Gleanings of the Week Ending July 11, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Exploring Vermont's Ancient Roads - (abstract of an article in The New Yorker: Where the Roads have No Name) Studying history through roads - some long abandoned but still ‘on the books.’

The oceans can’t take any more: Fundamental change in oceans predicted - A study that focused on the impact of climate change (specifically atmospheric CO2 increases) is likely to have on the oceans….it is not a ‘good news’ story.

Trails Win Big in Florida's 2015-16 State Budget - Hurray! This is important for Floridians and tourists that enjoy the outdoors in the state.

How did milk become a staple food? - Milk became the ‘super food’ of the early 1900s. This article provides the historical background for this ascendance.

Water usage for fracking has increased dramatically, study shows - And most of the water for fracking is disposed of deep underground, removing it from the water cycle. In areas of the world where water is already a problem - why would anyone want to take water out of the water cycle?

Rosetta's Comet Is Developing Giant Sinkholes before Our Eyes - Lots of changes to observe…and Rosetta is in position to do it.

The Best Places to See 10 Iconic American Animals - Bald Eagles, bison, gray wolf, moose, mountain goat, pronghorn, black bear, alligator, wild turkey, northern cardinal - oh my!

The traits that make human beings unique - Many traits once believed to be uniquely human have been found in the animal kingdom…what defines us?

These are the Minerals That Give Fireworks Their Colors - A follow-up to fourth of July!

A Satellite's First Look at Earth Has a Stunning Photo of the Sahara - An image from the second of six Sentinel missions to track land use, vegetation stress, soil and water cover…and for imagery needed for emergency response. There is a lot of information we need to guide our actions to sustain the planet.

Gleanings of the Week Ending July 4, 2015

Hope you are enjoying the 4th of July! We’re going to see the local fireworks display tonight. The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Weight loss, combined with vitamin D, reduces inflammation linked to cancer, chronic disease - And the study was done with postmenopausal women! Quite a welcome change from the days where most medical studies were done with middle aged men.

The Mythology and Art of the American Road Trip - 100 billboards along I-10 from California to Florida.

The Colonial Revival Furniture Made at Eleanor Roosevelt's Val-Kill Industries - I like the old fashioned writing chair. If I had one - would I use it for my laptop? I also liked this article because it reminded me of a road trip to New York (state) a few years ago that included a tour of Val-Kill.

Antarctic life: Highly diverse, unusually structured - Will the high diversity help the Antarctic ecosystem adapt as climate changes?  

Photo Gallery: Scenes from the Golden Age of Animal Tracking -  (click on the ‘View the gallery’ link under the three-toed sloth picture) Animals as subjects and samplers of the environment where they live.

Joe Mangrum's Temporary Sand Paintings Are Pure, Beautiful Magic - Videos of how the intricate paintings are made

This One-Ton Fish Is One of Nature's Most Improbable Creations - I’ve seen ocean sunfish in aquariums…and noted how odd they seemed. They can grow to be quite large (heaviest boney fish in the world!

Frame for displaying tiles - After I fill up all the space under the plastic sheet of my breakfast table with Zentangle tiles® - this is my next display strategy form my ‘tile a day,’

How to Make Vegan Parmesan-Style Cheez - Another recipe to try. I’ve noticed large packages of raw cashews in my grocery store; maybe there are more people trying recipes that call for them - like this recipe.

Presentation: Mobile is eating the world - Trends…..but there is a lot of room for disruption of the ‘mobile’ vision that we have right now.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 27, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

No Bake, No Stovetop Cookie Bites - I’ve always been intrigued about ‘no bake’ cookies. I like all the ingredients in these so maybe it’s a recipe to try.

Electric Motorcycles Used By Over 50 Police Departments - I like technology that is good for the environment and also is has a positive impact on the mission (they are quiet!).

Smart insulin patch could replace painful injections for diabetes - New technology hones delivery of insulin based on when the body needs it….much more like a correctly functioning pancreas.

Once and Future Nut: How Genetic Engineering May Bring Back Chestnuts - These trees once grew in Maryland. It would be great to have them part of scene again after 100 years.

Climate change threatens to undermine the last half century of health gains - Increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events (heat waves, floods, droughts and storms) as well as indirect impacts from changes in infectious disease patterns, air pollution, food insecurity and malnutrition, involuntary migration, displacement and conflict….it adds up.

The rise of Africa’s super vegetables - Indigenous foods…rather than imported…to feed the continent. And trying the preserved the variety available while studying only a few of the species.

Doctors often misdiagnose zinc deficiency, unaware of impact of excess zinc - Wow! I remember a few years ago when it was widely suggested that zinc helped recovery from colds….I wonder how many people developed zinc induced copper deficiency (anemia, low white cell count and/or neurological problems?

The Prairie Ecologist Goes to the Beach - Photos of the gulf coast beaches in Texas.

How the US, UK, Canada, Japan, France, Germany, & Italy Can Each Go 100% Renewable - The article and the comments - lots of potential ways to get it done.

The Best Weather Photos of the Year Will Blow You Away - I couldn’t resist. Good photographs. I was a little surprised that a rainbow picture was not in the group.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 20, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Soft Tissue Detected in Millennia-Old Dino Bones - New ways of looking at very old bones reveals unanticipated results (but not DNA).

Far From Sterile, Some Hybrids May Start New Species - Coyotes in the eastern US are quite different than their western counterparts and they are beginning to fill the niche left by wolves. Maybe they will help control the too large deer population!

Renewables Reach Highest Share of U.S. Energy Consumption since 1930s - Historical stats about renewable energy...with emphasis on the 1990-2014 time period.

Two similar articles: Why doctors should treat the healthy too and Interventions among healthy people save the most lives - The challenge is that most doctors are trained to treat illness and disability…not help people retain their health.

Data scientists find connections between birth month and health - The data for the study was from 1985-2013…1.7 million patients treated at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/CUMC. It interesting result but the researchers point out that the risk related to birth month is relatively minor compared to the more influential variables like diet and exercise.

The Weirdest (And Most Violent) Ways That Plants Release Their Seeds - Short videos. As with so many things botanical…I could not resist including it in the gleaning list. It includes how violets disperse their seeds and I’ve just started noticing the seed pods this year (I have several locations where I am watching the plants to see the seeds disperse).

Global freshwater consumption crossing its planetary boundary - Scary result.

Biodiversity reduces human, wildlife diseases and crop pests - Another reason to worry about the extinctions happening in the world right now.

Sunrise and Sunset Photos Capture Stunning Wildlife Silhouettes - Ending with some great images…and a reminder of the special light at the beginning and ending of the day.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 13, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

18 beautiful houses for tiny people - Photographs of doll’s houses …inhabitants and furnishings too.

How past Native-American settlement modified Western New York forests - Larger nut-bearing trees were more abundant near settlements!

Rebuilding Sandbars in the Grand Canyon - I had learned about the attempts to rebuild sandbars in the recent Coursera offer on Water in the Western US…so this acted to remind me of the class, probably locking in what I learned through a surprise repetition.

Ultrasound is making new waves throughout medicine - Ultrasound is being used for more and more imaging these days….and is more portable than a lot of the other imagining technologies.

10 Ways to Save Pollinators - This is not just about honey bees….it’s about all pollinators.

Multi-tasking: Benefits on exercise - So doing something else while you exercise may not be such a bad thing!

Beyond Automation - Five paths toward employability is an automated…augmented world of the future.

Sewage Pollution: The Next Great Threat for Coral Reefs - 96% of places that have both people and coral reefs have a sewage pollution problem (85% of the waterwater entering the sea in the Caribbean is untreated). Sewage that reaches corals includes: fresh water, endocrine disruptors, heavy metals, pathogens, toxins. Ewww! Not good for human health either.

The Shifting Sands of the Sahara Are a Lesson in Dune Dynamics - Illustrations of dune patterns (seen from above)

5 Ways to Make Environmentally Conscious Food Choices - I had thought of all 5…but this is post is a good summary to: support good companies, buy local, storing your food, growing your own, and choose less packaging.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 06, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Everything We've Learned about Mummies Using 21st Century Technology - Mummies fascinate just because we know they are often from the distant past…new technology adds elements to that fascination.

It’s Time to End the Gar Wars - Learn something new about native fish….and the history of conservation.

Why Kids Need to Dig in the Dirt Again - Play in the outdoors….not such a common thing for children as it used to be. Sad.

What Dose of Nature Do We Need to Feel Better? - Evidently there is a lot of research right now about the health benefits of spending time in nature….not just for children either.

New U.S. Water Rule is Crucial for Clean Drinking Water and Resilience to Droughts and Floods - As water supplies shift (too much and too little), the clarification will become more important. I was surprised that prior to the clarification, drinking water for 1 in 3 Americans came from streams without clear protection from pollution and degradation. Sustaining or improving the quality of water supplies is a key component to a sustainable planet.

Monarch Butterfly Conservation Series - I’m putting these videos on my ‘to do’ list.

Watching the Simultaneous Release of 11,000 Marbles - Mesmerizing.

Why you want Google Photos - Something new I am looking into.

16 Photographs of Animals Caught in the Rain - My favorites are the tricolor heron and monarch butterfly chrysalis photos.

These Maps Show Just How Screwed China Will Be After Sea Levels Rise - This is if all the ice melts….which may be a possibility if the world continues on current trends….and even if the ice does not melt completely, there are a lot of people living in coastal areas that are very close to sea level.

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 30, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Quiz: Can you tell these 16 cities by their skylines? -  I got 12 of the 16!

The Great Tuskers of Matusadona - Matusadona National Park in northern Zimbabwe….with lots of elephants and an organized anti-poaching group that (so far) appears to be sustaining the park wildlife.

Supreme Crispy Quinoa Vegetable Burgers - I don’t think I would actually eat this on a bun - since I general decide that I don’t like buns well enough to justify the calories. But I am always on the lookout for other ways to use quinoa since its nutritional profile is so terrific (and it tastes food too)…definitely worth the calories.

An El Nino connection to the floods in Oklahoma and Texas? - Map and narrative about El Nino and its impact on US weather patterns (using recent weather as an example).

These Are the Most Distinctive Popular Foods in Every State - Does it make sense for your state? Crab Cakes is listed for Maryland and that sounds about right.

See This Baby Flamingo Take Its First Few Steps - I knew that baby flamingoes were white (had picked up that bit of trivia somewhere along the line) but I hadn’t ever seen one. I was surprised at how big its legs were. The adult flamingoes seem very attentive to the baby too.

Insane Solar Jobs Boom About To Get $32 Million More Insane - Renewable energy stretching toward the goal of becoming competitive with fossil fuels.

There are No Shortcuts to Birding Nirvana - I was surprised that the Merlin app (from The Cornell Lab of Ornithology) was not mentioned. Maybe because it only includes 400 North American birds. It has the advantage that it is very easy to use even for new birders. I like it.

Designed for the Future: Practical Ideas for a Sustainable World - Take a look at the gallery (link below the picture). These are structures that exist - not drawings or plans.

Hidden Lead in Your Home - It isn’t just old lead pain on walls…there are more sources. 

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 23, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

New Battery Technology Will Fundamentally Change the Way the Grid Operates - Cost effective storage of energy seems to be on the near horizon. It could overcome the complaint about the intermittent nature of solar and wind power generation.

The Chemistry of Permanent Hair Dyes - There are probably still a lot of people covering grey hair with permanent hair dyes…not me. I’d rather enjoy my natural salt and pepper!

A Gorgeously Detailed View of Antarctica's Churning Ocean Currents  and Antarctica’s Larsen B Ice Shelf Will Likely Disintegrate by Decade's End - Two recent articles about Antarctica. The first one is a visualization of simulations done at Los Alamos National Laboratory.  The second article is bad news since it means global sea level rise will be increasing as glacial ice enters the ocean faster.

From Snapshot to Science: Photos of Biodiversity as Useful Records - Learn about National Geographic’s Great Nature Project. The Belmont BioBlitz observations have become part of the project!

The Birth of a Bee - A short video…well worth watching.

Recommended levels of activity rarely achieved in busy workplace environment - Many workplaces are quite sedentary. This study looked at 83 employees in a hospital. Only 6% of the participants reached the 10,000 steps per day goal even though the jobs of 53% of the participants were assumed to require ‘high’ levels of activity! I know when I started wearing a Fitbit I had to focus on getting steps in after my workday. Now that I am retired, it is easier to get the steps in throughout the day rather than focused at the end of the day.

China Coal Use Continues To Fall “Precipitously” - Now if this trend will continue….

First fully warm-blooded fish: The opah or moonfish - And now we discover that there is an exception to something we all learned in school….fishes are not all cold-blooded.

A Map Showing the "Most Distinctive" Causes of Death by State - It is a very colorful map…but does it mean very much. The most distinctive form of death in Maryland seemed strange to me…and ‘tuberculosis’ was listed for Texas.

How Machines Destroy (And Create!) Jobs, In 4 Graphs - I was somewhat surprised that the ‘services’ sector is not even larger. Looking at the graph historically - white collar jobs became the highest percentage and number of jobs in the 1950s and the trend continues.

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 9, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

How to Make Fresh Ginger-Lemon Tea - I modified the recipe a bit - made a slurry of the ingredients (with less water) in a smoothie maker then boiled it. After cooling - I strained the liquid into ice trays and am savoring a few cubes at a time for ginger-lemon flavored water.

No-Bake Breakfast Cookies - An option to try instead of purchasing breakfast bars? This way - I would know exactly what is in them.

Baroque organ performance of works by Johann Sebastian Bach - Listen to the music….and watch how a German baroque organ looks and is played!

This Is How Fast America Changes Its Mind - Some historical perspective…but there are always portions of the population that do not change their mind for many years afterward.

As the river rises: Cahokia's emergence and decline linked to Mississippi River flooding - I have visited Cahokia…and realized there is still a lot to learn about the site.

The Lake Mead Water Crisis Explained - The drought is causing the late to drop lower than it has ever been. At some point the lake will not be able to provide the water allocation to Nevada and California and Arizona…and it won’t generate as much electricity either.

Can Elon Musk's battery really cut your power lines? - The technology may or may not be ready for prime time and cost effective…..but I cheer that the discussion is happening and hope that we are reaching a tipping point where the majority of people in the US realize that we need to move off fossil fuels as fast or faster than the rest of the world or we will lose whatever competitive edge our society has at present. And another story about solar power policy: MIT says solar power fields with trillions of watts of capacity are on the way.

The first self-driving 18-wheeler hits the highways - The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles granted it a license to operate on public roads in the state! It is self-driving but not driverless. Drivers are still required for exiting the highway, on local roads and in docking for making deliveries.

A Brief Guide to Atmospheric Pollutants - A nice summary (click on the graphic to enlarge) from Andy Brunning at Compound Interest.

Record global carbon dioxide concentrations surpass 400 parts per million in March 2015 - Not good. This article provides a history of how and where the 400 ppm gets measured.

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 2, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

The Best Vegan Milk (Non-Dairy) Alternatives - A good reference about how the non-dairy ‘milks’ are made. My current favorite in unsweetened vanilla almond milk.

Babies as young as 6 months using mobile media - Wow! This is scary. A lot has changed in 25 years. Then again - a lot changed in the 25 years before that. How many 3 year olds watched television on a daily basis in the 1950s…almost none. There were cartoons on Saturday morning by the 1960s. Quite a few children were watching shows like Sesame Street (and other shows too) almost daily 25 years later. Has mobile media replaced television or is it in addition to television?

A New 'Livability Index' to Help Americans Age in Place - AARP has a new tool that takes a number of factors into account to assess ‘livability’ (tool is here….enter your zip code in the box in the right side frame of the page.

Every Breath You Take: State of the Air 2015 - Read the post and then go to the State of the Air site and put in your state. Most cities get an ‘F’ which does not bode well for the health of a majority of the US population.

7 things we've learned about Earth since the last Earth Day - This was posted for Earth Day but I saw it a little late. I’m sure it was hard to choose 7 things…the ones picked were pretty significant.

 Gut Microbes Influence Circadian Clock  and Circadian Clock Controls Sugar Metabolism - Two articles about circadian clock importance to the way our bodies handle food. I’ve noted these articles more since I took a Coursera course on the circadian clock.

The Octopus’ Birthday: Understanding an Intelligent & Elusive Marine Creature - These creatures are so different that they evoke almost the same fascination as dinosaurs with children…and maybe adults too. Did you know that the age of an octopus can be determined by counting the rings in its stylet (rudimentary shell); the number of rings = the number of days the octopus lived.

Why the Tiniest of Fossils Mean Big Things to Scientists - A 6 minute video from the American Museum of Natural History about foraminifera….how beautiful they are and what they tell us about Earth’s past (and maybe the future too).

Living to 100: Lifestyle advice for would-be centenarians - The results from a study of 855 men born in 1913…10 of them lived to 100.

Seven of the Most Beautiful Botanical Mazes on Earth - A collection of videos of mazes.

Gleanings of the Week Ending April 25, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Greenland continuing to darken - In the Water in the Western US course I am taking via Coursera they mentioned snow darkening as it melted because layers of dust that has originally been blown on a fresh surface of snow accumulated as the layer of snow melted and left the snow behind….and then I saw this article about Greenland on the same day!

Video Diary: One Tiny Hummingbird Family - If you have never had an opportunity to watch a hummingbird nest, this is an opportunity.

Milkweed and Monarch Concerns – 2015 -   Plant Milkweed for Monarchs - The key message in this post is to plant milkweed that is native to the area where you live. That’s

Welcome to Oklahoma, the State of Denial - The graphics caught my eye in this article. There were a lot of earthquakes in Oklahoma in 2014….and evidently since this article was written the state government has started to acknowledge that they are likely manmade.

The Growing Outdoor Recreation Economy - National Parks contributed $26 billion to the economy in 2014 and the outdoor recreation economy is estimated at $646 billion and included 6.1 million jobs. Along a similar trend, another article….The Science of Valuing Nature Becoming Business as Usual.

Nest Cam of the Month: Barred & Barn Owls - I take look at the nest cams. Owls are popular right now.

Putting Technology in Its Place - Technology is not always the answer…or the total answer. Often it falls short of our expectations - particularly in places that need help the most.

Ten Favorite Trees for Wildlife - A very good list. Pick ones that are native to your area.

Excessive use of dietary supplements linked to increase cancer risk - It appears that dietary supplements are too much of a good thing. The bottom line coming out of more and more studies appears to be that its best to meet nutritional needs via food rather than supplements.

Gleanings of the Week Ending April 18, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

10 Geological Forms we’ve studied for Years and Still Don’t Understand - Some of the forms we thought we understood….only to discover additional mechanisms played a role (in canyon formation, for example).

Why the FDA Has Never Looked At Some of the Additives in Our Food - In the past 5 decades, the number of food additives has skyrocketed from about 800 to 10,000….and many of them have come to market under the ‘generally recognized as safe’ provision in the FDA safety-review process. Some of them have caused severe allergic reactions or long term health effects. This is a scary aspect to our food system. The article prompted to look more closely at the processed foods I buy and try to skew my food purchases to whole foods that I prepare myself.

Hawksbill Turtles: A Rare Good News Story for a Species on the Brink - Hurray!

This Elevation Map of Mars Makes the Red Planet Much More Colorful - From the German space agency

This 19th Century Art Is Made Entirely Out Of Butterfly Wings - I’d much rather see live butterflies!

A Chart Showing You How Much Water It Takes To Grow All the Food You Eat - Were there any surprises on this chart?  Each circle represents the gallons of water per ounce of a food. I found myself wanting more; I wanted to compare whether soymilk (on the graphic) took more or less water than almond milk (not on the chart).

Exceptionally preserved fossil gives voice to ancient terror bird - The fossil is from South America of a bird flightless that was 4 feet tall and is the most complete ‘terror bird’ discovered with 90% of the skeleton preserved.

Top 5 Interesting Nests in North America - It’s the time of year for birds to be building their nests in our area….and there are some interesting ones in this post.

These Knotted Cords Are a Sophisticated Ancient Counting Tool - The Inca’s knotted counting system…that we still don’t completely understand.

Greatest mass extinction driven by acidic oceans, study finds - A key in the past to understand the impact of ocean acidification.

Gleanings of the Week Ending April 11, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

The dystopian lake filled by the world’s tech lust - It’s in Inner Mongolia…a place that is one of the world’s biggest suppliers of ‘rare earth’ minerals. So sad that we can’t manage to build our tech in a way that is sustainable for the planet.

A Delicate Stone Bridge Creates a Mystical Passage with Its Reflection - After that last story - I needed to look at something beautiful for a bit...and this was it: a picture of a half-circle bridge reflected in water to complete the illusion of a full circle.

Bombing Range Is National Example for Wildlife Conservation - Elgin Air Force Base had 300 year old trees and is home to the last remaining old-growth longleaf pines in Florida…there is a natural resources visitor center and has 250,000 acres open for public recreation/wildlife habitat.

Erupting Volcanic Lightning! - A volcano on Mexico’s west coast.

A complex landscape has both vulnerabilities and resilience to climate change - Changes in the length of growing season and timing of rainfall will change the forests in Central Appalachia over the next century….and probably in the area of Maryland where I live too.

Can You Identify 20 Of The Most Common Birds in North America? - The quiz is here. Identify the bird pictured from the list - you’ll know if you got it right immediately. How many can you identify? I got 15 out of 20!

Theoretical study suggests huge lava tubes could exist on moon - So - how long will it take to have a mission to the moon to discover if the lava tubes exist?

Essential Spring Guide '15: On the Road to Castles of Stone and Wood Turned To Rock - This story brought back memories of the vacation to northeastern Arizona last January! My picture of Montezuma Castle is below!

Yellowstone by Moonlight - A 3 minute film that includes a series of time-lapse views of moonlit scenes in Yellowstone - including geysers and stars. I don’t have the patience for this kind of photography but I enjoy seeing the work of others.

MIT Climate CoLab Asks All For Impactful Climate Plans - Contests seeking high impact ideas on how to tackle climate change…submission due 5/16/2015. The Climate CoLab site is here.

Gleanings of the Week Ending March 28, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

A Visual Guide to Chemistry Glassware - A vocabulary lesson in glassware!  Probably everyone knows the difference between a test tube and a beaker…but what about a conical flask and volumetric flask?

From soda bans to bike lanes: Which 'natural experiments' really reduce obesity? - Which changes have made an impact? Studies that included longer follow-up periods after a change showed stronger results. Two examples of changes with strong impact were trans-fat bans and active transportation infrastructure improvement.

50% Driving Ban for Paris Due To Air Pollution - Weather conditions in Paris cause spikes in air pollution this time of year. We normally thin of the larger cities in India and China having the worst air pollution problems. The World Health Organization estimated that air pollution contributed to the deaths of 7 million people in 2012…so it is not an insignificant issue for the world.

Science Photographer Reveals Beauty of the Microscopic World - Manipulation of light through the microscope: transmission, differential interference contrast, optical staining, or dark field contrast.

Adapting to climate change will bring new environmental problems - Can we adapt in a sustainable way…or will our adaptation be short-sighted - and bad for the planet in the long term?

Archaeologists discover Maya 'melting pot' - Evidently mobile groups of hunter gatherers came together with settled groups for construction projects and public ceremonies --- they interacted much more than previous thought. They eventually became more uniformly sedentary.

Genome Study Predicts DNA of the Whole of Iceland - The DeCode project has collected enough full DNA sequences from Icelanders to extrapolate to the whole population (because the people are related). From this analysis, they know that 2,000 people in Iceland have the BRCA2 gene….but cannot tell them. The ethics associated with new technology is complex. In this particular case there is a “right ‘not to know’ of genetic hazards.” With more and more genome data being collected - other nations will soon have the same issue Iceland is facing now.

The Last 200 Years Of U.S. Immigration In One Chart - Click in the upper left corner to enlarge the plot. The overall trend is as interesting as where people came from. World War II had quite an impact while World War I did not.

SolarCity to build its own power grids - The market for solar technology seems to be developing very quickly. There are so many more options now than there were 5 years ago. When will the tipping point come…when more people will have solar - or some form of renewable energy where they live and work.

Compulsive Behavior Sells - Habit-forming technology….a little scary. How quickly will people train themselves to realize that it is happening?

Gleanings of the Week Ending March 21, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Nine superfruits and super seeds to add to your diet - I eat 3 of the 9 frequently (chai, flaxseeds, and blueberries)!  There is only one that I haven’t added to my diet (yet): Acai berries.

There May Be More Water on Jupiter's Largest Moon than on Earth - Subterranean oceans - on Ganymede. It wasn’t so long ago that we assumed that the Earth’s oceans were unique…and now we are thinking that maybe they aren’t.

World's most iconic ecosystems: World heritage sites risk collapse without stronger local management - These sites have importance to world…the researchers argue for stronger local management. That is needed but these ecosystems are connected to other ecosystems are not iconic but may be critical to sustaining these designated iconic areas. We have to start thinking about how we sustain the Earth - worldwide - more often than we’ve ever done before.

Cherry Tree that needs pruningPrune Trees like a Pro - This post has good diagrams. I noticed it this week just as I was thinking about what I need to do first in my yard and decided pruning was high on the list; our cherry and plum both need it.

Archaeologists Uncover Ancient Egyptian Tombs with Stunning Murals - They were found near Luxor. Isn’t it amazing that there are still things like to be found in places that have been intensely searched for over a century? Hopefully they will be preserved in a way that the colors remain as vivid as they are now.

Towels top kitchen contamination hazards list - Ugh! I think I’ll start putting out a fresh towel every day.

The World’s Largest Solar Energy Projects - Some projects from India and California…these are huge installations.

Oncologists reveal reasons for high cost of cancer drugs in U.S. - There is a list of some potential solutions at the end of the article. One that sticks out is to allow the FDA or physician panels to recommend target prices based on the drug’s magnitude of benefit (i.e. value based pricing). Why has our system allowed something other than value based pricing to be the norm? Hurray for the doctors that are standing up for their patients!

10 National Monuments you’ve never heard of - Vacation ideas. I always like to keep these in mind to add to the itinerary of a trip to the area. I’ve been to El Malpais several times. Maybe next time I visit Tucson - Chiricahua will be a day trip.

Chitin, a structural molecule associated with allergy response, is identified in vertebrates - A few weeks ago, I learned that chitin (the material of insects’ exoskeletons) is in the cell walls of mushrooms…and then this article about chitin in fishes and amphibians! And chitin has been shown to be an excellent material for biodegradable plastics!

Gleanings of the Week Ending March 14, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Karnak: Excavation yields 38 artifacts - New techniques and new finds at Karnak.

71% of Investors Are Interested In Sustainable Investing - It’s positive news that more people are voting for sustainability via their investments.

New Study Pinpoints Where Ocean Acidification Will Hit Hardest - Not only hardest…but earliest. The ocean does not acidify uniformly. Estuaries with excess nutrients will acidify more rapidly. Not a good new message for the Chesapeake Bay’s shell fish industry.

Boosting older adults' vision through training - The core of the message from the research was positive but it was frustrating that the next steps were all about more research. If the initial research finding holds - then why is there not already a strategy activity to think through how vision training could be delivered to larger numbers of people at low cost.

By separating nature from economics, we have walked blindly into tragedy - We live in complex world…making decisions based on simplifying assumptions that ignore the environment or economic or social aspects are perilous.

New research into materials for tooth fillings - The composite that is most common right now is problematic because it requires adhesive to bond to the tooth, needs to be illuminated with a lamp to harden, and needs to be replaced more frequently. A new material - glass ionomer cement - may be the filling material of the future.

Widely Used Antibiotics Affect Mitochondria - The environmental accumulation of tetraclines might be harming us in ways that are just now being studied. Scary.

Epoch-defining study pinpoints when humans came to dominate planet Earth - Two dates jump out: 1610 with the irreversible exchange of species between new and old worlds and 1964 associated with the fallout from nuclear weapons testing. Either way - humans have driven Earth into a new epoch…the Anthropocene.

Fun Parks to Visit in the Top 10 Cities for Wildlife - Staycation fodder. There are interesting parks in most areas of the country. These 10 are clearly the tip of the iceberg!

Did Neanderthals make jewelry 130,000 years go? Eagle claws provide clues - From a site in present day Croatia dating from 130,000 years ago.

Gleanings of the Week Ending March 7, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

'Bionic' eye allows man to see wife for first time in a decade - The system is not yet advanced enough to provide high resolution vision - but it is enough to improve quality of life….and sets the stage for more development of similar devices. Certain types of blindness (caused by retina problems, not the optic nerve) are candidates for this type of ‘bionic’ eye.

Global Pesticide Map Shows Large Areas of High Water Pollution Risk - Enlarge the map in this article; what is the risk in the area where you live? In mine is high/very high…..that’s not good.

Economic models provide insights into global sustainability challenges - Making decisions based on simplifying assumptions - which is what we normally do - may not be wise. The advent to models that can help us integrate what we know about global economics, geography, ecology and environmental sciences may provide some surprising insights and lead to better decisions.

Twelve Milkweeds for Monarchs - Wow! There are a lot more different kinds of milkweed than I anticipated.

Food Additives Linked to Inflammation - Yet another reason to reduce the amount of processed food you consume.

Special Tours Offered At Mesa Verde National Park - Something to remember about Mesa Verde. My husband I enjoyed our visit almost 40 years ago and have been talking about visiting again.

Lab-on-paper developed for rapid, inexpensive medical diagnostics - Point-of-care testing is projected to expand over the next few years. Imagine not having to wait for several days to get lab results for your annual physical!

Nine steps to survive 'most explosive era of infrastructure expansion in human history' - Bottom line: The builders of infrastructure need to consider the full context of their projects….not just who will benefit.

The Chemistry of Colored Glass - Glass is one of my favorite materials. This post includes a graphic that talks about what is added to the basic soda-lime glass to create different colors of glass.

Seven strategies to advance women in science - Good points. We’ve been trying some of these things for at least the past 40 years…..maybe it is doing ALL of them that will make the difference.

F. Kaid Benfield: How to Create Healthy Environments for People - There seem to be quite a few articles this week with lists. Here is the last one! All these ideas seem to make sense….so why are they not already part of the way development takes place?

Gleanings of the Week Ending February 21, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Add nature, art and religion to life's best anti-inflammatories - Yet another reason to savor the awe of nature, art and spiritually - if you need one. Including these in day-to-day living should not be a hard sell but many times they fall by the wayside if our lives get too full of other things. They don’t go on a ‘bucket list’ for some other time; they need to be included every day!

In a crisis, the bigger your social network, the better - This research indicates that more extensive social networks are a backup strategy for crises - or at least it was in the pre-Hispanic Southwest. Is it always the case? Sometimes it seems that all the increased communication going on in the modern world has increased the divides rather than built positive networks.

Never trust a corporation to do a library’s job - The history of Google and Internet Archive as ‘library.’

High Stakes in Declining Monarch Butterfly Populations and Six Ways to Save Monarchs - The rapid decline of Monarch butterflies is very sad….but there are things to do. I am going make the dominant plant in my chaos garden beginning this year!

How the Eastern tiger swallowtail got 'scary' - Another butterfly story. I bought some tiger swallowtail earrings (one is the caterpillar and the other is the butterfly) so this article captured my attention.

The Chemical Compounds behind the Smell of Flowers - The smell of roses, carnations, violets, lilies, hyacinth, chrysanthemums, and lilacs. The only flower whose smell is not produced with compounds containing ring structures is the lily.

Increasing individualism in US linked with rise of white-collar jobs - A lot has happened in the last 150 years…including a higher percentage of the population working in white-collar jobs. This study showed that the trend in type of job was more correlated with the trend toward individualism that some other changes such as urbanization or frequency of disease or disasters.

How Tourist Garbage Causes Yellowstone's Morning Glory to Change Color - The color of the Morning Glory pool is no longer the blue color of its namesake. Too many people have thrown coins, rocks, and trash into it. This article reports on why the trash caused the change.

Larger area analysis needed to understand patterns in ancient prehistory - In the past, the main tools used to study prehistory only addressed very small areas. Now there is an acknowledgement that some conclusions cannot be drawn with only those small samples and technologies that can look at larger areas are being applied more frequently to understand how cultures responded to population pressure and climate change in particular.

An ocean of plastic: Magnitude of plastic waste going into the ocean calculated - More than 4.8 million metric tons of plastic waste enters the oceans from land each year; it could be as high as 12.7 metric tons. That’s a lot of plastic. The ocean seems so vast…but we are pushing it in ways that it may not be able to absorb without huge impact to itself and the planet.

Electrochromic polymers create broad color palette for sunglasses, windows - What fun! I’d like these in the windows of my office rather than sunglasses! Maybe the window could be powered by a solar cell.

Gleanings of the Week Ending February 14, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Behind the Photo: Paul Nicklen’s Leaping Penguins - Video of leaping penguins….and how it came to be.

This Scientific Paper Proves That Nature Never Stops Weirding Us Out - Did you know that frogs retract their eyes into their heads to push crickets down their throat?

Older adults: Double your protein to build more muscle - Maybe the recommended daily allowance for older adults needs to change.

Your Two-Minute Break to Enjoy Wildlife Along The Moose-Wilson Road In Grand Teton National Park - A short video….I enjoyed the reminder of how much I enjoyed a vacation at Grand Teton National Park years ago.

Expert panel recommends new sleep durations - Is your sleep duration within the new recommended range? Mine is. I was intrigued that there were two new categories added for this study: Young adults (18-25) and older adults (65+).

A surprisingly accurate map of the U.S. made with 600,000 bridges — and nothing else - Map created from data in the National Bridge Inventory maintained by the Federal Highway Administration…includes bridges that are longer than 20 feet. That’s a lot of bridges!

6 Wildlife Facts for World Wetlands Day - World Wetlands Day was Feb. 2….enjoy the facts and photos.

Fake Meat Gets Real - There are lots of new ways to get protein…some better than others. I liked the last sentence “you’re better off getting most of your protein from whole foods, including legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.”

Review of nonmedicinal interventions for delirium in older patients - Good! My observation has been that older people on multiple medications have side effects (like increased delirium) that are often worse than the symptom being treated….so it seems prudent to resist adding medications unless they are absolutely necessary.

An Inventory of Protected Bike Lanes - Bikes are becoming more popular for recreations and transportation in many places around the country. Bike lanes are one way cities are responding. By the end of 2014 there were 191 around the country. I hope the trend continues!

Gleanings of the Week Ending February 07, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Millions of Mutated Mosquitoes Could Be Unleashed In Florida—On Purpose - There is concern that tropical diseases like Dengue and Chikungunya will become more common in the US as the climate becomes warmer. Reducing the number of mosquitoes that spread the disease may become a priority and there biotech firm Oxitec has experimented in the Caymen Islands and Brazil with GMO mosquitoes that suppressed the population there by 96%.

Swarm of microprobes to head for Jupiter - The probes will burn up in Jupiter’s atmosphere was send a mass of data for 15 minutes. A lot will be learned about the atmosphere of the planet.

Assateague Island National Seashore Turning 50 This Year - Chincoteague/Assateague is my favorite place on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay….I’ll keep an eye out for extra activities that celebrate its 50 years as a National Seashore.

Mindfulness-based program in schools making a positive impact, study shows - Something to combat the stress of modern childhood?

Top 25 Wild Bird Photographs of the Week #75 - A feast of bird images from around the world. I always enjoy looking through these collections.

This Glorious Gallery Highlights A Myriad Optical Delights - Wow - images from a visual celebration of the International Year of Light. Next time I go to Arizona - I want to see Antelope Canyon

The origin of life: Labyrinths as crucibles of life - This article caught by eye for two reasons: it linked well with the Origins course I finished recently on Coursera and I like the picture of lava.

Two Graphs Highlighting Growth Surge in US Solar Market - With oil prices lower, will the trend continue in 2015?

Food Industry Drags Its Heels on Recyclable and Compostable Packaging - The food industry - particularly the fast food industry - is definitely not trending toward sustainable practices (with the possible exception of McDonald’s and Starbucks….and do we really need K-cups anywhere?

A Stunning 3D Cross-Section of Greenland's Ice Sheet - Made using ice cores and ice penetrating radar technologies. Watch the video to understand how it was done. There are three distinct periods of climate reflected in the Greenland Ice sheet.