Category Archives: Literature

Summer Bug Reading for Children

Posted on June 18, 2017 by jjneal

Amazon.com has many catagories of best including Best-Sellers-Books-Childrens-Bug-Spider. The top seller is The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Amazon.com lists books, not stories and the “board book” version is #1, different hardcover versions are #11 & #12 and the … Continue reading →

Posted in by jjneal, Literature | 1 Comment

Insects: Their Ways and Means of Living

Posted on June 11, 2017 by jjneal

R. E. Snodgrass published his reference book, The Principles of Insect Morphology in 1935. Reference books are a means to catalog information for use by scientists and students. They are not meant to be read cover to cover and do not … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, by jjneal, Education, Literature | 1 Comment

Lessons From Ants

Posted on March 12, 2017 by jjneal

Humans are social animals with social rules governed by a malleable culture. Obedience to norms and rules is optional. People who think they have the best rules spend their time trying to convince others to follow their rules. Animals, including … Continue reading →

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Living With Myrmex

Posted on December 6, 2016 by jjneal

Mermex is the Greek word for ant. Greeks understood ants as being automatons loyal to their ruler. In some versions of Greek mythology, Zeus populates the deserted island of island of Aegina by transforming ants on a tree into people … Continue reading →

Posted in behavior, by jjneal, Insect Inspired, Literature | 1 Comment

Bad Bumblebee Metaphors and Greece

Posted on July 16, 2015 by jjneal

Three years ago, I posted about “Bad Insect Metaphors”. The President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi made this much quoted simile: “The euro is like a bumblebee. This is a mystery of nature because it shouldn’t fly but … Continue reading →

Posted in by jjneal, Literature, News, Policy | 2 Comments

Living With Insect Haiku

Posted on June 7, 2015 by jjneal

Haiku is a popular poetry form that characteristically juxtaposes two visual images. Nature is a common theme, including insects which are everywhere. Haiku in English most often takes the form of 17 syllables in a 5-7-5 pattern. There are many … Continue reading →

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Living With Halteres

Posted on February 25, 2015 by jjneal

Flies belong to the order Diptera, which means “two wings”. Flies use the forewings for flight and the hindwings are modified to form sensory structures called halteres. The first written reference to halteres and their function may be by English … Continue reading →

Posted in by goyelin, Environment, Literature | 1 Comment