June 9th, 2009
Glow In The Dark
Hey Doods, just a reminder that I will be at the Olympia Comics Festival this Saturday. Come hear me interview Derek Kirk Kim about making autobio comics! It’ll be some good ol’ family fun, I’m sure.
Quick Stats:
June 13th
The Vault
425 Franklin St. SE
Free!
June 9th, 2009 at 3:49 am
Making glowing critters is mainly a proof of concept thing. It’s a mod that’s easy to check for and seems to be otherwise harmless to a critter not expected to survive in the wild. It lets them make sure that they can tinker with the species’s genetic code safely and stably before they try anything more ambitious. Also, it gets more press than simply making a brown-furred species have black fur. :)
June 9th, 2009 at 4:18 am
You can get yourself glow-in-the-dark tattoos ! Did you know that ? Invisible under normal light, they glow when lit by “black light” (UV light).
See them here : http://www.bmeink.com/uv001.html
June 9th, 2009 at 4:45 am
glow in the dark genes are used because its easy to tell that they are working :) its not about making them glow in the dark, its the science behind the process
June 9th, 2009 at 6:03 am
If you were actually wondering about the glowing marmosets, it has nothing to do with “making people glow.” Getting cells from different animals to glow then makes them easy to specifically track when injected into other animals, letting you watch where they go and isolate particular effects. It’s a very useful tool in studying disease models and determining exactly how/whether various treatments help.
June 9th, 2009 at 7:57 am
The point at making any animal glow is to prove you are able to do it. And the cool thing about the glowing marmosets is that they managed to inherit the “transgene” to the next generation, something science wasn’t able till then in monkeys. The gene for “glowing” is just the easiest to see without any heavy equipment and expensive further studies, so it is usually the first tried.
There are glowing fish, mices and pigs.
(And, if one could implant in human infants, they would be much better visible in early morning traffic when they have to go to school. So it’s not so useless as oney could think.)
June 9th, 2009 at 8:10 am
The first thought that came to my mind was that sex in the park at night would be so damned obvious if you were glowing in the dark. But you could work as emergency lighting…
June 9th, 2009 at 11:13 am
Cool! I’d never need a flashlight again!
Although I guess my supply of glow-in-the-dark condoms would become redundant.
June 9th, 2009 at 11:30 am
Thanks guys for all the infomation! Consider me educated on why they make critters glow.
June 9th, 2009 at 11:54 am
“OONSE OONSE OONSE” a definite highlight of this one. WOOPS no pun intended.
June 9th, 2009 at 12:16 pm
I’ve always wondered how to spell oonse!
June 9th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
No offense to your husband but most of your comics since the trans rage thing happened seem to be about him, or about things you have done before, like modeling. i hope you wont let the TG people scare you away from doing risky comics anymore!
June 9th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Sade, You’re not wrong in your observation! My “riskier” comics are going straight into the next book instead of online first. I’m just a single girl and it wears me down having to screen trolls (some of which have actually had the nerve to seek me out at conventions to inform me of how I’m such a disappointment for having married a man and that my comic caused trans hate crimes/murder). I figger if I’m gunna be harassed by strangers, they might as well pay me first by having to buy the book ;)
It’s not exactly “risky” (maybe a little “risque”?) but the next three weeks worth of strips are about vibrators /:) I’m sure I’m bound to piss off at least a couple self-righteous dicks.
June 9th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Personally I think it would be a bit pointless to make a human glow. Well, all of a human. I’m just envisioning the joy of a glowing wang. Or nipples. Little flashlights for the torso.
As to the self censorship, that’s a shame but entirely understandable. I don’t envy what you have been going through. Those damn feminazis ;-)
June 9th, 2009 at 4:20 pm
http://www.nextnature.net/?p=1611
For a link as to another nice effect of doing glow in the dark critters. (Or at least fluorescent brains.) Besides being a nice way to check if it’s possible to do something, you can use it by tagging specific proteins to track movement/growth/etc, without injuring the animal.
June 9th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Man, I hate when people look at another person’s art or read’s their stuff and then complains. I’m a huge fan of “if you don’t like it, don’t read/look at it” It’s not like you’re gluing their eyes open and shoving the comic in their faces.
P.S. I love this so much I just finished reading it a through a second time.
June 9th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
I hate to be a downer, but these monkey don’t actually glow in the dark, they glow when exposed to a certain wavelength of light (in this case, blue light). I think the rave scene is still plausible, though. :)
June 9th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
I’m kind of with Sade. It’s a little like it’s Matt’s comic and Erika’s the sidekick lately… Maybe vibrator comics will turn that around.
June 9th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
There are glow in the dark kittens, too!
June 9th, 2009 at 10:42 pm
I’m so that guy.
June 10th, 2009 at 12:28 am
But just think, if they made glow in the black light children it would render laser tag totally pointless! And by pointless I mean not fun.
June 10th, 2009 at 4:12 am
I had a strikingly similar conversation on Monday night, except ours was about a “strobe-penis”. Which would, naturally, work like a strobe light when excited and mysteriously eminate that “oonse oonse oonse” music. Then we began to discuss the merits of being your own one man rave party.
June 10th, 2009 at 2:16 pm
Who was it that you said hated you again? The hardcore feminists? Or was it the diehard TG crowd? (Saw you at TCAF and loved your readings… I kinda wish I recorded them…)
Can’t remember who, exactly. but it doesn’t matter either way. I say if you have haters, it means you’re doing something right. Don’t let them get you discouraged, your comics are brilliant.
I’m a gay dude (also gaymarried in an international relationship) and I too have had a fluke opposite sex partner whom I fell so hard in love with… so I get where you’re coming from. Life is funny that way sometimes.
My point is there’ll always be fucktards out there who just won’t get it, and really, that’s their loss. You’re a hell of a woman for going for what you want.
June 11th, 2009 at 4:45 am
Hey? I just finished reading through your archive and I would just like to say that I LOVE your comics! A joy to read. :)
June 11th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
You’re interviewing Derek Kirk Kim? Christ, that’s like Captain Kirk interviewing Captain Picard except autobio comics artists instead of starfleet captains.
June 13th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
What is he doing with his hands? Clearly, I haven’t been to enough rave parties…
Also: what’s a “trans rage”? It seems I’ve missed something…
June 13th, 2009 at 12:20 pm
One of my friends recommended this site to me yesterday, and I am fully addicted (I’ve already read all the comics!). I really appreciate the presence of another queer woman who is married to a man! Your strip brings out the humour and sensitivity in the subject… while also just being enourmously entertaining . Thank you!
June 14th, 2009 at 3:55 pm
This is my new visual-mantra-thing for when people be dicks.
http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/9778/hatersgonnahaten.gif
June 15th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
I flew across the country (from boston to seattle), drove around Washington for days, and managed to be in Seattle again the night of the comics fest, but couldn’t get a ride down to Olympia (worst timing ever). But since I’m now in Portland, I bought your book at Powell’s (it seemed appropriate). You’ve got a lovely little “local author” tag.
I adore your comic, and hope you continue to publish your (mis)adventures. ^^
June 19th, 2009 at 9:31 am
*oonse-oonse* I love it!
I know how hard it is to ignore people when they say things about your art. Ignoring them is a lot easier said than done. You are a great artist! Please don’t let the thoughtless words of a closed mind change what you love doing! You are great and you are the only you there is. ;)
June 30th, 2009 at 8:05 pm
i’ve read this page like 6 times and it cracks me up every time. thanks, dude.
October 9th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Okay, so I’m an old fogey who has no idea what you young’uns do at your “raves” and “discos” and “sock hops” and all, but let me echo Jannes’ question: What in the hell is going on with his hands and why is it making that noise?
March 17th, 2010 at 11:04 pm
Meh, I’m sure you know it, but in response to people getting ticked off at you for marrying a man; ignore them. I don’t personally know you, but these comics give a good insight to who you are, and I’m thinking you’re a great person and that those who think you instigate hate crimes (WTF?!) are just looking to attack someone themselves. They wanna blame someone and you’re just more visible than a lot of us. I teach Zumba classes at a LGBTS Community center once in a while and I’ve had some people (straight/homosexual/etc) get on me for that for various reasons. Just let it roll off the back, lol.
April 9th, 2010 at 3:55 am
LMAO i love the “oonse oonse oonse” of the music! That is EXACTLY what it sounds like hahaha
June 14th, 2010 at 5:45 am
What’s the point of making people glow in the dark? Why, it’s one of the many features put into the successors to mankind gengineered by Crake in Margaret Atwood’s mindbending book Oryx & Crake!
This is the first step to the end of the world as we know it. :I