Take a look at Friday Ark #73.

Wing your way over to Birds in the News #46.

Make your appointment for Grand Rounds Vol. 2 No. 20.

Recent discoveries indicate that hypergiant stars (as large as the orbit of Mars) may harbor planets as well as their smaller counterparts.  Again I say, with the onslaught of extrasolar planetary discoveries and the increasing frequency of planet-supporting solar systems, does anyone still think that we are alone in the universe?

Check out this picture of the beautiful spiral galaxy NGC 1309 taken by Hubble.  It’s phenomenal.  While you’re there, also check out this picture of the Lagoon Nebula.  Stunning!

Kitty Kop katches the krook.  [via Jenny]

Kitty-napped cat found after hot purr-suit.  Can you put a price on the companionship you have with your pets?  More importantly, if someone stole your pet and offered you money to forget about it, wouldn’t you want it to be considered a crime?

You simply must go read The Moral Status of Animals.  This is a topic that is near and dear to me, and I suspect it is equally important to a great many of you.  Go read it now (I mean it!).

Michael does a great job communicating his view on being gay, an opinion I very much share and have communicated here before.

Yet another lie has been found in Bush’s response to Katrina, this time showing that they knew about the levee breaches a day before they claimed they were informed of the devastation.  He truly has built an administration based solely on lies and deceit.

The George Deutsch NASA drama continues, only this time Deutsch didn’t know when to shut up and slink away quietly after being caught as a liar and interested only in Dubya’s political agenda — never the real science.