Barbara J. King

Friday Animal Blog

Blogging Double...or Not

September 16, 2011

As some of you already know, I began a new venture in blogging this week--yesterday, in fact. The science blog 13.7 at NPR asked me to contribute weekly posts on aspects of anthropology and animals. As requested, I made my initial contribution an introductory one, about what fascinates me most within the arena of biological anthropology:
NPR
Now a big question looms for me! What to do with my small, but ever-a-delight-to-me, Friday Animal Blog? On the one hand, I shouldn't divert my need to write my book manuscript this year into addictive blogging. On the other, I've so enjoyed a chance to push out into the world anything I want, major or minor, substantive or whimsical, in a small and intimate way. I'd hate to lose that or the friendly, informative responses that I receive here. And in any case it won't be clear for a while how long my NPR gig will continue.

I need some time to think this over. Suggestions are welcome!

Comments

  1. September 16, 2011 12:38 PM EDT
    well, you could just post a link to the other blog here, reminding us to read it, and maybe a few personal comments ON that other blog that you didn't want to put THERE, expanding on it; or how it applies to animal questions and so forth. Until you decide, but thereby centering your thinking and not impacting your time so much.
    - Joanne Tanner
  2. September 16, 2011 1:32 PM EDT
    You have to honor your commitment to NPR, of course, so you HAVE to do that. I'd say, do the Friday animal blog when you have something you want to share. If a Friday comes when this blog would be work instead of open flow, just drop in a link to the NPR column and let it pass. I, for one, will follow you in both places and wait patiently through any dry spells. :) Oh, by the way, our #4 daughter has decided to go back to school at the ripe old age of 28, and she wants to be...an anthropologist!
    - Marian Allen
  3. September 16, 2011 7:04 PM EDT
    I agree with Joanne!
    - Melanie
  4. September 17, 2011 8:42 AM EDT
    This feedback is helpful. Marian, it's no doubt going to be the case that some weeks I'll need to just drop in a link- especially because the Thursday (NPR) and Friday (here) blogs occur so close in time. And yes, Joanne and Melanie, I like the idea of linking the two blogs but also making them somewhat different. Also sometimes here, I could write about personal wildlife/cat encounters, or reflections on books I am enjoying, in ways I couldn't at NPR, and those wouldn't necessarily take as much time. Thanks for this feedback! AND, Marian, I'm excited about your daughter! Wish her the best for me! She can always contact me (bjking@wm.edu is best) if that would be helpful at any point.
    - Barbara J. King
  5. October 9, 2011 6:44 PM EDT
    I LOVE your animal blogs. Please try and keep them going.
    - Sian

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Selected Works

Nonfiction
Why are animals so irresistible to us? Why do we live with and care so deeply about them? From the famous "art caves" of ice-age Europe, to the ancient villages where animals were first domesticated, to stories of apes, whales, dogs, and cats doing fascinating things today, King weaves together a scenario about the animal-human bond that encompasses our past, present and future.
Can scientists discover a prehistory of religion just as they have traced the evolution of technology, language, and art? What does compassion in chimpanzees, or burial patterns in our human ancestors and Neanderthals, tell us about the origins of religion? In Evolving God, named a Top Ten Religion Book for 2007 by the American Library Association, Barbara King explores these questions.
How do chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas-- the African apes -- communicate using body postures and gestures? Using her many years of experience studying these apes, Barbara King answers this question in a book that offers a new perspective on the evolution of language.