Insects, Science, and SocietyThe Entomology 108 Home Page
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Insects, Science, and SocietyThe Entomology 108 Home Page
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Entomology 108 presents an introduction to insects and explores their multiple influences in human culture. Listed below is more information and the various course web pages.
Dec. 4, 2009
The Final is now posted. You can find it here or through the Class assignments and examinations page.
Given my puerile sense of humor, it is probably no surprise to you that I have a complete collection of Weird Al Yankovic CDs, and enjoy developing parody lyrics to songs. I briefly mentioned this in class regarding my interpretation of the Bob Dylan classic "Lay, lady, lay", which I entitled "Lay, Blow fly, lay". A good parody, in my opinion, must match the meter of the original lyric and have a subtle relationship in word choice and alliteration corresponding to the original. Additionally, the parody should tell a consistent story that parallels but is nevertheless different from the original. I think these points are essential because a great parody is a sort of joke, and the humor of the parody depends on surprise (the words sound almost the same, but aren't) and on the nature of the commentary or story of the lyric. Again, Weird Al's parodies are superb not only because of their relationships to the orginial songs, but also because they offer an ironic perspective on popular culture. Thus, while I find the Backstreet Boy's song "I Want It That Way" contrived, saccharine, and vaguely annoying, I can listen to the Weird Al parody "What I Bought On EBay" all day long. I keep hoping my former student Tim Huntington will one day help me record my "forensic" versions of various popular songs, but until then, here are some parody lyrics I've developed.
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Lay,
blowfly, lay
Lay, blow fly, lay, lay upon my
big dead head |
Lay, lady, lay Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed Whatever colors you have in your mind I'll show them to you and you'll see them shine Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile Until the break of day, let me see you make him smile His clothes are dirty but his hands are clean And you're the best thing that he's ever seen Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile Why wait any longer for the world to begin You can have your cake and eat it too Why wait any longer for the one you love When he's standing in front of you Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed Stay, lady, stay, stay while the night is still ahead I long to see you in the morning light I long to reach for you in the night Stay, lady, stay, stay while the night is still ahead |
As it happens, I have not been much of a Dylan fan. However, as I've gotten older I seem to have a growing interest and appreciation of his music. Lay, lady, lay is among my favorite Dylan songs, probably because it is seems to be base (in convincing the singer's lady to "lay across my big brass bed" [a classic male sexual selection effort, as you should recognize from lecture]), and at the same time romantic ("I long to see you in the morning light"). The alternation between first person (e.g., "I long to see you...") and third person (e.g., "His clothes are dirty...") seems strange to me but works. Unfortunately, "And you're the best thing that he's ever seen" makes me wince. Bob, I know you could have come up with a better line. Regarding the parody, I like the premise of a corpse romancing a blow fly. The "dead head" versus "big bed" seems to work well, as does the idea of "bloat" still ahead versus "night" still ahead. Most of the rest just follows blow fly biology, which is cool, and a few of the word choices in the parody make me laugh (e.g., "vile" for "smile" and "slime" for "shine"). Actually, I've never understood the "Whatever colors you have..." lines (are they a sex reference?), so I just went with "Whatever carcass you have..." as a statement of the parody's theme. Also, I think the word "carcass" belongs a forensic love song, don't you? |
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Rocket Man She packed my bags last night pre-flight And I
think it’s gonna be a long long time Mars
ain’t the kind of place to raise your kids And I think it’s gonna be a
long long time |
Maggot Man Bagged up the liver last night airtight And I think it’s gonna be a long, long time Death ain’t the kind of place to take your kids And I think it’s gonna be a long, long time |
Given that my license plate is MAG8MAN and that my computer-gaming nickname is frequently Mag8man or MaggotMan, is it any wonder that I want a recording of this parody as my theme song? As I was trying to come up with the parody lyrics, I actually drew on the first death case I was ever called out on. I was literally getting into bed at 10:30 when the phone rang, and Fred Baxendale told me the Lincoln police had just called about a decomp they'd found. Fred and I had recently done a workshop on forensic entomology for LPD, so I suppose it was just a matter of time before they would call us on a case. As it turns out, this case was a suicide (a jump off a water tower) with relatively little insect involvement on the body (because the body was mostly imbedded into the ground from the force of the impact). Anyway, the parody lyrics about missing my bed and wife are accurate. Similarly, the "I'm not the man they think I am in court" is a fair reflection of my discomfort with testifying and the whole expert witness vibe. The second verse of Rocket Man, "Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids..." has always been a little troublesome to me, in that I found the "...raise them if you did" line somehow awkward. My version isn't any better, but it does remind me of another real incident. When Tim Huntington went to pick up one of our recording thermocouples from a death scene, he saw a man showing his two young grandchildren where the murder victim's decomposing body had been found. This sort of episode makes me think people aren't far removed from having parties at public hangings, but I still maintain "Death ain't the kind of place to take your kids"! For my money, the best two lines in the parody are the one about maggots growing and solving the crime (a reference to determining maggot development to establish the PMI -- postmortem interval) and "Maggot man diggin' in dead folks for my report" which is variously funny, disgusting, and true. What I like best about this parody is that the emotional theme of Rocket Man (the loneliness and isolation of an astronaut) is matched with a similar theme of alienation and emotional separation of a forensic entomologist. I don't suppose many real astronauts identify with Rocket Man any more than real forensic entomologists would identify with Maggot Man. However, Maggot Man actually reflects my ambivalence about doing forensic casework. So, can a parody become art or, as usual, am I just full of crap? |
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Entomology 108 is about the biology of insects and science. It is an introductory course that eschews (I don't believe I've ever used that word before) the standard memorizing facts approach to teaching science. Instead, my intent is to develop an understanding of fundamental concepts in entomology and an appreciation of the relationship of insects and science to society. Although I originally developed Ent 108 as a science literacy course, I've found biology and other science students like the course because it provides an opportunity to consider science from a broader perspective than in traditional science classes. This last point is particularly true regarding the relationship of entomology to human history and social implications of science.
I once (naively) believed that college was about intellectual inquiry. I now understand that it is about meeting requirements. So, you will be pleased to know that Ent 108 meets UN-L's Integrated Studies (IS) and Essential Studies (ES) requirements. Is it an easy A? Yes, if you come to class, do the assignments, and think (actually, I find that these requirements too frequently mean the course isn't an easy A). You are required to have opinions or form opinions during the course of the semester (and you can't use mine in place of your own). I find many students are discomforted by being expected by being expected to think, particularly about questions lacking clear answers. It gets easier with practice. Is it true I do magic tricks? Yes, when I can find some tenuous link between an effect and a lecture topic. Is it true you have to hold hissing cockroaches to pass? No, but I'll think better of you if you do.
The instructor is Dr. Leon G. Higley, Professor of Entomology
and Forensic Science,
UN-L. As you have questions, feel free to contact me. Among your
various options for reaching me are:
Office: 706 Hardin Hall, East Campus.
Always check to make certain
I'm in, because I work at home whenever I can, and I have all too many meetings.
If you are driving to East Campus, the super secret parking lot seems to be by
the quilt museum on the west side of 33rd street. It is worth the drive because
I have a great view (I understand that professors are allowed windows. I'm not
sure what I'd have to be to get a corner office, but I can dream can't I.)
Office Phone/Cell Phone: 402-560-6684
(After 20 years I got fed up
with having to pay to have a phone in my office, so I got rid of it last year
and now I just use my cell phone for everything.)
Home Phone: 402-486-3901
(I turn my brain off when I go
home, so this is rarely your best option, but call if you need
to. Also, Phyllis says I have to start going to bed earlier, so please don't call after 11 pm.
Finally, there are two Dr. Higleys and two Professor Higley's at my house, so
please don't be offended if you are asked "Leon or Phyllis?" Avoid the mistake
of one of Phyllis's students: she asked to speak with Dr. Higley, I said "I'm
Dr. Higley", and the student said "No you're not.")
E-mail:
lhigley1@unl.edu or
lhigley@drshigley.com
(I am far
from the best e-mail correspondent, so make certain you put Ent108 in the
subject line.)
Click here to send me a
message now.
This page was last modified on Friday, December 04, 2009 by L. G. Higley.
