the flocking party

I'm not dead yet.

2007-08-15T13:28:00.000-04:00

It seems that despite the hushed silence in the media on the topic, bird flu is still a living threat. The folks at Xerox Parc seem to think so. They are having a forum on it tomorrow night. But the speaker, Dr. Harry Greenberg, is working on a vaccine. Let's hope the Virus stays quiet until we are all safely inoculated. I don't think H5N1 has as many potential positives as Hebbets.

Fact is Fiction

2007-03-08T12:01:00.000-05:00

I just received a comment on one of my posts about the "New American Starling". Seems that life imitates art. The Main Street Museum at White River Junction in Vermont is also thinking about the Eurpean Starling population here in the America's and wondering if it should be called the "American Starling".

The only question is, what kind of museum is the Main Street Museum? Perhaps I could join their collection...?

related links:
Utilities of Fiction
Sturnus vulgaris

Technorati Flockorati

2007-02-26T10:43:00.000-05:00

You should now be able to add The Flocking Party to your blog favorites in Technocrati.
Technorati Profile

Portrait of Arpa

2006-02-11T22:10:00.000-05:00

Portrait of Arpa
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

A portrait of Arpa that Frank drew. His infection was very deveoped at this point, so the drawing has some strange qualities.

Avian Brain

2006-02-11T22:09:00.000-05:00

Avian Brain
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

A model of an infected avian brain. This brain is from a pigeon infected with Hebbets.

Flight Analysis

2006-02-11T22:07:00.003-05:00

Flight Analysis
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Another of Frank's drawings. Here, his artificial arm is enabling him to mimic traditional drawing mediums on his electronic notebook. He is examining bird flight fm a video.

Kathy taking care of Arpa

2006-02-11T22:07:00.002-05:00

Kathy taking care of Arpa
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Kathy is really taken with this silent sparrow. He broke his wing and the lab took him in. Outside, you can see his flock swarming around. They want to stay with him. Very unusual.

Radio Protein Aggregation

2006-02-11T22:07:00.001-05:00

Radio Protein Aggregation
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

This a radio protein aggregation. It develops in the organic structures of the neural circuitry, but is very crystaline. We call this crystaltration.

Bird Brains

2006-02-11T22:07:00.000-05:00

Bird Brains
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Here is another view of the pigeon brain from a rotating model in Frank's electronic journal.

Traffic Stream Cloverleaf

2006-02-11T22:06:00.001-05:00

Traffic Stream Cloverleaf
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

The traffic stream hums with autodrive. Frank looks through the lens of an eletromagnetic spectral analyzer to see birds that are producing radio signals.

Starling Skin

2006-02-11T22:06:00.000-05:00

Starling Skin
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

This is one of Frank's drawings from his electronic notebook. Here, he's analyzing a starling skin.

Hebbet Protein Binding

2006-02-11T22:05:00.002-05:00

Hebbet Protein Binding
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

These are binding simulations of the Hebbets virus. Hebbets has the ability to recombine in many different ways.

Starling as Trickster

2006-02-11T22:05:00.001-05:00

Starling as Trickster
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

A page from Frank's journal. Here, he is taking notes about starlings. Their behavior since they were infected with hebbets has caused a lot of concern. He likes to think of them as tricksters.

Ion Modulation Scan

2006-02-11T22:05:00.000-05:00

Ion Modulation Scan
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

This is a view from the IMS, or Ion Modulation Scanner, which produces stunningly accurate images of electromagnetic transmissions and reflections.

Maya Loops

2006-02-11T22:03:00.002-05:00

Maya Loops
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

PhD candidate, Janet Fu, is working on what she calls Maya Loops. these perceptual mechanisms in the brain can be augmented with Hebbet proteins, adding a great deal of associative capacity.

Crazy Transmissions

2006-02-11T22:03:00.001-05:00

Crazy Transmissions
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Crazy Lucy has an idea about how signals are being transmitted between sparrows.

Silent Sparrow Flight

2006-02-11T22:03:00.000-05:00

Silent Sparrow Flight
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

A video that Frank took to draw from. He wants to know if their behavior is changed by their Hebbets infection.

Infected Neuron

2006-02-11T22:02:00.002-05:00

Infected Neuron
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

This neuron is infected with Hebbets, a virus, which produces crystalline formations of recombinant proteins. The crystalline structure actually adds associative capacity to each neuron and often between neurons.

Flocking Sound Algorithm

2006-02-11T22:02:00.001-05:00

Flocking Sound Algorithm
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Frank created this algorithm that will produce posthebbet starling calls. It randomly samples from a series of waves to create it's unique mix.

Hebbets Phylogeny

2006-02-11T22:02:00.000-05:00

Hebbets Phylogeny
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Over the seven years that this phylogeny encompasses, Hebbets has mutated into a number of breathtaking forms. It's orginal host species, the zebra finch, was actually the subject species for a series of tests that were being done with protein computing.

Starling Specimens

2006-02-11T22:01:00.001-05:00

Starling Specimens
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Starling skins that Frank was drawing.

Pre and Post Hebbets Calls

2006-02-11T22:01:00.000-05:00

Pre and Post Hebbets Calls
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

After starlings were infected with Hebbets, their calls changed. They are able to mimic other sounds unlike ever before. Did you know that starlings are natural mimics. You can have them as pets and they will learn to talk like parrots.

Hebbet Binding Simulation (Rigid)

2006-02-11T22:00:00.001-05:00

Hebbet Binding Simulation (Rigid)
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

This particular model is good for studying Hebbets strains that produce robust and inflexible proteins. Large gaps often form between crystaltrations. This provides room for other aggregations in the future, as the bird learns.

Hebbet and Starling viral spread

2006-02-11T22:00:00.000-05:00

Hebbet and Starling viral spread
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

Hebbets followed a very similar grow pattern to its host species' owninvsive growth pattern.

The Landa Brothers

2006-02-11T21:58:00.000-05:00

The Landa Brothers
Originally uploaded by flockingparty.

This is Frank and Calvin Landa. They are researching birds that are infected with the Hebbets virus in the lab of Dr Harp at the University of Michigan.