Marc Kissel
@marckissel.bsky.social
co-creator of 2 amazing daughters, paleoanthropologist, Assistant professor at AppState in Boone, NC!
Hopefully the unruly mob phones ahead to get an appointment
November 9, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Hopefully the unruly mob phones ahead to get an appointment
Rubber duck debugging might be the norm, but my students have upgraded to "3D printed axolotl Debugging" in our #Rstats course cause ya gotta embrace whatever joy you can these days (thanks to @jennakissel.bsky.social for realization that w/ 3d printer we could go all in here)
October 3, 2025 at 8:29 PM
Rubber duck debugging might be the norm, but my students have upgraded to "3D printed axolotl Debugging" in our #Rstats course cause ya gotta embrace whatever joy you can these days (thanks to @jennakissel.bsky.social for realization that w/ 3d printer we could go all in here)
Starting my 9th year at Appalachian State!
August 18, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Starting my 9th year at Appalachian State!
I keep thinking of this:
June 27, 2025 at 6:28 PM
I keep thinking of this:
Thinking of this Calvin and Hobbes strip for no reason whatsoever....👀
June 5, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Thinking of this Calvin and Hobbes strip for no reason whatsoever....👀
Colugo sends an ultrasound calls to attempt to communicate with any nearby colugos... an ability discovered by researchers studying bats & bat ultrasound calls! (Miard, et al 2019)
March 27, 2025 at 12:31 AM
Colugo sends an ultrasound calls to attempt to communicate with any nearby colugos... an ability discovered by researchers studying bats & bat ultrasound calls! (Miard, et al 2019)
Sun Bear has been resting with his belly on a tree branch, with his legs hanging down, but then uses his right paw to reach some figs, plopping them into his mouth. One name for him in Sumatra is 'Bagindo nan tinggih' (he who likes to sit high) (Meijaard 1998) #2025MMM
March 27, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Sun Bear has been resting with his belly on a tree branch, with his legs hanging down, but then uses his right paw to reach some figs, plopping them into his mouth. One name for him in Sumatra is 'Bagindo nan tinggih' (he who likes to sit high) (Meijaard 1998) #2025MMM
Sun bear lumbers in the forest arriving at a preferred fig tree, using his excellent climbing skills, sunbear hauls himself into the tree leaving conspicuous claw marks that scientists use to discern their presence in the ecosystem (Steinmetz & Garshelis 2008) #2025MMM
March 27, 2025 at 12:28 AM
Sun bear lumbers in the forest arriving at a preferred fig tree, using his excellent climbing skills, sunbear hauls himself into the tree leaving conspicuous claw marks that scientists use to discern their presence in the ecosystem (Steinmetz & Garshelis 2008) #2025MMM
Colugos can survive in fragmented landscapes, but their dwindling natural habitats need to be properly managed for the species to persist (Agoramoorthy et al 2006) and are at risk of vehicle collisions when they glide across roadways (Hui 2023) #2025MMM
March 27, 2025 at 12:27 AM
Colugos can survive in fragmented landscapes, but their dwindling natural habitats need to be properly managed for the species to persist (Agoramoorthy et al 2006) and are at risk of vehicle collisions when they glide across roadways (Hui 2023) #2025MMM
Next Up: 1st Seed Sun Bear (Helarctos malayanus) vs. 3rd seed Sunda Colugo (Galeopterus variegatus)#2025MMM
March 27, 2025 at 12:24 AM
Next Up: 1st Seed Sun Bear (Helarctos malayanus) vs. 3rd seed Sunda Colugo (Galeopterus variegatus)#2025MMM
Aardvark's nose is flat on the ground, sniffing loudly! The "fleshy tentacles" (Kingdon 1971) of his nose are adapted to chemical stimuli and for sensing termites' reaction to his loud sniff. Aardvarks have the highest number of endoturbinals recorded in mammals (Taylor 2004) #2025MMM
March 25, 2025 at 1:52 AM
Aardvark's nose is flat on the ground, sniffing loudly! The "fleshy tentacles" (Kingdon 1971) of his nose are adapted to chemical stimuli and for sensing termites' reaction to his loud sniff. Aardvarks have the highest number of endoturbinals recorded in mammals (Taylor 2004) #2025MMM
Sunbear uses his claws & teeth to break the termite mound into a few pieces & quickly eats the termites from the exposed mound. He then sits straight up, grabs a piece of mound with his front paws, and licks termites from the surface of the mounds. #2025MMM
March 25, 2025 at 1:50 AM
Sunbear uses his claws & teeth to break the termite mound into a few pieces & quickly eats the termites from the exposed mound. He then sits straight up, grabs a piece of mound with his front paws, and licks termites from the surface of the mounds. #2025MMM
Sunbear's large canine teeth w/ flaring zygomatics, make a big bite force for an omnivore his size. This strong bite is for tearing into trees & termite mounds (Christiansen 2007). #2025MMM
March 25, 2025 at 1:48 AM
Sunbear's large canine teeth w/ flaring zygomatics, make a big bite force for an omnivore his size. This strong bite is for tearing into trees & termite mounds (Christiansen 2007). #2025MMM
Back in Ulu Segama Forest Reserve, Malaysia Sunbear is approaching one side of a termite mound! While he eats a lot of fruit to build up fat reserves for lean times, his long, narrow tongue and mobile snout allow him to eat a lot of termites (Frederick 2008) #2025MMM
March 25, 2025 at 1:47 AM
Back in Ulu Segama Forest Reserve, Malaysia Sunbear is approaching one side of a termite mound! While he eats a lot of fruit to build up fat reserves for lean times, his long, narrow tongue and mobile snout allow him to eat a lot of termites (Frederick 2008) #2025MMM
Aardvarks are fossorial, meaning they are well-adapted for digging, which is one reason they are the only extant member of their Order. Other members of this group were less fit for the digging life, and this maybe part of the reason these populations went extinct (Taylor and Skinner 2004) #2025MMM
March 25, 2025 at 1:45 AM
Aardvarks are fossorial, meaning they are well-adapted for digging, which is one reason they are the only extant member of their Order. Other members of this group were less fit for the digging life, and this maybe part of the reason these populations went extinct (Taylor and Skinner 2004) #2025MMM
Sun bears are smaller than the average bear at 25-65kg. They have claws adapted for digging & climbing, w/ bowed legs & inward facing paws that help them arboreally. These traits help sun bear obtain one of their favorite foods: figs! #GrubDigger AND #FigFancier #2025MMM
March 25, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Sun bears are smaller than the average bear at 25-65kg. They have claws adapted for digging & climbing, w/ bowed legs & inward facing paws that help them arboreally. These traits help sun bear obtain one of their favorite foods: figs! #GrubDigger AND #FigFancier #2025MMM
Me in the National Security team group chat
March 24, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Me in the National Security team group chat
So the breakfast club met 41 years ago today and I'm not sure I can process this....
March 24, 2025 at 9:04 PM
So the breakfast club met 41 years ago today and I'm not sure I can process this....
The clouds shift, casting moonlight onto the scene... Bandicoot gazes in horror upon the strange Aardvark... and flees from the stranger in the night... beyond the field of battle! #2025MMM
March 18, 2025 at 1:18 AM
The clouds shift, casting moonlight onto the scene... Bandicoot gazes in horror upon the strange Aardvark... and flees from the stranger in the night... beyond the field of battle! #2025MMM
Meanwhile, in Western Australia, Yalgorup National Park Bandicoot is poking nose into the ground, digging just 1 of 45 foraging pits he makes a day searching for invertebrates, tubers, seeds & fungi. Manipulating soil for food (biopedturbation) helps soil turnover (Valentine et al. 2012) #2025MMM
March 18, 2025 at 1:13 AM
Meanwhile, in Western Australia, Yalgorup National Park Bandicoot is poking nose into the ground, digging just 1 of 45 foraging pits he makes a day searching for invertebrates, tubers, seeds & fungi. Manipulating soil for food (biopedturbation) helps soil turnover (Valentine et al. 2012) #2025MMM