My summer began in New York, with scholar-in-residence weekends in Woodmere, White Plains and Lawrence. During this time I also ran some programs at the Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, New Jersey. My friend Dr. Jeremy Goodman, probably the only Orthodox Jewish zoo director in the world, helped arrange a spectacular weekday evening program.

We began with dinner for about forty people in the zoo's wonderful new reptile house. It provided a truly unique ambience; we sat beneath a replica of a pterodactyl with a twenty-foot wingspan, and we were surrounded by chameleons, iguanas, frogs, and a fifteen-foot reticulated python! Following dinner, we moved to the new education center, where others joined us for the evening program.

During weekday lectures I often use a PowerPoint presentation to show video footage of various animals that I am discussing, but at the Turtle Back Zoo I am able to provide an additional treat. It is the only zoo in the U.S. where I can actually bring out live animals to enhance the presentation. The audience was thrilled to encounter a tame skunk (which had fortunately been de-scented), a boa constrictor, and a beautiful owl. While snakes and owls both feature prominently in the Torah, skunks, as American animals, are not mentioned anywhere; so I spoke about the importance of appreciating the wonder of all God's creations, even those that might strike us as loathsome. The skunk made that easy for us; it was really an adorable and very friendly creature. We concluded the presentation with a discussion of the teachings of Midrash Perek Shirah concerning the horse, and Dr. Goodman led one into the room!

I may run another such program on Sunday, August 27th; please let me know if you are interested in attending it.

II. Return of the Dinosaurs

The main event for me on the East Coast was, of course, the launch of my new book, "The Challenge Of Creation," a revised and expanded edition of my book "The Science Of Torah" which went out of print shortly after it was banned nearly two years ago. You can read about the launch celebration at http://hirhurim.blogspot.com/2006/07/most-important-event-in-jewish.html, and you can purchase the book at http://www.yasharbooks.com/Challenge.html. I am thrilled to note that this has been by far my fastest-selling book. There are some updates and corrections posted at www.zootorah.com/books/challenge.html.

The book launch was covered in The Jewish Press (see http://www.jewishpress.com/page.do/18988/Slifkin_Launches_Book%2C_Discusses_Ban.html). The brevity of a newspaper article did not enable the issues covered to be properly described, especially with regard to my description of the opposition to my works; I encourage people to see my posting at http://www.zootorah.com/controversy/scienceresponse.html for a fuller and more accurate description.

III. Denizens of the Deep

With the book launch out of the way, I headed over to the West Coast, to join my family in Los Angeles. We spent a night at the beach in Santa Monica, where I watched pelicans, seals, and dolphins cavorting offshore. This led to a debate that I had with my father-in-law as to what the correct term is for a group of dolphins. He suggested that it is a "pod," but I thought that it is a "school." I checked with Wikipedia, and we were both correct!

At six in the morning, I headed out to the beach to investigate the pools that had been left amongst the rocks by the receding tide. I looked amongst the anemones and crabs, and caught a glimpse of an arm disappearing into a crevice. My heart skipped a beat as I realized what it was. After twenty minutes of gingerly poking around in the water, I managed to catch it: an octopus.

People often ask me what I consider to be the most amazing animal in the world. I used to consider the ant to be the leading contender, but the octopus gave me cause to reconsider. It measured only about a foot from tentacle-tip to tentacle-tip, and it had no bones, but its strength was unbelievable. Octopi are also renowned for their great intelligence. In addition, they are unquestionably the greatest camouflage artists in the animal kingdom. Aside from their ability to instantly change color, they can even change the physical texture of their skin.

In my enthusiasm for catching the octopus I forgot to consider carefully whether it might be dangerous. After capturing it, I noticed that it had two blue rings under its eyes, and an alarm bell started sounding in my head. I remembered reading that the blue-ringed octopus is one of the most venomous creatures known to man. A quick search on the Internet, however, revealed that the blue-ringed octopus only lives in the Southern hemisphere. The creature that I had captured was the two-ringed octopus. It does possess a venomous bite, but this is generally harmless – unless one suffers an allergic reaction. The moral of the story is that one should always avoid picking up a strange octopus; however, there are times when the temptation to do this is overwhelming!

In part two I will describe my trip further north in California, which included some of my favorite pastimes – elephant riding and alligator wrestling!

Please include Menachem Osher ben Perel in your prayers for a speedy and complete recovery from illness.

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