Brains are fascinating -- researchers bring toddlers into a room with some toys, have the kids play with the toys for a little while, then take the kid out, replace some of the toys with miniature versions, and bring the kid back in. This is what happens: [link]

My impression is that Hilary Clinton is a lot more of a hawk than Bill, at least where the Middle East is concerned. But I don't recall that becoming really apparent during his terms, more after her post-First lady political career took off.

That thing with the babies is quite creepy, and seems to say much about us as pointless creatures of habit.

Toddlers don't work to scale.

Thank Zod for the internets. I woke up from a dream that was populated by TV actors from the sixties and seventies. I was thinking, "What's that actress's name? The one that was on original Star Trek, and she was like Diana Muldaur and Jessica Walter in that she played patrician characters but she was blonde or sometimes redhead..."

So I found a Star Trek website and scrolled through the pictures until I found her. Whereas I would have been bugged for days back in the 80s until I (a) tracked down a Star Trek episode guide in a bookstore and skimmed through every episode looking for her; or (b) randomly encountered her in channel flipping and stayed until the credits to catch her name.

I'm glad I live in a world of IMDB.

NOVA had an episode about dogs this week, and included a segment about a dog that is shown a miniature toy and then goes fetch the full-sized toy from another room. Compared to the babies in that video, it's a genius.

(Incidentally, Mythbusters investigated how easy it is to take candy from babies this week, which was easily one of the most adorable investigations they've done.)

That's wild, Theo. I've always suspected that the Biscuit is smarter than me.

I cannot believe I missed the adorableness of Mythbusters with babies. Thank goodness it replays eight billion times. Is this a good time to reiterate about the Navajo first laugh party? I always talk about it because I find it so charming. When a baby first laughs, whoever made the baby laugh has to throw her a party. At the party, she is given candy and is made to put the candy in the hands of each of her guests. Presumably this is to make her generous throughout her life. And I think it works! Navajo people are super generous in my experience.

That's so awesome! I would like to go to a first laugh party.

Isn't that great? I keep trying to talk all my white friends with babies into doing it. I will not be blamed for a generation of selfish children!

I love the idea of a first laugh party.

My favorite Mythbusters was where they refuted "a bull in a china shop." That was so funny as they made the china shop maze tighter and tighter and added more bulls and they daintily wended their way through without even rattling a teacup.

I was just going to say, I may be reconsidering my stance on cultural appropriation, because I would love the THROW a first laugh party!