Crying Fowl

Aaaack! Check your ears for feathers! Chickens are taking over the brains of science reporters--AND their editors, apparently. And you might be next!! ...Either that or those Chik-fil-A cows are trying some new subliminal messaging thing.... I don't know how else to explain nearly identical errors in two separate articles posted on the same day on two separate science geek news spots.

I ran across this one first. It's from the article by Jennifer Viegas, Cleanest Creatures Skip the Bathroom, at Discovery News:

"Since fowling oneself is a major social faux pas that can create health and safety problems..." (emphasis added by me)

Then, not ten minutes later, I ran across this one. It's from the article by Lily Whiteman, The Truth Behind Global Jellyfish Swarms, at LiveScience:

"Many important fisheries, including the Gulf of Mexico, where jellies regularly clog nets, fowl fishing gear or prey on eggs and larvae of fish." (emphasis added by me)

I do imagine it would be a social faux pas to emu oneself (would that entail dyeing one's feathers black?), but I just can't imagine jellyfish having anything to do with birds at all.

Jennifer and Lily, the word is FOUL, as in to ruin, soil, or sully. This is why we don't rely on spell-check.

Oh, what sad times are these when science news writers can cry fowl at will to old ladies. (I dunno. Eric Idle's voice in my head...) (No, not really.) (Okay, maybe. It's an oddly-placed Monty Python reference.) (Holy Grail?) (Ni?) (Never mind...)

Submit a Fowl-Up!

Have you seen an egregious 'fowl-up' recently? Send it to me!

fowl up (foul' up), n. 1. A grossly negligent or uneducated error involving written words intended to be viewed by the general public. 2. Any perpetrator of such an error. 3. (much less common) Any regrettable instance of a human dressed as, or intentionally resembling, a bird.

As a rule, written errors in personal blogs or homepages, forum posts or comments, or personal emails don't count... unless the error is from a spam-monger, or the logic that accompanies it simply defies explanation.

How to submit a 'fowl-up' from the web: Email me the link. stampalooza $@$ gmail $dot$ com

How to submit a 'fowl-up' photo: Attach it to an email and send it to me.

How to submit a 'fowl-up' from a print publication: Scan or photograph the offending page, as well as the cover or front page of the edition, and send both images to me.

If sending photos, please only send photos you own. Do not send me photos you found on the web. By sending me your photos, you agree to let me use them on Crying Fowl.

Please include your name (first name and last initial will be fine), so I can give you credit.