What the Flux

June 12, 2018 By Jess T. in Air Pollution, Education, graduate school, university Tags: adventure, air, climbing, college, earth, insects, nature, school, university 3 Comments

Climate change and world record atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations are not new topics in mainstream media. An ample source of information on the planet’s current and future conditions is at our fingertips, but a resounding question from curious minds and climate-change deniers alike is: How do we know the climate is changing? We might have a long list of weather patterns at locations around the world, but how do we get them? And how do we make predictions? The answer would be flux towers.

Standing on a flux tower 138 feet in the air.

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Oh, the Places I Go

June 7, 2018 By Jess T. in Chemical, Chlorination, ecology, Education, graduate school, university, Water Purification Tags: city, earth, lake, living, nature, university, water 8 Comments

Map of the lakes from WisContext.

Living in a city situated between two scenic lakes, I had to wonder why my drinking water wasn’t coming from either one of them. Madison, Wisconsin gets its drinking water from a sandstone aquifer that sits 90 to 95 feet below the ground’s surface according to Madison Water Utility. Twenty-two wells and many more pipes intertwine to serve the ever-growing population of this capital city. Continue reading →

Atmospheric Water Generators

April 5, 2018 By Jess T. in Mass Transfer, Physical, Water Purification Tags: college, earth, nature, physics, science, study, university, water 6 Comments

Typical Atmospheric Water Generators (AWGs) don’t work well in environments with low humidity or temperature. Scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found a way to extract water from soil in the driest biome in the world- the desert. Using an air-cooled sorbent-based atmospheric water harvesting device, the research group predicted that over a quarter-liter of water could be extracted per kilogram of metal-organic framework (MOF) each day.

Image from supplementary documents of MIT study.

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The Garbage Patch

April 2, 2018 By Jess T. in Air Pollution, environmental impact, environmentalism, industry, life cycle analysis, recycling Tags: environment, environmental protection, environmentalism, great lakes, ocean, plastic, university, waste, water, writing, zero-waste 6 Comments

After studying the environment at university for four years, I have written over 60 blog posts on environmental issues, formulated a personal memoir on my life as an environmentalist, and maintained a semi-annual environmental news page. Nevertheless, I still haven’t done everything in my power to end environmental issues.

Graphic from Clean Water Action.

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Hello, Madison!

March 5, 2018 By Jess T. in Education, environmentalism, geography, graduate school Tags: college, eco, environment, environmental, graduate, green, nature, school, science, study, sustainability, thesis, travel, university, wisconsin, writing 20 Comments

Map of Wisconsin from Google Earth.

The pain of waiting for an answer is over: I’ve been accepted to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to study Land Resources. The bustling capital city is located between two frequently-kayaked and very fishable lakes, Monona and Mendota. The city is sustainable in that biking and walking are the main methods of transportation, and places to eat, live, study, and be entertained are all very close to each other. A highly centralized city like Madison is a great environment for a grad student without a car, such as myself. The average apartment here rents for around $800/month but according to students, the price of living is increasing as people are discovering this secret city. Here are some pictures from the plane, a map of Wisconsin, and the view of the “West Side” from the top of the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (AOS) building at the University. Continue reading →

Grad School Purgatory

January 3, 2018 By Jess T. in Education, graduate school, industry Tags: college, earth, Education, environment, grad school, graduation, high school, higher education, nature, science, university 4 Comments

Since urban dictionary doesn’t quite spell it out for you, I will: This is when applications have been completed and sent, but there is neither an acceptance nor rejection from anyone. There is little to no knowledge of when an answer will arrive, if ever. This is grad school purgatory.

Michael Scott from Giphy.com.

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Interview: Michael Oppenheimer

July 24, 2017 By Jess T. in Education, environmental impact, environmentalism Tags: astronomy, climate change, Education, environmentalism, higher education, university 11 Comments

Recently I had the unique opportunity to interview renowned climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer. We met at the Hubbard Brook Annual Conference following his motivational speech. Dr. Oppenheimer is not only a professor of Geo-Sciences and International Affairs at Princeton, but also is a former member of the Environmental Defense Fund, and has an active role in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He attained an undergraduate degree in Chemistry and a PhD in Chemical Physics, but is also versed in Atomic and Molecular Astrophysics and has even taught Astronomy at Harvard. Oppenheimer is able to speak about climate change in such a way that he has been a guest on several significant shows such as Oprah Winfrey, ABC News, and the Colbert Report. Aside from his credentials Dr. Oppenheimer is actually a very humble and inspiring person. Once you speak to him you will find he is quite delightful.

Dr. Oppenheimer is an astute climate scientist, but was also very warm and welcoming to undergraduates Jessica Turner (left) and Brandon Colon (right)

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environmentally conscious and proud of it.

Tag Archives: university

What the Flux

Oh, the Places I Go

Atmospheric Water Generators

The Garbage Patch

Hello, Madison!

Grad School Purgatory

Interview: Michael Oppenheimer