Gleanings of the Week Ending October 24, 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.

Why being single is much more than handling just loneliness – Even though the number of singles has been increasing in many places (sometimes to over half the adult population), the market has filed to understand the commercial experience of singles by always skewing to the ideal life centered on couples and nuclear families.

The rapid and startling decline of world’s vast boreal forests – Boreal forests are Earth’s single largest biome…up to 30% of the globe’s forest cover. An indicator species of this biome are moose and their numbers in Minnesota have dropped so quickly that some groups want to list them as endangered in the Midwest. The Boreal forest may be shrinking…dying…changing. The boreal forests are warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet. There could be a near term tipping point. Many trees are dying already.

Sweden is on track to becoming the first cashless nation – I’ve noticed in recent years that I use a lot less cash…but not quite cashless. The US has a ways to go.

The Chemistry of Superglue – A little about the history of superglue…and how it works.

The end is in sight for reading glasses – I hope this works! The idea of replacing natural lenses with liquid crystals is also applicable to helping people that have cataracts.

Chaco Culture National Historic Park – Another Dark Sky Park. Now that I’ve been to one star party….I’m looking for other places in the US that have as good or better dark skies! I’ve been to Chaco once….during the day…and thought the isolation of the place made it easier to imagine the people that lived there long ago.

A nap to recap: how reward, daytime sleep boost learning – As I read about the study – I wondered what the results would be with a meditation break rather than a sleep break.

Winners of Nikon's 2015 Small World Contest Reveal the Microscopic Beauty of Our World – Images of things you can’t see so easily with just your eyes.

Orange lichens are potential source for anticancer drugs – Parietin in a pigment in orange lichens and rhubarb…that has the potential for treating leukemia without toxicity to human blood cells.

Study compares traditional, modern views of aging – There seems to be consensus that older people are more respected and perceived as wiser than younger people. However, traditional societies think older people have better memories and modern societies think older people have poor memories.

Personal Metrics - September 2015

Back in January 2012, I wrote a series of posts about personal rhythms (daily, weekly, monthly). They were not specifically about personal metrics…but enough that I am looking back at them today and realizing what has changed - and what has not - during my first few post-career years.

What has changed:

• I no longer use an alarm clock (unless I need to wake up for a very early plane) so I am rarely jarred from sleep before I am ready to wake up.
• I am more consistently in the ‘normal’ weight range for my height (I was still slightly overweight when I retired). Weight is something I check every day.
• I pay more attention to exercise - specifically to my level of activity during the day and strive to have at least 30 ‘active’ minutes (measured by Fitbit).
• I went through a period where I closely monitored the nutritional content of my diet and stopped taking some supplements so that I would not get ‘too much.’ I eat more whole foods - particular produce now. This has been helped along by joining a CSA (5 months of the year). I have dramatically reduced the artificial sweetener and caffeine in my diet.
• My reading/book browsing goal for the month has increased slightly (to 100 per month). The Internet Archive and eBooks from the library are so easily available that there is no excuse!
• The volunteer naturalist gigs are a significant part of my interactions with people outside of my family…in some ways similar of interactions during my career but different because of the wider range of ages and backgrounds of the people…and being outdoors.
• A Zentangle a day.

What has not changed:

• I still sleep between 7 and 8 hours a night…going to bed about 10 and getting up between 5 and 6 most days.
• My exercise goal is still 12,000 steps per day and I reach it unless I am travelling for a large portion of the day.
• I still do household chores are a weekly cycle…although I sometimes realize that some cleaning chores have been ignored for too long.

Waking Up to Bird Song

I like waking up with the birds rather than an alarm clock. Of course - that means that I am waking up a bit earlier as the days gets longer since the birdsong occurs before dawn!

Somehow even with the house closed and air conditioned…and a ceiling fan turning lazily…I still hear the birds. There is forest behind our house and three trees in the front which provide ample places for birds to proclaim their presence in the world!

Surely in the days before air conditioning, most people woke up with the birds. It was impossible not to. Who could sleep through all that joy! Now we think of children sleeping later in the summer but that was not the case 50 years ago. When I think back to my childhood, it seems like most everyone I knew was a ‘morning’ person. The early morning was the best time of day to get physical work done too - before it got too hot.

I’ve stayed a morning person and I naturally wake up early…the timing this time of year is linked to the birds!

Gleanings of the Week Ending February 14, 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.

Behind the Photo: Paul Nicklen’s Leaping Penguins - Video of leaping penguins….and how it came to be.

This Scientific Paper Proves That Nature Never Stops Weirding Us Out - Did you know that frogs retract their eyes into their heads to push crickets down their throat?

Older adults: Double your protein to build more muscle - Maybe the recommended daily allowance for older adults needs to change.

Your Two-Minute Break to Enjoy Wildlife Along The Moose-Wilson Road In Grand Teton National Park - A short video….I enjoyed the reminder of how much I enjoyed a vacation at Grand Teton National Park years ago.

Expert panel recommends new sleep durations - Is your sleep duration within the new recommended range? Mine is. I was intrigued that there were two new categories added for this study: Young adults (18-25) and older adults (65+).

A surprisingly accurate map of the U.S. made with 600,000 bridges — and nothing else - Map created from data in the National Bridge Inventory maintained by the Federal Highway Administration…includes bridges that are longer than 20 feet. That’s a lot of bridges!

6 Wildlife Facts for World Wetlands Day - World Wetlands Day was Feb. 2….enjoy the facts and photos.

Fake Meat Gets Real - There are lots of new ways to get protein…some better than others. I liked the last sentence “you’re better off getting most of your protein from whole foods, including legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.”

Review of nonmedicinal interventions for delirium in older patients - Good! My observation has been that older people on multiple medications have side effects (like increased delirium) that are often worse than the symptom being treated….so it seems prudent to resist adding medications unless they are absolutely necessary.

An Inventory of Protected Bike Lanes - Bikes are becoming more popular for recreations and transportation in many places around the country. Bike lanes are one way cities are responding. By the end of 2014 there were 191 around the country. I hope the trend continues!

Gleanings of the Week Ending January 31, 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.

At 90, She's Designing Tech for Aging Boomers - She was a designer all her life! Good for her…for the company that is using her ideas…good for consumers.

Telescope to seek dust where other Earths may lie - This article caught my attention because my daughter recently was there for a ‘field trip.’ The Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer (LBTI) is run by University of Arizona.

Sleep tight and stay bright? Invest now, researcher says - I am so lucky to be able to go to sleep easily and awake on my own after 7-8 hours. This study says (once again) that good sleep is linked to a lot of good health and mental outcomes. One of the joys of post-career is not waking up with an alarm clock!

The lip of the caldera - I couldn’t resist sharing this picture of the inside wall of Santorini.

Decorative and flexible solar panels become part of interior design and the appearance of objects - I enjoy technology that is functional and beautiful. So many times the engineers focus exclusively on functionality.  

Should arsenic in food be a concern? - The answer in this article was ‘no’ but I was frustrated that they focused primarily on plant foods and did not mention the status of nitarsone/histostat (an organoarsenic compound used in poultry production).

Boston's leaky pipes release high levels of heat-trapping methane - Not good for Boston and probably many other older cities….and worse is that there is little economic incentive to make the necessary investments to reduce the incidental losses from leakage.

What to do in a flu epidemic? Stay at home and watch TV - This was a study to assess the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) during epidemics - particularly of flu.

The Chemistry of Highlighter Colors - Download the graphic (link at the bottom of the article) and take a look at how the colors are made.  Note how that they have a lot of ‘rings.’

Is Hospice Losing Its Soul? - My grandmother’s last few months were spent at home under hospice care; the hospice support to her and our family was invaluable. This article is troubling because the trend in hospice is toward standardization/institutionalization….not the tailored, compassionate practice that has been the strength of hospice from its inception. I hope there are enough people that will demand that hospice stay true to its roots.