[blame it on Mom]  W00t! W00t!  It’s official: There will be another Star Trek movie.  That makes eleven.  It’s a prequel—when Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are college-aged (or thereabouts).  I can’t wait!  Although it’s rumor and innuendo, Matt Damon, Adrian Brody, and Gary Sinise are the top names to play the three respectively.  Let’s see how it works out.

Evolution Getting Faster Thanks to Germs, Viruses, Study Says: “Viruses and bacteria have sped up the process of evolution by rapidly transferring DNA from one species to another, a new study suggests. Gene-mapping projects over the past decade have already shown that genes can move between species via tiny microorganisms. Now a team of scientists at Texas’ Rice University believes that microbes are accelerating evolution by constantly transporting whole chunks of DNA that may represent new and beneficial functions—like resistance to disease. This process—called horizontal gene transfer (HGT)—may allow life-forms to evolve more quickly than they would by occasional, random mutations alone, the scientists say.”  Intriguing…  And for those who still deny evolution takes place, I wonder how they’ll explain this one.  Like the threat of a bird flu pandemic—a last-minute intervention-turned-mistake by some designer who makes a virus jump species?

Fly over to I and the Bird #44 and peck through the offerings from the birding community.  There’s a plethora of avian goodies to fill your craw.