Gleanings of the Week Ending December 24, 2016

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.

Skeleton Lake of Roopkund, India – The lake is in the Himalayas and covered with ice for most of the year. Researchers think that the 200 people were killed by a sudden hail storm – with hailstones up to 9 inches in circumference.

Heading off Headaches – I am fortunate to not have headaches very often. When I look at some of the preventative steps listed in the article…most of them are part of the way I live all the time.

Skeleton found in Clare cave reveal a tragic life story – The skeleton found in a cave was analyzed and found to be a boy 14-16 years old at time of his death in mid-1600s. He had endured near starvation conditions for all his life. The space he was found in was just large enough to crawl into…and I wondered if he intentionally went to the cave to be alone when he died.

The Chemistry of LED Lights – We are seeing so many LED lights in Christmas displays. Here’s the tech details behind the brilliance.

Skin proteins reveal how mummies died – Three mummies analyzed. Based on the proteins found, one might have died of tuberculosis and another from pancreatic cancer. The third one had been interred in a hollowed out log and exposed to the elements over time; the proteins had degraded and could not be identified for that one.

An Unlikely Renaissance of Appalachian Elk – Outside Grundy, VA – in a former surface coal mine, now grass covered…a place for reintroducing elk to the east coast. There are places in Kentucky and Great Smoky Mountains National Park too!

Raw foodies: Europe’s earliest humans did not use fire – An analysis of dental plaque from 1,2 million old skeletons shows they were eating meat and plants….raw. There was no indication of charred fibers or of microcharcoal.

Top Technical Advances 2016 – From The Scientist Magazine – so skewed to biological sciences.

3D Skeletal System: 5 Awesome Ligaments – I am digging into anatomy after finished the Osteoarcheology class…and starting “Anatomy of the Abdomen and Pelvis”

The Challenge of defining maturity when the brain never stops changing – “The age of 18 doesn’t have any biological magic to it.” The concept of maturity links to responsibility for actions…an important concept in our legal system.

Going to Class in December

The community college in the neighboring county hosted a Freshwater Benthic Macroinvertebrate Workshop on Monday and Tuesday this week. It was two full days of day of taking small critters (preserved in alcohol) out of vials, putting them in a small Petri dish, and looking at them under a microscope. There were two lab rooms full of student – most teachers or Master Naturalists or environment monitoring related non-profits or government organizations. I’d signed up as soon as I heard about it….a great opportunity to see a lot of specimens and improve my ability to identify them for upcoming field trips with students in the spring.

It’s been a long time since I was in a lab like this – since the 70s!  I liked that there were actual chairs with backs rather than stools. I can remember classes held in labs and being very uncomfortable both from the hardness of the seat and not being able to lean back at all. We also had a microscope for every student; when I was in school we always had to share.

Some of the things I saw, I won’t see on the field trips because we don’t have enough magnification: oval shaped gills (easily detached when preserved) or comb-like spines (that look like false eyelashes) that distinguish certain families of mayflies (Ephemeroptera).

I learned about Macroinvertbrates.org and am looking forward to seeing its continued development. The family-level key we used in class is also online. Generally, we only classify to order on the field trips.

In the foyer of the building – where we registered and a table was filled with morning caffeine urns...and donuts that called all of us to jettison our diets…there was a display case of bones, which dovetailed nicely with the osteoarcheology class I just finished on Coursera. There were pathologies (like arthritis) and young bones (with the defined areas near the ends where growth was occurring).

I enjoyed the course tremendously and have signed up for another anatomy related course from the same university. I seem to be focused on biology related topics this December!

Gleanings of the Week Ending December 17, 2016

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.

Ceiling panel cools regardless of climate – I like to read stories about ‘out of the box’ solutions…although I wonder how many of them will prove feasible in the end.

Big Pharma and Distracted Driving are Killing Americans Early – Life expectancy in the US declined in 2015. It’s the first time in 23 years. It’s not a big drop but there is worry that it begins a downward trend. Deaths due to motor vehicle accidents have gone up by 6%. Accidental poisonings increased by 13% with 95% of that from drug overdoses and alcohol. There is related story – from another source: American Death Rate from Drugs, Alcohol, and Mental Disorders Nearly Triples since 1980.

Toward Treating Alzheimer’s Disease with Brain Waves – Another ‘out of the box’ solution…inducing gamma (brain) waves using optogenetics…exposure to flickering light.

“Neural Tourniquet” Zaps a Nerve to Stop Bleeding Anywhere in the Body – An example of bioelectronic medicine…that’s been researched for 15 years.

World Map Reveals What Each Country Does Better than Any Other – I’m not sure how useful this work is…how the ‘best’ about a country was determined. But it is interested to look at ti for a few minutes. The US is best at ‘spam emails’ --- not a positive thing.

Museum in Japan has a collection of 1,700 rocks that look like human faces – I remember ‘seeing’ faces in the patterns of wood veneer…why not rocks too. Some of them look more face-like than others to me.

The appalling reality of Bosnia’s missing dead – Mass graves from 25 years ago – a sad reminder of tragedy that is hard to unravel from what remains.

Reach Out Reporter – Science News for Children – Free Technology for Teachers post and actual site – There is ‘Fact Pack’ about the December Solstice that links to this time of year…I like the video about starling murmurations! The site is designed for teachers…but is useful for anyone interacting with children on science related topics.

A few new maps in National Park Maps – A great site to check before you head out to any of the national parks!

10 Intentional Deformed Skulls from Around the World – I’m taking a Osteoarcheology course on Coursera right now and am reading the articles other students are referencing. Expect more items on the gleanings for next week too.

Brookside Gardens’ Model Trains

Every year there is a train exhibit in one of the conservatories during Brookside Gardens’ Garden of Lights. When we went to see the lights last week, I decided to come back during the day to photograph the trains because the light would be better. Last Friday was the day. It was a sunny day – which met my criteria for the light – but I was dismayed to find the entrance crammed with three school buses! I turned around to park in the Brookside Nature Center parking area. I was worried that it would be too crowded to enjoy the trains…but it worked out. There were a lot of children (early elementary…and some pre-school), but it was fun watching them try to find the superheroes and villains…monsters…Santa…magical creatures…Disney characters --- in add places along the train tracks. For some it was hard not to just watch the trains. One of the trains even had a smokestack!

I found myself taking more pictures of the scenes along the tracks rather than the trains. Enjoy the slide show – the best pictures I managed to get with the crowds of very excited children in the conservatory.

Gleanings of the Week Ending December 10, 2016

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 Delectable Desserts Made with Vegetables – Yum! Ideas for the holiday cooking.

The Painful Truth About America’s Opioid Addiction – OxyContin (prescribed for many kinds of pain and initially thought to not be addictive) and inexpensive Heroin…a sad story. Awareness of the issue is increasing but, so far, we don’t seem to be making progress toward reducing the problem.

Wanderlust-Inducing Images Capture Majestic Views of Iceland – Eye candy….a beautiful place. Photographer Lukas Furlan.

Animal Microbiomes are Unique and Beneficial – Each host animal may have it’s own microbiome --- important to efficiency of food digestions and survival!

Why are caves the best place to train astronauts – About a training program initiative of the European Space Agency.

Deer Advisor: Help for Communities Grappling with Abundant Deer Populations – Our area of Maryland has an overabundance of deer. They are hungry enough to eat even vegetation that are not their favorite foods – like tough evergreens.

The search for the weird stuff that makes up the Universe – A short video featuring Astrophysicist Katherine Freese…about Dark Matter.

Flowers you can eat – Beautiful and flavorful….I’m not sure that I would prefer just looking at them.

Sea Ice Hit Record Lows in November – Record lows for ice in November – both Arctic and Antarctic.

HabiChat Fall/Winter 2016 – An online newsletter from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources for stewards of Maryland’s backyard wildlife. There probably are lots of states that have similar information as part of their outreach efforts.

Brookside Gardens’ Garden of Lights

Earlier this week my husband and I enjoyed a walk around Brookside Gardens’ Garden of Lights. We’ve always liked this display because it is experienced on foot rather than driving through it in a car. We don’t go every year and were surprised at how brilliant the colors are with the LED lights; they are quite an improvement over the older technology.  We arrived just as the display was opening at 5:30 PM. The sun had set more than a half hour earlier so it was already very dark. I enjoyed the ‘landscape’ of the garden in lights

And looking closer at the structure of some of the displays as well. Each flowers structure created takes many of the small lights – arranged to form the image.

Most of the displays are outdoors/nature themed although there are some fantasy elements too. Look at the slideshow below. Can you find a:

• Caterpillar
• Spider
• Rainbow
• Moon
• Campfire
• Sea serpent (and baby)
• Giraffe
• Coyote
• Fox
• Ent (from Lord of the Rings – in this garden it has big purple branches on a green trunk – two glowing eyes)
• Butterfly

Gleanings of the Week Ending December 3, 2016

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.

Mysterious Winds Cause Rapid Melting of Antarctic Ice – Fohn winds….a warm wind that may be responsible for calving ice shelves. And some of their most impressive heat waves come in the dead of winter, eroding glaciers at a time of year that no one thought possible.

Electron Micrographs Get a Dash of Color – And they used red and green…so the images looks very Christmassy!

Ancient Royal Boat Tomb Uncovered in Egypt – Found while investigating the tomb complex of 12^th dynasty King Senwosret III, located in southern Egypt. The walls of the tomb covered with sketches of boats.

How the Enormous Field of Physics All Fits Together – A short video (less than 10 minutes) that provides a big picture Physics.

NASA’s Bold Plan to Hunt for Fossils on Mars – Fossils of single celled algae and bateria…maybe taking a look at the cauliflower-shaped silica formations inside Mars’s Gusev Crater that look like objects sculpted by bacteria living inside hot springs on earth.

What it’s like to sail a giant ship on Earth’s busiest seas – Part of the BBC’s Future Now series.

Cuba’s Underwater Jewels are in Tourism’s Path – Gardens of the Queen National Park: keys, mangrove islets, and reefs about 50 miles off Cuba. Cuba limits the number of divers and fishermen allowed to visit but could face pressure to increase access.

Birds have skills previously described as ‘uniquely human’ – Caledonian crows use tools, scrub jays remember past events and act accordingly, pigeons can be trained to recognize patterns of letters (words). But they may be processing stimuli differently than humans. Maybe no two species are the same but the brain is often adaptable enough to find a means to meet the needs of the animal.

The most Visual Science Textbook You’ve Ever Seen – History of Evolution….and images of example along the way.

The Chemistry of Turmeric – Fluorescence, Indicator, and Health Effects – The post includes an infographic but the short video is worth watching (rather gathering materials to do the experiments yourself).

The VLA at Night

Two weeks ago today, my husband went back to the Very Large Array for an evening of photography (see earlier post here for out tour of the VLA during the day). The class was double the usual size because one of the previous nights had been cloudy – i.e. the whole point was to get stars in the photograph and that couldn’t happen on a cloudy evening. They had a short lecture to explain the process and then headed out to position themselves around the same radio telescope that we saw during the day.

They took pictures with 30 second exposures so that the stars were still points of light rather than trails…and the dish was ‘light painted’ during that time so it would be clearly visible in the pictures.

The sky is very dark in that part of New Mexico and the Milky Way looked more like I remember it as a child. My husband was pleased with most of the pictures he got and he picked his favorite for me to include with this post.

If we go to the Festival of the Cranes at Bosque del Apache again, he’ll take the advanced version of the course!

The Very Large Array (VLA)

On our second afternoon in New Mexico we drove out to the Very Large Array (radio astronomy observatory). It is located about 50 miles west of Socorro, NM where our hotel was located. It took us a little over a hour to drive there from the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge where we had been in the morning (see yesterday’s post about the morning’s activities). It was a scenic drive through the Magdalena Mountains. We had opted to make the trek when we did because the forecast for the next day was for high winds.

As we drove into the parking lot – there was a sign telling us to turn off any cell phones or electronic devices. The first picture I took was of a tile in the bathroom --- a stylized image of a radio telescope disk.

The VLA is made of 27 25-meter radio telescopes in a Y-shaped array. They radio telescopes can be moved along a Y shaped track. They were not in the tightest configuration while we were there so it was hard to get more than one at a time in a picture. During our tour, the telescopes were running a maintenance protocol and the dishes moved.

I was surprised how some of the equipment was in boxes on landing under the dish!

A few days later, my husband went back to the VLA at night and got some excellent pictures of the stars with a radio telescope in the foreground. I’ll post about that some other time.

Gleanings of the Week Ending November 19, 2016

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 past, present and future of the food we eat – Short…interesting…dystopian future from my perspective and one that a good number of people are trending counter to.

Open Parks Network – A collaboration between Clemson University and the National Park Service to digitize materials from our national parks, historic areas and other protected areas.

Learning in the Age of Digital Distraction – Thought provoking. Has our ancient food-foraging survival instinct evolved into an info-foraging obsession? An interview with neurologist  and professor at the University of California, San Francisco that is one of the authors of a new book: The Distracted Mind: Ancient Brains in a High Tech World.

High hospital profits hurt medicine, expert argues – Yet another reason our medical costs are spiraling upward…and our healthcare not improving.

10 Weird Way You Could Be Spreading Invasive Species – The bolded text says ‘running shoes’ but the picture shows hiking boots…any outdoor gear needs to be cleaned after each outing…no weed seed hitch hiking allowed.

Interactive Periodic Table Reveals Exactly How We Use All Those Elements – A little chemistry lesson…at the elemental level!

Vibrant Maps Beautifully Visualize the Feather-like Flow of Rivers Across the World – Educational…and eye candy. Look how big the Mississippi river basin is!

How land use change affects water quality, aquatic life – Evidently static water levels in small lakes and impoundments…a goal of current approaches to dealing with excess water…fish production declines over time.

The Human Virome – Infographic. There are viruses almost everywhere in our body! Most of the time they help – just like the bacteria that we carry with us – but the can turn pathogenic.

One in six women diagnosed with breast cancer has a symptom other than a lump – That 17% - and some of these ‘symptoms’ were new to me. Why aren’t they publicized more?

Gleanings of the Week Ending November 12, 2016

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 well are the world’s rivers protected? – The HydroSHEDS dataset includes high-resolution imagery that can be used to assess river quality…measure progress toward conservation targets.

Oregon DOT’s Columbia River Gorge Bus Service a Smashing Success – Something to add to my list of ‘things to do’ when we make our plans to vacation in the Northwest US.

Should birds stay, or should they go? – Some bird trivia…particularly about birds in Alaska.

Interactive: See How Global Health Has Changed Since You Were Born – A fun way to learn a bit about the history of global health.

Urban Forests: what city trees do for us and what we should do for them – Trees in the city...cost effective and good for our psyches too.

Wild cat brains: An evolutionary curveball – Cats are different….the size of their frontal lobes is linked to their social natures in a different way that people and monkeys. Cheetahs (social cats) have small frontal lobes and leopards (solitary cats) have large ones.

Jumping Worms: The creepy, damaging invasive you don’t know – I saw this article and have now see other reference to this invasive species. Aargh! I looked at worm pictures from our Belmont Bioblitz and was relieved that the worms we found were not this species!

Significant Bronze Age city discovered in norther Iraq – A dig only 45 kilometers from territory controlled by Islamic State!

The Lost History of South Africa – Rock art of the San people...older than the cave site in France.

How each one of us contribute to Artic sea ice melt – For example - The carbon dioxide emission for each seat on a return flight from London to San Francisco causes five square meters of Arctic sea ice to disappear.

Back to Standard Time

Maple“Spring forward…Fall Back” – the “Fall Back” happened yesterday. It’s the twice-a-year mass coordination drill to switch to and from daylight savings time. It’s been happening for as long as I can remember (although according to Wikipedia, the Federal standard in the US didn’t happen until 1966…so when I was young and living in Oklahoma and then Texas, we didn’t switch). I can remember a conversation at a great aunt’s house about an old wall clock that she left on standard time because it was too fragile or difficult to re-set so frequently.

 The ‘fall back’ is easier than the ‘spring forward.’ Sleeping an hour later than usual is not as hard as waking up an hour earlier! Yesterday I didn’t quite sleep a whole hour later but I did manage 30 minutes and today my internal clock is re-set for the mornings. I am still not as sleepy at the new bedtime though!

I am a morning person so the earlier sunlight right now is appealing. Soon the days will be short enough that it will dark (again) when I get up. For now – we are enjoying the fall color and the new skew of the day to give us earlier sunlight!Oak

Gleanings of the Week Ending November 5, 2016

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.

Oldest known planet-forming disk discovered – Citizen scientist played a role in this discovery. Hurray for NASA’s Disk Detective project!

Daddy Longlegs Won’t Kill You – Having just finished the fall season of outdoor field trips…I enjoyed this article about daddy longlegs/harvestmen which is a frequent find. I’ve picked up some trivia to share next year about them.

Hard of hearing? It’s not your ears, it’s your brain – Evidently, many older people find understanding speech difficult even when their hearing (the ear part) is fine.

Risks of Managing Prairies Exclusively for Plants – Plants are a part of the environment that are sometimes the easiest to see and ‘manage’ ---- but that might not result in a health system. It’s a more complex situation and we often don’t have the depth of understanding to build a sustainable environment that is comparable to the ‘natural’ one that once was there.

Futures Ghosts? Wildlife on the Brink of Extinction – Have you heard of these animals before…and realize they are near extinction? The rusty patched bumble bee has just recently been ‘in the news.’

World’s largest study shows effects of long-term exposure to air pollution and traffic noise on blood pressure and $37 Billion = Health & Climate Costs from Gas Cars in 10 States Every Year – Two articles about impact on health caused by human-caused degradation of our environment.

The Chemistry of Mummification – A post prompted by Halloween. I was a little late in reading it.

Blue Leaf Special – Chloroplasts may be more than just photochemical…they may also be involved in light propagation and light capture….and the interplay between the three functions.

Extreme cold winters fueled by jet stream and climate change – Improving the long-term forecast of winter weather in the UK and US.

So you want to talk to a journalist? – A tutorial for science types – before they talk to journalists!

The Field at the Staunton River Star Party

The Staunton River Star Party was last week. I took a few pictures while I walked around the field. Some people set up there telescopes and other observing gear on the field and camping in the campground or stayed in a cabin; but most people stayed on the field.

There was heavy dew each night so everyone has covers for telescopes and other equipment. Some covers looked like big pillowcases specifically made for the purpose.

Others used tarps. I noticed several telescopes with green foam padding around the legs of the mount and wondered if it glowed in the dark.

Many people had tarps under their telescopes – making it easier to find anything that was dropped. One strategy I heard talked about was retreating to the tent for a nap while a long multiple exposure observation was collected…so it was handy to have the tent very near the telescope.

One observer had a binocular type scope….no possibility of this being hand held!

There were some larger RVs on the field – running on their own power…since there were not connections for the RV on the field. One had a carpet from the door of the RV to the domed tent that housed the telescope (the top came off at night. Not the yellow power cord going into the tent. That is how the power was delivered to all the telescopes on the field…yellow extension cords.

We came home before the end of the Star Party…but managed to stay longer than we did last year and were more comfortable too (since we remembered the tent this year)!

Staunton River Star Party – Day 1

Last week, we drove to Staunton River State Park for the fall star party – getting their by midafternoon. We selected a place on the field and set up for the week. It was breezy so setting up the tent was more challenging that we anticipated. The rain fly seemed ready to take off but was very stable by the time we got all the stakes and guy wires into the ground. The tent is made to attach to the back of the car (i.e. an extra flap on one side to ‘seal the opening’) which we used to attach to the roof rack of the car instead making a shady place between the tent and the car. Last year it was hot enough that we needed shade in the afternoon; this year, the only day we needed it was the very first day. Other days we needed the warmth of the sun! My husband got his gear set up and was pleased to discover that there was cell coverage on the field. The air mattresses and sleeping bags left plenty of room for other gear and even a chair inside the tent. I discovered that having a chair inside the tent on the cold sunny mornings was wonderful – 10-15 degrees warmer than the outside temperature.

We walked down to the Deep Space Diner to purchase a Black Hole Cup (endless tea and lemonade for me….most people were using it more for the coffee). There was a pumpkin by the door of the Diner that was appropriately carved for the event!

More about the star party tomorrow!

Packing for the Staunton River Star Party

Last week we drove down the Staunton River State Park in southern Virginia for the fall Star Party. We went last year but only stayed two days (blog post from last fall here). This time we made sure we remembered the tent! The picture I’m including with this post was while we were packing. By the time we were finished we had almost every nook and cranny in the back of the car packed with gear.

We were taking enough food so we would only ‘buy’ one meal per day at the 6-day event. My staples were salad stuff and mixed nuts; my husband had makings for sandwiches and cashews. I made zucchini bread to eat as part of our breakfast…and there were chips (a treat since a don’t normally buy them).

The telescope and associated equipment take up a fair amount of space as well. My husband ended up not taking the solar telescope to save some space for other necessities. Stay tune for more about our 2016 adventure at the Staunton River Star Party later this week.

Gleanings of the Week Ending October 29, 2016

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 world’s knowledge is being buried in a salt mine – The Memory of Mankind project is creating a modern version of Sumerian tablets discovered in the desert. The storage area is one of the oldest salt mines in the world – in the Austrian mountains.’ Ceramic microfilm’ Is being created to hold the information in a way that can withstand acid and alkali environments…and solar storm.

The Bug’s Camouflage is Very Impressive – A Lichen Katydid. In our area, the pray mantises are almost as good at blending into their environment!

Can wild seeds save us from food apocalypse? – A little history…a little status report…how and why seed banks are needed.

‘Shadow method’ reveals locomotion of secrets of water striders – We often point out water striders to our elementary school hiking groups. They are always intrigued by the insect that can ‘walk on water.’

In new ozone alert, a warning of harm to plants and to people – Snap beans, milkweed, coneflowers, and other plants turn brown and sickly when ozone occurs at ground level – becoming bio-indicators for this pollutant. While pollution controls have brought down the peak ozone levels, the background levels have been increasing.

Photo of the Week – October 14, 2016 – Fall photos from The Prairie Ecologist.

The amazing cloud cities we could build on Venus – With ‘going to Mars’ being so much in the news recently, it was interesting to read about why Venus might have some advantages over Mars for colonialization.

New satellite image database maps the dynamics of human presence on Earth – Data to support the first release of the ‘Atlas of the Human Planet’ – increasing our understanding of urban areas, population density, and the amount of vegetation in urban areas….and more.

Why do octopuses remind us so much of ourselves? – From National Geographic – so great pictures and article. An octopus has about as many neurons as a cat but two-thirds of them are in their arms!

Pediatricians update digital media recommendation for kids – Hopefully pediatricians bring up this topic with parents. The recommendations seem like common sense to me but maybe they are not intuitive to everyone.

Gleanings of the Week Ending October 22, 2016

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.

Invisible Details of Tiny Creatures Uncovered with Laser-Microscope Photos – Details of small creatures…how much of the world we miss entirely if we look only with our un-aided eyes.

What do Americans fear? – Evidently this is the third annual Survey of American Fears from Chapman University.

Obituary for the 25-million-year-old Great Barrier Reef – Another way to think about our impact on Earth.

Sweet Science of Honey – Did you know that honey is anti-microbial and it fights bacteria on multiple levels? So far, honey has not been shown to contribute to resistance either.

Hypothyroidism symptoms linger despite medication use, normal blood tests – A study that shows that not everyone gets symptom relief from the current standard treatment with levothyroxine…and that the medical community is finally beginning to notice.

10 Great Butternut Squash Recipes for Fall and Winter – I like butternut squash so I am always on the lookout for good recipes. Most of the time butternut squash, pumpkin and sweet potatoes can be substituted for each other in recipes too!

Cicada wings inspire antireflective surfaces – Another example of getting materials engineering ideas from nature.

Skip the Math: Researchers Paint Pictures of Health Benefits and Risks – It’s hard to understand the trade-offs involved in many tests and medicines. I was glad to see this attempt --- and hope that doctors become more savvy too.

Calcium supplements may damage the heart – There are growing concerns about potential harms of supplements…and this study about calcium is one example of studies behind that growing concern. The analysis of 10 years of medical tests on more than 2,700 people revealed that while a diet rich in calcium is protective…taking calcium supplements may increase the risk of plaque buildup in arteries and hear damage!

Why sentient tools will be catastrophic to the job market – Sentient tools (example: autonomous cars, warehouse workers, delivery people) are not as ‘sci-fi’ as they used to be. We see early examples of many of them. They will become increasingly able to outperform humans in a variety of jobs. Think of the ripple effect of autonomous cars – on insurance company revenues, on emergency services, on taxi drivers!

Gleanings of the Week Ending October 08, 2016

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.

What would happen if the world suddenly went vegetarian? – Of course, it’s not likely that the world will suddenly become vegetarian but this article talks about the ‘what if’ and encourages thinking about taking steps to reduce portion side of meats we eat and/or substitute a plant protein for meat in some of our meals.

Hubble spots possible water plumes erupting on Jupiter’s moon Europa – Another discovery --- and something to look at with the James Webb Space Telescope (to launch in 2018). If confirmed, Europa will be the 2^nd moon in the solar system known to have water vapor plumes (Enceladus, a moon of Saturn, has jets of water vapor and dust that were discovered by NASA’s Cassini orbiter in 2005).

Our IQs have never been higher – but it hasn’t made us smart – It turns out that IQ is malleable over a lifetime. People that are physically and intellectually active…and are overall healthy…have higher IQs, in general, than people who are not. It does not mean that we are wiser…just that IQ is higher.

Acidity in atmosphere minimized to preindustrial levels – Result from studies of the Greenland Ice Sheet. The human-made acid pollution peaked in the 1960s and 70s and we are not back to the levels in the 1930s.

Tips for creating an introvert-friendly workplace – An article from CIO magazine. Read it as a case study on some things that need to be considered: communication, comfort zones, company culture, and the workplace structure.

New evidence shifts the timeline back for human arrival in the Americas – An archeological site in Argentina…humans were there 13,068-14,064 years ago….that’s earlier than Clovis people in North America (around 13,000 years ago).

The astronomical cost of going to Mars – and staying there – Sustaining people on Mars quickly exceeds getting them there. There is a lot of talk of getting to Mars (i.e. the transportation) and not as much about what would happen once people got there.

How the Electricity Grid Works – An Infographic. In the US there are three grids: The Eastern Grid, the Western Grid, and the Texas Grid – with the Eastern being the largest.

Washing Clothes Releases Thousands of Microplastic Particles into the Environment – Three types of textiles were examined: cotton/polyester, polyester, and acrylic. They all release a lot of very small plastic particles (acrylic releasing the most…cotton/polyester the least). Reduction of emissions will take changes in textile design and/or improved filtration of effluent for these very small particles.

Pumpkin Pie Mousse – I like pumpkin custard – one of the favorite fall desserts around my house – but this is something I am going to try. No cooking!

New Camera

I got a very early birthday present this past week – a new camera. We are doing several photo-op travels this fall and I wanted it early enough to learn how to use it effectively before the actually need. Most of the settings are the same as my previous cameras since it is the newest version of Canon Powershots I’ve had for the past 4 cameras. This one is a Canon Powershot SX720 HS.  The main upgrade from my previous camera is a 40X optical zoom rather than 30x. Images of birds and insects should get even easier!

My husband ordered a few extra items with the camera: an extra SD card and two extra batteries. The three batteries should easily last for a day out in the field!

He also found a compact sling strap to easily carry the camera. Previously I’d put it in the pocket of my photo-vest but it sometimes took longer to get out than I wanted and when it was hot I didn’t want to wear the photo-vest at all. I’ve already worn it out and about once; it is easy to use. In cold weather, I could wear it on the inside of my coat to keep the battery warmer while I was walking around but reach inside and position it to take pictures much faster that getting it out of a pocket.

Another new convenience – a padded short strap that uses the same size clip as the sling strap. So – if I want a strap to just put around my wrist to carry the camera, I have that too. The down side is that it monopolizes one hand. Right now I think I will use the sling strap more often.

Tomorrow’s post will include some of my ‘first pictures’ with the new camera.