Gleanings of the Week Ending November 7, 2015

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

The Chemistry of Blood – When I do nature hikes for elementary school children about soil or rocks I always ask them what makes soil or rocks look red (some of them know that it is iron) then I comment that there is iron in our blood too….and that locks it for almost all of them. One time a boy answered my original question with one word: ‘blood’ – thinking he would get a disgusted reaction from me and he was really surprised when I told him the red came from iron in both cases!

Vitamin D pill a day may improve exercise performance and lower risk of heart disease – More evidence that more of us probably need Vitamin D supplements. It’s one I have been taking the past few year.

300 million-year-old 'supershark' fossils found in Texas – Lots of things are ‘large’ about Texas.

The Benefits of Getting Older – They define ‘old age’ and any age over 60! Are you surprised by any items on the list?

Greenland is Melting Away – How they take measures of the ice sheet from the ground…supplementing what can be determined from satellites and drones. The graphics of the rivers on the ice sheet are mesmerizing.

Hunting down hidden dangers and health benefits of urban fruit – When I read the headline I was braced for a lot of negative news…but it turns out that urban fruit is good overall.

Butterflies Weaponize Milkweed Toxins and Wing structure helps female monarch butterflies outperform males in flight – There were two stories about Monarch Butterflies in the news this week….and I saw one – probably migrating – as I was hiking with second graders this week!

Be Mesmerized by the Shifting Complexity of our Sun – The full video is a little over 30 minutes…and there is music too!

The Chemistry of Fireworks: Bangs, Crackles & Whistles – Color gets a lot of attention when it comes to fireworks. This post from Compound Interest is about the other things we enjoy about fireworks.

Hungry for Change: Deer Management and Food Security – Our area has a huge deer population and we have the chomped trees and bushes in our yards to prove it! The idea of combining deer management and food security may be something more communities should consider.

Gleanings of the Week Ending July 11, 2015

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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