Blog Profile: Bioephemera

I recently discovered Jessica Palmer's interesting blog Bioephemera, which covers biology and art but contains many delightful “random observations and connections about pretty much everything.” Jessica states in her profile that while her main themes are biology and art, “the trajectory will be roundabout, cephalopods and medievalists lurk in the undergrowth, and you should probably pack a picnic lunch.”  She is a 31-year old PhD biologist who taught at a small college for several years before moving to Washington DC to work in science policy and communications. She posts about 2-5 times a week, and appears to have a steady following.

One of her most interesting posts, at least as related to my blog, is “Womb, Waxes and Wonder Cabinets”, about 17th and 18th century dissection models. Another post I found worthy of note is “The end of an era,” which explains her decision to move her blog to scienceblogs. Her posts are usually fairly short, with information about something interesting she has found, with the occasional more lengthy post. She obviously has the authority to cover science-related topics, yet her blog has a more informal tone and subject matter, as if she was conversing with smart and educated friends. 

I like the writer’s vision of herself as a “Victorian-style naturalist,” and her varied interests; she doesn’t just write about pure science, but explores the many intersections of science with art, culture, and history. As she explains, “this is my outlet for random observations and connections about pretty much everything,” and that is why I find her blog compatible with mine. I think that I could find inspiration in her posts, whether from the exact subject of a post or the general idea, to stimulate my own writing. My site will differ from hers in that it will be a more focused and sustained study of a specific subject. 

Her two anchors are science and art, but she allows herself the freedom in her blog to explore the many random, interesting things she encounters in the world that may be only loosely related to these subjects. The key here is curiosity and wonder, and I think that’s what lies in the heart of most people who go into science. Science requires inquisitiveness—an avid interest in the world, as well as the determination to follow that interest and explore the object in question. This is what natural history museums are, and have always been, about: pursuing questions and interests by examining, collecting, and describing.