Sometimes the most important truth can be hidden in plain sight. There are over 250,000 flowering plants that have been described. That is probably a modest estimate, but I am not a Botanist and don’t want to over-sell. There are over 750,000 insects described. That number is actually much bigger and is expected to go over a million. Together this means that two thirds of all life forms are monopolized by these two groups. This is not an accident. These two groups of living things live together in an intimate way. Flowering plants could not exist without the service of insects to aid them in sexual reproduction, which we call pollination. And most insects could not exist without the shelter, surface, and food (nectar, pollen and plant parts) provided by the plants.
This concept of living together is a delicate and changing arrangement. Sometimes this balance between organisms is upset and we call the result predation, or parasitism, or disease, or extinction, or some other term. The problem is that it is very difficult to know what will upset the balance between any two or three organisms. How do we know what to avoid or how to avoid it. It is akin to a complex structure built out of toothpicks. It is hard to predict which tooth pick can be removed and which cannot without causing the collapse of the whole system. Generally humans don’t have a clue what we are doing in this regard
Mankind has put a lot of energy into killing insects. Ironically mankind relies heavily on the flowering plants for food and fiber. High mountain peaches, cherries, apples, pears, and apricots are just a few of the hundreds of plants we find desirable that rely on insects. So if plants need insects, and insects need plants, and man needs plants, then doesn’t man need insects?
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Friday, October 9, 2009
TO BEE, OR NOT TO BEE
The Natives are restless and, like their human counterparts, their land is being taken from them. I’m not speaking of the Algonquin, Sioux or Navajo. I am speaking about tribes with names like Megachilidae, Colletidae, Osmia, and Bombus. These are tribes of the Native bees of North America. They have lived here for centuries prior to the invasion of the European interlopers, the Honey bee. There are somewhere between 3500 and 4000 species of Native bees in North America. That means that all pollination done in North and South America prior to the 1600’s was accomplished by these little known creatures.
They are cataloged and typed by several different names. Sometimes they are collectively called “pollen bees” because they carry far more pollen than honey bees. They are also known as “solitary bees” because they do not form large colonies. Each female develops her own nest without honey stores or workers. They are largely invisible to the average person, but of huge significance to the world. There are so many different types of these Native bees that it is hard to talk about them all at once. But there are a few simple facts that are relative to most.
Perhaps most importantly, Native bees are highly efficient pollinators. They often do the lion's share of pollinating crops, although this is not always recognized or appreciated. They have a number of advantages over honeybees as pollinators.
• Many are active early in the spring, before honey bee colonies reach large
size.
• Native bees are active earlier in the day and later in the afternoon than
honeybees, thus providing more pollination time.
• Native bees tend to stay in a crop rather than fly between crops, providing
more efficient pollination.
• Native bees seldom forage more than a couple of hundred yards from their
nest, whereas Honey bees may travel many miles.
• Because they fly faster than honeybees, they can pollinate more plants.
• Unlike honeybees, the males also pollinate the crop.
• Native bees are usually gentle, and do not sting since they have no honey
stores to defend. When they do sting, it is mild.
• Many native bees do not get disoriented in greenhouses.
Because of these differences, many Native bees are far more efficient pollinators than honey bees. Some experts suggest they accomplish more than 100 times what the Honey bee does. For example 250 Mason bees can pollinate one acre of apples. The same job would generally require a honeybee hive of about 20,000 bees.
Native bees have been shown to increase crop yields when they are present. Over 50 species of native bees specialize in plants such as watermelon or sunflower and over 80 species have been shown to be involved in berry crop pollination in Maine and Massachusetts. Native bees tripled the production of cherry tomatoes in one study in California. Many of these crops simply would not exist without native bees.
Often, growers don't realize how much pollination is performed by native bees. Signs of inadequate pollination are often misinterpreted as weather problems or disease. In one study it was found that of the 1700 bees trapped, only 34 were honeybees. This means that Native bees were performing almost all of the pollination in that area. Experts suggest that the economic value of pollination by Native bees greatly outweighs the traditional value of honey and wax produced by honeybees.
The drastic decline in feral and domestic honey bees has made it even more important to conserve and study wild bee populations.
The number of Native bees has also declined, but the reasons for these declines appear to be different from honey bees and are not well understood. Though some Native bees can be managed and used in commercial agriculture, most of them are regional. We do not know enough yet about their biology to know why they are declining, or how to manage them effectively.
So the fading drum beat of declining natives is once again affecting the North American continent. Likewise there may be serious consequences to the conqueror. However, if we can understand and preserve these native tribes, we may, at the same time, better feed the world. Towards this end biologists at Mesa State College will be collecting, identifying and attempting to culture local species of native bees in the future.
They are cataloged and typed by several different names. Sometimes they are collectively called “pollen bees” because they carry far more pollen than honey bees. They are also known as “solitary bees” because they do not form large colonies. Each female develops her own nest without honey stores or workers. They are largely invisible to the average person, but of huge significance to the world. There are so many different types of these Native bees that it is hard to talk about them all at once. But there are a few simple facts that are relative to most.
Perhaps most importantly, Native bees are highly efficient pollinators. They often do the lion's share of pollinating crops, although this is not always recognized or appreciated. They have a number of advantages over honeybees as pollinators.
• Many are active early in the spring, before honey bee colonies reach large
size.
• Native bees are active earlier in the day and later in the afternoon than
honeybees, thus providing more pollination time.
• Native bees tend to stay in a crop rather than fly between crops, providing
more efficient pollination.
• Native bees seldom forage more than a couple of hundred yards from their
nest, whereas Honey bees may travel many miles.
• Because they fly faster than honeybees, they can pollinate more plants.
• Unlike honeybees, the males also pollinate the crop.
• Native bees are usually gentle, and do not sting since they have no honey
stores to defend. When they do sting, it is mild.
• Many native bees do not get disoriented in greenhouses.
Because of these differences, many Native bees are far more efficient pollinators than honey bees. Some experts suggest they accomplish more than 100 times what the Honey bee does. For example 250 Mason bees can pollinate one acre of apples. The same job would generally require a honeybee hive of about 20,000 bees.
Native bees have been shown to increase crop yields when they are present. Over 50 species of native bees specialize in plants such as watermelon or sunflower and over 80 species have been shown to be involved in berry crop pollination in Maine and Massachusetts. Native bees tripled the production of cherry tomatoes in one study in California. Many of these crops simply would not exist without native bees.
Often, growers don't realize how much pollination is performed by native bees. Signs of inadequate pollination are often misinterpreted as weather problems or disease. In one study it was found that of the 1700 bees trapped, only 34 were honeybees. This means that Native bees were performing almost all of the pollination in that area. Experts suggest that the economic value of pollination by Native bees greatly outweighs the traditional value of honey and wax produced by honeybees.
The drastic decline in feral and domestic honey bees has made it even more important to conserve and study wild bee populations.
The number of Native bees has also declined, but the reasons for these declines appear to be different from honey bees and are not well understood. Though some Native bees can be managed and used in commercial agriculture, most of them are regional. We do not know enough yet about their biology to know why they are declining, or how to manage them effectively.
So the fading drum beat of declining natives is once again affecting the North American continent. Likewise there may be serious consequences to the conqueror. However, if we can understand and preserve these native tribes, we may, at the same time, better feed the world. Towards this end biologists at Mesa State College will be collecting, identifying and attempting to culture local species of native bees in the future.
Monday, October 5, 2009
ART AND SCIENCE
Science is uniquely concerned with physical things. Historically science is born of questions such as: How many are there? Why do apples fall down? How does a falling thing fall? What shape is it? How big is it. How much does it weigh? Why does that object act that way? This requires scientists to restrict their attention to a limited single object and study that one object carefully.
This study may require tremendous physical skill and special techniques. The scientist may have to invent new methods and perfect new skills to conduct his studies. Often numerous studies are done which simply attempt to establish a pattern or direction. But from this careful, and sometimes lengthy, study the scientist attempts to distil some kind of general understanding about the object or event that they have studied.
This general understanding is sometimes called a theory. As it becomes more reliable and useful, it is sometimes is called a Law. These general ideas can then be used to compare other similar objects, evaluate the theory further, and make predictions about events under certain conditions.
But the overall conclusion is that scientists tend to begin with some real-world physical object or phenomenon and conclude with a general idea. They turn the world of reality into the world of imagination and thought.
In contrast, art appears to be concerned with ideas. Much of art, including visual art, music, language arts and performance, appears to be born from such matters as: religious concepts, political movements, cultural characteristics, imaginary events or social ideals. This requires the artist to restrict their attention and focus on a specific idea they wish to explore.
This exploration may require an extended period of time to consider all the ramifications of the idea they wish to explore. This is followed by an extended period of time when the artist may have to invent new methods and exert considerable skill in his chosen medium to produce a model. Often the artist may make several models or attempts to capture the ideas he is contemplating.
In the end the artist creates a physical object which represents his view of the purely ethereal idea he has been contemplating. The important thing is that the end product is a function of the physical world. It may be visual, audible, or palpable; but it is real. This object can then be used to test the accuracy of the artists (and societies) understanding of the idea, explore the ramifications of the idea, explain the idea more fully to others, or even test the truthfulness of the idea.
But the overall conclusion is that artists tend to begin with some non-physical idea and conclude with a real object or physical manifestation that can be detected by the senses. They turn the imaginary world of ideas into reality.
It seems that both groups of people are concerned with understanding our world, arriving at some form of truth and increasing understanding. Even the skills and talents involved are very similar in a general sense. What appears significantly different is that they initiate their mental journeys from separate starting points.
Unfortunately, because of their opposite trajectories, scientists and artists often see themselves as in conflict. Understanding similarities enriches each field significantly. This can be especially powerful in educational endeavors where numerous studies and pilot projects have shown that using one approaches to study the other is especially effective.
For example, having students write about math or science has increased understanding for many students. Writing computer programs that artistically animates scientific phenomenon has proven animate to be an excellent learning tool. The discipline of assigning an artist to explore a specific scientific concept in an art class leads to greater understanding of both art and science.
The world appears to need fewer engineers and poets, and far more people who understand the relationship between ideas and objects. The creation of ideas has an effect on the physical world. The creation of objects has an effect on the creation of ideas.
This study may require tremendous physical skill and special techniques. The scientist may have to invent new methods and perfect new skills to conduct his studies. Often numerous studies are done which simply attempt to establish a pattern or direction. But from this careful, and sometimes lengthy, study the scientist attempts to distil some kind of general understanding about the object or event that they have studied.
This general understanding is sometimes called a theory. As it becomes more reliable and useful, it is sometimes is called a Law. These general ideas can then be used to compare other similar objects, evaluate the theory further, and make predictions about events under certain conditions.
But the overall conclusion is that scientists tend to begin with some real-world physical object or phenomenon and conclude with a general idea. They turn the world of reality into the world of imagination and thought.
In contrast, art appears to be concerned with ideas. Much of art, including visual art, music, language arts and performance, appears to be born from such matters as: religious concepts, political movements, cultural characteristics, imaginary events or social ideals. This requires the artist to restrict their attention and focus on a specific idea they wish to explore.
This exploration may require an extended period of time to consider all the ramifications of the idea they wish to explore. This is followed by an extended period of time when the artist may have to invent new methods and exert considerable skill in his chosen medium to produce a model. Often the artist may make several models or attempts to capture the ideas he is contemplating.
In the end the artist creates a physical object which represents his view of the purely ethereal idea he has been contemplating. The important thing is that the end product is a function of the physical world. It may be visual, audible, or palpable; but it is real. This object can then be used to test the accuracy of the artists (and societies) understanding of the idea, explore the ramifications of the idea, explain the idea more fully to others, or even test the truthfulness of the idea.
But the overall conclusion is that artists tend to begin with some non-physical idea and conclude with a real object or physical manifestation that can be detected by the senses. They turn the imaginary world of ideas into reality.
It seems that both groups of people are concerned with understanding our world, arriving at some form of truth and increasing understanding. Even the skills and talents involved are very similar in a general sense. What appears significantly different is that they initiate their mental journeys from separate starting points.
Unfortunately, because of their opposite trajectories, scientists and artists often see themselves as in conflict. Understanding similarities enriches each field significantly. This can be especially powerful in educational endeavors where numerous studies and pilot projects have shown that using one approaches to study the other is especially effective.
For example, having students write about math or science has increased understanding for many students. Writing computer programs that artistically animates scientific phenomenon has proven animate to be an excellent learning tool. The discipline of assigning an artist to explore a specific scientific concept in an art class leads to greater understanding of both art and science.
The world appears to need fewer engineers and poets, and far more people who understand the relationship between ideas and objects. The creation of ideas has an effect on the physical world. The creation of objects has an effect on the creation of ideas.
Friday, September 25, 2009
CHOICES
I am working on several projects besides my day job right now. One of them is a fantasy novel and another is a music CD about Adam and Eve and the garden. I write on my novel everyday. I wrote and arranged all the music last year so I basically only work on the music about once a week in the studio.
In my novel I just wrote a scene last night in which a person is offered everything they could possibly want, riches, fame , adulation, power. On the other hand they could choose a canteen of cold water and a sword. The soldier, knowing her own values, chose the canteen and sword.
In the night I awoke (literally) with the realization that was exactly the choice placed before Adam and Eve. This thought has haunted me all day as I have wondered in my mind, in between classes and at slow moments, if I know who I am and what I would choose. Do I make music and write for fame, adulation, riches and power? Or are words and music my canteen and weapon? What is worrying me is, I am not sure I know.
In my novel I just wrote a scene last night in which a person is offered everything they could possibly want, riches, fame , adulation, power. On the other hand they could choose a canteen of cold water and a sword. The soldier, knowing her own values, chose the canteen and sword.
In the night I awoke (literally) with the realization that was exactly the choice placed before Adam and Eve. This thought has haunted me all day as I have wondered in my mind, in between classes and at slow moments, if I know who I am and what I would choose. Do I make music and write for fame, adulation, riches and power? Or are words and music my canteen and weapon? What is worrying me is, I am not sure I know.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
SWEET MEDICINE
In 1976 my wife and I were involved in a head-on collision that left me semi-scalped from my eyebrows to about half-way back on my head. It looked pretty awful but was actually not a serious injury. The doctors sent me home with instructions to apply hydrogen peroxide to the wound several times each day to avoid infection.
Hydrogen peroxide is a compound that has two molecules of hydrogen and two molecules of oxygen. That makes it the same as water, except that it has one extra oxygen. When it is applied to injured human tissue, it is exposed to an enzyme that liberates the extra oxygen, leaving water and a single oxygen floating around. That single oxygen is highly reactive and attaches itself to any bacteria in the wound and damages the bacteria’s cell membrane, killing the bacteria. The oxygen that is released, however, causes the tissue to foam in a dramatic way.
On the first morning after the accident my young children were talking to me about what had happened as I applied the hydrogen peroxide to my forehead. They watched in horror as my entire forehead foamed up with hydrogen peroxide. They were both fascinated and appalled. The fascination proved to be the bigger factor as they insisted on being present for every subsequent application. I became the only Dad they had ever heard of with a foaming head. In fact, they asked if they could bring their neighborhood friends to watch. Sensibly, I did not allow this.
“But what does hydrogen peroxide have to do with honey?” you ask. It turns out that honey has the necessary components to produce miniscule amounts of hydrogen peroxide over an extended period of time. Honey is about 30% glucose. But it also contains glucose oxidase, an enzyme from the stomach of bees that is secreted into honey by the bee. This enzyme, in the presence of oxygen and water, can break glucose down into gluconic acid and hydrogen peroxide.
However, this enzyme does not function in honey because the pH of honey is too low. Honey generally has a pH reading somewhere between
3 and 4.5, and glucose oxidase requires a pH of about 6. Also, for glucose oxidase to function requires at least 2300 parts per million (ppm) of sodium to be present. Honey usually has only about 30 ppm. So good clean honey, stored in a proper container, is stable with no reaction occurring.
Human tissues contain an abundance of sodium, and the pH is generally slightly more than 7. If honey is applied to injured human tissue, the pH is slowly raised where the honey comes in contact with the injured skin. The abundance of salt in the body combines to activate the glucose oxidase. This causes the honey to produce minute doses of hydrogen peroxide over an extended period of time, directly to the place where it may be needed to combat possible infection. However, the honey isn’t as fun to watch as the hydrogen peroxide because you miss the foaming part.
Honey is also a supersaturated sugar solution and will not support the growth of bacteria because it pulls the water out of any bacteria present. Honey’s low pH also creates an environment that inhibits most bacteria growth. Finally, some honey has been shown to contain anti-bacterial compounds isolated from the floral nectars. In all, honey can be used as a home remedy for dressing wounds.
As you might guess, honey varies in its medicinal effectiveness, depending on the floral source of the honey and other factors such as water content, glucose content, glucose oxidase content, and other parameters. Some honeys, such as Manuka Honey from New Zealand, have greater medicinal properties than others. This lack of uniformity is one reason why honey isn’t used more aggressively in regular medical treatment.
Well, that, plus the fact that the honey is far less exciting to watch than plain hydrogen peroxide!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
HEALTH CARE
I’ve been trying to decide if I am healthy or not. Of course, I’ve been blind since the third grade, but it hasn’t really hampered me a lot. That’s because I wear glasses. Part of the health care industry I suppose. I have high blood pressure, but with the little pills I can still run for over an hour and climb to Hanging Lake. My left thumb aches now when I play the mandolin or guitar too much. But I always considered Ibuprofen the breakfast of champions.
So, if I am coping and working and being productive, am I healthy? I certainly don’t feel sick or diseased. So with all the discussion going on about fixing our health care system, I have been trying to decide if I need it. Just exactly what is the health care system?
So I Googled the definition and found several different ones, but most of them sounded something like this: the condition of being sound in body, mind, or spirit; especially: freedom from physical disease or pain. Having looked this up before, I wasn’t too surprised. The problem with this definition is that it hardly anyone I know qualifies. I mean, is near- sightedness a disease? How about guitar induced inflammation? It hurts.
So if health is defined more or less as the absence of disease, what then is disease? So I looked that up. “Disease is a condition of the living animal or plant body or of one of its parts that impairs normal functioning and is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms.” In other words, disease is the state of being unhealthy.
I find it odd that a country would spend such a huge amount of money on an industry that cannot be defined accept in terms of itself. No one seems to know what the health care industry is for.
Is it to keep us from dying? That isn’t possible. The earth is a finite resource and cannot support an infinite number of living things of any kind. Is the health care system about preventing disease? That too is impossible. For one thing death comes at the hand of disease and since death comes to all men we cannot prevent disease.
More significantly not all diseases are alike. Infectious diseases are probably a part of biology. From the earliest imagine life form, living things have required a surface to live on. When surface area became crowded the next most logical step was to simply live on top of some other living thing. And living things living on living things is a perfect description of infectious disease. It’s just biology. But there are other kinds of disease such as physiological diseases. These are diseases that are the result of mechanical type malfunctions in machinery, whether due to use or simply being constructed incorrectly by the blind forces of development. In these types of disease cells may go awry, systems may malfunction, parts may not fit, or accidents happen that misalign pieces.
Perhaps the reform we need is to define what the Health Care Industry really is. How can we tell if something is broke if we don’t know what it does? How can we know how to fix something if we don’t know what it does? Or maybe some people really don’t care what it is supposed to do. Maybe there are other reasons to dabble with a third of the nation’s gross national product.
So, if I am coping and working and being productive, am I healthy? I certainly don’t feel sick or diseased. So with all the discussion going on about fixing our health care system, I have been trying to decide if I need it. Just exactly what is the health care system?
So I Googled the definition and found several different ones, but most of them sounded something like this: the condition of being sound in body, mind, or spirit; especially: freedom from physical disease or pain. Having looked this up before, I wasn’t too surprised. The problem with this definition is that it hardly anyone I know qualifies. I mean, is near- sightedness a disease? How about guitar induced inflammation? It hurts.
So if health is defined more or less as the absence of disease, what then is disease? So I looked that up. “Disease is a condition of the living animal or plant body or of one of its parts that impairs normal functioning and is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms.” In other words, disease is the state of being unhealthy.
I find it odd that a country would spend such a huge amount of money on an industry that cannot be defined accept in terms of itself. No one seems to know what the health care industry is for.
Is it to keep us from dying? That isn’t possible. The earth is a finite resource and cannot support an infinite number of living things of any kind. Is the health care system about preventing disease? That too is impossible. For one thing death comes at the hand of disease and since death comes to all men we cannot prevent disease.
More significantly not all diseases are alike. Infectious diseases are probably a part of biology. From the earliest imagine life form, living things have required a surface to live on. When surface area became crowded the next most logical step was to simply live on top of some other living thing. And living things living on living things is a perfect description of infectious disease. It’s just biology. But there are other kinds of disease such as physiological diseases. These are diseases that are the result of mechanical type malfunctions in machinery, whether due to use or simply being constructed incorrectly by the blind forces of development. In these types of disease cells may go awry, systems may malfunction, parts may not fit, or accidents happen that misalign pieces.
Perhaps the reform we need is to define what the Health Care Industry really is. How can we tell if something is broke if we don’t know what it does? How can we know how to fix something if we don’t know what it does? Or maybe some people really don’t care what it is supposed to do. Maybe there are other reasons to dabble with a third of the nation’s gross national product.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
DEBT IS BONDAGE
(I initiated this blog to discuss science ideas and concepts. However, after taking the summer off, I find that science education does not seem to be the most pressing issue in my mind. I apologize if you came here for scientific enlightenment, but this entry will deal with a more pressing issue; FREEDOM.)
Debt is bondage. When you owe money on your car you are not free to buy another car. When you owe too much on your credit card you are not free to use your credit card for an emergency expense. When you owe money on your home you are not free to quit your job or move to another state. For a long time Americans have been prosperous enough to work around these limitations to a degree, but it does not change the fact that when a person owes money they are not totally free.
The crime that has been committed by the elected representatives in this country, for more than fifty years now, has been to slowly place the nation into debt. This debt has been accumulated for multiple reasons, many for seemingly good and kind humanitarian reasons. The reasons do not matter. We have spent money we did not have and borrowed to make up the difference. We can argue about the causes of these actions and the needs that have been addressed, but the bottom line is that now the United States is massively in debt. Now the United States is in bondage.
We would never have allowed a foreign invader to put us in bondage. But we have sold our liberty, and the liberty of our children, for questionable causes. Of course it is good to care for the poor. It is admirable to respect our elders. It is compassionate to care for the sick. But if I borrow money to donate to the needy, however that is defined; I will soon be a slave to my creditors.
Every responsible citizen knows they cannot have everything they want. Every successful household has discussions concerning what is wanted and what is needed. This is how reasonable people run their lives to avoid slavery and bondage. Can it really be true that different economic realities and rules exist for governments and world order? Of course not.
The argument has been for many years, and by every political party, that we need to be compassionate and we need to be efficient. Liberty has never been either. Liberty has been cruel and caused the death and suffering of millions who seek it. Liberty has always been messy and costly. Yet, among all men, it is the one attribute desired uniformly, regardless of culture, religion, or creed.
Americans may still be brave. But we are no longer free. We have allowed our elected representatives to again and again make foolish decisions that have left us debtors and in bondage. I do not know the motives of these many men and women who have participated. Some have resisted, but most have not. I will not say that they are wicked, evil, well meaning, idealistic, or selfish. It doesn’t really matter. The end result is that I am not longer a freeman.
The only sensible solution is the one every responsible person recognizes and applies in their life daily. Carefully manage our affairs. Do not spend what we do not have. Save some money for emergencies. Do not invest in new and risky ventures. Work hard and be frugal until the debt is paid. Deny one-self of many niceties in order to assure the necessities. Are there any candidates running for office today with these values and the ability to live by them when elected?
Debt is bondage. When you owe money on your car you are not free to buy another car. When you owe too much on your credit card you are not free to use your credit card for an emergency expense. When you owe money on your home you are not free to quit your job or move to another state. For a long time Americans have been prosperous enough to work around these limitations to a degree, but it does not change the fact that when a person owes money they are not totally free.
The crime that has been committed by the elected representatives in this country, for more than fifty years now, has been to slowly place the nation into debt. This debt has been accumulated for multiple reasons, many for seemingly good and kind humanitarian reasons. The reasons do not matter. We have spent money we did not have and borrowed to make up the difference. We can argue about the causes of these actions and the needs that have been addressed, but the bottom line is that now the United States is massively in debt. Now the United States is in bondage.
We would never have allowed a foreign invader to put us in bondage. But we have sold our liberty, and the liberty of our children, for questionable causes. Of course it is good to care for the poor. It is admirable to respect our elders. It is compassionate to care for the sick. But if I borrow money to donate to the needy, however that is defined; I will soon be a slave to my creditors.
Every responsible citizen knows they cannot have everything they want. Every successful household has discussions concerning what is wanted and what is needed. This is how reasonable people run their lives to avoid slavery and bondage. Can it really be true that different economic realities and rules exist for governments and world order? Of course not.
The argument has been for many years, and by every political party, that we need to be compassionate and we need to be efficient. Liberty has never been either. Liberty has been cruel and caused the death and suffering of millions who seek it. Liberty has always been messy and costly. Yet, among all men, it is the one attribute desired uniformly, regardless of culture, religion, or creed.
Americans may still be brave. But we are no longer free. We have allowed our elected representatives to again and again make foolish decisions that have left us debtors and in bondage. I do not know the motives of these many men and women who have participated. Some have resisted, but most have not. I will not say that they are wicked, evil, well meaning, idealistic, or selfish. It doesn’t really matter. The end result is that I am not longer a freeman.
The only sensible solution is the one every responsible person recognizes and applies in their life daily. Carefully manage our affairs. Do not spend what we do not have. Save some money for emergencies. Do not invest in new and risky ventures. Work hard and be frugal until the debt is paid. Deny one-self of many niceties in order to assure the necessities. Are there any candidates running for office today with these values and the ability to live by them when elected?
Sunday, August 2, 2009
LUNCH WITH BLOODSUCKERS
When I was young I reveled in Edgar Rice Burroughs “Tarzan” books. I don’t know if I read all twenty three or not, but I read a lot of them. And while I didn’t exactly know what a tsetse fly was then, I knew it was dreaded and carried deadly disease. So I was excited years later when I found myself in a class studying African sleeping sickness, transmitted by the “dreaded tsetse fly”.
Tsetse flies are large flies, about the size of our western horsefly, that are only found in Africa. They feed during the day, and both males and females feed exclusively on blood. In feeding they transmit a microscopic parasite called a Trypanosome that in turn causes African Sleeping Sickness.
Now, there is a great fascination by young boys, of almost any age, with gory things like blood sucking. It is a recent phenomenon that so many young girls and women have become interested in blood sucking.
One fascinating subject is how a blood sucking insect finds its food. It is surprising to me how little is known about the insect food-selection process.
It quickly becomes apparent that the simple act of getting lunch, is actually a multistep, multisensory, complex, interaction of senses, behaviors and environmental cues for an insect. For example, how does an insect even know when it’s time to eat? It is generally thought that mosquitoes feed at dusk. But how do they know when it is dusk? Is it by day length and light? That certainly seems to be one cue. However, mosquitoes kept in captivity will become restless, act “hungry”, and feed when kept in constant light conditions, if presented with other cues. Then there are those species that feed at two in the morning; you know the one that wakes you up with that dreaded buzzing in your ear.
Blood sucking insects can’t really expect dinner to remain in a fixed position until the next meal, like a McDonald’s resteraunt. So how do they locate a blood source? It is commonly thought that they follow a carbon dioxide plume, but carbon dioxide is actually only an exciter. The mosquitoes get excited whenever the concentration of carbon dioxide changes, whether it increases or decreases. They don’t follow the carbon dioxide as much as they react to it. Since carbon dioxide levels fluxuate continually, why don’t they react then? When presented with several selections on the menu, why do they always pick me? How do they decide between an arm and a leg, and which position on the arm is most attractive? The questions seem endless.
This is all complicated by the fact that there are over 3000 species of mosquito in the world and each has its own peculiar time, place, and preferred host for feeding.
Now for the amazing part: only half of mosquitoes take a blood meal, the females. The males feed entirely on plant sources of sugar. Females only require blood during reproduction. The rest of the time she lives on plant nectar also. So various floral and plant sources provide the great bulk of day-to-day mosquito energy needs. Yet our knowledge of when, where, why, and how they seek floral nectars is minimal.
Better understanding of the feeding habits of blood sucking insects would aid in the development of better control strategies, and improved disease prevention since most blood sucking insects are capable of transmitting disease. Answering questions like “How do tsetse flies know when it is dinnertime?” and “What flowers do mosquitoes prefer?” are what biologists do.
I have a couple of ideas about how to answer these questions. If you’re interested, wait until you are moved upon by some mysterious change in the carbon dioxide concentration and give me a call. We’ll do lunch.
Tsetse flies are large flies, about the size of our western horsefly, that are only found in Africa. They feed during the day, and both males and females feed exclusively on blood. In feeding they transmit a microscopic parasite called a Trypanosome that in turn causes African Sleeping Sickness.
Now, there is a great fascination by young boys, of almost any age, with gory things like blood sucking. It is a recent phenomenon that so many young girls and women have become interested in blood sucking.
One fascinating subject is how a blood sucking insect finds its food. It is surprising to me how little is known about the insect food-selection process.
It quickly becomes apparent that the simple act of getting lunch, is actually a multistep, multisensory, complex, interaction of senses, behaviors and environmental cues for an insect. For example, how does an insect even know when it’s time to eat? It is generally thought that mosquitoes feed at dusk. But how do they know when it is dusk? Is it by day length and light? That certainly seems to be one cue. However, mosquitoes kept in captivity will become restless, act “hungry”, and feed when kept in constant light conditions, if presented with other cues. Then there are those species that feed at two in the morning; you know the one that wakes you up with that dreaded buzzing in your ear.
Blood sucking insects can’t really expect dinner to remain in a fixed position until the next meal, like a McDonald’s resteraunt. So how do they locate a blood source? It is commonly thought that they follow a carbon dioxide plume, but carbon dioxide is actually only an exciter. The mosquitoes get excited whenever the concentration of carbon dioxide changes, whether it increases or decreases. They don’t follow the carbon dioxide as much as they react to it. Since carbon dioxide levels fluxuate continually, why don’t they react then? When presented with several selections on the menu, why do they always pick me? How do they decide between an arm and a leg, and which position on the arm is most attractive? The questions seem endless.
This is all complicated by the fact that there are over 3000 species of mosquito in the world and each has its own peculiar time, place, and preferred host for feeding.
Now for the amazing part: only half of mosquitoes take a blood meal, the females. The males feed entirely on plant sources of sugar. Females only require blood during reproduction. The rest of the time she lives on plant nectar also. So various floral and plant sources provide the great bulk of day-to-day mosquito energy needs. Yet our knowledge of when, where, why, and how they seek floral nectars is minimal.
Better understanding of the feeding habits of blood sucking insects would aid in the development of better control strategies, and improved disease prevention since most blood sucking insects are capable of transmitting disease. Answering questions like “How do tsetse flies know when it is dinnertime?” and “What flowers do mosquitoes prefer?” are what biologists do.
I have a couple of ideas about how to answer these questions. If you’re interested, wait until you are moved upon by some mysterious change in the carbon dioxide concentration and give me a call. We’ll do lunch.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
END OF TERM
There is an unexpected loneliness in the room
Light is filtered by dust and mineral spots
And diffused through plastic grids
The air smells of dust
Flecks of dry skin from a year of study
And the unwanted dirt from dry boots, shoes and sandals
Outside there is unexpected companionship
Insects visit flowers and birds visit insects
Even a lonely toad on the edge of the wet grass
Finds a cricket for a companion
The gardener’s footprint remains in the moist soil
Loneliness and silence are eternal companions
Gently close the door and join the others.
It is not loneliness in the room
It is an immense emptiness
It's been awhile since I have posted. The end of the semester always gets way to busy, no matter how hard one works at it. School seems as if it should be the least lonely place; everyone crammed together and all engaged in a common cause. Yet it seems lonely after a time. We all look forward to leaving the sterile confines, the mere ideas, the artificial activities and joining the forces of life. That is where true companionship lies. By the end of spring term we begin to wonder, like Mr. Chips, if it all really means anything anyway. It's time to tend the bees, plant the garden, sit in the evening air in companionable silence. I'll get back to science soon. But for now it is time for the heart.
Light is filtered by dust and mineral spots
And diffused through plastic grids
The air smells of dust
Flecks of dry skin from a year of study
And the unwanted dirt from dry boots, shoes and sandals
Outside there is unexpected companionship
Insects visit flowers and birds visit insects
Even a lonely toad on the edge of the wet grass
Finds a cricket for a companion
The gardener’s footprint remains in the moist soil
Loneliness and silence are eternal companions
Gently close the door and join the others.
It is not loneliness in the room
It is an immense emptiness
It's been awhile since I have posted. The end of the semester always gets way to busy, no matter how hard one works at it. School seems as if it should be the least lonely place; everyone crammed together and all engaged in a common cause. Yet it seems lonely after a time. We all look forward to leaving the sterile confines, the mere ideas, the artificial activities and joining the forces of life. That is where true companionship lies. By the end of spring term we begin to wonder, like Mr. Chips, if it all really means anything anyway. It's time to tend the bees, plant the garden, sit in the evening air in companionable silence. I'll get back to science soon. But for now it is time for the heart.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
THE AMOEBOID BRAIN
If you lived on the surface of a rock in a pond and were only about 5 micrometers thick (a micron is 1/1000th of a millimeter), your life would be very different. You couldn't really fall down, since down is an extremely tiny distance. Up wouldn't make much sense either because it is relative to down. There would, of course, be forward and back, if you had some way to tell which was which. If you were quite round it might be more difficult. If you had an elongated shape I suppose you could have a right and left, but if you are more or less amorphous, those two concepts would be just a hazy notion of sideways to some degree or another.
Thus is the life of most amoeba, I suppose. If you find this thought intriguing you might enjoy reading the classic short book by Edwin A. Abbott called "Flatland: a romance of many dimensions". He explores life of a
Yet amoeba can do some amazing things. If you place amoeba in a container and place a food supply in any direction from them, they will all eventually turn and begin to move in that direction. If you place toxic chemicals in their environment, they will move away from the source of irritation. If they like the dark, they can find the deepest shadows.
This is even more amazing. Amoebas grow by simple fusion, dividing in two. If you take a population of any given species of amoeba from some pond and allow them to develop large numbers, and then mix them with another population of the same species but from a different pond, they will live happily together. However, if you then cut off their food supply; they will eventually eat members of the other population, but will starve to death before eating members of their own type. They can recognize their own progeny. I sometimes look at my grand kids and can't even do that.
The amoeboid world is pretty slow as well. All amoebas live in aquatic environments. Life in the fast lane for an amoeba might be a fish swimming by and creating a current. They don't float free in the water normally, but are restricted to their two dimensional world, to which they cling tenaciously with their ever changing arms called pseudopodia. But they know all of this, and if they should be suspended in water by the fishy currents, they cease trying to move until they are safely settled back onto a nice two-dimensional plane.
Living in water, you might expect that they aren't very fast also. One of the faster amoebas around can sprint at speeds of 0.5 to 3.0 micrometers per second. I think that makes their fastest time for a "one millimeter dash" around 5 minutes. However, many amoebas are slower than that. Still they seem to get where they want to go.
You might wonder why it is important to know anything about amoeba. There are actually a lot of reasons, some involving disease, other involving their role in nature and the food chain.
But the reason that I find most interesting is that they seem to be able to do a lot of the things I can do, but with only a single cell. True, they can't do algebra, but then I'm not very good at that either. They don't talk, or at least in an audible language. They do communicate very complicated information chemically. In fact, amoeba can talk to one another. By secreting chemicals, they can tell other amoeba what they are doing and what they want the other amoeba to do. This is exactly what the cells of your brain do: secrete chemicals that communicate with other brain cells. That is exactly what the brain is composed of cells speaking a chemical language to one another.
So do amoebas think? I guess that all depends on what thinking is, and thinking may just not be what you think it is. And amoeba may prove to be more interesting than you think.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
THE CONSEQUENCES OF GETTING YOUR WIRES CROSSED
Imagine you have built a small robot car that is powered by two electric motors, one to each rear wheel. If the right motor revolves more rapidly than the left motor, the car will veer to the left. If the left motor is faster than the right the car will turn right.
Imagine this car has two light sensors on the front of the car, set several inches apart. These light sensors are connected to the motors of the car and control the power to the electric motors such that the more light that hits the sensor the faster the motor turns. The right sensor is connected to the right motor, and the left sensor is connected to the left motor.
Imagine we have placed this car in a darkened gymnasium. It will not move because there is no light. But we have placed a remote controlled light bulb in the center of the floor. When we turn the light on the car will begin to move. However, because of the distance between the two sensors, the amount of light striking the right sensor will be greater than the amount of light striking the left sensor. This will cause the right motor to revolve faster and the car will veer away from the light until it is exactly facing away from the light so that the amount of light to each sensor is equal. It will also go as far away from the light as possible until the sensors are no longer stimulated.
Imagine you are observing this with a friend from the rafters of the gym. Your friend might say something like, “Wow, that thing really doesn’t like the light. It runs and hides. How did you make it do that?” Of course, it doesn’t “like” or “dislike” anything. It’s a robot. It just appears to be a little like a cockroach.
Stay with me here. This is actually very applicable to you.
Imagine you make one small change in your robot; you connect the right sensor to the left motor and the left sensor to the right motor. Then you turn the light off, reposition your robot in the gym, and you resume your perch in the rafters.
When you turn on the light the robot moves, but this time it turns toward the light because the sensor on one side drives the motor on the opposite side. Your friend says, “Oh look, it likes the light and is moving towards it.” But wait, something is drastically wrong. As the robot gets closer and closer to the light, each sensor gets more light, and this makes each motor go faster. The robot hurtles directly at the light with increasing speed. You friend screams, “Look out! It’s attacking!” as the robot hurtles into the light demolishing light and robot in one grand violent act. “Wow!” Your friend observes after a stunned silence. “That robot really hates the light.”
Imagine you painstakingly reassemble your robot. This time you add one more tiny change: a governor on the light sensors so that it increases speed until a certain light intensity is reached. Above that intensity the robot turns off the motor it is wired to.
Meanwhile, back in the gym, this time the robot turns towards the light and rushes towards it as before, but as it gets close it slows, and stops, and sits staring adoringly at the light bulb, never moving a motor. Your friend observes, “Oh look, it’s in love with the light.”
What has this got to do with you and me? Maybe nothing. But cockroaches, and bees, and most insects, have brains that connect to the same side of the body (muscles as motors) as their sensors, whether those are eyes or antennae. You and I have crossed nervous systems. The left brain controls the right side of the body and the other way around. Does that partly explain human aggression? And is the difference between love and violence a simple breakdown of the speed governor, the braking system? I don't know.
Imagine this car has two light sensors on the front of the car, set several inches apart. These light sensors are connected to the motors of the car and control the power to the electric motors such that the more light that hits the sensor the faster the motor turns. The right sensor is connected to the right motor, and the left sensor is connected to the left motor.
Imagine we have placed this car in a darkened gymnasium. It will not move because there is no light. But we have placed a remote controlled light bulb in the center of the floor. When we turn the light on the car will begin to move. However, because of the distance between the two sensors, the amount of light striking the right sensor will be greater than the amount of light striking the left sensor. This will cause the right motor to revolve faster and the car will veer away from the light until it is exactly facing away from the light so that the amount of light to each sensor is equal. It will also go as far away from the light as possible until the sensors are no longer stimulated.
Imagine you are observing this with a friend from the rafters of the gym. Your friend might say something like, “Wow, that thing really doesn’t like the light. It runs and hides. How did you make it do that?” Of course, it doesn’t “like” or “dislike” anything. It’s a robot. It just appears to be a little like a cockroach.
Stay with me here. This is actually very applicable to you.
Imagine you make one small change in your robot; you connect the right sensor to the left motor and the left sensor to the right motor. Then you turn the light off, reposition your robot in the gym, and you resume your perch in the rafters.
When you turn on the light the robot moves, but this time it turns toward the light because the sensor on one side drives the motor on the opposite side. Your friend says, “Oh look, it likes the light and is moving towards it.” But wait, something is drastically wrong. As the robot gets closer and closer to the light, each sensor gets more light, and this makes each motor go faster. The robot hurtles directly at the light with increasing speed. You friend screams, “Look out! It’s attacking!” as the robot hurtles into the light demolishing light and robot in one grand violent act. “Wow!” Your friend observes after a stunned silence. “That robot really hates the light.”
Imagine you painstakingly reassemble your robot. This time you add one more tiny change: a governor on the light sensors so that it increases speed until a certain light intensity is reached. Above that intensity the robot turns off the motor it is wired to.
Meanwhile, back in the gym, this time the robot turns towards the light and rushes towards it as before, but as it gets close it slows, and stops, and sits staring adoringly at the light bulb, never moving a motor. Your friend observes, “Oh look, it’s in love with the light.”
What has this got to do with you and me? Maybe nothing. But cockroaches, and bees, and most insects, have brains that connect to the same side of the body (muscles as motors) as their sensors, whether those are eyes or antennae. You and I have crossed nervous systems. The left brain controls the right side of the body and the other way around. Does that partly explain human aggression? And is the difference between love and violence a simple breakdown of the speed governor, the braking system? I don't know.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND
One of the surprising, but moving experiences of my life was one night when I first watched a cell actually divide in two. We all have learned that cells do this. I had seen television specials, documentaries and teaching films showing cell division. So it was surprising to me that when I actually saw the event myself, I found it profoundly emotional. Maybe that’s just me.
Later I was similarly affected in a class where I had students place corn pollen in a special solution, and we watched the pollen tubes grow before our very eyes. This growth can occur in just minutes and is easily observed under a microscope. Corn pollen can grow up to twelve inches to reach a plants ovary. As I sat at a microscope and watched a mystery of life occur before my eyes, I was surprisingly moved.
Pollen is normally deposited on the stigma of a flowering plant, a structure rising some distance above the ovary (in human terms). The pollen tube grows down to the ovary and bursts, releasing two sperm cells onto the ovary. One sperm cell unites with the ovary to create the embryo. The other sperm cell unites with a special cell to form the endosperm. The endosperm will become the food supply that nourishes the new embryo and/or humans in many instances. We intercede and eat the endosperm of such as plants as wheat, barley, oats, corn, peaches, pears, cherries, apricots, grapes, berries, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, and more.
Getting pollen to the stigma is a bit of a trick for plants since they are generally immobile and can’t get together in some central location to socialize. The process is called pollination, and generally it occurs in one of two ways: either by wind or by an intermediary animal.
Bees are the best known of these pollinators, although not the only ones. And while most folks think honey bees are the best pollinators, this isn’t true. In fact, honey bees are not even native to North America. They were first brought by the early pilgrims and quickly spread out to fill the continent. But prior to that there was a rich population of Native bees on this continent that pollinated everything necessary very efficiently. In fact, North America has one of the richest populations of these solitary bees in the world.
There are approximately 4000 species of Native bees in North America. These bees do not form large colonies with honey stores like honey bees do. Instead, each female mates and sets about establishing her own nest. She finds an appropriate site and lays her eggs one at a time, provisioning each egg with pollen and nectar for the year. After laying her last eggs she dies. But the new generation lives invisibly within her nest for the remainder of the year. This generation will hatch out at appropriate times the following year to complete the cycle.
Many of these bees are extremely local, being found in only specific regions. Some are tied to the life cycle of a single plant and are found only where that plant thrives. Others are more general and widespread. Many of them nest in the ground. Others nest in hollow stems, or old beetle holes in logs. Many are very small, significantly smaller than honey bees. They are not even colored in what most of us would think typical bee coloration. Because they spend most of the year inside a nest, are active for only short periods, and may not look like ordinary bees, they are invisible to most lay people.
However, “by their fruits ye shall know them”. Native bees out-pollinate honey bees by tremendous amounts. Two hundred and fifty native bees can pollinate an acre of apples. It would take a honey bee hive of 50,000 honey bees to serve the same orchard. Native bees are the hidden pollinators. Often, when they are not present, crop yield is poor and losses are attributed to weather or disease, when instead it is a lack of pollinators. These little creatures are generally out of human sight, and out of human mind.
Later I was similarly affected in a class where I had students place corn pollen in a special solution, and we watched the pollen tubes grow before our very eyes. This growth can occur in just minutes and is easily observed under a microscope. Corn pollen can grow up to twelve inches to reach a plants ovary. As I sat at a microscope and watched a mystery of life occur before my eyes, I was surprisingly moved.
Pollen is normally deposited on the stigma of a flowering plant, a structure rising some distance above the ovary (in human terms). The pollen tube grows down to the ovary and bursts, releasing two sperm cells onto the ovary. One sperm cell unites with the ovary to create the embryo. The other sperm cell unites with a special cell to form the endosperm. The endosperm will become the food supply that nourishes the new embryo and/or humans in many instances. We intercede and eat the endosperm of such as plants as wheat, barley, oats, corn, peaches, pears, cherries, apricots, grapes, berries, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, and more.
Getting pollen to the stigma is a bit of a trick for plants since they are generally immobile and can’t get together in some central location to socialize. The process is called pollination, and generally it occurs in one of two ways: either by wind or by an intermediary animal.
Bees are the best known of these pollinators, although not the only ones. And while most folks think honey bees are the best pollinators, this isn’t true. In fact, honey bees are not even native to North America. They were first brought by the early pilgrims and quickly spread out to fill the continent. But prior to that there was a rich population of Native bees on this continent that pollinated everything necessary very efficiently. In fact, North America has one of the richest populations of these solitary bees in the world.
There are approximately 4000 species of Native bees in North America. These bees do not form large colonies with honey stores like honey bees do. Instead, each female mates and sets about establishing her own nest. She finds an appropriate site and lays her eggs one at a time, provisioning each egg with pollen and nectar for the year. After laying her last eggs she dies. But the new generation lives invisibly within her nest for the remainder of the year. This generation will hatch out at appropriate times the following year to complete the cycle.
Many of these bees are extremely local, being found in only specific regions. Some are tied to the life cycle of a single plant and are found only where that plant thrives. Others are more general and widespread. Many of them nest in the ground. Others nest in hollow stems, or old beetle holes in logs. Many are very small, significantly smaller than honey bees. They are not even colored in what most of us would think typical bee coloration. Because they spend most of the year inside a nest, are active for only short periods, and may not look like ordinary bees, they are invisible to most lay people.
However, “by their fruits ye shall know them”. Native bees out-pollinate honey bees by tremendous amounts. Two hundred and fifty native bees can pollinate an acre of apples. It would take a honey bee hive of 50,000 honey bees to serve the same orchard. Native bees are the hidden pollinators. Often, when they are not present, crop yield is poor and losses are attributed to weather or disease, when instead it is a lack of pollinators. These little creatures are generally out of human sight, and out of human mind.
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