I really want to say that I "helped" to move the @ColeZoology false killer whale, but I had a purely supervisory role. (By which I mean I stood right at the back and watched everyone else move it.) So exciting to see the new building for the first time though! 😁 https://t.co/OeK2InZonI
— Claire Smith (@eternalmagpie) August 26, 2020
Fascinating asymmetry
How awesome is this? Taking down the false killer whale and being able to see its skull from the top has led to us finding out that its asymmetry is important for sound production. Fascinating stuff! https://t.co/P9vjZqMyeR
— Claire Smith (@wetconservatrix) August 25, 2020
Camel makeover
How exciting is this?! The camel is in the new building! The last time I saw the camel it was in storage, minus its skull, and looking a little bit sorry for itself. The transformation by @MrIchthyosaurus is incredible – I can't wait to see it in the… er… total lack of flesh! https://t.co/y4bAkMjQdB
— Claire Smith (@wetconservatrix) August 24, 2020
Making a nest
When I was an undergrad, I regularly used to go to sleep with a bed full of books. I didn't expect to be doing the same thing at the age of 46, but here we are.
— Claire Smith (@eternalmagpie) August 22, 2020
(Bad back + painsomnia = spare room nesting.) pic.twitter.com/9hanSIDQJ3
Added emphasis
My internet's been so flaky this past couple of weeks that I've had to go back to reading Real Books.
— Claire Smith (@eternalmagpie) August 21, 2020
This one is making me grateful that other people can't underline entire flipping chapters of an e-book. pic.twitter.com/Z63uIdoaIl
Starry ray
Today I spent longer than I care to admit attempting to clean a spot off the surface off this starry ray's jar… which turned out to be a little bubble in the glass. 😆🤦♀️ #ShouldHaveGoneToSpecsavers pic.twitter.com/lkORuk80zx
— Claire Smith (@wetconservatrix) August 19, 2020
I can’t resist a free book…
Note to self: check how big the books are before you agree to pick them up, even if you're only collecting them from a couple of streets away. This was a heavy little pile!
— Claire Smith (@eternalmagpie) August 16, 2020
(Don't know whether I'll understand any of them, but I'll give it a go!) pic.twitter.com/H0FaLjuLck
Paint It Black
🎶 I see a big jar and I want to paint it black 🎶 pic.twitter.com/iyYNHTNJ3c
— Claire Smith (@wetconservatrix) August 14, 2020
Click through to read the thread
Cross-pollination
I would love love LOVE to be involved in a History & Herbarium cross-disciplinary project. There are so many ways that @UniRdg_History and @RNGherb could benefit one another! ❤️ https://t.co/kKB5X4TAiZ
— Claire Smith (@eternalmagpie) August 14, 2020
Of the Goose-tree
John Gerard included a page and a half, plus this woodcut, on the Goose Tree in his 1597 Herball. Perhaps more remarkably, Thomas Johnson – who comprehensively corrected Gerard's work – chose to keep it in both the 1633 and 1636 editions, despite knowing it was nonsense! https://t.co/HK6J8ersHt pic.twitter.com/f0Gdnw0Ivt
— Claire Smith (@eternalmagpie) August 11, 2020