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I’ve always been fascinated by crow intelligence and at the same time amazed how few people recognize this intelligence especially since, according to some cognitive research, theirs exceeds that of dogs. This video lecture from a writer Joshua Klein, who has been involved with an amateur study of corvid behavior, highlights this.
Of course [...]
More Web Sightings hereBisphenol A or BPA is an important industrial chemical used in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins. The plastics industry maintains that BPA is completely safe. But academic and government researchers say the chemical needs to undergo a new risk assessment.
...Read MorePercholorethylene, commonly known as perc, is used by about 80 percent of U.S. dry cleaners to remove stains and clean clothes.
When first introduced to dry cleaners in the 1930s, little was known about its health effects, and it was considered something of a miracle chemical because it could be aggressive on stains, but was not [...]
...Read MoreThe principle of maximum diversity operates both at the physical and at the mental level. It says that the laws of nature and the initial conditions are such as to make the universe as interesting as possible. As a result, life is possible but not too easy. Always when things are dull, something [...]
I’ve always been fascinated by crow intelligence and at the same time amazed how few people recognize this intelligence especially since, according to some cognitive research, theirs exceeds that of dogs. This video lecture from a writer Joshua Klein, who has been involved with an amateur study of corvid behavior, highlights this.
Of course [...]
Bill McKibben latest book ‘Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future’ was released this month and is definitely something I look forward to. Here is some comments from a positive review in the LA Times:
“Deep economy” is a riff on “deep ecology,” a philosophical and scientific perspective that views humankind as [...]
A conflict is brewing over the Seneca Army Depot in Romulus and two different visions of economic development. And while I’m all in favor of developing alternative energy sources, I’m nonetheless pleased that there is a group vehemently advocating protecting this rare herd of white deer.
Group fears proposed biomass plant in Romulus would endanger [...]
Sunday’s Post-Standard has some decent coverage on the local impacts of Global Warming on upstate New York. (I’ve copied the entire article by Delen Goldberg for archiving below). The print edition also has a half-page insert, “Central New York, Take Note” tabulating a range of local impacts due to global warming that is [...]
The 10th annual Great Backyard Bird begins Friday and continues February 16-19. Audubon and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology are challenging people everywhere to “Count for the Record”. You can take as little as 15 minutes and counts can be submitted on-line. For additional information, go to the Great Backyard Bird Count website: [...]
From USA Today:A three-year study of brook trout populations concludes that the popular sport fish has disappeared or markedly declined in nearly half of the eastern U.S. areas where it once thrived…
“Brook trout are the canary in the coal mine when it comes to water quality,” said Gary Berti of Trout Unlimited in a statement. [...]
Monroe County’s effort to preserve green space is reported in today’s Rochester D&C. In 1996 the Monroe County Environmental Management Council issued a report on The Preservation of Environmentally Sensitive Areas which “prioritized threatened sites in hopes of directing preservation dollars toward parcels deemed most valuable ecologically” in Monroe County. In total 28 [...]
The warm weather finally seems to be settling in to central New York. But with warm weather comes the onslaught of “bugs” – I don’t know why this always catches me off gaurd. Well here’s some economic research that may bolster our appreciation of insects:
Insects are obviously an important part of the U.S. [...]
Racing In The Street posts on some local coyote encounters that have been causing concern. The problem is not limited to Central New York; Phil points to a recent Smithsonian Magazine article that explains this phenomenon – City Slinkers: Why are coyotes, those cunning denizens of the plains and rural west, moving into [...]
In the Feb 06 New York State Conservationist (Feb 2006.Vol.60, Iss. 4; pg. 31), Janice Shafer has a short review of the Birds of New York Field Guide, 2nd edition By Stan Tekiela:
The field guide is color-coded: black, black and white, blue, brown, gray, green, orange, red, white, and yellow. Within each color section, [...]
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