A Natural Philosopher in Cascadia

I am in school to become a conservation ecologist. I consider my studies, rather than just preparation for a career, to be a path to personal enlightenment. I study the natural world to develop a more intimate relationship with the universe, and from...

[cascadianphilosophy]

#NowPlaying Thinkin Bout You by Frank Ocean #bivisibilityday

[cascadianphilosophy]

#NowPlaying Hit Or Miss - Live by Odetta

[micdotcom]

http://weareheremovement.com

[cascadianphilosophy]

Source: The Oatmeal

Further reading/listening:

Mantis Shrimp Vision is Not as Mindblowing as You’ve Been Told

Mantis Shrimp Have the World’s “Best” Eyes - but Why?

Radiolab on Colors

[fuckyeahfluiddynamics]

Shown above are a trio of microscale rockets, each about 10 microns in length. These tiny rockets are roughly cylindrical in shape, with a narrower diameter at the front than the back. Like their space-faring brethren, these microrockets are chemically propelled. They draw in fuel from their surroundings, which reacts with the catalysts coating the interior of the microrocket to produce gases. Those gases bubble out the back end of the microrocket, creating thrust capable of propelling the rockets more than 1000 body lengths/second. Researchers have already demonstrated that these tiny rockets can haul cargo along with them. Scientists hope one day to use these self-propelled microrockets to help deliver drugs or isolate cancer cells. (Image credit: J. Li et al., source)

[j-ear]

Now THIS is some nice micro-rocket science

[sciteachers]

For teaching: ???

[micdotcom]

Watch: In one epic rant, this college student nails everything that’s wrong with America’s collegiate system

[scientiflix]

Who cares about the history of science? 

The 2015 Wilkins-Bernal-Medawar Lecture was this year presented by Professor Hasok Chang, Hans Rausing professor of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge.

He looks at how we can learn from the radically different ways in which scientists have made sense of the universe over the ages.

By: The Royal Society.

[i-effed-it-all-up-deactivated20]

WHOA look at the moon

me literally every night no matter what phase the moon is in (via purple-space-freak)

[brilliantbotany]

Interested in Citizen Science? Check out the new Citizen Science page on the Brilliant Botany website!

It features a list of botanical citizen science projects that you can contribute to.

If you know of a project that should be added, send me an ask, or an e-mail at [email protected]

[expressions-of-nature]

by Keith Carey

Mt. Hood, Oregon

[explore-blog]

Bertrand Russell, born on this day in 1872, on the will to doubt, free thought, and our only effective self-defense against propaganda.

[scientificphilosopher]

You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. And you have to do it all the time.

Angela Davis (via scientificphilosopher)

[peachyame-moved-deactivated2026]

Hey fellow Oregonians! Just letting you know there’s only a week left to register as a democrat to vote for Bernie! The primaries will be here shortly so make sure you’re fully registered as a democrat so you can vote for him!!!

[eclecticdreamweaver]

Check your registration! People in other states have reported being unwittingly moved off the voting rolls. There is a possibility of such shenanigans happening here, don’t let it happen to you.

[deepinthesewoods-deactivated201]

a squad of squawks 

[cascadianphilosophy]

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oqC_kkUqlc)

America’s Lands for America’s People

The timelessness of the Grand Canyon; the remote solitude of Alaska’s wild frontier; Great Smoky Mountains National Park; Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge; the redwoods; the Everglades -- America’s public lands are national treasures owned by all of us and held in trust for us and for future generations. They include more than 600 million acres of towering forests, rushing rivers, swaying grasslands and magical deserts.

These national parks, forests, wildlife refuges and other wild lands are essential havens for wildlife, sources for clean water, and recreational spaces for Americans all across the country. More than 307 million people visited national parks last year, a new record high, and even more hiked, camped, fished, watched wildlife, and enjoyed other public lands like national forests and wildlife refuges.

Sadly these special places are under attack – and we need your help to make sure these public lands remain in public hands.

In January, armed militants illegally took over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Oregon. And while the occupation came to an end, the struggle to keep our public lands in public hands is far from finished.

Politicians in Washington, D.C., and state legislatures across the nation have proposed bills designed to hand over our public lands to the states or private developers. Their goal is simple: strip public lands of protection and turn them over for private exploitation.

Our beautiful and vast public lands are reserved for the benefit of all so that everyone can appreciate these natural treasures. It is now our continuing responsibility to protect and manage these lands and their intrinsic value for future generations. Our public lands are for all Americans today, tomorrow and beyond.

Stand up and protect your public lands. Please sign THIS PETITION and share it with your family, friends, and anyone you know that values America’s public lands.

[nubbsgalore]

[nubbsgalore]

the great bear rainforest in british columbia is one of the largest coastal temperate rain forests in the world, with twenty five thousand square miles of mist shrouded fjords and densely forested islands that are home to white furred black bears.

neither albino nor polar bear, these rare black bears (there are fewer than five hundred) are known as kermode bears, or what the gitga’at first nation call mooksgm’ol, the spirit bear — a word they did not speak to european fur traders lest the bears be discovered and hunted.

the white fur in these bears is triggered by a recessive mutation of the same gene associated with red hair and fair skin in humans. though it remains unclear as to how the trait arose (or disappeared), it is especially pronounced on certain islands.

this week, the b.c. government introduced legislation that will protect 85 percent of the 6.4 million hectare rainforest from logging. trophy hunting, sadly, will remain legal in many southern parts of the great bear rainforest.

(click pic or link for credi) x, x, x, x, x, x, x)

[usfwspacific]

Exploring the Oregon Coast’s Forests

Photo credit: Peter Pearsall/USFWS

Springtime visitors to coastal Oregon can take advantage of warmer weather to see a perennial (and mostly evergreen) attraction: our massive maritime forests. Whether one is a serious hiker or a paved-path ambler, the forested parks, waysides and refuges along Highway 101 offer plenty of opportunity to experience this lush and diverse habitat. At Cape Meares National Wildlife Refuge in Tillamook County, visitors can hike through a rare stand of old-growth conifers and explore an ecosystem several millennia in the making.

Talk about not seeing the forest for the trees: Here and elsewhere along the Oregon coast, conifers shoot up 150 feet or more from the sodden earth, their broad trunks enrobed in mosses and lichens, their closely-spaced crowns all but invisible from the forest floor. Not uncommonly these trees would reach even loftier heights—200, even 300 feet tall—but scant few were spared the logger’s axe. These trees may not be the tallest on earth, but they are among the stoutest.

Pacific wren. Photo credit: Peter Pearsall/USFWS

Keep reading