felt the need to show off these amazing costumes our friend Ana (Bradford) Dolan made for my husband and I!

Also, a great thanks to Felicia Day for partially inspiring me to start this =)