Rio Grande Pontoon

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The first morning of the festival was an early one; we were at the Harlingen Convention Center by 6 AM to board the bus that would take us through the border fencing to the dock where we would board a pontoon boat. I took a few pictures of the plants growing at the edge of the parking lot as the guides talked about the trip and what we would likely see.

The boat was large enough to provide space for everyone plus our gear. There was a lot to see during the whole trip. The birds that I managed to photograph and that are in the slideshow below are:

  • American Coot

  • Caspian tern

  • Ducks (hybrids)

  • Egrets: Snowy, Reddish, Great

  • Golden-Fronted Woodpecker

  • Great Kiskadee

  • Herons: Great Blue, Tricolored, Yellow-crowned Night

  • Kingfishers: Green, Ringed

  • Osprey

  • Pied-billed grebe

  • Roseate Spoonbill

The river was clean – almost no trash. There were some houses on both sides and parks. A small group of people were picking up trash along the river in a park on the Mexican side; they must do it frequently enough that there isn’t a lot of trash to pick up. Border control was evident on the US side. It was a quite weekday morning on the river…great for birding.

Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival

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We spent the first week of November at the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival headquartered at the Harlingen (Texas) Convention Center. We had enjoyed the festival back in 2017; in the intervening years we moved from Maryland to Missouri and opted to drive rather than fly this year. My husband did the driving.

The fall foliage as we started out was at its peak…but muted because of our dry summer.

The segment of our trip through Dallas was, as anticipated, the worst part of the drive. We were going through in the early afternoon on the way down.

On the way back, there was a decorative mosaic in one rest stop south of San Antonio

And a window reminiscent of a water wheel in another.

We drove through Dallas about 9:30 AM. The traffic is never ‘good’ going through Dallas.

The railroad bridge over the Red River and the Jersey wall makes it hard to see much of the river from the bridge. It didn’t look as ‘red’ as usual – or maybe it was just the light.

In Oklahoma, there was a little fall color, and I managed to take a picture of the art along Interstate 44 in Tulsa. The hill with sparse trees along the turnpike not far from the border with Missouri always draws my attention; it is a natural hill or something that was constructed?

Most of the fall color was past peak in Missouri – too late to collect any new leaves to preserve for my tree presentations.

More posts about the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival in upcoming days…

Gleanings of the Week Ending November 15, 2025

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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.

Inflammation Starts Long Before the Pain in Rheumatoid Arthritis - Millions of people around the world suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disorder that causes debilitating joint swelling and pain. New research reveals more early biomarkers for rheumatoid arthritis which may lead to ways to prevent, rather than treat, the disease.

Bottled Water is a Major Source of Microplastics - Nano- and microplastics have been linked in studies to inflammation, immune dysregulation, cardiac events, and metabolic disruptions. Though human data are still emerging, evidence also suggests a connection to respiratory disease, reproductive issues, and even neurotoxicity. 

Traces of Opium Detected on Egyptian Alabastron - Traces of opium have been detected in an ancient Egyptian alabaster vase held in Yale University’s Peabody Museum. It had been previously suggested that such vases held perfumes or cosmetics for royal elites.

Gum disease may quietly damage the brain - Researchers observed that participants with gum disease had significantly more white matter hyperintensities, even after accounting for other risk factors. The findings hint that chronic oral inflammation could subtly impact the brain, especially in older adults.

6 Best Non-Toxic Lunch Boxes That Don’t Shed Microplastics – I am using my glass left-over containers….but I don’t need to carry my lunch every day!

How Air Pollution is Aging People Faster - Long considered mainly a threat to the lungs and heart, air pollution is now emerging as a driver of biological aging at the molecular level. With air pollution’s role in accelerating aging, researchers are exploring interventions ranging from reducing emissions to using protective measures. Alongside identifying the effects of different pollutants, scientists are now investigating the biological mechanisms through which air pollution accelerates aging.

Domestic Solar Manufacturing Booms During Trump Administration with Entire Solar Supply Chain Reshored - New data from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) shows that the entire solar supply chain has been reshored and U.S. manufacturing capacity has grown across every segment of the solar and storage supply chain. With the news of Hemlock’s new ingot and wafer facility coming online in Q3, the United States now has the capacity to produce every major component of the solar supply chain.

Covid 2020: Where cruise ships went to die - Aliağa Ship Breaking Yard in Turkey is the fourth-largest facility in the world for breaking down large ships, and as the effect of cancelled cruises began to bite, it's where many of the cruise companies sent their huge ships to die.

China Has Added Forest the Size of Texas Since 1990 - In many wealthy nations — the U.S., Canada, Russia, and much of Europe — forests are making a comeback, according to the U.N. assessment. As India and China become more developed, they too are seeing forests return. Even as fires and drought destroy some forest, on balance, these countries are adding trees. Over the last three and a half decades China has planted roughly 120 million acres of forest, according to U.N. figures, much of it added to contain the spread of deserts.

How Do Cadaver Dogs Recognize Human Remains? - Someday scientists will understand how cadaver-associated molecules bind to receptors in dog noses and how this binding, in turn, affects the molecules’ structure and chemistry. Knowing the exact stimuli that cadaver dogs pick up may also advance researchers’ efforts in building “electronic noses.” These chemical sensors are not meant to replace cadaver dogs but rather as stand-ins that could go to places that are inaccessible or too dangerous for dogs.

Life Magazine in 1943

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Internet Archive has digitized versions of many Life Magazines. I have been browsing through them – slowly since there was an issue for each week. As I looked at the issues from 1943, the ads that almost always have a linkage to the war stand out. Every issue had one or more articles about the war too. The magazine depicted a country pulling hard to support the military and the war effort.

Life Magazine 1943-01-04

Life Magazine 1943-01-11

Life Magazine 1943-01-18

Life Magazine 1943-01-25

Life Magazine 1943-02-01

Life Magazine 1943-02-08

Life Magazine 1943-02-15

Life Magazine 1943-02-22

Aurora in Missouri

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The aurora was visible from the Springfield MO area this past Tuesday! My husband said that he couldn’t see it when he walked outside at our house in Nixa – but his phone certainly did! The picture was taken at 8:20 PM.

Dr. Mike Reed (a colleague of my daughter’s at Missouri State) saw it too – at 9:20 PM.

One of my daughter’s students (Bishwash Devkota, MSU astrophysics senior and president of Ozark Amateur Astronomy Club) went out to Missouri State University’s Baker Observatory and provided 5 photographs taken after 10 PM.

The sky is not particularly dark at our house; seeing the aurora and a few stars demonstrates how good the phone camera is!

Volunteering – November 2025

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October was a lull in regular Missouri Master Naturalist volunteer gigs; the Butterfly House closing at the beginning of the month and Project FeederWatch not yet begun. Project FeederWatch starts in November and will continue until the spring. My husband I enjoy our view of the birds at our feeders through a window…accumulating our count for each week. I looked back at my FeederWatch pictures from last year and created the slideshow below…savoring the images before we really get going on FeederWatch volunteering this year.

The fall festival volunteering bridged September and October and is over until the spring festivals start. The hours to support the MMN chapter continue throughout the year.

I attended the Beyond Plastics Grassroots Advocacy Training so I am ready for that volunteering in the coming months; it will probably be the most significant change in the type of volunteering I do…and I am still exploring the form it will take.

I am still volunteering as a Friends of the Library in the county where I live. It takes the form of sorting used books and then setting up for used book sales. This month there will be a general meeting of the group that I plan to attend.

Overall – the cool season volunteering is beginning and I am looking forward to the change.

14th Anniversary of my Blog

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This is the 14th anniversary of this blog. It all started in 2011 when I made the firm decision to retire and started a daily blog…a few months before my computer/engineering career formally ended. It was a way for me to guarantee a little bit of structure for a time of my life without many external requirements on my time.

There are some other activities that have emerged over these 14 years that also structure my days – weeks – years:

  • Volunteering in my community – specifically as a Maryland Master Naturalist for a decade and now as a Missouri Master Naturalist.

  • Reading a lot of books - almost exclusively electronic (primarily from Internet Archive).

  • Creating Zentangle tiles almost every day.

  • Participating in the care of my parents and now my dad – monthly trips to the Dallas area for in-person visits.

  • Traveling for birding festivals.

  • Exercising.

The blog has documented my technology migration

  • from Intel based PCs/Laptops to a Mac

  • from a Kindle Fire to a Nivida Shield to an iPad tablet

  • from a Canon point and shoot to a Canon bridge camera

  • from Samsung Android based phones to an iPhone

  • from an Acura TL to a Prius Prime (plug in hybrid).

The blog has offered opportunities to showcase my growing photographic skills and my increasing knowledge of native plants…particularly trees. Recently plastics have become a big concern, and I anticipate that there will be a lot more posts on that topic over the coming year.

Previous anniversary posts: 13th anniversary, 12th anniversary, 11th anniversary, 10th anniversary, 9th anniversary

Plastics Crisis – Getting Plastic Out of the Kitchen

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A good starting point for reducing microplastics in food is to eliminate plastics in the kitchen. This blog post focuses on the plastics not associated with food packaging.

I bought a set of glass containers for leftovers/food storage and boxed up my old plastic containers; that created some extra space to reduce the crowding in my lower cabinets. The old mugs with plastic components and plastic reusable water bottles were also boxed since I have ceramic and stainless mugs (that I use without the lid most of the time since it is plastic). I also have stainless steel reusable water bottles – haven’t figured out a good way to no use the plastic lid though.

I am negotiating with my husband on mixing bowls. I have one large stainless-steel bowl which I will use for mixing – get rid of the red plastic ones. He likes one of our older plastic bowls for popcorn….and I’m not sure he is willing to let it go.

I am challenged to get rid of my Nordic Ware Microwave Popcorn Popper. I like popping corn without oil and in the microwave. But – the bowl does get very hot and that probably means it is shedding microplastics into my popcorn. I have also noticed that my air purifier detects particles in the air when I take the Nordic Ware bowl out of the microwave (the fan motor runs higher) ….so it’s time to get rid of the plastic bowl. I am experimenting with cardboard boxes and paper bags to contain the popping corn…dumping the popcorn into a glass bowl to eat it (with salt or butter or both applied after it is in the glass bowl).

I have a few old pans and muffin tins with non-stick coatings that I still need to take out of my kitchen…a job for another day.

Previous Plastic Crisis posts

Pumpkins!

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My daughter and son-in-law bought 13 pumpkins for his annual carving party with his research group (he is a faculty member in Missouri State’s Biology Department). It took two baskets to get them from the store to the car. They lined them up on the workbench in their garage…ready for the big event.

The carving party was the day after Halloween. My daughter reported that they started a little earlier than previous years…cooked on the fire pit. It was chilly outside, so they were indoors for at least part of the evening.

I am always impressed with the carvings. There were 12 carved pumpkins…that filled the outdoor steps of their garden room for the pictures at the end of the evening.

Previous years: 2022, 2023, 2024

Gleanings of the Week Ending November 8, 2025

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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.

Childhood Exposure to Plastic Raises Lifetime Health Risks - Scientists analyzed decades of research into the impact on pregnant mothers, fetuses, and children of three chemical additives — phthalates, bisphenols, and perfluoroalkyl substances — that make plastic more flexible, more rigid, or more resistant to heat or water. Early exposure to these chemicals can leave children at greater risk of heart disease, obesity, infertility, and asthma well into adolescence and adulthood. Plastic additives are also believed to affect the development of the brain, with studies linking the chemicals to lower IQ, ADHD, and autism. The widespread use of plastic is exacting a deepening toll, with Americans paying an estimated $250 billion yearly to treat ailments linked to plastic.

Scientists Resurrect 40,000-Year-Old Microbes from Alaskan Permafrost. What They Found Raised Worries About the Future of a Warming Arctic - Roughly 40,000 years ago, microbes went dormant in a rock-like layer of frozen soil near the future site of Fairbanks, Alaska. Now, researchers have successfully “reawakened” the tiny creatures, raising concerns about how those microbes could increase greenhouse gas emissions in a warming Arctic.

The Butterflies of Marinduque: Small Wings, Big Changes - Marinduque supplies about 85% of the Philippine’s butterfly pupae exports. Beyond trade, butterflies have become symbols of livelihood, culture, and conservation for the island.

A simple fatty acid could restore failing vision - Retinal polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation reverses aging-related vision decline in mice….and systemic lipid supplementation could potentially counteract the effects of age on the immune system. But will in work in humans…that’s still TBD.

Is it possible to lose weight on an 'Ozempic' diet? – Study findings suggest that there's some kind of mechanism we can tap into to restore healthy eating without drugs by limiting the sense of reward and achieving a sense of satisfaction without overeating.

This Chilling Recording Reveals Large Bats Catching, Killing and Eating Birds Midflight – How the greater noctule bat, the largest bat species in Europe, catches and eats its prey.

Fentanyl overdoses among seniors surge 9,000% — A hidden crisis few saw coming - Fatal overdoses among adults 65 and older involving fentanyl mixed with stimulants such as cocaine and methamphetamines have risen dramatically, climbing 9,000% in the past eight years. The rate now mirrors that seen in younger adults. The rise in fentanyl deaths involving stimulants in older adults began to sharply rise in 2020, while deaths linked to other substances stayed the same or declined. Cocaine and methamphetamines were the most common stimulants paired with fentanyl among the older adults studied, surpassing alcohol, heroin, and benzodiazepines such as Xanax and Valium.

Billions of bacteria lurk in your shower, just waiting to spray you in the face - should you be worried? - For most people the risk of catching a bug from your shower head is low, particularly if you are using it frequently. Running the shower for 60-90 seconds, allowing it warm up before stepping under the spray, also means it is also doing some useful work in that time, flushing out many of the microbes. This is particularly advisable after a holiday or any long gap between using the shower. Regular cleaning by running very hot water through the shower, along with descaling your shower head or soaking it in lemon juice can help to disrupt the microbes living there and control the size of biofilms.

Dolphins may be getting Alzheimer’s from toxic ocean blooms - Dolphins washing up on Florida’s shores may be victims of the same kind of brain degeneration seen in humans with Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers discovered that cyanobacterial toxins—worsened by climate change and nutrient pollution—accumulate in marine food chains, damaging dolphin brains with misfolded proteins and Alzheimer’s-like pathology. Since dolphins are considered environmental sentinels for toxic exposures in marine environments there are concerns about human health issues associated with cyanobacterial blooms. In 2024, Miami Dade County had the highest prevalence of Alzheimer's disease in the United States.

Nigeria, a Major Oil Producer, Sees Beginnings of a Solar Boom - For Nigerians, the cost savings from ditching diesel mean that a solar panel pays for itself within six months. Homeowners who can afford the up-front costs are installing rooftop solar in large numbers, while some villages are setting up community solar and battery projects. Solar is making huge gains in Nigeria, with imports of Chinese solar panels growing by two-thirds between June 2024 and June 2025. n Pakistan, high fuel prices, a byproduct of the Ukraine war and the loss of a fuel subsidy, have spurred the mass adoption of solar.

Stunning Microscope Videos Highlight Self-Pollination, Algae and Tumor Cells in the Nikon Small World in Motion Contest – The first and fifth were my favorites of these short videos.

eBotanical Prints – October 2025

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Twenty more books were added to my botanical print eBook collection in October – all are available for browsing on Internet Archive.  The publication dates span from 1750 (Plantae selectae quarum imagines ad exemplaria naturalia Londini – the second on the list) to 2007 (Benjamin Smith Barton: naturalist and physician in Jeffersonian America…the seventh on the list). There are two series:

Revue bretonne de botanique pure et appliquée from the early 1900s. The volumes were edited by Lucien Daniel, a professor of applied botany at the University of Rennes.

Bothalia, a publication of the National Herbarium at the University of South Africa in Pretoria from the 1920s and 1930s.

My list of eBotanical Prints books now totals 3,223 eBooks I’ve browsed over the years. The whole list can be accessed here.

Click on any sample image from October’s 20 books below to get an enlarged version…and the title hyperlink in the list below the image mosaic to view the entire volume where there are a lot more botanical illustrations to browse.

Enjoy the October 2025 eBotanical Prints

Collection des fleurs et des fruits, peints d'après nature * Prevost, Jean Louis, The Younger * sample image * 1805

Plantae selectae quarum imagines ad exemplaria naturalia Londini * Ehret, Georg Dionysius; Haid, Johann Jacob; Trew, Christoph Jacob * sample image * 1750

Revue bretonne de botanique pure et appliquée no. 1-2 * Daniel, Lucien * sample image * 1906

Revue bretonne de botanique pure et appliquée no.5-6 * Daniel, Lucien * sample image * 1910

Revue bretonne de botanique pure et appliquée no.7-8 * Daniel, Lucien * sample image * 1912

Botanicum medicinale : an herbal of medicinal plants on the College of Physicians list * Sheldrake, Timothy et al * sample image * 1768

Benjamin Smith Barton :naturalist and physician in Jeffersonian America * Crosby, Marshall R.; Duggan, Eileen P.; Ewan, Nesta; Hollowell, Victoria C. * sample image * 2007

Revisión de las especies de Paspalum para América del Sur austral * Zuloaga, Fernando O.; Morrone, Osvaldo * sample image * 2005

Botanical illustration * King, Ronald * sample image * 1978

An album of Chinese flora * Chinese School * sample image * 1800

Collection of fruit bearing plants executed by one or more Chinese artists for Dr. Thomas Ward * Chinese School * sample image * 1828

The culture of the Central American rubber tree: botanical investigations and experiments * Cook, Orator Fuller * sample image * 1903

The Chayote: a tropical fruit * Cook, Orator Fuller * sample image * 1901

Bothalia - V1 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1924

Bothalia - V2 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1928

Bothalia - V3 Part 1 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1930

Bothalia - V3 Part 2 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1937

Bothalia - V3 Part 3 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1938

Bothalia - V3 Part 4 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1939

Bothalia - V4 Part 1 * National Herbarium, University of South Africa, Pretoria * sample image * 1941

First Frost

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The first frost at our house happened on Halloween! It was not universal…just on the most exposed parts of the front yard. It was the microclimates made visible! I took some pictures of the grassy areas impacted; I had mowed them the previous day. I took a few images of the grass…interested in the patterns ice crystals make on different surfaces. The ice seemed to outline the leaves. On the grass, the ice tended to enlarge any texture.

There is still a lot of green. The low temperature did not last long enough to be the killing frost for many plants. That will probably happen in the next few weeks.

Evaluating Memory Care – The Decision

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After preparing as best I could by printing checklists and reviewing websites, I toured 3 memory care facilities. I eliminated one because of cost. After I analyzed my observations of the other two, I realized how similar they were in terms of cost, services, staffing, and physical amenities. They both would likely meet my dad’s needs in almost identical ways.

The only thing that skewed me toward one of them was trees – one had trees around porches in their outdoor courtyard and the other had screened porches and lower vegetation in a theirs; I always like more trees…but they are not as important to my dad now and having the option of being outdoors and protected from mosquitoes by the screened porches might be more important for his health.

In the end, I discovered that two of my sisters had made their decision before I even did my tours. The meeting to decide became very uncomfortable. As the oldest I tried to listen to all sides but came away emotionally battered. There was no way for me to thread the needle where it was a win for all. I believe it is a win for my dad because it will be significantly better than his existing situation, but I don’t feel like it was a win or a neutral for me…and it certainly isn’t a win for my sister that has, up until now, spent the most days visiting my dad. I am saddened that once my sisters and I get my dad moved, we will schedule when we visit him and minimize interactions between each other.

Families sometimes form stronger bonds under stress. Mine has split into factions. Sometimes there are inklings of good vibes like there were years ago, but we can’t seem to sustain them. At one time I thought perhaps I would enjoy living closer to my sisters when I was very old, but that possibility is not likely now. I remember that my mother went through the same thinking process and ultimately decided that living close to her children was a better option - so maybe this is family history repeating itself.

Our Missouri Yard in Early Fall 2025

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Lots of changes in our Missouri yard. The Missouri Evening Primrose is blooming – seemingly liking the cooler temperatures (and the rain). It has not produced any seed; maybe there aren’t any pollinators finding it.

A very white mushroom came up in a part of the yard that hadn’t had mushrooms previously. Its surface looked a little like a roasted marshmallow.

The pollinators are waning with the flowers…and seeds are dominant as the growing season draws to a close.

Some leaves are still green…some turning very red. The Virginia creeper near our front steps is still green.

There are small branches from the oak on the ground (squirrels?) and what might be an oak seedling has colorful leaves.

The chives seeds are black and ready to topple from the husks; the goldenrod seeds are not yet mature.

The beautyberry has one small cluster of berries, and the poke weed berries are maturing (some have already been eaten by birds). The poke weed stems are magenta until the first hard freeze.

I am thrilled that my fragrant sumac has at least one part that has rooted outside the flowerbed…taking over a part of the yard. The rose bushes are blooming – a last hurrah before winter.

As I finished my walk around the yard, I noticed a lone dandelion puff….more plants with deeper roots to hold the soil next year!

Plastics Crisis – Beyond Plastics Grass Roots Advocacy Training

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The Beyond Plastics Grass Roots Advocacy Training for Local Groups was a 2-hour online training offered by the Beyond Plastics organization in late October. It was very well done and built on the things I learned but never fully applied in the HoLLIE (Howard County Legacy Leadership Institute for the Environment) back in early 2018. The focus of HoLLIE was broader….but learning to have productive interactions with government (particularly at the local level) was very similar. Perhaps having a narrower focus will make it easier for me to go beyond public outreach.

The session was recorded, and they committed to sending out reference links afterward – primarily to items within the Beyond Plastics site. I managed to get some in my notes and have already started reviewing them.

My first action was to craft an email to everyone I know that might be interested in forming a local group in the Springfield area….hoping to find at least 3 people to form a local group… and start identifying our partners.

Missouri has a ‘ban on bans’ law that will limit our advocacy, but there are still a lot of opportunities to increase awareness of the issue and begin to reduce plastics (and microplastics) in our environment. The key for our local group will be to pick a reasonable initial goal…and start.

I also found out about an upcoming webinar: Protecting Our Health: Toxic Chemicals in Plastics  on November 12th at 6 PM CT and signed up for that.

And I pre-ordered Judith Enck’s book: The Problem with Plastics coming out in early December.

Beyond Plastics is a great resource and will be very helpful as we develop our goal(s) and plan. I have signed up to get their emails.

Previous Plastic Crisis posts

Zentangle® – October 2025

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October was a busy month with 8 days away from home (Jefferson City and Dallas)….and getting my damaged car repaired and our hot water heater replaced. Making Zentangle tiles is my tried-and-true activity for calming down at the end of the day – even when I am traveling!

I have discovered that if I make two sizes of tiles (3.5 square and 5 x 3.5), there is not a much leftover after cutting the 8.5 x 11 card stock …..so each month will probably have some of both sizes from now on! I have been using bright colors during October….might change to off white tiles in November and more colored inks.

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The Zentangle® Method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns. It was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. “Zentangle” is a registered trademark of Zentangle, Inc. Learn more at zentangle.com.

Gleanings of the Week Ending November 1, 2025

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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.

7 Foods and Beverages That Have the Most Microplastics (and What to Eat Instead) – A list and a short video. I found myself wondering if we can really avoid the microplastics in apples and carrots…since some of them are from soil/water rather than packaging. There might not be a good choice out there since microplastic is everywhere.

Microplastics are everywhere. You can do one simple thing to avoid them. – Avoid heating plastic (in the microwave…by pouring hot drinks into it…washing synthetic fabrics in hot water…drying synthetic fabrics in high heat).

Bat: It’s What’s for Dinner – The bat predators might surprise you!

This experimental “super vaccine” stopped cancer cold in the lab - A groundbreaking nanoparticle-based cancer vaccine that prevented melanoma, pancreatic, and triple-negative breast cancers in mice—with up to 88% remaining tumor-free. The researchers envision that this platform can be applied to create both therapeutic and preventative regimens, particularly for individuals at high risk for cancer.

World Reaches a Climate ‘Tipping Point,’ Imperiling Coral Reefs - Scientists say that warming has breached a critical threshold for tropical coral reefs, which are expected to see catastrophic losses in the years ahead. The loss of reefs would have ramifications for the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who depend on them for food or income.

The liquid air alternative to fossil fuels - An overlooked technology for nearly 50 years, the first liquid air energy storage facility is finally set to power up in 2026. It's hoping to compete with grid-scale lithium batteries and hydro to store clean power and reduce the need to fall back on fossil fuels. The process works in three stages. First, air is taken in from the surroundings and cleaned. Second, the air is repeatedly compressed until it is at very high pressure. Third, the air is cooled until it becomes liquid, using a multi-stream heat exchanger: a device that includes multiple channels and tubes carrying substances at different temperatures, allowing heat to be transferred between them in a controlled way. When the grid needs extra energy, the liquid air is put to work. It is pumped out of storage and evaporated, becoming a gas again. It is then used to drive turbines, generating electricity for the grid. Afterwards, the air is released back into the atmosphere.

China’s Electric Highways: Awe, Engineering, and the Myths of Invisible Danger - China has built hundreds of thousands of kilometers of high-voltage corridors, connecting wind, solar, hydro, and coal resources spread across a continent-sized nation.

U.S. Whale Entanglements Are on the Rise, New Data Shows - The number of large whales that became entangled in fishing gear along coasts in the United States rose sharply in 2024. Officials were able to trace roughly half of the 2024 cases to specific commercial and recreational fisheries. The other cases involved gear that could not be directly linked to a specific source. Whale entanglements were documented off the coasts of 12 states, but 71 percent of cases occurred off California, Massachusetts, Alaska and Hawaii. A quarter of all entanglements took place off California, primarily in Monterey Bay.

The Erie Canal Turns 200 - Cutting 363 miles (584 kilometers) across the state of New York, the Erie Canal was the engineering marvel of its day when it opened in 1825. The waterway was built over 8 years through the toil of humans and animals, new tools and techniques, and plenty of ingenuity. It established a navigable route from Lake Erie to the Hudson River, forming a vital connection between the U.S. Midwest and the Atlantic Ocean. Commercial traffic on New York’s canals plummeted when ocean-going vessels could travel between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence Seaway starting in the late 1950s. Two hundred years after the Erie Canal officially opened on October 26, 1825, it still handles a small amount of commercial shipping, but recreational boaters are its primary users.

How to Photograph Flat Prairies – Lots of ideas for photography on prairies!

Intimate Portraits of the Nenets Capture the Faces of Indigenous People in the Russian Arctic - Herders still live in chums and migrate several times a year with their reindeer. And yet they aren’t outside the modern world. Education is universal, snowmobiles are common, and some even post parts of their daily life on social media. Meanwhile, the region is developing fast thanks to its vast natural gas reserves.

Life Magazine in 1942

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Internet Archive has digitized versions of many Life Magazines. I have been browsing through them – slowly since there was an issue for each week. As I looked at the issues from 1942, I saw the impact of Pearl Harbor on the nation and the magazine. There every week there were articles about the war and even the ads contained references to the war. It was a voice that both reported on and promoted the active support of the war effort by everyone.

(Click on any of the sample images below to see a larger version and the links to see the whole magazine online.)

 Life Magazine 1942-01-05

Life Magazine 1942-01-12

Life Magazine 1942-01-19

Life Magazine 1942-01-26

Life Magazine 1942-02-02

Life Magazine 1942-02-09

Life Magazine 1942-02-16

Life Magazine 1942-02-23

Ten Little Celebrations – October 2025

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October included some great volunteer and travel experiences…and plenty at home to celebrate too.

Road trip to Jefferson City – I celebrated the Missouri Department of Conservation Partners Roundtable (particularly Dr. Nadia Navarrete-Tindall talking about edible native plants), touring the Missouri capitol building, and Ha Ha Tonka State Park!

Corn on the cob from the grill - The temperatures were milder…we cooked on the grill more often and I always enjoy the corn on the cob cooked that way.

New faucets on bathroom and kitchen sink - My husband installed new faucets (with a little help from me holding things together while he tightened from underneath). The old ones had been leaking onto the counters when they were turned on. We are both enjoying the dry counters around the new faucets!

Season finale for the Butterfly House - I savored the final volunteer days and the celebration for the volunteers and staff.

Home school fair – I celebrated that so many people visited my table at the Home school Fair and seemed to enjoy learning about trees.

My car repaired – The damage to my car (mostly underneath) was repaired and I have already taken it on a road trip. I celebrated that it was fixed quickly and that it looks ‘good as new.’

Hiking poles – I cheered myself onward during my first test walk with hiking poles…have high hopes that they will help me avoid back pain on future hikes.

Memory care – I celebrated finding two memory care facilities that would be good candidates for my dad’s next home. My sisters and I had a difficult time choosing (and it was stressful)….not something I am celebrating.

New hot water heater and dishwasher – I celebrated that the new appliances were installed quickly…that the hot water heater is better for the environment (heat pump electric rather than natural gas) and the dishwasher is quieter than our old one.

A rainy day - The past few months have been very dry in our area so the rainy days in the later part of October were something to celebrate – although the rain came too late to have brilliant leaf colors this fall. The leaves are still mostly on the trees…muted colors.

No Hot Water…and then the Dishwasher Broke

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Our main hot water heater stopped working suddenly. I discovered it when the water never got hot for my morning shower. I went down to its closet in the basement as soon as I dressed, expecting to find water around it or something else that looked dire. Nothing! The only thing that looked odd was the temperature panel. It took some searching to find an online manual to figure out that the lights meant nothing about temperature but were an error code that meant ‘open igniter circuit.’ We called the company that handles our HVAC and water heater maintenance.

The person came later in the afternoon and discovered that it was not a simple fix…parts would have to be ordered, and they might not fix the problem. The unit was about 13 years old. They sent us cost estimates for replacement parts (but not a sure fix), a replacement like the high-end gas-powered unit that we had, and two types of heat pump hot water heater. We decided to transition to a heat pump with the only question being which one. An electrician would come out to evaluate the electrical situation; since there are two kinds of outlets near the existing unit, we thought either one of the heat pump units would work and tentatively picked the least expensive one.  

Our use of hot water has changed over the years. These days it is mostly for showers and the dishwasher. We rarely use hot water for laundry and try to minimize the rinsing of dishes before we put them in the dishwasher. That’s quite a change from even 10 years ago! We discovered that the dishwasher could heat the water sufficiently on its own without the hot water heater and used that change in setting for the duration we were without a working hot water heater.

The ‘apartment’ in our house with its own hot water heater provided access to hot showers while the saga of replacing our main hot water heater unfolded.

A few days after the hot water heater stopped working, the dishwasher broke (and produced a smell of melting plastic) when we selected the option to have it heat the water it was being supplied. The unit was over 13 years old so we opted to replace it.

A week later…

We have a new heat pump hot water heater and a new dishwasher. There was a minor amount of electrical work to move from the gas to an electric heat pump hot water heater (not a new circuit…just running a conduit from an existing plug/circuit a few feet to the hot water heater location).

We were pleased with how as fast it happened. The electrician came to evaluate the electrical situation and then two days later the installation of the hot water heater occurred. The day after that the dishwasher was replaced. My husband and I both felt our stress level going down!