h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

... and the industrial revolution is exactly what I - and Al Gore - are pointing at



PS: I'm not a scientist myself, but I believe when scientist say things like "no, the Earth is not flat" and "many millions have been saved by vaccination, not many have been harmed"

"the industrial revolution is exactly what I - and Al Gore - are pointing at" [Pierce]

Is there room for three in that boat? I totally agree.

It's in the area of applied science that we should be working overtime now. There are ways of reducing new carbon injection into the atmosphere, or increasing removal of it by plants and other means. If I didn't have four large trees within 60 feet of my home, I would plant trees. Instead, I am carpeting large portions of my yard with shrubs and herbaceous plants. In Summer, I put the green miracle to work putting food on my table. I even water my vegetables with rain water that falls from my roof.

A crash program in developing perennial grains should have been started twenty years ago. Instead, agribusiness* ramped up annual grains with genetic modification and harsh pesticides that killed butterflies and polluted groundwater. .



*Rumor has it that Monsanto has been prominent in this. They couldn't have done it alone, though.

Northern Sea Oats is a native perennial grain. I'm not sure where it would fit in my yard. There are also wild rye and wild oats. In addition to perennial wheat, The Land Institute is also working on perennial sorghum.

But why are they alone in this?

Solar panels in Africa have led to reductions in the use of kerosene on that continent.

For people who have a few acres, and would like to heat with renewable energy, there are plants in the grass family that can produce enough woody stems to heat a home for a whole year, using just an acre or two of growing space.

When I drive along the edge of wetlands, I see acres and acres of invasive Japanese Knotweed. Is there a way to harvest this biomass and use it for fuel?

I did not know this:

"Japanese knotweed is one of the most aggressively invasive plants in Denmark and can take over large expanses of land. Picking it, then, is actually a conservation measure. But very few people know that it's also delicious ingredient that tastes a lot like rhubarb."

But I found it here:
https://www.vildmad.dk/en/ingredients/japanese-knotweed
http://www.vildmad.dk/en/ingredients/japanese-knotweed

"There are ways of reducing new carbon injection into the atmosphere, or increasing removal of it by plants and other means."

Yes indeed, and as you say, paulh, we should be working overtime on reducing carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. And removing plastic from the oceans. And preserve bees, other insects and all other species we have not eradicated - yet ...

One of my nieces is very worried about the state of plants and animals. Since she has shown signs of mental instability I don't have the heart to tell her, that it is not Mother Nature she should be worried about. It's us ...



PS: We may destroy ourselves and the planet we live on, but nature always finds a way. If not here then other places.
There are a couple of billion stars in our galaxy alone.
And there are thousands of billions of galaxies.
To me this is quite comforting. But I know others find it frightening.

When I'm weeding, I often find little Knotweed sprouts. I eat them. They're a bit tangy, and eating is one of the best ways of destroying it, or at least controlling it.

It's one of those plants that had to survive adverse conditions, with the result that it made a pest of itself. It grows on the slopes of Mount Fuji, so it has had to cope with lava.

Speaking of weeds, I just watched an informative video on the history of dandelions.

http://youtu.be/xyePMeGE3CI

I'll have to watch that later, I already have some youtube about the US and the metric system to watch

I've told my friends to leave Dandelions alone till all other flowers are in bloom since I've been told Dandelions are the first food bees can find around here.

Lady across my street is not fond of it. She believes my Dandelions are flying over to reproduce in her backyard, but I've told her it really doesn't matter. The air is thick with Dandelion seeds. They have even been found in the middle of Greenland! (Whatever they would want to be there is anybody's guess, of course.)

Next Spring I need to remember to go around the yard and pick a nice salad.

Good idea, just remember it's diuretic

When my somewhat shy sister returned from Brussels, where she had been a maid for our ambassador, she served Dandelion salad and told us it was healthy because it - you know - erm - water?
- Oh, I said - I thought it was marinade.
Our father didn't know what to say - but in the end he smiled a little - and kept eating so as not to disappoint his daughter. It's what fathers do

The summit of Mount Haleakala (Maui) is one of the most desolate places I've ever been to. nevertheless, there are dandelions and Monarch butterflies up there. They are doing fine.

Many environmentalists seem to approve of dandelions. They hold down the soil, provide nectar for pollinators, and provide an entertaining show for children when they release their fluffy seeds. We have native flowers that look a lot like them, called "False dandelions." Nature must have liked the model enough to repeat it.

MS sends his apologies again for not being here much of late, the weather where he is is still playing havoc on his health a bit.
So he's having to stay indoors a tad more - back as soon as!

Astronomer and science educator, Phil Plait (aka Bad Astronomer), often uses the exclamatory phrase "Holy Haleakala".

I assume it's also an ideal place for star gazing.

Hi Prof please send best wishes to MS he is missed

You need extra sun protection when you're on top of Haleakala. Being so close to the Equator, and so high up, the rays can fry you.

I need extra sun protection just reading that sentence!



+=

You are also closer to the Equator than I am. They say that the Sun's rays get weaker and weaker in the Winter as you get north of Boston -- not even strong enough to help produce Vitamin D.

My favourite barman's prescribed him extra D-vitamins the minute he heard what his occupation was. He's indoor all day the year round and in the winter it's dark when he start w*rking and dark when he goes home late in the afternoon.

Sensible

I have to take vitamin D supplements, myself. Besides my job, being a lifelong photo-lab rat, I avoid the sun as much as possible. Being a freckled redhead, I got more sunburns in my childhood than most will in their entire lives. I got sun poisoning TWICE!

I really need to see a dermatologist soon. I haven't noticed any specific spots that worry me, and my GP took a quick look and he didn't either, but considering my past there just HAS to be a melanoma on me somewhere.



BG

I'm sorry you can't be a sun-worshiper like me. But even I have limits. I've had skin cancers removed, though none were melanoma.
Mostly I try to save outdoor times until after 6:00 p.m., when the sun isn't so strong. Or I look for shady places. MY backyard is an ideal spot after 3:00 p.m., as it gets dappled, if that. Plus, I get to commune with Jack-in-the-Pulpits, roses, and wild geraniums. There are usually a few bees ambling around, taking their time. My neighbor planted a long row of hostas (hostile lilies? ), which are nothing if not soothing. Soon they'll be blooming, which will keep the bees busy/busier. My neighbor's mulberry tree is loaded with little green berries, so I know the bees worked hard to get the mulberry blossoms pollinated.

When I lived closer to downtown Boston, I enjoyed the courtyard garden at the Boston Public Library. Plants and animals have a great symbiotic relationship: the shade-giving plants need sun, and many animals (like us) need some shade when the sun is brightest.

My zucchinis and beans eat up all the sunlight they can get, and I can enjoy their work.