Gleanings of the Week Ending August 29, 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.

Home births save money, are safe, study suggests - I wonder how long it will be before the ideal location for low risk births will be at home. My daughter’s colleagues seem to lean toward birthing centers already (rather than a hospital). Eventually the only people going to a hospital to have a baby will be the high risk pregnancies.

Slow-Mo Lets Us See How Hummingbirds Use Their Tongues like Pumps - Wow! Not something you can see with just your eye. It takes filming with a high speed camera then slowing down the action. This article includes a video.

Glass paint could keep metal roofs and other structures cool even on sunny days - Originally developed for ships….but there are a lot of applications for a paint that is inorganic (will not deteriorate rapidly) and reflects all sunlight (passively radiates heat).

How clean is your spinach? - I think I’ll start washing greens even if the package says they are already washed (not just spinach, it seems like kale would have the same issue).

If These Bones Could Talk: The Stories Human Skeletons Can Tell - A brief article about the collection of skeletons at University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Inside the mind of a maze maker - Adrian Fisher builds mazes…all kinds of them.

Study: Air Pollution Implicated In 1.6 Million Deaths A Year in China - That is - 17% of the annual deaths in China are related to air pollution.

Warm, pleasant, LED lighting developed: LEDs cut energy use and greenhouse gas emissions - I like lighting that comes closer to nature light rather than being ‘harsh’ like the fluorescents and the LEDs that came on the market earlier. This might actually be the improvement that has me moving my reading lamp to and LED bulb.

Top Protein Sources for the Plant-Based Diet - I am not totally vegetarian but I am getting there. I eat vegetation more frequently that just Meatless Mondays! This is a good reference for protein sources which is one of the more substantial changes when making the transition.

Here be dragons - A collection of images and historical perspective of dragons in art/culture from Europenea.

Gleanings of the Week Ending April 25, 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.

Greenland continuing to darken - In the Water in the Western US course I am taking via Coursera they mentioned snow darkening as it melted because layers of dust that has originally been blown on a fresh surface of snow accumulated as the layer of snow melted and left the snow behind….and then I saw this article about Greenland on the same day!

Video Diary: One Tiny Hummingbird Family - If you have never had an opportunity to watch a hummingbird nest, this is an opportunity.

Milkweed and Monarch Concerns – 2015 -   Plant Milkweed for Monarchs - The key message in this post is to plant milkweed that is native to the area where you live. That’s

Welcome to Oklahoma, the State of Denial - The graphics caught my eye in this article. There were a lot of earthquakes in Oklahoma in 2014….and evidently since this article was written the state government has started to acknowledge that they are likely manmade.

The Growing Outdoor Recreation Economy - National Parks contributed $26 billion to the economy in 2014 and the outdoor recreation economy is estimated at $646 billion and included 6.1 million jobs. Along a similar trend, another article….The Science of Valuing Nature Becoming Business as Usual.

Nest Cam of the Month: Barred & Barn Owls - I take look at the nest cams. Owls are popular right now.

Putting Technology in Its Place - Technology is not always the answer…or the total answer. Often it falls short of our expectations - particularly in places that need help the most.

Ten Favorite Trees for Wildlife - A very good list. Pick ones that are native to your area.

Excessive use of dietary supplements linked to increase cancer risk - It appears that dietary supplements are too much of a good thing. The bottom line coming out of more and more studies appears to be that its best to meet nutritional needs via food rather than supplements.