Stridulations

Stridulations returns from the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC, where I'm attending the XV Congress of the International Union for the Study of Social Insects. Myrmecos, who presented a summary of some of his recent research here, has reminded me that I've been remiss in the blog-upkeep department. Much of this has been due to lots of travel, both personal and professional, over the last few months.

This will be my last trip for a while, so I should be able to settle back down to a normal schedule in Rochester soon. However, this trip is a terrific way to end my summer travels before buckling down to my lab work again. First of all, the conference has been an exceptional one -- perhaps the best entomological conference I've ever attended. Second, this morning, while eating brunch in a local coffee shop with a fellow attendee, I encountered the indefatigable DC-based journalist Chris Mooney of The Intersection fame. Having also met some of the most respected names in both social-insect research and blogspace this week, I feel no need to ever go prowling for celebrities in places like Hollywood. Showbiz celebs just don't seem anywhere near as interesting to me as scientists are.

As for the title of this post: Check out this army ant resource from the California Academy of Sciences, and, of course, these photos by Myrmecos.