Redwood Reader

“I had the right to remain silent, but I didn’t have the ability.” Tater Salad, aka Ron White.
I was watching an older geology show on Annenberg(KEET 8). More relevant topics came up that augment our understanding.
One item were strolatomites, I think they were called, that are composed by the accretion of sediment by a sticky substance given off by blue-green algae. Other geologic looking structures formed the same way were literally being eaten by creatures with magnetite teeth, which scraped alogae and stone off rock at the waterline, undercutting small islands until they looked like Dr. Suess landscapes.
Satellite photos from the eighties revealed Amazon cloud formation and showers occurred daily with no input from the ocean, as confirmed by the deuterium study reported last year. Yet deuterium determination and satellite imagery are more twenty years old, so why was that anything new? With the loss of evapo-transpiration, particle forming gas emissions, and the entire precipitation interface from canopy to forest floor and the slow decay of the depth of water holding soils, diminished volumes of shade cooled air, we should expect less cloud formation and precipitation, and a drying of the ecosystem to some extent. As we have pointed out since the inception of this blog, the longer water remains in the biological zone the richer the biota. If it cycles through as surface runoff in an ever quickening pace the cycle will take unexpected turns with unknowable consequences.
The next interesting item concerned the life of carbon atoms. Each atom goes through a cycle starting as atmospheric carbon becoming vegetation, decaying through soil processes eventually reaching the ocean. The process continues as the carbon settles as sediment and becomes chemically transformed into rock. This rock is forced toward the margins of the oocean plate where it is subducted and dives back into the earth. Slowly the adds new land and magma is forces to the surface and the carbon re-enters the atmosphere through volcanism. This cycle is said to last about 100-150 million years and has happened about thirty times to every carbon atom on earth. This is a much grander carbon cycle than the usual given biological cycle.
This led to a discussion of nuclear winter, which we rarely hear about anymore, caused by smoke from wild lands burning. The major catastrophe of nuclear war has been overshadowed by the slow death of climate change. Man will have some ability to adapt to climate change. There is no cure for radiation pollution other than incredibly long decontamination rates in the hundreds of thousands of years, exceeding the entire existence spans of many species. Yet climate change can and has caused civil upheaval and temperature cycles are found to coincide with abundance and stability or famine and civil unrest throughout history.
Finally, the Gaia hypothesis was discussed. The Gaia hypothesis, so named by biophysicist James Lovelock, says that life moderates earth for the benefit of life. The example given was of dark and light daisies. Dark daisies proliferate and absorb sun light. As the temperature rises more white daisies bloom, reflecting energy back into space and downwardly regulating temperature. As the temperature falls, more dark daisies begin to appear, so that optimum temperature is maintained. Glomalin is very much a similar case of an ecosystem developing the means of assuring its continued existence by water regulation and communication by pheromones emitted by glomalin producing fungi. It is implied Gaia will deal with humans before they are allowed to exterminate the organism.
C-Span had a debate over forming a task force for implementing the recommendations from the Oceans report drafted for Congress last year. Fisheries and Resource only covers 7 out of 31 chapters in the study, other jurisdictions included Atmospheric, Agriculture, wind, drilling, coastal development, wetlands, shipping and on and on. This is probably a little bigger than glomalin but not by much, in terms of blurring agency boundaries.
We repeat the need for more synthesis and analysis of available information. A fine example was of a known weed killer. Looking at its written formula it looked like nothing special. When the model was represented n 3-D, its structural resemblance and properties made it immediately clear this molecule had potential as an anti-tumor medication. Something on hand that works, but only accidentally found through a different representation.
Several other items today. The continued research from the oceanic inventory has been putting chips in all kinds of sea creatures and tracking their movements. One result of note here is that salmon tagged in the PNW and Alaska from the same streams had the same oceanic migratory journeyts. That is to say, salmon from a certain river will spend their time in particular parts of the ocean. This would allow fishermen at sea to avoid fish from low population on shore locations.
The Pombo Bill to rewrite the 1872 Mining Law and open public lands for development was cut from the Budget Bill.
Patty Berg was honored by CDF for her work on rural firefighting and urban interface issues.
An earthen dam in Missourii failed and sent a wall of water down river. Three hurt, none dead.
Snowmobiles were found to not impact wildlife to a significant extent, a major argument against them in National Parks. What about the quiet?
The California Oak Mortality Task Force monthly report has an interesting item about field testing for the disease with portable PCR devices to be used in the field. Developed specifically to deal with the disease, the technology has a wide array of applications. Some interesting reading in the year end summaries. A report from Oregon on their attempts to keep the disease contained states using glyphosphate (Roundup) on stump sprouting species two weeks before stem removal, to be sure the roots won’t send up new shoots