10 Years Ago – In June 2002

Many years ago I started collecting headlines/news blurbs as a way of honing my reading of news. Over the years, the headline collection has been warped by the sources of news I was reading…increasingly online. Reviewing the June 2002 headline gleanings - I forced myself to pick 10.     

1. Centuries-old oak toppled in Maryland storm
2. A wildfire raging in the Pike National Forest
3. Archeologists doing maintenance at the famous Inca citadel of Machu Picchu have found new stone terraces, water channels, a rubbish dump and a wall dividing the site's urban sector from its temples
4. A moderate earthquake shook a wide area around southern Indiana
5. A 4,600 year-old Egyptian tomb, glued shut and with its original owner still inside, has been discovered by archaeologists working near the Giza Pyramids.
6. Ann Landers, the columnist whose snappy, plainspoken and timely advice helped millions of readers deal with everything from birth to death, died Saturday. She was 83.
7. Hundreds of people were killed or injured as an earthquake and a series of aftershocks rocked northern Iran
8. FBI searches apartment in anthrax probe
9. An Argentine icebreaker prepared to leave on a mission to rescue 107 people aboard a ship stranded off Antarctica.
10. The consumption of forests, energy and land by humans is exceeding the rate at which Earth can replenish itself 

My interest in science is reflected in 7 of the 10 (archeology in 3, 4; botany in 1; climate/ecology in 2, 10; geology in 4 and 7).  The others fit into a people/places/politics category.

Gleanings of the Week Ending March 24, 2012

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week:

Fundamental Steps Needed Now in Global Redesign of Earth System Governance - the argument of 32 scientists and researchers that some fundamental reforms are needed to avoid dangerous changes in the Earth system

How Monarch Butterflies Recolonize Northern Breeding Range - About 10% of the Monarchs in Canada have come all the way from Mexico. 90% were born en route mostly in the central US.

Feeding Habits of German Wolves - Less than 1% of their prey is livestock

The Physics of Cooking (Science and Cooking) - Videos from Harvard that talk about the mechanics of various culinary techniques (there are 42 hours - 26 segments - of videos on the topic!)

America’s First Cuisines - A chapter from the book that focuses on produce that came from the new world

A brief history of solar energy - Beginning in 1767….

Monarch butterflies down again this year - The scene from Texas - 30% fewer monarchs this year

Surface features on Vesta (giant asteroid) - New pictures from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft

Civic Engagement and Local e-Government: Social Networking Comes of Age - a study of how local governments are using social media…a ranking of the 75 largest cities in the US

What is your Water Footprint? - A calculator of how much water your lifestyle takes