Gleanings of the Week Ending October 5, 2024

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.

Ten Striking Images from the Bird Photographer of the Year Awards – Great images…and the titles/descriptions add to their impact.

From wastelands to wetlands: The fight to save Sri Lanka's natural flood buffers – Transforming garbage patches into biodiverse wetlands in Colombo. About 15 years ago, these ecosystems were degraded and filled with rubbish. Residents organize weekly collection runs, piling up sorted waste at a small collection unit which the municipality sends off for recycling. School kids volunteer, kayaking through the lake to dig up invasive water hyacinth. Ancient kingdoms thrived in a well-managed wetland system where people used them for transport and to grow food. Today, Colombo is home to four wetland parks and several other recreational spaces linked by wetlands.

Eye on the Fertile Crescent: Life Along the Mideast’s Fabled Rivers - The Tigris and Euphrates, the fabled waterways that pour through the heartlands of Eurasian civilization, through the Fertile Crescent, from their chilly headwaters in the mountains of Turkey through vast watersheds in Syria, Kuwait, and Iran, to finally empty into the Persian Gulf at the sweltering marshland shores of Iraq. A series of pictures along the rivers today.

Deaths From Antibiotic-Resistant Infections Could Reach 39 million by 2050 - In 1990, 1.06 million deaths were attributable to antimicrobial resistance. For kids ages 5 and younger, deaths attributable to antibiotic resistance declined by more than 50 percent between 1990 and 2021, mostly due to vaccination, water and sanitation programs, some treatment programs, and the success of those. For patients ages 70 and older, the number of deaths increased by more than 80 percent during the same period. The team estimates that deaths among children will be cut in half by 2050, but deaths among seniors will double. New superbugs can emerge or disappear at a moment’s notice, and scientists still don’t have a good understanding of what causes these unpredictable swings. We urgently need new strategies to decrease the risk of severe infections through vaccines, new drugs, improved health care, better access to existing antibiotics and guidance on how to use them most effectively

Why Are Black Bears Thriving? - Their adaptability has made them one of the world’s most abundant bear species, and also the one faring the best in an increasingly human-dominated landscape.

These Ancient Egyptian Barracks Paint a Vivid Picture of Military Life During the Reign of Ramses II – Mudbrick rooms… evidence of soldiers’ daily provisions, accessories and toiletries, like ivory applicators for kohl eyeliner, necklaces of carnelian and faience beads shaped like pomegranate blossoms, and scarabs engraved with deities’ names. Weaponry demonstrates the place was well armed and may even have been able to produce some weapons on site.

People aren't volunteering as much these days: What gives? - In recent years, giving back to their community hasn't played as big a role in many Americans' lives. The 2008 recession had the biggest dampening effect on volunteering in areas with the most economic growth and above average income equality. When we talk about economic development for communities, we shouldn't divorce that from the civic development of communities. (I was surprised that the study did not find an impact on volunteering from the COVID-19 pandemic…maybe it is too early to see the impact?)

The Largest Prehistoric Structure South of the Sahara - Long after the Kingdom of Zimbabwe’s demise in the 15th century, Great Zimbabwe’s legacy endures. Shona people conducted rites here through the 19th century, and one of the stolen stone eagles that formerly adorned the city graces Zimbabwe’s flag. There are 10 million Shona people around the world today—and there is much to learn about their Bantu-speaking ancestors, who first settled Great Zimbabwe in the 4th century C.E. They farmed, mined iron, and kept cattle, a culinary staple that also denoted social class.

See an Ancient Egyptian Temple’s Brilliant Colors, Newly Revealed Beneath Layers of Dust and Soot - Restoring parts of the 2,000-year-old Temple of Edfu—and shedding new light on what the richly decorated house of worship looked like in its prime: paint and traces of gold leaf.

Brain vasculature changes important for predicting cognitive impairment - A study showing that several measurements of the brain, including blood flow and the brain's ability to compensate for the lack of it, are better predictors of mild cognitive impairment than risk factors like hypertension and high cholesterol. The researcher and its participants are in Oklahoma.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 15, 2024

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.

Could the world famous Roman Baths help scientists counter the challenge of antibiotic resistance? – A diverse array of microorganisms were found in the hot waters of the Roman Baths. Tests showed 15 of the isolated bacteria -- including examples of Proteobacteria and Firmicutes -- displayed varying levels of inhibition against human pathogens including E.coli, Staphylococcus Aureus and Shigella flexneri.

The Changing Nature of Wilderness - The U.S. government has begun to acknowledge the Indigenous history of ‘wilderness’ areas and, in some (very few) cases, restored land to native tribes or created co-management agreements.

Nearly 25% of land in Africa has been damaged – What’s to blame, and what can be done - The “big five” drivers of land degradation globally and in Africa are:

  • biological invasions, where plant species have spread outside their indigenous area and disrupted the services provided by ecosystems

  • climate change driven events, such as intense droughts and severe fires

  • extractive activities, such as mining and over-harvesting

  • habitat transformation or fragmentation, including deforestation and poor agricultural practices

  • pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, and eutrophication – where algae and other plants take over plant life.

The Hunt: Genghis Khan’s Final Resting Place - His last wish was to be buried in secret, something his soldiers accomplished in two ways: by killing everyone they met enroute to the gravesite, and then trampling that site under the hoofs of their horses until no trace was left. Although tomb culture, inherited from the neighboring Chinese, was well-established by the time Genghis Khan was born, many were constructed underground, some at a depth of more than 65 feet. Most Mongolians today would prefer that Genghis Khan’s tomb stayed hidden. Not because discovering it would unleash an ancient curse—a superstition that was actually quite widespread in Soviet times—but simply out of respect for the historical figure’s dying wish.

Airplane noise exposure may increase risk of chronic disease - Research has shown that noise from airplanes and helicopters flying overhead are far more bothersome to people than noise from other modes of transportation, and a growing body of research suggests that aircraft noise is also contributing to negative health outcomes.

New fossils show what Australia’s giant prehistoric ‘thunder birds’ looked like – and offer clues about how they died out - While the birds had broad, short toes and hoof-like claws for moving across open ground between bodies of water, their partial reliance on freshwater and new plant growth would have become more difficult as ponds and lakes shrunk and disappeared.

Phoenix Heat Deaths Rose by 1,000 Percent in 10 Years - Relentless heat led to 645 deaths last year in Maricopa County, the most ever documented in Arizona’s biggest metropolitan area. Almost half of the victims last year were homeless — 290 people. Twenty died at bus stops, others were in tents, and an unrecorded number of people were found on the pavement, prone as if on a baking stone.

Warming Brings Early Bloom to Bulgarian Rose Fields – Bulgaria is a top producer of rose water and rose oil. To produce these goods, pickers must harvest the flowers early in the morning, when their petals are richest in oil. After a mild winter and warm spring, pickers in Bulgaria’s Rose Valley have headed to the fields around three weeks earlier than normal.

15 Awe-Inspiring Images of Our Galaxy from the 2024 Milky Way Photographer of the Year – From around the world.

See the Rare Neolithic and Viking Treasures Returning to Scotland for Display – Artifacts from the Isle of Lewis. The scoop or ladle made from horn is my favorite.

Victor Tissot ebooks

Victor Tissot was a French journalist and writer. Two of his books from the later 1800s for the as ‘books of the week.’ They are both available on Internet Archive with illustrations worth browsing.

These books reflect the knowledge and perceptions of the time --- so remember ‘late 1800s’ when viewing the depictions of places and people. More people were interested in and traveling to remote places…hence more travel books being written. The authors sometimes combined the travels of others into their works…used multiple illustrators (some illustrators also relying on information from others rather than observing in-person). There was plenty of opportunity for incorporation of ‘not quite right’ information!

(click on small sample images to see a larger version).

L'Afrique pittoresque (Picturesque Africa)

Les contrées mystérieuses et les peuples inconnus (Mysterious countries and unknown peoples)

(Note the caption of the last picture mentions Missouri!)

Gleanings of the Week Ending April 8, 2023

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.

Avi Kwa Ame, Sacred Land in Nevada, to Be Preserved as a National Monument – Good! Another place to see when we make a trip in the west.

Volvo Delivers Its 1st Electric Heavy-Duty Truck in Africa – The truck is being used for collecting waste in Rabat, Morocco. Morocco is also home to the world’s biggest concentrated solar power facility.

A 90-year-old tortoise named Mr. Pickles just became a father of 3. It's a big 'dill' – Radiated tortoise native to Madagascar and critically endangered…at the Houston Zoo.

One of Europe’s last free-flowing rivers declared a National Park – Albania’s Vjosa River. Europe is also removing dams along other river just as we are in the US…but rivers that have been controlled by barriers will never be the way they were before the dam.

Clinics on wheels bring doctors and dentists to health care deserts – It’s a step forward and might work well for preventative or chronic care…but what happens in cases where the need is more urgent…like broken bones, having a baby, the aftermath of a car accident?

Technology over the long run: zoom out to see how dramatically the world can change within a lifetime – A graphic from ‘Our World in Data’ – worth the look. See the big developments they selected occuring during your lifetime….and when technologies we take for granted came along.

Take a Virtual Tour of the ‘Doomsday’ Seed Vault – Its doors are only opened a few times each year for new seed entries. The seeds come from countries from all over the world and are kept at -18 degrees Celsius. The most recent withdrawal was to re-establish a seedbank that had been destroyed in Aleppo during the Syrian Civil War.

Urban Trees Could Cut Summer Heat Deaths by a Third – Increasing tree cover to 30% could reduce premature deaths from urban heat islands by 40%. Sounds like a good idea of heath…and makes the cities more appealing too. Other actions can help too: green roofs/walls, light colored roofs/walls/landscape pavers, and replacing impervious surfaces with plants and soils.

Fresh produce contaminated with toxic BPA-like chemicals found in food labels – A Canadian study found that the chemicals migrate from labels in packaging materials into the food!

Common sweetener suppresses mouse immune system — in high doses – An artificial sweetener (sucralose) that might become a drug to reduce or replace immunosuppressive drugs that often have a lot of unpleasant side effects (if humans react to it the same as mice).

Gleanings of the Week Ending January 23, 2021

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.

Ice sheet uncertainties could mean sea level will rise more than predicted -- ScienceDaily – There are warning signs that the current models aren’t accurately predicting ice sheet dynamics.

How mail-order frogs could save Colombia's amphibians - BBC Future – Carefully breeding frogs to keep them from going extinct in the wild.

Meet Amanda Gorman, the U.S.' Youngest Inaugural Poet | Smart News | Smithsonian Magazine – Leading with eloquence and hope for the future….pushing us to strive for a country that is a ‘more perfect union.’

House Agrees Saguaro National Park Should Grow By 1,200 Acres – Hope this happens…when my daughter was in Tucson we enjoyed this park many times.

Diet and lifestyle guidelines can greatly reduce gastroesophageal reflux disease symptoms -- ScienceDaily – Exercise seems to be important – perhaps because it helps clear stomach acid that causes heartburn symptoms.

Top 25 birds of the week: Wild birds Photos! - Wild Bird Revolution – Birds – always great to look at in the wild and in photos.

How Codebreaker Elizebeth Friedman Broke Up a Nazi Spy Ring | Smart News | Smithsonian Magazine – Some history…about how a woman did work she wanted to do…made significant contributions…didn’t get credit or pay that she should have. It happens again and again. We can’t assume that it isn’t still happening just because we have some very visible examples of women with power, recognition, and pay.

Are sleep trackers accurate? Here's what researchers currently know – It’s not always good to track sleep….particularly if it causes anxiety. I am in the group that generally has good sleep, so the tracker data doesn’t cause me anxiety, but it probably doesn’t improve anything either!  I might get a much simpler tracker next time that doesn’t provide sleep metrics.

The Wintertime Wonder of Unusual Ice | Smart News | Smithsonian Magazine – The short video of hair ice forming is interesting.

How Africa's largest city is staying afloat - BBC Future – Lagos, Nigeria. Part of the city is known as the ‘Venice of Africa.’ And there is a ‘Great Wall of Lagos’ to reinforce the coast.  The claim is that Africa’s largest city is leveraging its ingenuity to stay afloat….but whether it succeeds in the coming decades will be the real test.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 8, 2019

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.

5 Unusual Species Found in and Around the Everglades - The National Wildlife Federation Blog – I’ve seen two of the 4: the snail kite and wood stork!

Want to reduce single-use plastic in your life? Try these tips from National Geographic Explorer and #ExpeditionPlastic team member Lillygol Sedaghat. – National Geographic Society Newsroom – It’s hard to avoid single use plastics completely….but easy to cut back.

How big data can be used for personal health -- ScienceDaily – Yes – doing a lot of tracking of personal health information and having a baseline might be useful – but it’s not clear (from this article) that it didn’t result in overtreatment. It will be a challenge to match treatments in asymptomatic situations…that may never develop into a health problem. How well do we really understand risks?

BBC - Future - How weeds help fight climate change – And experiment in Australia showing how weeds might help in the process toward sustainable agriculture

Fracking: Earthquakes are triggered well beyond fluid injection zones: Computer model and field experiment data suggest a new link between subsurface injections and earthquake swarms -- ScienceDaily – Oklahoma….in the hot center of man-made earthquakes.

Do additives help the soil? Scientist suggests nature knows what's best -- ScienceDaily – Wow – a whole industry (bio-fertilizers) that is not having the positive effect on crops anticipated….and could have long-term effects on soil that are not positive. Why is the industry surviving?

Blood-squirting insects and more tiny creatures flourish in African park – Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique.

Exploring the origins of the apple -- ScienceDaily – Large fruits developed to attract large animals like wild horses and large deer…..and probably other animals that are now extinct. The modern apple is a hybrid of at least 4 wild apple populations….along the Silk Road.

A Better Route Planner & Other Open Source Projects Need Our Help | CleanTechnica – Technology that needs to mature before Electronic Vehicles become more numerous.

Excessive rainfall as damaging to corn yield as extreme heat, drought -- ScienceDaily – This year there has been too much rain in the corn belt. This story is over a month old but there are still areas of high water. What percentage of the corn fields haven’t been planted yet because they are still flooded?

3 Free eBooks – October 2018

There are so many good eBooks available free of charge. All three are from the Internet Archive this month.

Paglia, Camille. Glittering Images – A Journey through Art from Egypt to Star Wars. New York: Pantheon Books. 2012. Available from Internet Archive here. It’s a good book to browse through online – like a digital ‘coffee table’ book – reading only the captions.

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Brock, Alan St. Hill. Pyrotechnics: the history and art of firework making. London: Daniel O’Connor. 1922. Available from Internet Archive here. The depiction of fireworks is quite different between the Chinese and Western Europe/America.

The author was from the 8th generation of the Brock family to made fireworks in England.

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The Diani Beach Art Gallery. Affordable Art Selection September October 2018. Kenya: Diani Beach Contemporary African Art. Available from Internet Archive here. Sometimes catalogs can be worth looking at as a book. I enjoyed the vibrant colors and depictions of African people/scenes.

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Cathedral of Learning (part 2)

The Nationality Rooms in the Cathedral of Learning. The Nationality Rooms on the 3rd floor are open when classes are not in session; the ones on the first floor are available with a tour guide or via an audio tour. Some of the rooms are decorated for Christmas; in 2005, when my daughter has seen the rooms, it was August…so the decorations were new to us. Each room has a one-page description on the wall near the door.

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I like the wood patterns and folk-art plates in the Ukrainian room. My husband thought the seating looked uncomfortable…but maybe that’s true for most university classrooms.

The Turkish room is probably my favorite. I liked the stained glass, the doorway, and the pattern on the ceiling.

But most of all, I liked the seating. It looked like simple benches along the wall at first. Then I realized that the lighter wood portion was hinged and lowered to make a writing surface…and it worked for both right and left-handed people!

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The Israeli room featured a replica of a mosaic and seating with a unique carving on each seat back.

My daughter and I both remembered the African heritage room. The seating – meant to look like molded clay – is surprisingly comfortable. I liked the fretwork patterns and the art work on the lower part of the wall. Each of the stools has a unique base.

The Indian room had a mix of left and right-handed seating…seemed large enough to hold more people that many of the other rooms.

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The Swiss room included a stove. The building is heated with radiators now, but it is interesting to think about what classrooms in the 1800s would have been like with stoves like these. There is are work everywhere. I liked the sleepy looking owl on fascia.

Do you see the hole in the fascia near the ceiling? That’s where the projector is located. The renovation must have included modernizing the AV technology in all the rooms...but it's always somewhat hidden.

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The Armenian room included a lot of carved wood. They also managed to incorporate chalk boards into the architecture!

The Austrian room was a room with very decorated walls and ceiling. It was also decorated for Christmas with garland over the door and a creche (under glass…apologies for the reflection).

We spent over an hour at the Cathedral of Learning. It had not stopped snowing or gotten any warmer when we emerged outdoors again. It was time to head for home – allowing enough time for the trek to complete while it was still daytime.

 

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 30, 2017

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 If the Oil Industry Leaves the Gulf Coast? - CityLab – After Hurricane Harvey – there is more recognition of the country’s energy infrastructure.

Clues to Africa’s Mysterious Past Found in Ancient Skeletons - NYTimes.com – 8,100 year old DNA recovered from bones….and other finds that are enlarging our understanding of ancient population movements within Africa via DNA analysis.

Ancient Gem-Studded Teeth Show Skill of Early Dentists – An elaborate example of dental bling from 2,500 years ago from Chiapas, Mexico.

Satellites that Measure Ice Loss to Go Dark - Yale E360 – The two satellites that collect detailed information about earth’s ice sheets will be decommissioned in the next month or so. The replacement satellite is scheduled to be launched in early 2018…but that will still leave a gap in the data.

BBC - Future - The ships that could change the seas forever – Monster ships, remotely piloted, built of futuristic materials and partially powered by renewable energy….so many possibilities.

How a Satellite Just Used Earth Like a Slingshot | Smart News | Smithsonian – OSIRIS-REx in the news. We were in Florida a year ago to see it launched!

Top 25 Wild Bird Photographs of the Week #106 – National Geographic Society -  There is a picture of a Peregrine Falcon at the very end of this set…one bird that has managed to take advantage of urbanized environments.

5 Things We Learned from The Newly Updated “Heat Maps” Developed By Sustainable Energy For All | CleanTechnica – Follow the ‘heat maps’ link to look at them directly or think about the 5 facts highlighted in the article about clean cooking, electrification, rural/urban divide, enabling policies and energy efficiency.

Five Fascinating Facts About the Amazing Cassowary | Smart News | Smithsonian – Big birds…that are fascinating but not very friendly.

This Tiny Country Feeds the World – Food production in The Netherlands. Is this the future of food production to feed the world’s increasing population?