The Connecticut Cat: Pumas in the Eastern United States – Part 2

August 15, 2018 By in environmentalism Tags: , 5 Comments

The time has come for the second post in the collaborative blog series “Pumas in the Eastern United States”. This article was written by Josh Gross from The Jaguar and I encourage you to follow his blog and learn about his work on big cats. Let’s begin.

On June 11, 2011, a car traveling along the Wilbur Cross Parkway in Milford, Connecticut hit an animal that was crossing the road. But this was not a creature that Connecticut motorists were used to encountering: it was a puma (AKA mountain lion, cougar, or Puma concolor). Continue reading →

Eco Blogger Award

August 10, 2018 By in environmentalism Tags: 6 Comments

painting of ferns

Communicating science to the public is a delicate art. Eco Blogger Award commends bloggers who explore environmental topics in their writing, encompassing anything from gardening to wildlife conservation to hiking or even research. Once you are nominated for the award, you can choose to continue the tradition by thanking the person who nominated you, answering the following questions, and nominating 6 other blogs for the award. Here are the questions: Continue reading →

Zero Waste Q&A

August 7, 2018 By in life cycle analysis, recycling, sustainability, zero-waste Tags: 6 Comments

Laura Markley is a PhD student in the department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Syracuse University. Previously, she attended Eastern Connecticut State University for her BS and Lehigh University for her MS in Environmental Earth Science. Her blog focuses on her waste-free living lifestyle. On it, you can find anything from healthy recipes to tips on recycling and even research articles. The following is a Q&A with Laura about her decision to go zero-waste.

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Laura Markley. Photo from Waste-Free PhD.

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Environmental Film Review: “The 100”

August 3, 2018 By in environmental disaster, environmentalism Tags: Leave a comment

The 100 is a science fiction and teen romance mashup series on Netflix that follows a similar plot to LOST and Eureka. A group of teenage delinquents find themselves banished to a post-apocalyptic Earth when their spaceship starts experiencing technical failures. To make matters worse, their parents arrive on the planet shortly after ready to take the reigns and enforce new rules because politics and more infrastructural issues finally made the spaceship unlivable.

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Image from The 100 on Netflix.

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Nature Tattoos

July 30, 2018 By in Conservation, ecology, environmentalism Tags: , 4 Comments

Something you can’t see in my LinkedIn profile picture is my enormous lion tattoo. Or my peace sign tattoo. Or my yin yang, or my sand dollar, or my sun, or my tweety bird. Each one has a special meaning to me, but above all they are signs of my passion for all things nature. In this post I will be taking a break from my science-heavy articles to entertain you with some super cool inks from my friends.

husky mix tattoo Continue reading →

In a Flash

July 25, 2018 By in Evaporation, Physical, Water Purification Tags: , 3 Comments

Multi-stage flash water desalination is a process that turns saltwater into drinkable water. Abbreviated as MSF, this process works by using heat exchangers and condensers to turn water into steam, and then back into water. While this method is unfamiliar in the United States, it is the most common drinking water treatment in Saudia Arabia and other desert biomes such as Kuwait and United Arab Emirates.

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Image of Saudi Arabia from KPMG.

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Kernza

July 17, 2018 By in Agriculture, sustainability Tags: , 2 Comments

50 years pass before intermediate wheatgrass typically experiences die-off. 3 years into its lifespan, the plant infamously stops seeding but continues to grow. 25 years or more could pass before geneticists discover a natural variation of the plant with enough yield to be competitive. These were the numbers spinning around in my head as I took in all the information from researchers at this year’s conference on Kernza.

holding kernza in an experimental crop field in kansas

Holding Kernza in an experimental crop field in Kansas.

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