Those zany sharks!

• WEIRDNESS CONTINUES. There’s been yet another shark incident, this one on the far side of Catalina Island: Shark attacks woman on kayak at Catalina, knocks her off in front of her kids. It occurred Saturday but wasn't reported until last night. A shark knocked a woman off her kayak, but small boats came to her rescue (her family saw the incident from their boat, but they were unable to respond because the boat was anchored). She's OK. (It doesn’t seem quite clear that the shark was “attacking” the woman, although it did knock her over. Some say that sharks can be motivated to "attack" by mere curiosity.) See update.

As you know, yesterday, the Reg reported a shark incident, involving people on an Outrigger, off Laguna Beach. The Sharkster was reported to be "gnarly."

• BURNT MOUNTAINS. The Register has posted a nice photo essay of the burned areas of the Santa Ana Mountains: Photo report: Inside the closed wildfire zone. Check it out.

This morning’s Inside Higher Ed reports that:

• Lack of cleanliness in educational facilities hinders learning, according to a national survey of students by APPA, the organization that represents higher education facility managers. In the survey, students ranked cleanliness as the fourth most important building element to influence learning, after noise, air temperature, and lighting. [Gosh, I wonder what a lack of sanity and decency does?]

• Syracuse University adjuncts have approved their first union contract with the university, under which they are receiving gains in pay, health insurance, professional development and procedures for resolving disputes. The union is an affiliate of the New York State United Teachers, which is part of the American Federation of Teachers, which released details on the contract.

• I’ve included some photos from the Reb’s recent adventures on Santa Barbara Island. “It was hot,” she said. So, she says, people tended to stay in the lovely water—with the sea lions. (See photo below.)

Especially Limber Lou.