Moo Deng

September 28, 2024

Moo Deng is a pygmy hippopotamus living in Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Si Racha, Chonburi province, Thailand, born on 10 July 2024. Her name was chosen through a public poll with over 20,000 people voting for “Moo Deng”, translating to “bouncy pig”. The zoo posted images of her on its Facebook page and Moo Deng quickly became a fan favorite for her playful and energetic romps. Her popularity led the zoo to sell clothing and other merchandise featuring designs based on her likeness. Other companies produced merchandise, including a cake shop (Vetmon Café) which created a realistic cake shaped like her. Moo Deng’s viral popularity resulted in a doubling of daily visitors in early September. The zoo is in the process of copyrighting and trademarking “Moo Deng the hippo” to raise funds for the zoo and plans to launch a livestream to allow fans to watch Moo Deng over the Internet.

When I looked online, I found Moo Deng is a pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis) or pygmy hippo, a small hippopotamid native to the forests and swamps of West Africa. The pygmy is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the larger common or Nile hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius). The pygmy hippo was unknown outside West Africa until the 19th century and is a reclusive and nocturnal forest creature difficult to study in the wild. Like the common hippo, the pygmy hippo displays terrestrial adaptations but is semiaquatic and relies on water to keep its skin moist and its body temperature cool. Mating and birth may occur in water or on land. The pygmy is herbivorous and feeds on ferns, broad-leaved plants, grasses, and fruits it finds in the forests. Current pygmy populations are primarily in Liberia, with small groups in Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Ivory Coast. It has been extirpated (eradicated) from Nigeria. Pygmy hippos are primarily threatened by loss of habitat, as forests are logged and converted to farmland. The Pygmy are also vulnerable to poaching, hunting for bushmeat, natural predators, war, and are illegally hunted for food in Liberia. The species breed well in captivity and the vast majority of research is derived from zoo specimens. A 2015 assessment by the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimated that fewer than 2,500 pygmy hippos remain in the wild.

As a viral sensation Moo Deng has prompted a makeup trend popular with beauty influencers. Moo Deng makeup is in line with what beauty enthusiasts look for, super dewy skin and lots of blush. The trend is perfect for fall as the skin will be hydrated and glass-like as the drier months approach. The trend started with influencers trying to recreate her iconic look by achieving the baby pygmy’s glass-like skin with the prettiest shade of blush. Before applying makeup, you need to ensure the base is nice and dewy to capture the baby hippo’s glistening skin. The trend incorporates lots of grey hues to represent Moo Deng’s skin color. An element common among influencers’ is the heavily flushed cheeks. Any blush shade will do, as long as it has a great color payoff. Grey eyeshadow or lip gloss, followed by a particular shade of blush create the final makeup look.

THOUGHTS: While Moo Deng may create viral views, sales, and makeup, she is at risk. Some visitors harassed Moo Deng by splashing her with water and throwing objects to wake her up, forcing the zoo to install security cameras around her enclosure. The zoo also implemented a 5-minute time limit for visitors to accommodate the high volume of visitors. While most marvel at the wonder of nature, there are others who find pleasure in destruction. Whether it is throwing objects at Moo Deng or toppling 100,000 year old rock formations the seconds of fame being sought are not worth the cost. “Influence” comes with responsibility. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Euphorbia Ingens

September 27, 2024

Melissa was working on her succulents over the weekend and called me out to see what was going on with her plants. We had placed two tables in the flower bed on the north side of the house that we have yet to figure out what to do with. Melissa decided in the short run this would be a good place to put some of her hardier cacti to take advantage of the outside. Although these plants are visible through the porch windows, Melissa does not get out to physically check on them more than once a week. As with most cacti and succulents, a good rule of thumb is to leave them alone and let them thrive on their own. One of the plants has been growing particularly well over the last two years and is over 3 feet (1 m) tall. The third section of the plant had developed greenish-yellow buds along its ridges which appeared to be ready to bloom. When I asked, she told me this was a Euphorbia ingens (I sometimes think she uses the scientific names just to throw me off).

When I looked online, I found the candelabra tree (Euphorbia ingens), or naboom, is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae native to dry and semi-savanna areas of southern Africa. This tree is a tall succulent with green round-like branches resembling a balloon that grows to 19.5 to 26 feet (6 to 8m) tall. The trunk of the candelabra is thick, and the stems have 5 ridges each and are 1-1/3 to 3 inches (3.5 to 7.5 cm) thick. The segmented stems are dark-green and young sprouts have paired spines 3/16 to 5/64 inches (0.5 to 2 mm) long. The plant blooms from autumn to winter and the small greenish yellow flowers sit on the ridges of the topmost segment. A red, round, three-lobed capsule fruit turns purple when ripe. The plant’s flowers are attractive for butterflies, bees and other insects, which pollinate them when gathering pollen and nectar. The seeds are edible for birds, who also like to make their nests in the branches of these trees. The light and solid wood of the main trunk is used in door, plank, and boat production. The milky latex sap of the tree is highly poisonous and can cause blindness, severe skin irritation, and poisoning (when ingested) in humans and other animals. The plant has few pests due to the toxic sap.

Euphorbia ingens grows well both indoors and outdoors and has become a popular choice for rock gardens and indoor houseplant collections due to its stately appearance and low maintenance. In their natural environment, these succulents can grow up to 40 feet (12 m) tall, but they usually top out around 8 to 10 feet (2.5 to 3 m) tall when grown indoors. Still, even this would take a high ceiling to accommodate a mature plant. When grown indoors or in containers, it is extremely uncommon for this species of euphorbia to produce blooms. Since Melissa’s plant has budded, we are waiting to see if it will break into full bloom.

THOUGHTS: The buds on the Euphorbia ingens are only the latest of Melissa’s accomplishments. Over the last two years she has repeatedly shown me the flowers that have bloomed on many of the succulents and cacti that are under her care. In my case, with the exception of the ground cherry (Physalis angulate) that I did not plant and the red burgundy okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) I do not like to eat, I have often struggled with production of my plants (pole beans are another exception). Melissa’s mom was a prolific gardener whose secret was to spend hours tending her flowers. The same it true with Melissa who spends hours with her succulents. I am willing to plant, water, and harvest. Perhaps there is a lesson there. When we are willing to put in the work, we can achieve most tasks. That is true for gardening. That is also true for creating positive human interaction. Do the work. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

SMBH

September 26, 2024

Today’s NY Times feed reported on the massive pair of jets releasing from a supermassive black hole (SMBH) 7.5 billion light-years from Earth. The megastructure spans 23 million light-years in length, making these black hole jets the largest ever seen, according to new research. While Black holes gobble up nearly everything that comes close to them, a fraction of material is ejected before an object falls in, forming a jet on either side of the black hole, said Martijn Oei, a postdoctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology and the lead author of a new study describing the discovery published September 18 in the journal Nature. The jets have a power output equivalent to trillions of suns and are so massive that researchers have nicknamed the megastructure Porphyrion after a giant from Greek mythology. The discovery is causing astronomers to rethink their understanding of how massive black hole jets can be as well as how these giant features can affect their surroundings and the structure of the universe.

When I looked online, I found a supermassive black hole (SMBH or SBH) is a black hole more than one hundred thousand times the mass of the Sun. Solar mass (M☉) is a standard unit of mass used in astronomy equal to approximately 2×1030 kg, or the approximate mass of the Earth’s Sun. It is often used to indicate the masses of other stars, as well as stellar clusters, nebulae, galaxies and black holes. Black holes are a class of astronomical objects that have undergone gravitational collapse, leaving behind spheroidal regions of space from which nothing can escape, including light. The discovery of SMBH was a consequence of the investigation of quasars in the mid-20th century. Nearly every large galaxy has a SMBH at its center. Active galactic nuclei, such as Seyfert galaxies and quasars, are powered by supermassive black holes. The largest SMBH is in the galaxy cluster Abell 1201 and has a mass thirty billion times that of the Sun. The SMBH at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy (Sagittarius A*) has a mass four million times that of the Sun. Two supermassive black holes have been directly imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope: the black hole in the giant elliptical galaxy Messier 87 and Sagittarius A* at the Milky Way’s center.

When sustained for mega years, high-power jets from SMBH become the largest galaxy-made structures in the Universe. “This pair is not just the size of a solar system, or a Milky Way; we are talking about 140 Milky Way diameters in total. The Milky Way would be a little dot in these two giant eruptions” Oei said. The structure consists of a northern lobe, a northern jet, a core, a southern jet with an inner hotspot, and a southern outer hotspot with a backflow. This system demonstrates that jets can avoid destruction by magnetohydrodynamical instabilities over cosmological distances. How jets can retain such long-lived coherence is unknown at present. The haunting question is what Porphyrion is doing to the rest of the universe. Cosmologists have found that the visible features of the universe are structured in a weblike manner, with galaxies clumped in giant clusters and connected by thin filaments that span dark voids of tens to hundreds of millions of light-years. In Porphyrion’s day, this cosmic web was half the size it is now, and these jets would have been big enough to affect the overall web.

THOUGHTS: In total, the team spotted 10,000 new black hole jet pairs. Like many discoveries, the researchers were not looking for jets from the SMBH but were trying to observe the cosmic web. Research (and exploration) often mistakenly makes discoveries that expand our understanding of the universe, the Earth, and even humanity. The quest for understanding is one aspect that (we think) sets humans apart from other animals. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Leopard Darters

September 25, 2024

Last week the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AFGC) released 80 leopard darters into the wild with the help of state and federal partners along with Conservation Fisheries LLC, a private hatchery specializing in propagating rare and threatened species. According to Chance Garrett, fish ecologist for the AGFC, this release is the first of two scheduled for the Cossatot River in western Arkansas this year and is the first historical reintroduction effort of leopard darters anywhere. The fish were grown from broodstock taken from the Mountain Fork River which flows from Arkansas into Oklahoma. Another 250 fish are planned for release in early October. Garrett said, “They originally thought it was only found in Oklahoma, but some populations were found in the Rolling Fork and Cossatot after its listing. Those two populations are thought to no longer exist, so this effort to re-establish them is extremely important.” This is the second year of the project, but the first year saw a low survival rate as the hatchery and were added to the broodstock rather than being released. The leopard darters measured and an inch or two (2.5 to 5 cm) at stocking size and were transported from the hatchery to their destination in one day.

When I looked online, I found leopard darters (Percina pantherina) are a species of freshwater ray-finned fish, from the subfamily Etheostomatinae. The family (Percidae) also contains the perches (Genus, Perca), ruffes (Gymnocephalus cernua), and pikeperches (Genus, Sander). The species is native to the US and is only be found in the Little River drainage in Oklahoma and Arkansas. A typical habitat is medium to large streams with rubble and boulder substrate. The leopard darter feeds on small invertebrates on the riverbed and spawns in March and April. Adults rarely exceed 3 inches (8 cm) in length and have 11 to 14 large, dark spots on their sides, which contrast against a light background that ranges from pale olive on the back to yellowish olive on the underside. The back of the fish has numerous saddles and bars. The leopard darter is threatened by impoundment, habitat loss, and runoff from agricultural activity. It has never been a common species and has been listed as a threatened species in the US since 1978.

Transporting and releasing the leopard darter was a full day affair. They left the Conservation Fisheries hatchery in Knoxville, Tennessee in the morning, were met by AGFC personnel in Memphis, and driven to the other side of other side of Arkansas by 6:30 p.m. that evening. Once at the river, the fish had to be tempered to adjust to the river water. They arrived in bags which were floated to slowly acclimate to the temperature of the river water. Then some river water was let into the bags to help them adjust slowly to the chemistry of that location. Finally, they are ready for release. The staff scanned the release pool the next day and found many of the fish had dispersed. Garrett said. “Hopefully we’ll see them in future survey efforts . . . Ultimately our goal is to see some spawning activity in spring.” The leopard darters represent one of the longest-standing members of the Endangered Species Act.

THOUGHTS: Leopard darters typically live less than two years, but individuals older than three years have been found. Introduction of these 320 fish (total) could reintroduce a viable population into the Cossatot River, but the fragile species still faces the loss of habitat due to construction of reservoirs and population isolation, along with agricultural and industrial activity, that drove them to decline in the first place. Species reintroduction and preservation takes the combined efforts of government agencies, business, and individual landowners to be effective. While it may take a village to raise a child, it takes concerned communities to preserve endangered species. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

2nd Sister

September 24, 2024

I was excited over the weekend when I went out to check the remnants of the three sisters planting to find the pole beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) had finally begun to produce. I have mentioned the poor production for the 1st sister, corn (Zea mays var. rugosa), with only dried kernels suitable for grinding or bird food. That was followed by an ok harvest of the 3rd sister, Butternut squash (Cucurbita moschata), which produced 7 gourds. It has now been nearly a month and while there were lots of flowers and buds, I had not seen any beans hanging from the vines until last weekend. The vines had been growing well, even causing some of the drying corn stalks to collapse and again lay on the ground. I felt lucky for having staked the stalks after their infamous “leaning” event in July. I knew at least some of the stalks would be able to stand despite the weight of the bean vines. Yesterday I decided to see if I could find anything worth harvesting among the twisted vines. I was anxious to see the result from the 2nd sister.

When I looked online, I found the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an herbaceous annual plant grown worldwide for its edible dry seeds or green, unripe pods. The bean’s botanical classification (as all Phaseolus species) is a member of the legume family Fabaceae. Common beans acquire the nitrogen they require through an association with rhizobia (like most Fabaceae), or nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The bean has a long history of cultivation with the wild Phaseolus vulgaris native to the Americas. It was originally believed that it had been domesticated separately in Mesoamerica and in the southern Andes region 8000 years ago, giving the domesticated bean two gene pools. Recent genetic analyses show that it was first domesticated in Mexico, and then split into the Mesoamerican and Andean gene pools. As the 2nd sister (by planting order), maize (corn), beans, and squash are the three Mesoamerican crops that constitute the “Three Sisters” that were central to the indigenous agriculture. All wild members of the species are climbing, but many cultivars are now classified as bush beans or climbing beans, depending on their style of growth. Beans are grown on every continent except Antarctica, and during 2022, there were 28 million tons (28000 kt) of dry beans produced worldwide, led by India with 23% of the total. The common bean arrived in Europe as part of the Columbian exchange, the widespread transfer of plants, animals, commodities, precious metal, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the New World (the Americas) and the Old World (Afro-Eurasia) in the late 15th and following centuries.

While I had (inadvertently) planted bush beans in my raised beds, I planted pole beans as my 2nd sister. I have mentioned how bush beans are preferable for commercial cultivars as the fruit tends to ripen at the same time (yes, beans are another fruit that is eaten as a vegetable). I harvested the bush beans last week and got a small return (the bowl in picture). Unlike the bush beans I planted in the raised bed, the pole beans are expected to provide a continuous harvest throughout the growing cycle. I look forward to several more weeks of harvest from my 2nd sister.

THOUGHTS: I was pleased with the harvest from the 2nd sister. The first pick of pole beans yielded over 6 quarts of processed green beans. I flash froze 4 quarts and plan for the other 2 quarts to be mixed with onions, bacon, and the Yukon Gold potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) I harvested earlier this month, for a meal later this week. This Thanksgiving, I plan on providing a green bean casserole for the family using my home grown beans. This is one of the joys I find in (trying) to provide subsistence agriculture. While there are trials (i.e., the other sisters) in growing your own food, they make the successes sweeter. This also forces me to explore a variety of preservation techniques. Life-long learning is a good thing. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Neptune

September 23, 2024

Toward the back of the front section of my local newspaper I came across an article about the continuing quest for space tourism as Space Perspective successfully completed a second uncrewed test flight of the spaceship Neptune Excelsior. The flight boosts the company’s mission to provide distinctive and accessible space travel experiences. The test flight was launched from the Marine Spaceport Voyager near Florida on 15 September 2024 and showed the spacecraft’s capability to perform an entire flight sequence. Jane Poynter, founder of Space Perspective said, “This flight successfully demonstrated the extraordinary accessibility of Spaceship Neptune’s spaceflight experience with its gentle ascent, descent and splashdown, a critical step in opening space up to more people than ever before possible.” During the flight, Neptune reached an altitude of 100,000 feet, approaching the boundary of space and redefining the idea of space tourism.

When I looked online, I found Space Perspective is a high-altitude flight tourism company, founded and incorporated in 2019 by Jane Poynter and Taber MacCallum. The space tourism company plans to launch its nine-person Spaceship Neptune crewed balloon from NASA Kennedy Space Center. On 18 June 2020, Space Perspective announced plans to balloon passengers to nearly 100,000 feet (30,000 m; 30 km) above the Earth. On 2 December 2020, Space Perspective closed its seed funding round, having gathered US$7 million. The company planned the first uncrewed test flight in the first half of 2021 and crewed operational flights by end of 2024. SpaceX charges US$55 million for a 3 day orbit along with three other crewmates. Blue Origin charges from US$200,000 to US$300,000, but the actual price depends on who you are and the publicity you can generate. Virgin Galactic offers a 90 minute suborbital (164,040 feet/50 km) with up to 4 passengers for US$450,000. Tickets for Neptune are a mere US$125,000 per seat with a total of 8 passengers.

A significant feature of last week’s test flight was the deployment of a new four-roller system to elevate the company’s SpaceBalloon. This mechanism enables spaceflights from marine locations worldwide, enhancing operational flexibility and allowing for year-round launches regardless of weather conditions. The spaceship capsule for Neptune exceeded performance expectations by maintaining optimal cabin pressure and stability throughout its journey, even at its highest point in the upper atmosphere. The advanced thermal control system successfully managed the extreme temperature fluctuations of high-altitude flights, ensuring comfort and safety. SpaceBalloon is an eco-friendly and pioneering lifting technology central to the spacecraft and proved its reliability during the test flight. The technology uses hydrogen gas for ascent and enabled the spacecraft to reach its maximum altitude, provided a well-controlled descent, and demonstrating the company’s commitment to sustainable space exploration. The Space Perspective Mission Control team managed the test flight from their ground base using proprietary software and communication systems. The spacecraft was retrieved after a successful splashdown by employing a jet boat and a crane. The company intends to crew test flights in 2025, with the launch of commercial spaceflights in 2026.

THOUGHTS: While the Neptune Excelsior reached the impressive altitude of 100,000 feet (30 km), the Karman line is frequently cited as the boundary of space at 62 miles (300,000 feet/90 km). The Federal Aviation Administration regulates spaceflight and has defined Neptune as a spacecraft. The craft went above 99% of the Earth’s atmosphere. Still, this offers an impressive perspective (and view) of the Earth. Even more than flying at 35,000 feet (10.5 km) in an airplane, the world appears as a united single entity, beyond divisions and barriers. This is a perspective world leaders would be good to emulate. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Smooth Flower

September 20, 2024

In the middle of the front section of today’s newspaper was an article on attempts to restore Florida’s reefs by breeding and growing coral in an aqueous gene bank. The corals were grown to maturity at Mote Marine Laboratory’s International Coral Gene Bank, and successfully spawned just 22 months after they were produced by corals from the Florida Reef Tract Rescue Project in March 2022. This species of coral will not contribute a lot of mass to the coral reefs, but it does offer shelter to smaller dwellers of the lowest (benthic) ocean levels. Cody Engelsma, senior coral reproduction biologist at the gene bank said, “These corals, they grow these little branches and the branches are very closely knit together so they create a very good environment for baby fish, brittle stars – all the things we naturally see when we bring these corals in. A lot of invertebrates can hide and find safety in these little cavities.” Smooth flower corals are only one of the corals Mote biologists are inducing to spawn at the gene bank where coral care is managed to mirror conditions experienced in the ocean.

When I looked online, I found the smooth flower coral (Eusmilia fastigiate) is a stony coral found on reefs in the Caribbean Sea. Eusmilia is a monotypic genus represented by a single species. Smooth flower coral is a colonial species that grows to about 20 inches (50 cm) across. It forms a low mound of stony calcium carbonate, the surface of which is covered with tubular projections (corallites) in groups of one to three. Mound colors range from cream, to yellow, or pale brown and often have a green or pink tinge. The polyps protrude from these projections and are either round or oval, with the oval form being more common at moderate depths. Smooth flower corals are large and widely spaced and are connected by an extracellular matrix (mesoglea) forming a layer of translucent, jelly-like tissue (coenosarc) which covers the surface of the carbonate skeleton. The corallites have large smooth-edged ridges (septa) and the polyps have corresponding grooves at their base. During the day the polyps retract into the cup-shaped corallites. At night, the polyps stretch out their translucent white tentacles to feed, making the coral appear to “flower”. Smooth flower coral is found at depths down to about 200 feet (60 m) though it is most common between 16 to 98 feet (5 to 30 m). Smooth flower coral is listed as critically endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

The Mote International Coral Gene Bank was established about four years ago at the 200-acre Mote Aquaculture Park in the Florida Keys. Mote’s gene bank is one of the largest of its type in the world and serves as a refuge for thousands of coral genotypes from the Florida Reef Tract and Caribbean. There are at least 25 other species of coral along with the smooth flower coral, all stored in triplicate, and there are plans to expand and house corals from Indo-Pacific waters as well. The gene bank consists of four 1,500-gallon tanks and sump pumps, along with four spawning systems that each have four 150-gallon tanks, and a quarantine system for newly arrived corals of eight different 150-gallon tanks. Mote is staffed with four full-time scientists and several interns to care for the corals.

THOUGHTS: The smooth flower coral represents another species which has formed a symbiotic relationship with plants. While the yellow-spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) partners with fresh-water algae (Oophila amblystomatis), these corals form a relationship with a marine plankton (eukaryotes) which live within the skin covering of the corallites (coenenchyma) and produce nutrients by photosynthesis. The coral benefits from the carbohydrates produced and the algae use the coral’s nitrogenous waste products. If non-sentient (?) plants and animals can find ways to coexist and support each other, you would think humans might be able to do the same. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Salamander

September 19, 2024

Tucked inside this quarter’s issue of Sierra magazine was an article on a solar powered vertebrate. The adult salamander females lay eggs in the temporary spring pools that are filled with algae called Oophila amblystomatis (“salamander egg lover”). The cells of this algae make their way into the embryo’s egg sac (osmosis) making the sac turn fluorescent green. The algae cells are also infused into the salamander’s own cells giving the embryo a dual power source. The mitochondria of the salamander embryos convert oxygen and a sugar byproduct into molecules that store energy (as do all salamanders) but it can also use the energy generated through photosynthesis from the algae to create additional oxygen and (research suggests) carbohydrates the salamander can use. A symbiotic relationship is completed when the algae receive a boost from the nitrogen waste produced by the salamander. The yellow-spotted salamander is the only known case of this use of solar power.

When I looked online, I found the spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) or yellow-spotted salamander is a mole salamander common in eastern United States and Canada. Individuals of the Ambystoma genus are called mole salamanders because they are nocturnal and spend the day in leaf litter or in burrows on the forest floor. The scientific name comes from Ambystoma (amblys, Greek for blunt) and stoma (Greek meaning mouth); or anabystoma (New Latin, meaning ‘to cram into the mouth’) and maculatum (macula, Latin for spot or maculosus, Latin for spotted). The species ranges from Nova Scotia to Lake Superior, to southern Georgia and Texas. The spotted salamander is the state amphibian of Ohio and South Carolina. The spotted salamander is about 5.9 to 9.8 inches (15 to 25 cm) long, with females larger than males. They are stout and have wide snouts. The main color is black, but it can be a blueish-black, dark gray, dark green, or even dark brown. Two uneven rows of yellowish-orange spots run from the top of the head (near the eyes) to the tip of the tail (dorso-lateral ranging). The spotted salamander’s spots near the top of its head are more orange, while the spots on the rest of its body are more yellow. The underside of the spotted salamander is slate gray and pink. The physical difference (sexual dimorphism) between males and females is the larger females have brighter spots. Males will have a larger portion of their dorsal surface covered in duller spots. The salamander typically lives around 20 years, but some have lived up to 30 years.

This dual-power symbiosis is not known to happen in other vertebrates as most animals have immune systems designed to block foreign cells. Salamanders have notably less reactive immune systems than other vertebrates. It is hypothesized the looser cellular definition of self-verses-other not only allows the infusion of the algae into the salamander cells but also is part of what enables the species to regenerate limbs lost to predators. The solar power adaptation shuts off when the salamander hatches from the eggs and leave the algae filled pools. Although the bright yellow spots may stand out, the salamander spends most of its life hiding in the leaf litter on the forest floor.

THOUGHTS: The yellow-spotted salamander is an excellent example of how little humans know about the life cycles and ecosystems of the flora (plants) and fauna (animals) with which we coexist. While we have spent centuries focused on the lifeways and gene patterns of domesticated species, most non-domesticates have been relatively ignored until the last 300 years. Even then attention was focused on classification rather than observation. Taking time to study the details is now providing insights not only on these species, but their implications for human adaptation and well-being. The same could be said for most indigenous cultures. If they were different, they were passed off as inconsequential. This attitude precludes the larger understanding of what it means to be human and how this knowledge can aide all humanity. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Greenhouse 2

September 12, 2024

In today’s Business section of our local newspaper, I found an article on a mall-sized greenhouse approved for construction in a rural Rhode Island town. The town Planning Board of Exeter voted unanimously last week to accept Tim Schartner’s plans for his $80 million venture into the future of agriculture. Like any government action, it came with stipulations, including tweaking the internal design to meet fire safety concerns, purchasing one of the three lots the project will sit on (under agreement), and obtaining an air permit for the gas-fired electrical generators from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Schartner joined with relatives and other partners to form Rhode Island Grows, LLC, and hopes to have the greenhouse’s 25 acre (10 ha) glass framework completed this winter. The hope is to eventually produce 42,000 pounds (19,051 kg) of tomatoes a day. Final completion of the greenhouse to allow year-round use will take months longer.

When I looked online, I found a greenhouse is a special structure designed to regulate temperature and humidity of the inside environment. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass and block it as heat. Common materials used in the walls and roofs of a modern greenhouse are rigid plastic polycarbonate, plastic polyethylene film, or glass panes. When the inside of a greenhouse is exposed to sunlight, the temperature increases, providing a sheltered environment for plants to grow in cold weather. Around 30 CE, the Roman’s built the first recorded greenhouse. Emperor Tiberius’s physicians advised he eat one cucumber a day because of his declining health, but cucumbers did not grow year-round. An artificial environment was designed where cucumbers were planted in wheeled carts put in the sun daily, then taken inside to keep warm at night. According to Pliny the Elder, the cucumbers were stored under frames glazed with oiled cloth (specularia) or with sheets of selenite (lapis specularis).

Schartner’s greenhouse project exemplifies the challenges and competing interests facing many rural communities. Town Planer William DePasquale said, “You got a rural community that wants to stay rural, but you’ve got to give these farmers some ability to have some kind of versatility in income to stay rural, otherwise they will go to [selling land for] housing.” The Planning Board’s conditional approval was necessary to reassure investors the project could move forward after years of being stymied by zoning and planning issues and local opposition. Schartner’s family has farmed along Route 2 for generations and broke ground on what would be Rhode Island’s largest example of “controlled-environment agriculture” (read, greenhouse) in June 2021. Town officials said the project needed zoning and planning review first, while Schartner argued greenhouses were purely agricultural structures and exempt from such review. The town issued a “cease and desist” order in October 2021 that was upheld by a Superior Court judge. Schartner said, “It’s on the rails now, moving forward.”

THOUGHTS: I have mentioned the pool-pond we have on our back patio. The pool was abandoned while Melissa and I lived in Kansas. We returned to Arkansas with my expectation of hours in the pool during the summer. When we returned it was filled with leaves and the remains of a glass table. We contacted several pool repair companies and cannot get anyone willing to deal with us. I drained the pool this summer and scooped out the leaves and debris (and glass) and found the fiberglass liner does not leak, although two of the lines back-fill when the water table is high. Perhaps there is still hope. One of the alternatives we considered was to cut out the liner, fill the pool with dirt, and create a greenhouse to grow succulents or vegetables. Ours would be smaller than the Exeter greenhouse but would be another constructive use of space. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

Yukon Gold 2

September 05, 2024

I mentioned in May my struggles to get any potatoes into the ground. I planted late because I could not find any seed potatoes (of any variety) in the stores or co-op in my area. I made a last ditch effort late in the planting season and found the co-op had ordered tons (literally) of several types of seed potatoes (they were “in the back”) and were now trying to get rid of the remaining crates. When the man saw I only wanted to buy 12 potatoes, he gave them to me for free. I planted the 12 hills in the two beds beside the back door leading to the patio. When I planted these beds two years ago, I got a good crop of Russet potatoes. Last year I planted Yukon Gold and Russet, and they all turned to mush. This year’s crop started well, with the vines overflowing and even producing flowers, so I had high expectations. Last week I noticed the tops of the potato plants were starting to wilt. I stopped watering them over the weekend to let the plants die and the tubers harden. Today I harvested what I hoped to be a bumper crop of Yukon Gold.

When I looked online, I found Yukon Gold is a large cultivar of potato (Solanum tuberosum) most characterized by its thin, smooth, eye-free skin and yellow-tinged flesh. This potato was developed in the 1960’s by Garnet Johnston in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, with help from Geoff Rowberry at the University of Guelph. The official cross bred strain was made in 1966, and ‘Yukon Gold’ was finally released onto the market in 1980. The early name for the new cultivar was “Yukon”, for the Yukon River involved in the Klondike Gold Rush in Northern Canada. “Gold” was added later to describe the color and appearance of the tuber. A University publication states, “Yukon Gold was the first Canadian-bred potato variety to be promoted, packaged and marketed with its name right on the pack”. The variety was initially met with overwhelming success but sales in Canada dropped 30% between 2004 and 2014 as other varieties became increasingly popular. Yukon Gold potatoes are susceptible to seed decay, blackleg, early blight, late blight, early dying, PVY, soft rot, dry rot, leak, pink rot, silver scurf, and black scurf (other than that . . .). They do taste good, and the creamy texture makes them great for mashing.

I first took down the fencing I had placed around the beds to keep Loki from snuffling. Then I removed the first of the 11 cages (one had died early) around my potato hills. I wiped back the straw and was encouraged as several small potatoes came to the surface. When I scratched the ground there were only a few small (1/2 inch – 1.25 cm) potatoes to be found. Not to worry, this was only the first hill. In fact, I should have worried because this was a harbinger of what was to come. I opened hill after hill to one or two medium sized (3 inches/7.5 cm) potatoes and several tiny ones (less than 1 inch/2.5 cm). After I had harvested, I washed and dried them and placed them on newspaper in the guest bathroom. I guess no one will be able to visit as long as I have my Yukon Gold potatoes in the tub. Then again, it should not take too long to finish them off.

THOUGHTS: At least I have the advantage that Ukon Gold is resistant to bruising and has good dormancy so does not sprout a lot. It is important that the dark spots on the skin (lenticels) of the potatoes are not swollen and that the skin is not bruised, as this can lead to rot. The one thing that has produced prodigiously is the red burgundy okra (Abelmoschus esculentus). Too bad I do not like okra and only grew it for Melissa. Forest Gump said, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you will get.” While that may be true, I would like to get either a nougat or pecan praline at some point. I will keep hoping and trying. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.