Today's Print

Ethereal Web 1 .............................   Roger Smith  4/2011
(Click on the image to see the larger version)

This digital print has an internet traffic map as its starting point.  The nodes and lines of communication had a gossamer-like quality which I exploited.

Similar structures can be seen in nature, a spider's web on an old post being one such example.

The original is 2276 X 2177 pixels in dimension and copies are available. Contact me if interested.

Diamond-Tipped Mandibles

It is the change of season here in Auckland; one day it is cool and the next a balmy 23 degrees with an autumnal sun.

This seasonal variation has triggered a number of metamorphic responses in the garden and also it would appear, in the pantry.

There is a report in today's online news about the increasing number of bugs being found in stored food.  Here I was thinking that the extra crunch in my morning muesli was a new ingredient dreamed up by Hubbards Foods, but perhaps I was mistaken?

Larder Beetle - cereals with extra crunch?

Entomologists have been most reassuring describing the caterpillars of the Indian meal moth, warehouse moth and Mediterranean flower moth as "perfectly edible" .  I am still not convinced that I want them in my diet.

Insect infestations are nothing new and in tropical climes such as Singapore the challenges of keeping food stuffs and household commodities pest-free are equally daunting.

Spraying for cockroaches was an ongoing exercise and according to a Singapore pest control service there are some 35 'greeblies' that are honing in on your food and furniture at any one time.

The aptly named Larder Beetle for example has a penchant for cheese.  I can't help but think that this must be a rather anorexic bug as cheese does not figure highly in the Singaporean diet.

I also observed the dogged persistence of a very small ant on the then Tanglin campus of UNSWAsia. This creature was so small that it could get inside through the screw top of a sugar jar.

While I can't pinpoint this species it was a surprise to discover that I had a namesake in the Singaporean ant world.  Roger's Ant, or Hypoponera punctatissima as it is known to its friends, wanders around aimlessly leaving no trails; an aptly named creature!

According to the bug scientist quoted in the article today, these insects can "chew straight through any packaging - they've got diamond-tipped mandibles. Once you've got them, you've got them"

So this autumn, or Fall as my friends in North America call it, we shall keeping a close eye on the pantry to ensure that no such infestations occur. 

Related articles

• Online 3D insect sleuth tells friend from foe (newscientist.com)

Painting With Passion

For three years in the later 1970's and early '80's I headed an art school in Papua New Guinea. I taught people such as Larry Santana (known as Larry Mike in those days) who went on to become and important and internationally regarded painter from PNG.

My Niugini Days blog covers these times but I was reminded of them today when looking at the local arts calendar in Auckland.

A contemporary gallery is featuring the work of Jeffry Feeger, one of the new and emerging artists from Papua New Guinea.  His painting style is featured in this short video below.




What I loved about about this portraiture was the passion exhibited in the painting and the 'studio assistant' at the beginning of the process!  The choice of colour palette reflects the more traditional 'groun' (local clays) used in PNG body art.

Being passionately involved in your subject matter was something I always emphasised as an art teacher and tried to follow in my own work.

Rabaul - Acrylic on canvas. Roger Smith 1981

Cutey Yellowish

Cutey Yellowish

There are some fairly bizarre shows on television but none more so than a Korean programme which brings to the fore people with grotesque habits and attributes.

All exhibit some form of pride in their peculiarities which makes the show even more compelling viewing; a Korea's Got Talent spin-off perhaps?

The latest expose is a young lady who goes by the nickname of 'Cutey Yellowish'.  The hue in question refers to her teeth which haven't been subjected to a tooth brush for the past decade.

Ms Ji Hyun Ji, aged 20 labours under the mistaken belief that "As food scraps pile on, they will actually protect my teeth."

Evidently on special occasions she has been known to wipe her front teeth with a tissue but that is the extent of her oral hygiene.

I am surmising that despite her looks she has few close friends, both literally and figuratively.

The TV show incidentally is called 'Martian Virus' which seems a rather apt title considering its content.  Other highlights of this programme have included a man who married his pillow (video below).  No doubt he did so in preference to someone who didn't want to clean their teeth.