tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90112456602091373742024-03-13T06:19:22.805-07:00The Dirt on SoilThe Dirt on Soil: Science in our (Austin, TX) NeighborhoodThe Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.comBlogger52125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-24763039025207818292014-01-22T15:34:00.000-08:002015-05-05T09:23:33.580-07:00Eastside's Green Teens planting food to eat in MarchSo when does it become rude to get reacquainted with blog followers after not posting in <i>for-like-ever</i>? Will y'all take me back? Teaching obvs prevented me from dutifully posting regularly, but now I co-sponsor a club and the kids are ridic awesome and they let me take their pics for your <strike>long-awaited</strike> update!<br />
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I do love my new career home. And I do<i> so</i> love the <a href="http://www.keepaustinbeautiful.org/GreenTeens">Green Teens</a>, a collaboration of the <a href="http://www.austinisd.org/ace-austin">ACE after school program</a> and <a href="http://www.keepaustinbeautiful.org/">Keep Austin Beautiful</a>.<br />
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So what have we done so far?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-y3IwSLshH-w/UuBRPyZHnBI/AAAAAAAAAgI/6BIivyAKjTM/s1600/what+we+planted.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-y3IwSLshH-w/UuBRPyZHnBI/AAAAAAAAAgI/6BIivyAKjTM/s1600/what+we+planted.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eastside awesomeness. We planted seeds of kale, endive, lettuce, beets (labelled beef? I suspect the sharpie mark over the "t" was done post-distribution ), and kale again.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IKrMyO1Q6Go/UuBSeIwK1aI/AAAAAAAAAgY/QiKbs3ckOQg/s1600/guitar+back.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IKrMyO1Q6Go/UuBSeIwK1aI/AAAAAAAAAgY/QiKbs3ckOQg/s1600/guitar+back.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cauliflower and Swiss chard and if we plant a <i>guitar </i>will music grow?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VjpmwlI-wEU/UuBSsLkj4YI/AAAAAAAAAgg/WOBbLAL9tIE/s1600/compost+love.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VjpmwlI-wEU/UuBSsLkj4YI/AAAAAAAAAgg/WOBbLAL9tIE/s1600/compost+love.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Compost bins bring smiles.</td></tr>
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The seeds were provided by the <a href="http://www.sustainablefoodcenter.org/">Sustainable Food Center</a>'s <a href="http://www.sustainablefoodcenter.org/grow-local/school-gardens">Grow Local</a> program.We hope to make them proud come harvest time. The harvest goes home to Green Teen dinner plates. Or breakfast plates. Or no plates, just their hands ;-)<br />
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Hope all is well with you in interwebs-land. HUGS.<br />
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The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-83197615251897950472011-12-01T21:00:00.000-08:002011-12-01T21:00:39.417-08:00Saturday Morning Fun Times Ideas<div style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Info thanks to the Capital Area Master Naturalists <a href="http://camn.org/">(CAMN)</a>!</span></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><img height="263" src="http://alt.coxnewsweb.com/austin360/swf/zilker/nature2.jpg" style="text-align: -webkit-auto;" width="400" /></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: center;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i>Biodiversity Survey</i></span></strong></div><div style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Austin Nature and Science Center</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 </span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">8:00 am</span></div><div style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></b></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Biodiversity</b> = </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">the variety of all forms of life, from genes to species... (<a href="http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/biodiversity/">Stanford Ecyclopedia of Philosophy</a>)."</span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Survey = </b>to l<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;">ook carefully and thoroughly at someone or something;</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 16px;">a non-experimental, descriptive research method.</span></span><br />
<div style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Nohhhhhtes:</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: xx-small;"> No special skills are required, and all are welcome. Dress comfortably; long pants and sturdy shoes with closed toes, hat, water bottle, and sunscreen are stongly recommended. We may encounter ticks, mosquitoes, &/or poison ivy, so arm yourselves accordingly! For your personal use, you may wish to bring field guides, notebook and pen, camera, and / or binoculars.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: xx-small;">Changes are sometimes necessary, so if you would like to join us, please contact Melissa Macdougall <a href="mailto:melissa.jane.mac@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" style="color: #074d8f;" target="_blank">melissa.jane.mac@gmail.com</a> or 422-6270.</span></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-62903243208878942602011-08-13T21:39:00.000-07:002011-08-14T16:32:52.051-07:00Man-Eating Plants and an AnnouncementHi Readers!<br />
Do you know how I told you that this blog is about science in Austin, TX? Well... not today! Cuz I visited Maryland over the summer, so you get Maryland science today. Yay! Here is something I saw in Maryland:<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Man-Eating Plants:</span></b><br />
I was with <i>la</i> <i>familia</i> at the <a href="http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/western/deepcreek.asp">Deep Creek Lake</a>, and in an effort to <strike> wear out and produce a nap</strike> educate our son, we went hiking at <a href="http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/maryland_dc/placesweprotect/cranesville-swamp.xml">Cranesville Swamp</a>*. Here is the back of his head at the swamp...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GTPG49qMzws/Th-oeeQ0v9I/AAAAAAAAAWU/0JXfZkyEavg/s1600/P7080225.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GTPG49qMzws/Th-oeeQ0v9I/AAAAAAAAAWU/0JXfZkyEavg/s400/P7080225.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">And upon looking at that picture, here is the drama I imagine would enfold if we were face-to-face:</span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>You:</b> Amanda, I love you and all, but that is <i>not a swamp</i>. That soil looks <i>really</i> dry. Swamps aren't dry, they are forested <b><i>wet</i></b>lands.</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Me:</b> You! I <i>sooo</i> love you too! You are right. The swamp didn't fit into this picture; it is up ahead, on the right. </span><br />
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So anyway, the super-cool reason we went to the swamp is because... there are<b> man-eating plants!!! </b>For reals (and when I say "man, " I mean "insect") !!<br />
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</div><div>Ahem, so why are there man-eating plants <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(and when I say "man, " I mean "insect")</span>? Cuz there ain't no other way to get the nutrition, folks. Ain't no way. That soil has very. little. nutrition. Sigh. Here is a carnivorous sundew plant with what looks like insect leftovers.</div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LlCH-MHTbs8/Ti80HPEnTlI/AAAAAAAAAXo/gnPICQo5z2U/s1600/closeup.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LlCH-MHTbs8/Ti80HPEnTlI/AAAAAAAAAXo/gnPICQo5z2U/s400/closeup.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sundew you.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>And here is the general ecosystem area, preserved courtesy of <a href="http://www.nature.org/">The Nature Conservancy</a>.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UfWKX-Thxo4/Ti84wNGa7dI/AAAAAAAAAXs/evh05sb1hAo/s1600/ecosystemreal.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UfWKX-Thxo4/Ti84wNGa7dI/AAAAAAAAAXs/evh05sb1hAo/s400/ecosystemreal.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
</div><div>In fact, carnivorous plants thrive best in oligotrophic* soil. In more fertile soil, other plants would outcompete sundews for resources, forcing sundews out. Here are some great links to more info:<br />
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<ul><li><a href="http://www.nature.org/">The Nature Conservancy</a>'s <a href="http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/maryland_dc/placesweprotect/cranesville-swamp.xml">post</a> on the land they conserve.</li>
<li><a href="http://ext.wvu.edu/">West Virginia University Extension Service</a> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(gotta love Land Grant Extension programs!)</span> gives us <a href="http://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/wildlife/cranesvi.htm">natural history of Cranesville Swamp</a>, and why this <i>"southern"</i> ecosystem (compared to Canada, not Texas, y'all) is called an <i>arctic</i> plant community. </li>
<li><a href="http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/drorot/all.html">Sundew info</a>. This one has <a href="https://www.msu.edu/course/plb/423/Species_Accounts/Drosera/Species%20Account.htm">pictures</a>.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.frostburg.edu/6thICPS/LocalField/cranesville_brochure.pdf">Awesome brochure.</a></li>
</ul><div>So if you ever see a man-eating plant in your neighborhood (Run!), it would be rational to infer that you have low nutrient soils! Whoo-hooh!<br />
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Why does this area have low-nutrient soil? Maybe another day, <i>because...</i></div><div><br />
</div><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">An Announcement:</span></b></div><div><br />
</div><div>I have a new job!!! And even better, it is at <a href="http://www.austinschools.org/campus/eastsidememorial/main/">Eastside Memorial High School</a> teaching Math. I'm excited because I might have a chance to provide context to the math through environmental science and engineering (and other <strike>more boring</strike> equally important academic disciplines)!</div><div><br />
</div><div>It is going to be a busy year, so I will probably only post here to check-in with y'all or post quick links. I'll still be on <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thedirtonsoil">twitter</a> for bits and pieces and I assume you know how to e-mail me. Of course, I might just be calling some of you and nagging for advice <strike><a href="http://www.utb.edu/vpaa/csmt/chemenv/Pages/Benavides.aspx">(Jude)</a></strike> in the near future. Until then, hugs you!</div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;"><i><b>Definiciones:</b> </i></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Oligotrophic:</b> low nutrient conditions<br />
<b>Swamp:</b> Forested wetland</div></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-92013716578114370342011-07-27T13:19:00.000-07:002011-07-27T13:20:58.181-07:00In Honor of SoilduckIn honor and congratulations of <a href="http://www.soilduck.com/">SoilDuck's</a> <i>awesome</i> <i>new job</i> (!!!) (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">What is it again SoiDuck? Where?</span>), I am sharing a few fungi pics. I took them on my vacation to <a href="http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/western/deepcreek.asp">Deep Creek Lake, Maryland</a>, my yearly summer mecca. <br />
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<a href="http://www.soilduck.com/search/label/fungi">SoilDuck really likes fungi</a>. I don't know much about my vacation photo subjects, except that <a href="http://www.clt.astate.edu/mhuss/fungi_as_decomposers.htm">they are decomposers</a>, of course. And that they are located in an area that receives an average of <a href="http://www.nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/pdf/precip/pageprecip_md3.pdf">40-50 inches of rain per year</a>. Compare that <a href="http://www.nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/pdf/precip/pageprecip_tx3.pdf">ATX's measly-peasly 30-35 inches</a> (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">No, I'm not mad we're <a href="http://www.lcra.org/water/drought/index.html">living during an exceptional drought</a>. <strike>Yes, I am</strike>.</span>).<br />
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By the way, <b>don't forget</b> that decomposition in general increases with increasing temperature and water. Whooh! On to celebrating SoilDuck...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MSLFjjEXCck/TjBnXfWES3I/AAAAAAAAAXw/Q3G35VUjTpc/s1600/jessshroom.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MSLFjjEXCck/TjBnXfWES3I/AAAAAAAAAXw/Q3G35VUjTpc/s400/jessshroom.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking good in the forest.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zLrjiSOvWxQ/TjBnhkftG1I/AAAAAAAAAX0/SOmmc8vV6i0/s1600/P7080250.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zLrjiSOvWxQ/TjBnhkftG1I/AAAAAAAAAX0/SOmmc8vV6i0/s400/P7080250.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Near <a href="http://www.mgs.md.gov/esic/features/muddy.html">Muddy Creek Falls</a> at the <a href="http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/western/swallowfalls.asp">Park</a>. <br />
Look: moss, fungi <i>and </i><a href="http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fungi/lichens/lichens.html">lichen</a> in one pic! <br />
Which is- Plant kingdom (moss), Fungi kingdom, and <a href="http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fungi/lichens/lichens.html">symbiosis between the two kingdoms (lichen)!</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_KVIOAXB47o/TjBoPddyQWI/AAAAAAAAAX8/wOHYhRw_Puk/s1600/P7080251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_KVIOAXB47o/TjBoPddyQWI/AAAAAAAAAX8/wOHYhRw_Puk/s400/P7080251.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of emerging 'shroom from the 2nd pic (above).</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E7P31WvGNyQ/TjBojX2pe0I/AAAAAAAAAYA/ShVKsJrzelc/s1600/P7080252.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E7P31WvGNyQ/TjBojX2pe0I/AAAAAAAAAYA/ShVKsJrzelc/s400/P7080252.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of the other one from the 2nd pic (above).</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yV13EIvgKas/TjBolvapoKI/AAAAAAAAAYE/7PHPG_P5m-U/s1600/P7080282.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yV13EIvgKas/TjBolvapoKI/AAAAAAAAAYE/7PHPG_P5m-U/s400/P7080282.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What's this? I don't know.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eMpWOYdQyGo/TjBon5eeAZI/AAAAAAAAAYI/B7OiyQRD4uw/s1600/P7090284.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eMpWOYdQyGo/TjBon5eeAZI/AAAAAAAAAYI/B7OiyQRD4uw/s400/P7090284.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Forest floor again.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qsUaXD0WAxk/TjBn6-YucrI/AAAAAAAAAX4/38Dw2-KXPPQ/s1600/P7090286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qsUaXD0WAxk/TjBn6-YucrI/AAAAAAAAAX4/38Dw2-KXPPQ/s400/P7090286.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of it's gills, or lamella.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Congratulations, Professor SoilDuck! Go forth and inspire them with your knowledge and enthusiasm!</div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-51420106113208716202011-06-17T11:24:00.000-07:002011-06-17T11:24:01.978-07:00"What the...?" Part 2; How to identify a mystery substance.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Hey guys,<br />
<a href="http://www.thedirtonsoil.org/2011/05/what-part-1.html">Where did we leave off?</a> Oh yeah, there were <b>two</b> "mysteries of nature" that I was trying to solve:<br />
<ol><li>A yellow flour-like powder veins in the clay; and a </li>
<li>V<i>ery</i> thin white crystalline crust on the soil surface. </li>
</ol>So I sampled them both.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RJfE1uf_G6c/TcQcDYMMAAI/AAAAAAAAAVc/EOGJPN4Nio8/s1600/gypsum3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RJfE1uf_G6c/TcQcDYMMAAI/AAAAAAAAAVc/EOGJPN4Nio8/s400/gypsum3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Freestyle soil sampling.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Here is <b>Mystery #1</b> in the field. See the yellow powder, look how fine it is. Can you see it spread on my fingers?</span></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q4aovZl45ec/TcQbbQz0X-I/AAAAAAAAAVY/kUKoyaa7IXY/s1600/gypsumsulfur.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q4aovZl45ec/TcQbbQz0X-I/AAAAAAAAAVY/kUKoyaa7IXY/s400/gypsumsulfur.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Here is <b>Mystery #1</b> by microscope magnification. I think it is pollen!<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wPjh1QaCIsk/TdHvgPIPKUI/AAAAAAAAAWE/WWKgBwJ8ODo/s1600/pollen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wPjh1QaCIsk/TdHvgPIPKUI/AAAAAAAAAWE/WWKgBwJ8ODo/s400/pollen.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They appear circular, but I can't quite tell due to their small size. <br />
I'm gonna try and get some mineral oil magnification soon. <br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Here is <b>Mystery #2</b> in the field. To obtain the crystalline crust, I dug out a chunk, which revealed fresh clay<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span>(you see the yellow veins, Mystery #1, very clearly). The rest has that thin layer of white crystal crust on it.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZuzIWQkilYU/TcQciC6qvyI/AAAAAAAAAVg/YKgV-2Yq1VE/s1600/gypsum8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="357" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZuzIWQkilYU/TcQciC6qvyI/AAAAAAAAAVg/YKgV-2Yq1VE/s400/gypsum8.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here, I'll "magnify" again, using my special magnifying lens.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wEF-NEY3V3c/TcQh0lmXhtI/AAAAAAAAAVo/QPWxWsr2Lls/s1600/gypsum8thincrystalcrust.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="357" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wEF-NEY3V3c/TcQh0lmXhtI/AAAAAAAAAVo/QPWxWsr2Lls/s400/gypsum8thincrystalcrust.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here is <b>Mystery #2</b> magnified under the microscope and at various angles.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B5-fqo1vbdE/TdHw8sAnaJI/AAAAAAAAAWI/YhZkZDm8bsY/s1600/c1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B5-fqo1vbdE/TdHw8sAnaJI/AAAAAAAAAWI/YhZkZDm8bsY/s400/c1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VsOCd0_zqAQ/TdHw98KSJQI/AAAAAAAAAWM/uUSuzCWVduU/s1600/c5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VsOCd0_zqAQ/TdHw98KSJQI/AAAAAAAAAWM/uUSuzCWVduU/s400/c5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2A2t3eaqDJg/TdHw-shhLpI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/1NBhZL7Kgu0/s1600/cthis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2A2t3eaqDJg/TdHw-shhLpI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/1NBhZL7Kgu0/s400/cthis.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank you <a href="http://www.austinschools.org/campus/eastsidememorial/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=70&Itemid=29">Eastside Memorial Green Tech</a> and Mr. Moldenhauer for hosting my curiosity! </td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Here are my</b> <b>future plans</b> (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">if I can acquire a few supplies with limited effort on my part, ahem</span>):</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><ul><li><b>Mystery #1 (yellow "flour" powder):</b> Access a microscope with greater magnification and hopefully identify the pollen. </li>
<ul><li><a href="http://pollen.usda.gov/Photographs.htm">You see, each type of pollen looks different when you get up close.</a></li>
</ul><li><b>Mystery #2 (tiny white crystalline crust): </b>Attempt to dissolve the crystals in water. Then, add acetone to see if there is any precipitation reactions. </li>
<ul><li>Why? I'm testing to see if it is gypsum. I think it is gypsum <a href="http://www.soils.umn.edu/academics/classes/soil5311/Lectures/notes/carbonates_et_al.html">because</a> gypsum is a <i>very</i> common white evaporite. Also, the presence of gypsum indicates arid environments (like where I was standing at the time).</li>
</ul></ul><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>UPDATE: </b>I haven't found a higher resolution microscope yet. Also, I tried the acetone experiment, but I don't believe I had enough crystal sample to get significant results; it's a very thin layer. Alas, the mystery continues... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Have a great weekend, everyone!</div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-85034693042471046212011-05-05T22:01:00.000-07:002011-05-16T19:03:56.288-07:00"What the...?" Part 1Once upon a time, I started to write a blog post that went like this:<br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>Recently I went to, according my zero research, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.roundtop.com/antique1.htm">the world's largest antique fair(!!!)</a></span> in Round Top, TX. Fried pickles, fried mushrooms, funnel cake, fresh fried pork rinds, and popcorn may or may not have been devoured ravenously.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4mscVR4CdBs/TcAxMWcF1vI/AAAAAAAAAU4/zXxcO436kR8/s1600/Glasses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><i><img border="0" height="329" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4mscVR4CdBs/TcAxMWcF1vI/AAAAAAAAAU4/zXxcO436kR8/s400/Glasses.jpg" width="500" /></i></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>We may or may not have found the perfect vintage accessories.</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><blockquote><i>While in town, in a pine forest, I also happened upon a cut in the soil that showed the native clay a few inches below. It had weird <b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #bf9000;">yellow</span></b> veins going through it. The veins were very fine grained, like a flour-fine powder. I dug deeper to see if they thinned out, but after several inches of digging through dry clay, the veins were still there. Can you see them below?</i></blockquote></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br />
</i></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-76hikJ8mOZA/Tbza74EwejI/AAAAAAAAAU0/rjHe10vli1s/s1600/amanda-00011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><i><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-76hikJ8mOZA/Tbza74EwejI/AAAAAAAAAU0/rjHe10vli1s/s400/amanda-00011.jpg" width="400" /></i></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>You don't see the yellow veins? Let's try again, with "magnification."</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i-I9IXV_-ig/TcA6hhdFw1I/AAAAAAAAAVA/8328NT15C7s/s1600/amanda-00011+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><i><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i-I9IXV_-ig/TcA6hhdFw1I/AAAAAAAAAVA/8328NT15C7s/s400/amanda-00011+%25281%2529.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /></i></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><i>OK? </i><br />
<i>OK.</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div><blockquote><i>"What the...?" I was being <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/soilduck">SoilDuck's</a> good kind of stupid: <a href="http://bit.ly/kWgg9b">stupid yet curious</a>.</i></blockquote><blockquote><i>Internet research was boring, so I checked in with my fellow <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thedirtonsoil">twits</a>, to see what they thought. Here were some ideas:</i></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><ul><li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/soilduck">Fungus.</a></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/DAndrewScott">But the location <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(deep)</span> and orientation <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(horizontal)</span> look wrong. </a></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thedirtonsoil">Sulfur.</a></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/DAndrewScott">But sulfur precipitates as gypsum, and gypsum is white (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">ahem, it can actually come in different colors</span>).</a></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/soilduck">Pollen.</a></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thedirtonsoil">But the powder goes preeeeeetty deep into the cracks...</a></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/soilduck">Microscope it!</a></i></li>
<li><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i><a href="http://oh%20yeah%2C%20and%20i%20work%20at%20a%20high%20school%2C%20so%20this%20is%20feasible.../">Oh yeah, and I work at a high school, so this is feasible..</a>.</i></span></i></li>
<li><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/DAndrewScott">Do you know the series?</a></i></span></i></li>
<li><i><a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thedirtonsoil">Maybe.</a></i></li>
</ul><div><i> I forgot to mention that there was something else interesting too: a white crystalline crust on the outer surface of the clay.</i></div><div><i><br />
</i></div><div><i>Here is your first official look at the '"mystery of nature" observed under a stereoscope.</i><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IKeRk_S7NZc/TcA1gcqDWiI/AAAAAAAAAU8/Q7OKDundiEg/s1600/gypsum.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><i><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IKeRk_S7NZc/TcA1gcqDWiI/AAAAAAAAAU8/Q7OKDundiEg/s400/gypsum.JPG" width="225" /></i></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>See? It is right there, under the stereoscope.</i><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><i>(Thank you, young scientist, Manuel Lopez for taking this picture.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Thank you Mr. Mold<strike>y</strike>enhaur for setting up the learning apparatus.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Thank you Eastside Memorial HS for hosting this scientific inquiry.)</i></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><i>Actually, were looking at the white crystalline crust here, not the yellow vein powder. Our computer screen is showing a blurry version of it.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
But then I hit a stopping point. I hit Publish anyway. I hope this post finds you well, and if we don't chat sooner, Happy Mother's Day! Thank you to both Granny Sharon and Mother Earth.<br />
<br />
Join us next time, in <u>"What the...?" Part 2, How do you identify a mystery substance?</u></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-17536680555381268242011-04-25T23:43:00.000-07:002011-04-26T06:17:08.764-07:00The latest obsession (genus Pogonomyrmex)<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="100" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7gT4OTYUS-c" title="YouTube video player" width="100"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">As you read this, you can enjoy the Henry Mancini "dead ant" Pink Panther theme song (1963). Cuz I'm old.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">For further evidence that <i>science is everywhere</i> (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">insert ghosty sounding, "ooooooh!" here</span>), I submit to you, to the best of my knowledge, a red harvester ant nest</span><i> </i>outside my classroom at Eastside Memorial. Here we are, addressing <a href="http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=6148">TEKS</a> outside my window (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">you know, cuz they are part of the food web</span>). But more importantly, it is fun to engage in my favorite step of the scientific method, Observation, and watch my new favorite Formicidae (ant family) live their lives.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> </span> <iframe frameborder="0" height="300" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/22877826?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="400"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/22877826">Untitled</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user4003509">TheDirtOnSoil</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Texas A&M, the school my <i>alternate universe self</i> attended, <a href="http://urbanentomology.tamu.edu/ants/red_harvester.cfm">says that</a> by removing the vegetation around their nest, the ants allow the sun to dry out and warm the soil. They dig tunnels and chambers where the workers (<a href="http://ipm.ncsu.edu/AG268/html/harvester_ants.htm">wingless females</a>) store seeds, which are their main food source, along with scavenged insects. They'll eat "alfalfa, burr clover, Johnson grass, oats, wheat, Bermuda grass, wild sunflower, mesquite, beans, and others." </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D76-2Ze-UwM/TbZYQtmrmpI/AAAAAAAAAUs/66h6IXLZty0/s1600/seed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D76-2Ze-UwM/TbZYQtmrmpI/AAAAAAAAAUs/66h6IXLZty0/s400/seed.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That looks like a seed. Food!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--LLomaS85sI/TbZYE3_kg2I/AAAAAAAAAUo/BQq5sZmzPQ0/s1600/above+view.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--LLomaS85sI/TbZYE3_kg2I/AAAAAAAAAUo/BQq5sZmzPQ0/s400/above+view.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annoyed for the sake of educating us. Thank you, kind Ant.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9W3c6JMcxOY/TbZYjzGOksI/AAAAAAAAAUw/dPkaZ5RU5bg/s1600/side+view.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="296" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9W3c6JMcxOY/TbZYjzGOksI/AAAAAAAAAUw/dPkaZ5RU5bg/s400/side+view.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hope I didn't squeeze you too hard, but you were trying to get away!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">And <a href="http://insects.tamu.edu/extension/bulletins/l-5314.html">to quote Texas A&M</a>, </span><br />
<blockquote>P<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px;">opulations of the <a href="http://digimorph.geo.utexas.edu/specimens/Phrynosoma_cornutum/whole/">horned lizard</a> and the harvester ant, on which it predominantly feeds, have declined in the eastern part of Texas. There are several possible factors contributing to the decline of these species.</span><br />
<ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">
<li><b>Red imported fire ants</b> are believed to eliminate harvester ants and prevent new colonies from forming by <b>preying on mated queen harvester ants.</b></li>
</span></ul><ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">
<li><b>Red imported fire ants may prey directly on lizards</b> or on hatching eggs of lizards.</li>
</span></ul><ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">
<li>Many <b>insecticides</b> used to control or eliminate the red imported fire ant are toxic to the harvester ant, and eliminate the harvester ant more efficiently than they eliminate fire ants. Broadcast applications of fire ant bait products should be avoided in areas where harvester ants are found.</li>
</span></ul><ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">
<li>Horned lizards normally inhabit flat, open, dry country with little cover.<b> </b>Urbanization, mowing, shredding, shallow discing and other <b>land use practices can eliminate or reduce the production of weed seeds on which harvester ants feed.</b> Harvester ants and horned lizards, which are dependent upon this ant species, cannot survive in these disturbed habitats.</li>
</span></ul></blockquote>Mostly, they <i>only</i> bite when harassed, but even when I was <i>indubitably</i> harassing them (see above pics for proof), their tiny mandibles never got a good enough grip to hurt me (and cuz I'm totally tough). So they aren't pests (besides aesthetic issues), AND they are food for our <a href="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/endang/animals/reptiles_amphibians/">threatened (state-listed)</a> Texas Horned Lizard. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"> If you need more, the enemy of our enemy (Red imported fire ants) is our friend.</span> Yay Harvester ants!The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-87238529815711588012011-04-09T22:10:00.000-07:002011-05-05T22:06:23.923-07:00Update: Buried Seeds Turn Into Plants!Hello, everyone! Long time no read and write! I've missed you. Lots of things have happened since we last e-spoke, but not much soil-oriented stuff. Let's catch up?<br />
<br />
Last year on October 31<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">rst</span>, 2010, many of us celebrated The Halloween. Many of us bought, if not grew, a pumpkin. I bet you even composted it! My readers are <i>so</i> responsible. And then there is yours truly, a different <i>kind </i>of responsible...I thought I'd keep my uncut pumpkin as front door decoration until it started to spoil. Almost 5 months pass by and the loyal little pumpkin, exposed to the ATX elements, gets passed by <i>us</i> every day as we walk through our house entrance. Enter MARCH 2011! The little pumpkin that could, gave up. Ew. Stinky. <br />
<br />
Lazy, I contract my son to help me chop up the gooey mess and bury it in place. Cuz, like, the compost bin is ALL THE WAY around my house, IN THE BACKYARD, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">so far away</span>!!!!<br />
<br />
And then...a week later. A little biology reminder.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wK31QoOz7UI/TaE1MhhD9dI/AAAAAAAAAUY/D2Id_CdkY10/s1600/P3160154.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wK31QoOz7UI/TaE1MhhD9dI/AAAAAAAAAUY/D2Id_CdkY10/s400/P3160154.JPG" width="500" /></a></div><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-svhVMmBUJVc/TaE1Q_kLv3I/AAAAAAAAAUg/EWd7sOz00l8/s1600/P3160157.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-svhVMmBUJVc/TaE1Q_kLv3I/AAAAAAAAAUg/EWd7sOz00l8/s400/P3160157.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I feel like I'm at the very beginning of the <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=9&ved=0CFoQFjAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fux.brookdalecc.edu%2Ffac%2Fhistory%2FThe%2520Neolithic%2520Revolution%2520(2).ppt&ei=gzihTciML6aB0QG_pP2XBQ&usg=AFQjCNFmej3HJzPEA3ndZ9juoayWT2wqDA&sig2=MZfAnTnRQ4PZK_YiOOLLhA">Neolithic Revolution.</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>What I find most fun about this li'l situation, is that <i>it is as if the pumpkin <u>knew</u> when to rot</i>- <a href="http://www.co.travis.tx.us/agext/garden/veggies/planting/">it is the beginning (and almost the end) of pumpkin planting season in Travis County</a>!<br />
<br />
In other news, my son thanked me the other day, out of the blue. <br />
I said, "For what?"<br />
"For trees," he said. <br />
I guess he was talking to his other mom (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">ahem, Mother Nature</span>).The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-13273796894141864182011-03-31T14:40:00.000-07:002011-03-31T14:40:41.742-07:00Hello Sandbox, my old friend<div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Hello Dear Readers!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">How are you today? How is your sun shining? We're having nice, crisp cool weather here. Oh, by the way-</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Happy Sandbox Appreciation Day! </span></b></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Remember that one time (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">at band camp</span>), <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/11/saaaands-are-alive-with-sound-of.html">when I referred to Sand as boring</a>? Wasn't that ignorant and rude!? With a spirit of atonement and reconciliation, I declare today Sandbox Appreciation Day <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(I can do this because, who is stopping me?)</span>.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Dear Sandbox,</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Sc_eRJ26F_s/TX5kkOdAhNI/AAAAAAAAASo/hS8RYqdSBTM/s1600/P3110149.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img border="0" height="375" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Sc_eRJ26F_s/TX5kkOdAhNI/AAAAAAAAASo/hS8RYqdSBTM/s400/P3110149.JPG" width="500" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">New sandbox courtesy of the very civic <a href="http://texasinvasives.org/professionals/tippc.php">Hubs</a>.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You are a pretty cheap way of introducing science and engineering to youngsters of <i>all </i>kinds and abilities <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(and their reminiscent parents)</span>. You are super fun. I remember playing in you for hours and hours under the grateful eye of The Parents (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">cuz I was quietly and productively occupied without their effort, heh. Love you!</span>). </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-qeWPhQifb80/TX5piHPGi-I/AAAAAAAAASs/KLM4JzdFQAM/s1600/37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img border="0" height="415" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-qeWPhQifb80/TX5piHPGi-I/AAAAAAAAASs/KLM4JzdFQAM/s400/37.jpg" width="500" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Hours add up to days and weeks of scientific inquiry. Who knows how long I played in there- my concept of time has evolved.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">And now I realize how much I learned from you. Days spent with you, Sandbox, <a href="http://www.wou.edu/las/physci/taylor/g322/masswast.pdf">were my first physics lessons.</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">What did I learn? How to build, in my minds eye, buildings, mountains, rivers, dams, lakes, canals, pits and moats and other natural and man-made wonders. That you have a <i><a href="http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/geol204/slopestability.htm">sweet spot</a></i>, a preferred soil moisture for forming stable shapes with molds, and reducing your stickiness to the molding buckets.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You subconsciously led my life interest to the earth sciences. You may have led others to <a href="http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2002/11jul_mgm/">NASA</a>. And you are pretty fun. Thank you Sandbox, and thank you Hubs for making one for The Kiddo.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Dear Sandbox, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Big Hugs,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Dirt <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">on soil</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-35915275720152851342011-03-02T22:10:00.000-08:002011-03-02T22:10:54.790-08:00Ask an expert that isn't me<div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ever want an answer to your question from a person, and not The Google? You know, cuz books are so</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"> passé?</span><span style="font-size: small;"> With these links, you can get the personalized soil attention we all crave:</span></div><ul><li><span style="font-size: small;">Ask a <a href="http://pssat.org/AskSoils.htm">soil expert</a> from the Professional Soil Scientists Society of Texas, or</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Ask a <a href="http://www.wildflower.org/expert/">native plant expert</a> from the Lady Bird JohnsonWildflower Center (University of Texas), or</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Ask an <a href="https://agrilifebookstore.org/site_askexpert.cfm">extension agent,</a> fluent in all types of natural resources from Texas Agrilife Extension (Texas A&M University).</span></li>
</ul><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">These pages will also find you someone to answer your deep, dark, fertile questions on the world around you. Yay!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-28710314030398531802011-01-17T20:24:00.000-08:002011-08-01T20:49:17.869-07:00What is Science?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Science isn't being bored in class while someone lectures.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; line-height: 19px;"></span>Science is the learning we gain through the <a href="http://www.brainpop.com/science/scientificinquiry/scientificmethod/">scientific method</a>.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Observation </b>Hey, look!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Question</b> Why is it like this?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Hypothesis </b>Well one time, at band camp, this happened, so maybe ...</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Prediction</b> it would h</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">appen the same way here.</span><br />
<b>Testing</b> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">No. Hmm. Wonder why. Let's try this.</span><br />
<br />
And that is all in the way of learning you will get from me today. But you wanna see something cool <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(Doyle, did you post about this? I forget where I first saw it, but THANKS to who did!)</span>?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span>Look at this. <object height="385" width="640"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RLPVCJjTNgk?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RLPVCJjTNgk?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="300"></embed></object><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Wanna read something cool? <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/10/apple-engineer-uses-lego-to-rebuild-ancient-greek-mechanism-wil/">Read how they did it.</a></span><br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Can you imagine how much sky-watching and tinkering they'd have to do before they'd come up with that system? Quite obviously, for at least a few people, staring out into space (and actually paying attention) was the thing to do. Sweet.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
And then there is this:<br />
<ul><li> <a href="http://primaxstudio.com/stuff/scale_of_universe/">More outer space,</a> but also really teeny tiny stuff. <b>You must look</b>.</li>
</ul>And thanks to <a href="http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/clasticdetritus/">Classic Detritus</a>, we get <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">b</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">e</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">au</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">ti</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime;">fu</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: cyan;">l a</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">rt</span>, with an <a href="http://etereaestudios.com/docs_html/nbyn_htm/about_index.htm">explanation of some of it's scientific limitations</a>.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="300" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kkGeOWYOFoA?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/kkGeOWYOFoA?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="300"></embed></object></div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="text-align: center;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">In a nutshell, in "real life," the shell they have in the movie dons't match the <i>math</i> they are showing. It is still a logarithmic spiral though. But I can't confirm, I didn't do the measurements myself.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
</span></div>And of course, there is one of the reasons I wrote this whole post: I found some awesome shells on Galveston Beach on New Year's Day (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">To my hubs, these shells seemed much more fragile this year than he remembers. Of course, his hands don't count as a scientific instrument. We'd need something with more accuracy and precision. But it got us thinking. What </span><i style="font-size: small;">would</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> make them more fragile? What happened between last year and this one? The BP oil spill happened. What was that dispersant again? But maybe these are just older, more worn shells than the ones you've crushed before? No, he says. Well, we know CO2 makes water more acidic. And an increase of CO2 in the atmosphere would influence the dissolved CO2 in the ocean. And acidity "eats away" at calcium carbonate. And </span><i style="font-size: small;">if</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> they are made of calcium carbonate...but we don't know. We weren't using the scientific method all the way through, you see? No testing, no researching through peer review journal articles. </span><b>But observation, paying attention, and wondering and being curious will get you pretty far,</b><b> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">but the tedious tinkering of the dedicated and hardworking may save us all</span>.</b>)<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">You see, science is everywhere. All we have to do is pay attention.</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TTPCf7xKDQI/AAAAAAAAASU/ModE_nqeLTM/s1600/P1080127.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TTPCf7xKDQI/AAAAAAAAASU/ModE_nqeLTM/s400/P1080127.JPG" width="500" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TTPCqY3VcTI/AAAAAAAAASY/4QAvqYTcYY0/s1600/P1080135.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TTPCqY3VcTI/AAAAAAAAASY/4QAvqYTcYY0/s400/P1080135.JPG" width="500" /></a></div><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TTPC-JQV8wI/AAAAAAAAASc/AfTliH7xd98/s1600/P1080136.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TTPC-JQV8wI/AAAAAAAAASc/AfTliH7xd98/s400/P1080136.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All I got so far in my new room. Don't judge. We can go from here to the scientific method, no probs.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>P.S. The way that my tutor groups are divided, I only get the same kids 9 times before my gig is up. I got 9 80-minute sessions to inspire them to consider that Science is the way, the truth, and the life, and that they should never be discouraged from challenging themselves with it's study. No pressure, right? Send advice,<i> now</i> please, thanks.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-617770929585091712011-01-12T14:54:00.000-08:002011-01-12T14:54:42.686-08:00Bad Mother Earth Daughter<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Ooooh, I've been a bad Mother Earth Daughter! Please Mom, allow me to apologize! But first, let us look at what seems to be the new theme of my blog: illegal yet agronomic art. Let us pause to say</span><br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Dearest vandals and/or artists, </span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I do not support your allegedly illegal acts, oh no! I do however, like your <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2011/01/math-science-photo-series.html">topics of interest</a>. Please pursue them constructively. Mayhaps my <a href="http://www3.austincc.edu/it/cms/www/catalog/coursedetails_fox.php?year=2011&deptcode=ESTE#ENVR1301">Introduction to Environmental Science</a> class at <a href="http://www.austincc.edu/">ACC</a> would interest you next semester. You may learn that there are <a href="http://www.epa.gov/iaq/voc2.html#definition">VOCs</a> in them thar spray paints, and there are health risks involved in exposing yourself to them, and then perhaps you would choose to use <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/goodthings/milk-paint-recipe">milk-based paints</a>. Legally. Heh. </span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> Thank you. </span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Love, TheDirtOnSoil</span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">PS Sorry for the commersh milk link, I'm not getting paid to link to it. But you and Martha Stewart <i>do</i> have something in common!!! And it is a recipe, so- Awesome!</span></blockquote><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4k7MJTVVI/AAAAAAAAASA/UR9lN7Sa-7k/s1600/P1080138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4k7MJTVVI/AAAAAAAAASA/UR9lN7Sa-7k/s400/P1080138.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You see? It is hard <i>not</i> to admire the <i>topic</i>.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4k8kAnSKI/AAAAAAAAASE/PNBG2B6Vna8/s1600/P1080139.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4k8kAnSKI/AAAAAAAAASE/PNBG2B6Vna8/s400/P1080139.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Back to why I am not on Mother Earth's Good List right now:</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4tjSe5qiI/AAAAAAAAASI/CXSfpFe9lVw/s1600/P1090145.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4tjSe5qiI/AAAAAAAAASI/CXSfpFe9lVw/s320/P1090145.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The basil seeds will replant themselves, no problem! </td></tr>
</tbody></table><div><ol><li>I am on a <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/search/label/compost">compost</a> break.</li>
<li>My pet <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/09/this-compost-fail-totally-gross-awesome.html">soldier flies</a> disappeared (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">I think I can blame the cold, at least in part. But you know the whole not-giving-them-food thing has got to be causing problems.</span>).</li>
<li>I haven't been prosthelytizing about soil to my full potential: educational blog post frequency = decreasing.</li>
<li>My garden... you know, has been neglected.</li>
</ol><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4tlxOb_bI/AAAAAAAAASM/ke1CaR-wYpU/s1600/P1090146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4tlxOb_bI/AAAAAAAAASM/ke1CaR-wYpU/s400/P1090146.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Maybe a few minutes of your time, Amanda?</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Yet there is hope for me, fellow souls. There is yet hope. For example,</span></div></div><div><ol><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Prosthelytizing will increase next week when I start tutoring science to high school kids and professoring environmental science to college kids. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Also, I did take the <a href="https://www.soils.org/certifications/csse">Soil Science licensing exam</a>. I didn't say I passed it. That is to be determined. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I've been planning an awesome post *<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">since September cough cough cough</span>* on how urine is chemically transformed to plant food (AKA nitrate) by bacteria. You didn't think it happened all by itself did you? It might be free fertilizer to us, but those <a href="http://www.soils.wisc.edu/extension/shortcourse/New_course_materials/NITROGENMANAGEMENT.pdf">nitrosomonas and nitrobacter</a> gotta <i>work</i> for <i>their</i> money. So you know, please keep the faith and stay tuned.</span></li>
</ol></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Wait, what is my point? Oh that is right, I didn't have one. Blogging is fun!! </span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4tnzXnQ9I/AAAAAAAAASQ/sKIRLp8ewMg/s1600/P1090148.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TS4tnzXnQ9I/AAAAAAAAASQ/sKIRLp8ewMg/s320/P1090148.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank you Parsley, for not making it look <i>so</i> bad. You look great. Keep it up.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-3578498558568890932011-01-09T01:21:00.000-08:002011-01-12T13:38:36.705-08:00Math Science Photo Series<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Found this art on the Speedway Grocery at the corner of Speedway and 38th in ATX. BTW, if you are a very strict parent, don't take your adorable toddler in there because the nice people inside will offer him/her free candy (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">I guess not everyone is immune to his smile</span>)! But if you <i>are</i> very strict, said toddler will freak out with chocolate glee.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl7wscRFrI/AAAAAAAAARo/T01qjfCGqaY/s1600/P1040110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="375" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl7wscRFrI/AAAAAAAAARo/T01qjfCGqaY/s400/P1040110.JPG" width="500" /></a></div><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl8zGXpBAI/AAAAAAAAAR0/h6XhudViz40/s1600/P1040121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl8zGXpBAI/AAAAAAAAAR0/h6XhudViz40/s400/P1040121.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl8GMUvmQI/AAAAAAAAARs/1IF68ulfXIA/s1600/P1040113.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl8GMUvmQI/AAAAAAAAARs/1IF68ulfXIA/s400/P1040113.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl8acCuuQI/AAAAAAAAARw/hPvq6-T-NW8/s1600/P1040116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSl8acCuuQI/AAAAAAAAARw/hPvq6-T-NW8/s320/P1040116.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
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</tbody></table>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-75546961979872108112011-01-04T11:51:00.000-08:002011-01-04T13:07:36.772-08:00See Roots in their Natural Habitat<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Dearest soil enthusiasts,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><em style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">¡</span><b>Feliz año nu</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>evo</b></span></em></span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">! </span></span><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">¿Cómo fue</span> <span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">su</span> <span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">celebración</span>?</b></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b></b></span>To celebrate my new science teaching jobs that <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thedirtonsoil">I mentioned on Twitter</a>, I'm looking around for fun soil science ideas that address our Texas HS Science learning objectives, <a href="http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter112/ch112c.html">TEKS</a>. I found instructions for making a root viewing box where you can make lots of fun experiments. I hope I can muster up the motor skills to make one. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">Hammer, please avoid my fingers. Thank you.</span> I found instructions <a href="http://www.kidsgardening.com/growingideas/projects/july04/root-view-box.pdf">here (horizontally oriented)</a> and <a href="http://www.va.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/CropAgronomy/RootBox.html">here (vertically oriented)</a>. Mickey over at <a href="http://wi-garden.blogspot.com/">My Wisconsin Garden</a> made <a href="http://wi-garden.blogspot.com/2010/02/building-root-view-box.html">a pretty one with cedar</a> with some <a href="http://wi-garden.blogspot.com/2010/02/radish-germination-in-root-view-box.html">nice germination results</a>.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSNneg6r8KI/AAAAAAAAARQ/WAJzgYpy244/s1600/Root.Box.Instructions.2009.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="341" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TSNneg6r8KI/AAAAAAAAARQ/WAJzgYpy244/s400/Root.Box.Instructions.2009.12.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vertically oriented root viewing box by the NRCS</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Of course, we can use root viewing boxes to learn about tropism*, like<br />
<ul><li><i>positive</i> geotropism (grow <i>towards</i> the source of gravity), and </li>
<li><i>negative</i> light tropism (grow <i>away</i> form the source of light), and </li>
<li><i>negative</i> thigmatropism (growing <i>away </i>from obstacles touching them) (<a href="http://www.kidsgardening.com/growingideas/projects/july04/pg2.html">activity details for all here</a>)</li>
</ul>You could<br />
<ul><li>see how the roots respond to different soil textures (<a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/search/label/sand">sand</a>, silt, and <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/search/label/clay">clay</a>), and</li>
<li>varying soil moisture at depth (water it for longer or shorter time periods)</li>
</ul>You could<br />
<ul><li>compare the root lengths of different plants, like native Texan prairie grass to conventional lawn grasses, and then </li>
<li>think about wha<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">t that means for facilitating erosion (Native is better! But find out for yourself). </span></li>
</ul>You could<br />
<div><ul><li>do so many things! <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">Heh, you though you were getting more, eh?</span></li>
</ul>Also, the Capital Area Master Naturalist's <a href="http://camn.org/organization/education-and-outreach/">Education and Outreach Committee</a> has a learning activity on root length, and you can ask them to present it to your group. Any age.<br />
<ul></ul>If I make this you'll soooo get pictures, hopefully in a classroom setting, administration-willing.<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">HUGS.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>*Definiciones:</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Tropism:</b> A response to stimuli by plants is called a tropism (<a href="http://www.kidsgardening.com/growingideas/projects/july04/pg2.html">source</a>).</span></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-34826827505255209752010-12-13T11:00:00.000-08:002010-12-13T11:04:48.849-08:00The Dirt on Enchanted Rock, TX<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPSPrLFTwTI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/5a81Glc71pI/s1600/enchanted+rock+view.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPSPrLFTwTI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/5a81Glc71pI/s400/enchanted+rock+view.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">An honor to be climbing with The Prez of the <a href="http://www.texasinvasives.org/">Texas Invasive Plant and Pest Council</a> and The Lady that is responsible for my love of science (and wavy hair)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">So, me and some lovies went to Enchanted Rock, Texas. It reminded me of my <i>last</i> trip to Enchanted Rock, wayyyy too long ago with a precious <a href="http://www.bvg.cotterindustries.com/">godmother</a>, or <i>madrina</i>, who was visiting for a baptism circa the spring equinox. I also have many a memory of camping here during <a href="http://www.rice.edu/">college</a>. Ergo, during this hike, I was twice filled with The Love: the lovies of the present, and the lovies of the past. I will spare you the relevant <a href="http://www.sesamestreet.org/video_player/-/pgpv/videoplayer/0/eb9e0683-154d-11dd-8ea8-a3d2ac25b65b/things_that_i_remember">Sesame Street video</a>, but let's all agree, climbing Enchanted Rock is fun.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">What is Enchanted Rock? It is a big granite <a href="http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~rmr/E-rock/ERB.html">intrusion</a>. It's most common minerals, I believe, are <a href="http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~rmr/E-rock/ERDes.html">microcline, plagioclase, quartz, and biotite</a>. You can <a href="http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~rmr/E-rock/2thetop.html">follow a geological tour up the hill</a>, it's nice.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span>Schmanyways, obvs there are associated soil photos, but first (!!!) here is what Enchanted Rock looks like from the road.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPSKQF8NPWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/ZSizPAO6RWo/s1600/driving+up+small.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPSKQF8NPWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/ZSizPAO6RWo/s400/driving+up+small.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Since Texas is unfairly known for being quite flat, this is kindof a big deal. Look, a protuberance!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A closer peek...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPSO9MZYvSI/AAAAAAAAAQM/nIydtCvKY8o/s1600/enchanted+rock.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPSO9MZYvSI/AAAAAAAAAQM/nIydtCvKY8o/s400/enchanted+rock.JPG" width="500" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We climbed to the top and had some cool views. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Forgive me because I have lots of pictures I want to share about <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/07/as-soil-turns.html">an obsession</a> I didn't really know I had: <b>plants appearing to grow out of rocks (!!!)</b>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="ttp://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_p4507_0119l.pdf">People in the know</a> are calling them <a href="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_cd_p4507_119p.pdf">vernal pools</a>. Vernal pool ecology is created by pioneer species: they are the first to colonize a mostly <a href="http://www.pbs.org/strangedays/glossary/index.html">abiotic</a> area.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaOtRi9SI/AAAAAAAAAQg/lw5aE9KMcyo/s400/PB180669.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="500" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I like this pic: this is a vernal pool - the first inklings of <a href="http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/orders/entisols.html">entisol</a> soil formation.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaQbi05vI/AAAAAAAAAQk/4t2dH1u7Nvw/s1600/PB180670.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaQbi05vI/AAAAAAAAAQk/4t2dH1u7Nvw/s400/PB180670.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think that is an oak tree. Sorry for my photo smidge on the right. </td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaSbX6bKI/AAAAAAAAAQo/85C_bpSZNy4/s1600/PB180676.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaSbX6bKI/AAAAAAAAAQo/85C_bpSZNy4/s400/PB180676.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking uphill, presumably native grass.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaUMT7klI/AAAAAAAAAQs/0bWw7mbS5M8/s1600/PB180679.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaUMT7klI/AAAAAAAAAQs/0bWw7mbS5M8/s400/PB180679.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Same area.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaVwtwF8I/AAAAAAAAAQw/DBw2qAjAabc/s1600/PB180680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaVwtwF8I/AAAAAAAAAQw/DBw2qAjAabc/s400/PB180680.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Some cactus.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TQZrQFdJz-I/AAAAAAAAARI/Xx6BBhHEdE8/s1600/PB180690.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TQZrQFdJz-I/AAAAAAAAARI/Xx6BBhHEdE8/s400/PB180690.JPG" width="500" /></a></div>Spatial distribution.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaXzHf8EI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/PRMd9vu8W9E/s1600/PB180681.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaXzHf8EI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/PRMd9vu8W9E/s400/PB180681.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The top.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaaLZyfgI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/zJDfxPHg1bA/s1600/PB180690.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
</a></div>According to the <a href="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_p4507_0119l.pdf">Texas Parks and Wildlife Department</a>, the plants and animals that live here are "uniquely adapted to a harsh environment."<br />
<blockquote>In fact, by studying weather pits, ecologists learn: (1) how plants and animals colonize a newly formed habitat; (2) how those organisms modify their environment and help develop soils; and, (3) how plant and animal community structure and composition change over time.</blockquote>In other words, they are super neat.<br />
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><blockquote>At Enchanted Rock you can see the progressive development from bare rock-bottom pits, to annual plant establishment, to miniature prairies with grasses like little bluestem and even trees like live oak. Vernal pools also support an interesting species of invertebrate, the fairy shrimp. These tiny animals survive total desiccation as fertilized eggs, and hatch into larvae and grow into adults each time water collects after sufficient rainfall.</blockquote>Since these things are super cool, and their ecosystems are so fragile, the<a href="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/"> Texas Parks and Wildlife Department</a> wants to make sure visitors are aware of their significance and asks them to <i>back off</i><b>. </b><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b>"STAY ON THE ROCK," they say. And, </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>"Thank you for protecting an important part of the Enchanted Rock experience." </b></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaer-T01I/AAAAAAAAARA/ztK4aa_Xarw/s1600/PB180694.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TPcaer-T01I/AAAAAAAAARA/ztK4aa_Xarw/s400/PB180694.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at the length of the root compared to the height of the above-ground portion (green leaves only). This was on the bank of a dry creek bed.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Have a great visit!</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">P S. Natural resources of Enchanted rock found <a href="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/enchanted_rock/">here</a>.</span></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-76008269361696829832010-11-28T00:51:00.000-08:002010-11-29T22:01:39.735-08:00Six Degrees of Separation: Smectite StyleHello, my dearest little poblano peppers! <br />
<br />
How are you today? <i>Where</i> are you today? You know, <strike>I clicked on something</strike> according to my research, there are <i>twelve whole</i> readers of you out there. TWELVE of you that lovingly indulge me with a subscription! I thank our usual suspects, <a href="http://doyle-scienceteach.blogspot.com/">Dr. Doyle</a>, <a href="http://www.soilduck.com/">Soilduck</a>, <a href="http://gardenbugidaho.blogspot.com/">GonferalinID</a>, and <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/LaylaFry">Layla</a>. And you others aren't my mom or <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/08/heat-index.html">dad</a> (<span style="font-size: xx-small;">well, two of you are, but you don't actually subscribe, LOVE YOU!</span>), so... who are you? Please let me know, so instead of me talking about soils<i> I </i>encounter, <i>we</i> can talk about <em>our</em> soils. For example, uno de mis amigos vive en un <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/03/what-is-your-soil-is-new-what-is-your.html">ultisol importante</a>, y otro vive sobre de <a href="http://shindagger.blogspot.com/">roca y un poco suelo</a> (his guest post <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/06/humanure-and-you.html">here</a>).<br />
<br />
So please, will you comment and introduce yourself? Or what you want to hear about next? Or a random thought? I'll pause and wait, to give you a moment to do that....<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ksL_7WrhWOc?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ksL_7WrhWOc?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Waiting for you to comment gives me similar existential issues as those confronted by Grover and Telly Monster in "Waiting for <strike>Godot</strike> Elmo" by <span class="long-title" dir="ltr" id="eow-title" title="Sesame Street - Monsterpiece Theater "Waiting for Elmo"">Sesame Street's Monsterpiece Theater. </span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><b><br />
</b><br />
<b>Moving on</b>, I have this little "6 degrees of <span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>soil</i></span> separation" game going on in my head all the time. I believe you can link anything back to soil, just like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Degrees_of_Kevin_Bacon">Kevin Bacon</a>. So today I am going to relate annoying small toads to the chemical structure of <a href="http://virtual-museum.soils.wisc.edu/soil_smectite/content.html">smectite</a>*. I know, it's magic! Thank you ;-)</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">First of all, let us let us focus our attention on a gentle, young, unsuspecting <i>Bufo valliceps </i>toad.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TOg-8EmW0MI/AAAAAAAAAQA/HUkowJmKu94/s1600/smectite+toad.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TOg-8EmW0MI/AAAAAAAAAQA/HUkowJmKu94/s400/smectite+toad.JPG" width="500" /></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Actually, he indeed suspects, see why below.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>According to my <s>research</s> hubs, this toad is a <i><a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/06/this-might-be-bufo-valiceps.html">Bufo Valliceps</a></i>. I like to water my foundation, catch them, and gawk at them adoringly. I pour water onto the side of my house and they all come jumping out from the crack between the foundation and the soil.<b> </b><br />
<blockquote>You see, <i>when it doesn't rain</i>, my <a href="http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~doetqp-p/courses/env320/lec12/Lec12.html">clay</a> shrinks to provide these naifs space to cuddle in a nice, moist resting area. </blockquote><blockquote>And <i>when it doesn't rain</i>, I water my foundation to get rid of the very same crack in which they reside (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">Does it help your foundation stability for reals? No idea</span>).</blockquote>You see, this toad and my humble abode are located upon a <b><a href="http://the%20last%20two%20are%20phyllosilicates%2A%2C%20and%20i%20found%20an%20awesome%20presentation%20on%20them%20from%20the%20university%20of%20minnesota%27s%202007%20soil%20chemistry%20and%20mineralogy%20class./">smectite clay</a></b>. <s>I'm obsessed</s> Perhaps you have heard of this soil <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/04/what-do-bees-have-to-do-with-soil.html">here</a>, <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/02/when-clay-soil-and-cast-iron-pipes-meet.html">here</a> and <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/07/vertisols-veritably-difficult.html">here</a>. Anyways, the <a href="http://pubpages.unh.edu/~harter/crystal.htm">crystal pattern</a> for smectite involves adjacent planes, or sheets of oxygen (among other elements). And adjacent oxygens don’t “bond” with each other very strongly compared to say, hydrogen bonding [<a href="http://www.sp.uconn.edu/~terry/images/mols/atomfig5.html">the polarity of water</a>: discuss]. This means that when precipitation (rain) percolates into the soil, fresh soil water molecules have an opportunity to get all up in between the <a href="http://virtual-museum.soils.wisc.edu/soil_smectite/content.html">tetrahedal layers</a>, which pushes the layers apart and <b>increases the soil volume(!!!). </b>Yes dude, the soil gets <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">bigger</span>, and in an annoyingly uneven way. "Le sigh," says my house.<br />
<br />
Imagine, the soil under your house is a smectitic, and whenever it rains, the clay under your house expands, and shrinks when it doesn't. It is like building on ... some other slowly flowing (<a href="http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/hframe.html">viscous</a>) material. Your walls may crack, your door jams stick. Anyways, we water it in a <s>futile?</s> effort at keeping soil moisture nice and even at all times, which should <i>supposedly</i> preserve our foundation's integrity. And this is where the toads come in again.<br />
<br />
<b>In conclusion,</b> our 6 degrees of <s>Kevin Bacon</s> separation:<br />
<br />
<ol><li>I pour water onto the soil next to my house foundation so that it will expand to close the crack between the two. Toads hop out of the crack, <b style="font-style: italic;">annoyed <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;">(<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">and then I catch them!</span>). </span></b>You see,</li>
<li>Maintaining near constant soil moisture levels may preserve our foundation located on a smectite clay. </li>
<li>Smectites change volume depending on soil moisture, </li>
<li>Cuz their adjacent tetrahedral layers are only bonded by oxygen bonds and </li>
<li><i>Water</i> is <i>more</i> electrostatically attracted to the oxygens in between the tetrahedral layers than the oxygens are to each other. </li>
<li>Once hydrated, the smectite clay mineral expands with the added molecules.</li>
</ol><i>Ta da! </i><i style="font-size: x-large;"> </i>You too, can use your soil science expertise to mildly inconvenience small animals!<br />
<br />
PS These smectitic soils are characterized by high base saturation, partially explained <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/04/cations-what-are-they-why-do-i-care.html">here</a> and <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/07/plants-care-about-soil-ph.html">here</a>. </div><div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><em>Definiciones:</em></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Smectite: </b>A mineral found in great quantities in <a href="http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/orders/vertisols.html">vertisols</a>, which are known for their shrink swell capacity due to e<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Garamond, 'Times New Roman', Optima, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">xpanding 2:1 lattice clays (</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Garamond, 'Times New Roman', Optima, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/y1899e/y1899e06.htm">source</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Garamond, 'Times New Roman', Optima, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">).</span><br />
<b>Phyllosilicates:</b> <a href="http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/geophys/silicate.html">Silicates</a> (atomic structures featuring silicon) that combine <a href="http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/eens211/phyllosilicates.htm">to form planar sheets</a>. <br />
P.S. They <a href="http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2010/21may_marsroverupdate/">discovered phylosilicates on Mars</a>. </div></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-67958166517908241242010-11-04T22:38:00.000-07:002010-11-07T20:48:16.884-08:00ATX: Your poo promotes birdwatching. Indirectly.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNOWWolzPLI/AAAAAAAAAPw/tOrkS0qaQP4/s1600/hornsbym09-19-09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNOWWolzPLI/AAAAAAAAAPw/tOrkS0qaQP4/s400/hornsbym09-19-09.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birdwatching at Hornsby Bend (<a href="http://www.greatstems.com/2009/09/the-remarkable-hornsby-bend.html">Photo credit: Meredith O'Reilly</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Hornsby Bend, <b>Austin’s premier birding location</b>, is a <span class="apple-style-span"><span style="line-height: 115%;">biosolids recycling facility</span>. </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Say what? Your beatific contribution to the sewer system via flushing toilet travels through pipes and goes to a wastewater treatment plant</span></span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. After treatment, t</span></span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">he bio<b>solids</b> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(or,<s> if you want to sound like a nerd,</s> primary and secondary waste-activated sludge</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">s</span>) go to Hornsby Bend, where they are <s>manipulated again</s> ultimately composted with yard trimmings collected from Austinites to make <a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/dillo.htm">Dillo Dirt</a> (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/downloads/hornsbybendbro.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Read page 3 of this doc for more details on how this is done</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span>) </span>The <b>liquid</b> waste portion of the biosolids make outdoor ponds, whose waters irrigate onsite fields. <span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black; line-height: 18px;"> </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black; line-height: 18px;"></span></span></span>The birds love Hornsby Bend. They like the ponds, the drying basins, woods and fields:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><blockquote>The biodiversity is present both because of the <b>nutrient rich</b> biosolids treatment processes used by the facility and because of the <b>diversity of habitats</b> at the site stretching along 3 miles of the Colorado River. (<a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/downloads/hornsbybendbro.pdf">source</a>)</blockquote>We built it, so they came, enjoyed, and returned. And now we can go watch them. Meredith at <a href="http://www.greatstems.com/">GreatStems</a> wrote a very <a href="http://www.greatstems.com/2009/09/the-remarkable-hornsby-bend.html">nice blog post on Honsby Bend's birdwatching and history</a>.<br />
<br />
<div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">If you haven’t had </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">a chance to visit Hornsby Bend's neat avian-friendly ecosystem, you should fer reals go. </span></span></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span>Here are some visiting tips:</div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
<div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><a href="http://www.hornsbybend.org/sitemap.html" style="color: #074d8f;" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Hornsby Bend Map</span></a></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><a href="http://www.hornsbybend.org/locationguide.html" style="color: #074d8f;" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Location Descriptions: Where to see What</span></a></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse;"><a href="http://www.hornsbybend.org/seasonalguide.html" style="color: #074d8f;" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Seasonal Guide</span></a></div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">You can go by your lonesome or join the group activities as listed on <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/p/local-natural-resource-events.html">The Dirt on Soil's calendar</a>, which include:</span></div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">A monthly bird survey every 2nd Saturday of the month @ 7am,</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Birder led "field trips" every 3rd Saturday of the month, and</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Eco-literacy day every 4th Saturday of the month @ 9am -1pm</span></li>
<ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">3 hours of outdoor volunteer work; 1 hour of ecological education</span></span></li>
</ul></ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Also, Hornsby Bend is open daily to the public from sunrise to suneset.</span></div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-20310623396066327302010-11-04T10:04:00.000-07:002010-11-04T11:48:49.953-07:00The Saaaands are Alive with The Sound of Muuuuusic!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object data="http://zappinternet.com/v/HiJbHunQec" height="414" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://zappinternet.com/v/HiJbHunQec" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /></object></div><div style="text-align: center;">This post reminds me of that lovely Julie Andrews song, <a href="http://www.zappinternet.com/video/HiJbHunQec/Sesame-Street-Monsterpiece-Theater-The-Sound-of-Music">parodied here.</a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Dear Readers (How are you?),</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I confess: I've been pretty biased against sand. Hydrologically speaking (</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">which is totally my paradigm</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">), I consider it the <i>boring</i> soil texture of the three (sand, silt, clay). <i>Por ejemplo:</i></span><br />
<ul><li>Water flows through it the <i>easiest</i> (of sand, silt and clay), meaning is has the highest hydraulic conductivity*, and </li>
<li>it holds onto the <i>fewest</i> nutrients because of it's low cation exchange capacity* (I mention CEC <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/07/plants-care-about-soil-ph.html">here</a> and <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/04/cations-what-are-they-why-do-i-care.html">here</a>). </li>
<li>Also, it's soil moisture curve* leaves much to be desired. I mean look,</li>
</ul><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNLmPAuaiqI/AAAAAAAAAPg/LdsXjY5GHws/s1600/soilmoisture+curve.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNLmPAuaiqI/AAAAAAAAAPg/LdsXjY5GHws/s400/soilmoisture+curve.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">(image <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CBcQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fbiosystems.okstate.edu%2FHome%2Fmkizer%2FC%2520Soil%2520Water%2520Relationships.ppt&ei=md3STJvpG4eglAf947TbDQ&usg=AFQjCNGya3PHlLt33ksu2jdXwrEKWKc4SA&sig2=tkYdZopeqebLWohlY5eLLg">source</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">, from an awesome looking lecture on soil water relationships in soil)</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Just look at how quickly sand loses it's soil moisture when the water table drops (shown on the x-axis). Yawn, right? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Clay</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> holds onto <i>it's</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> water!! Jeez.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span><br />
But recently, I came to terms with the idea that <i>maybe</i> sand was more interesting than I thought. A few weekends ago, we saw some <i>familia </i>in<i> </i>Corpus Christi, TX and went to <a href="http://www.nps.gov/pais/">Padre Island National Seashore</a> (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=corpus+christi&sll=30.310154,-97.693402&sspn=0.009614,0.01929&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Corpus+Christi,+Nueces,+Texas&ll=27.803854,-97.396545&spn=0.630446,1.234589&t=h&z=10&iwloc=A">Click here</a> for map</span>). As in, we went to the beach, where you get to play in nothing but pure, boring, bland sand. So you'd think I'd be bored out of my mind there, but lo, it was not true.<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><i>Mi familia y yo</i> started digging in the sand of the intertidal zone, and did some learning <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(BTW, sandcastles, sand-chairs, and drip mountains are <i>totally</i> learning.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">)</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNIifEvbR_I/AAAAAAAAAPU/8gXJaJJmLk0/s1600/intertidal.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="196" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNIifEvbR_I/AAAAAAAAAPU/8gXJaJJmLk0/s400/intertidal.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="500" /></a></div></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">This is South Padre Island National Seashore's intertidal (IT) zone*. The IT zone here would be everything in between the seaweed piles to the low tide waves. An IT ecology lesson <a href="http://www.marine.usf.edu/pjocean/packets/sp02/sp02u1p3.pdf">here</a>.</div></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Wanna know what we saw? Aliens! Just kidding: one long, skinny worm, tonsa things that looked like dark, stubby worms, a decapod (a ten-footed something-or-other, shrimp?), and something that looked like a "sand crab" to my untrained eye. Kinda like everything on <a href="http://www.marinebio.net/marinescience/03ecology/sblife.htm">this marine science page</a> (seriously, look at the cool pictures!).<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNLnMEa_xpI/AAAAAAAAAPk/pzavSkUlbTY/s1600/sand+blood+worm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TNLnMEa_xpI/AAAAAAAAAPk/pzavSkUlbTY/s400/sand+blood+worm.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a blood worm (genus <i>Euzonus</i>), which might be what I saw (<a href="http://www.marinebio.net/marinescience/03ecology/sblife.htm">Image credit</a>).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>So, in conclusion, the sand is alive! These creatures have ecological importance as nutrient recyclers, just like our soil brethren. For example, can you believe, and I quote:<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Some worms called polychaetes <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">[my note: this is a class of worms that inlcude the <i>Euzonus</i> genus</span>] simply eat the sand whole and let their digestive systems clean it off. Out the back end, eventually, comes a trail of clean sand (</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003787024_sand13.html">source</a>).</span></blockquote>More:<br />
<blockquote>Blood worms function on the sandy beach much like the earth worms do on land — they ingest the sediments (sand for the blood worms) and digest the organic material found between the sand grains. This type of feeding is called deposit feeding and results in a type of "cleaning" of the sediments. (<a href="http://www.marinebio.net/marinescience/03ecology/sblife.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">source</span></a>) </blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">You mean they poo a trail of clean sand!?!? Awesome. So, why are we t</span>hankful for tiny sand creatures? They don't cause diseases <i>and</i> they clean up after our organic mess. HUGS YOU, little sand creatures!!!<br />
<br />
And to you, Sand: I'm sorry for thinking you were boring. I love your interstitial fauna* and you <i>are</i> easier to wash off our hands than clay. Thank you, too :-)<br />
<br />
<b>***UPDATE***</b><br />
It turns out that sand is waaaaay more interesting than I thought. Check out this <a href="http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/10/sand-the-neverending-story-a-qa-with-author-michael-welland/">book review blog post</a> by <a href="http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/author/brian_romans/">Brian Romans</a> on the book <a href="http://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520265974">Sand by Michale Wellans</a>. This author also has a <a href="http://throughthesandglass.typepad.com/">SAND BLOG</a> on all things sand! Now back to your regular programming...<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">*Definiciones:</span></b></span><br />
<b>Intertidal zone:</b> The transitional coastal region located between high and low tide marks (<a href="http://www.marine.usf.edu/pjocean/packets/sp02/sp02u1p3.pdf">source</a>).<br />
<b>Hydraulic conduc</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>tivity:</b> "A measure of the capacity for a rock or soil to transmit water; generally has the units of feet/day or cm/sec (<a href="http://www.water.ca.gov/groundwater/groundwater_glossary.cfm#hh">source</a>)," or "The ease of movement of water through the soil relative to a potential gradient (<a href="http://www.biosolids.state.va.us/research.htm#H">source</a>)." Think of a potential gradient as a difference in water table levels: water flows from high to low water table levels.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Cation Exchange Capacity:</b> "</span>a measure of the negative charge on soils (primarily on clays and organic matter). It is expressed as the quantity o<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">f cations (positive ions) that can be adsorbed by the soil (<a href="http://compost.css.cornell.edu/glossary.html">source</a>)."</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Soil moisture curve: </b>a graph that shows the relationship between soil moisture content and pressure head (aka water table draw-down).</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Interstitial fauna (meiofauna): </span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">the tiny<b> </b>animals that live in between the sand grains. Also "lo<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">osely defined as animals capable of passing through a 0.5-mm mesh (<a href="http://striweb.si.edu/taxonomy_training/past_courses/2010/2010_encyclopedia_of_life.html">source</a>)"</span></span>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-80058823315884290272010-10-05T12:57:00.000-07:002010-10-05T13:08:12.065-07:00So, Did You Know That Moss is an Ecological Indicator*?I was walking with my <a href="http://www.austinfamilyphoto.com/">chickfriend</a> (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">not to be confused with chiksa, even though she is one of those too</span>) the other day, and we happened upon what I will call moss (Is it moss? I don't know; I'm a geologist!). It was growing on the sidewalk downtown, under a gutter!<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKt5bOliH2I/AAAAAAAAAPM/HROzwy6IybA/s1600/moss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKt5bOliH2I/AAAAAAAAAPM/HROzwy6IybA/s400/moss.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of my chickfriend <a href="http://www.austinfamilyphoto.com/">Sarah Kerver</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>For reals, where is your soil, Little Moss? How do you live so bright and happy under a drain spout? On top of cement, apparently very satisfied with the nutrients provided by the accumulation of dust that deposits underneath you?<br />
<br />
So it inspired me to look up info on this plant that reminds me of ... my verdant childhood (Maryland has more moss than Texas. Our loss).<br />
<br />
So what is moss? Here are some <a href="http://bryophytes.science.oregonstate.edu/page3.htm">basic factoidals.</a> They are not to be confused with lichens, more on those <a href="http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fungi/lichens/lichenlh.html">here</a>. The neat part is, they get many nutrients from rainwater, not soil. However, if the rain droplets are falling through polluted air before they reach the moss (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">I wish the plural for moss was meece!</span>), it will more likely disturb the moss faster <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">than it will other plants. In fact, moss is a good </span><a href="http://www.mpm.edu/collections/pubs/botany/moss/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">indicator of air pollution</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> Why? Here is a good quotation from </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Kevin J. Lyman of the <a href="http://www.mpm.edu/collections/pubs/botany/moss/">Milkwaukee Public Museum</a></span>:<br />
<blockquote>Why are mosses and lichens sensitive to air pollution? Since mosses and lichens lack roots, surface absorption of rainfall is the only means of obtaining vital nutrients which are dissolved in rainwater. Lichens and many mosses lack protective surfaces that can selectively block out elements including pollutants that are dissolved in rainwater.</blockquote>So, it looks like finding happy moss in the middle of downtown ATX is a good sign! Hopefully this does mean that the air around the moss is clean :-)<br />
<br />
Wanna grow your own moss? Try reading <a href="http://bryophytes.science.oregonstate.edu/page32.htm">here</a> first. Enjoy!<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;">*Definiciones:</span></span></b></span></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Ecological indicator:</b> as discussed in <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/06/this-might-be-bufo-valiceps.html">another ecological indicator post on a toad</a>, it is a measure of the environment (e.g. the presence/absence of an organism) that is used to evaluate the health of an ecosystem (more technical definition <a href="http://eagle.nrri.umn.edu/pub_documents/ref_pubs/Jackson_ecol_ind.pdf" style="color: #992211; text-decoration: none;">here</a>). </span></span></i></span>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-55675555698332147732010-09-28T20:15:00.000-07:002010-09-30T13:28:18.806-07:00My Morning in Pictures: Soil's Eye View.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKKzbZSqkXI/AAAAAAAAAO4/ddMNlKP3IOs/s1600/beet+view.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKKzbZSqkXI/AAAAAAAAAO4/ddMNlKP3IOs/s400/beet+view.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beet seedlings' eye view.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKK0L_-tjtI/AAAAAAAAAPA/Dq65cv7nqaM/s1600/view.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKK0L_-tjtI/AAAAAAAAAPA/Dq65cv7nqaM/s400/view.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Driveway's eye view.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-32706499966302582442010-09-24T15:05:00.000-07:002010-10-02T23:19:30.593-07:00My favorite maggots<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKeEFZIiXgI/AAAAAAAAAPI/0blnkRpu-8g/s1600/Soldier+Fly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKeEFZIiXgI/AAAAAAAAAPI/0blnkRpu-8g/s400/Soldier+Fly.jpg" width="450" /></a></div>The adult soldier fly. Photo credit: <a href="http://www.classhelp.info/Biology/ARecycle.htm">Rock Hill high School</a></div></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span> </span></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><div style="font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Howdy neighbors! How is your soil today!?</span></div><div style="font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I need to tell you about my new favorite pet, the </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">soldier fly larvae</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. I'm being totally serious. I worry about their health! When I go to my compost tumbler to drop off a new gift, and see hundreds of them chewing on my food scraps, I get so relieved. Yay, they are still there! Phew! Now that I have them, I don't know what I'll do without them. Well, I do- I'll actually have to </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">exert myself</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> and </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">turn</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> my compost instead of just gawking at it lovingly. Don't leave me, maggots! I love how your efficiency enables my laziness!</span></div><div style="font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> See them in their gross glory</span> here (click play):</div></span></span></span></b></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyB9yNK4aDPgrA1QMEKRWYEtylYgKxns9q0B2KNY5JzooMSp8ah1a2M-_EjyzNNgawJPW3kfYzVJ1CW1PpzNg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></span></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><div style="display: inline !important; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Look at the smiles on those happy </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hermetia illucens. </span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> That was once an avocado, by the way.</span></span></div></div></span></b></span></b></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">The best part about my maggots is that I pretty much do nothing to keep them around. They are lower maintenance than chickens!! My compost tumbler system is set up well to house them, because I can keep fresh kitchen scraps on the top of my pile, inside the tumbler, and attract the soldier flies without attracting rodents. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div></div></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Factoids about my new Friends</span></b></span><br />
<ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Heterotrophes*, and detritivores*, these baby solider flies eat rotting things (like my kitchen scraps) like it is their <i>mission in life</i>. They'll take big uncut (read: lazy compost style) chunks of <i>whatever</i> and turn it into homogenous poo</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"> so it can further </span></span></i></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=802&storyType=garden">decompose</a> into awesome humus</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Ergo, t</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">hey help me </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">make </span><a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/search/label/compost"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">compost</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i>faster</i></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i>.</i> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> A <i>lot</i> faster. For example, before these guys, we called my tumbler "the preserver" since we wouldn't get but one binful of humus a year. Now I'm depositing pretty-smelling bug poo on my soil that was food just a few weeks prior.</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=802&storyType=garde"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">They are voracious</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> and will likely eat scraps before they have a chance to smell badly (even big compost no-nos like dairy, shhhh).</span></span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span>Their poo is a </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.cals.ncsu.edu/agcomm/magazine/winter03/flies.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">nice smelling soil amendment</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. Mmmmm bug poo smells like <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/05/those-actinomycetes-sure-do-smell-good.html">actinomycetes</a>.</span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;">The adult soldier flies do not eat. This means that unlike the maligned cockroach and house fly (yuk!), they don't come into your house looking for food! If they are in your house, they are <i>lost;</i> they don't want to be in there! Unless you have rotting food in your house, but that is another discussion<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> (you should clean your house *cough*).</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><a href="http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=802&storyType=garden"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The flies inoculate</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> the compost with </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/search/label/bacteria">beneficial bacteria</a>.</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;">They are native.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">They don't bite or carry disease (</span><a href="http://ipm.ncsu.edu/AG369/notes/black_soldier_fly.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">source</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">)!</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">They <i>outcompete</i> houseflies for habitat, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">reducing your housefly population</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. </span></li>
</ul><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKKqZWoEXrI/AAAAAAAAAOo/vaTWipTYyo0/s1600/housefly.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="344" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TKKqZWoEXrI/AAAAAAAAAOo/vaTWipTYyo0/s400/housefly.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gratuitous macro lense house fly pic: I am not a fan of this diptera (Diptera is the order that characterizes both flies).</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Soldier flies have so many interesting positive attributes, that Dr. Watson and others <a href="http://www.cals.ncsu.edu/agcomm/magazine/winter03/flies.htm">are looking into utilizing them</a></span> for large scale animal waste management. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span>Yay!!! Tell me about the bugs in your soil that YOU are grateful for!</div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">*Definiciones:</span></b></span></i><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;"></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Autotroph:</b> "</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The acquisition of metabolic energy from the fixation of inorganic carbon, for example, by photo- or chemosynthesis (<a href="http://www.nature.com/nrmicro/journal/v3/n7/glossary/nrmicro1180_glossary.html">source</a>)."</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b>Hetero</b></span></span>troph:</b> "An organism that depends on complex organic substances for nutrition <a href="http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=heterotroph">(source)</a>."<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Detritivore</b>: "An organism that feeds on dead organic debris <a href="http://paleobiology.si.edu/geotime/main/htmlVersion/glossary.html#D">(source)</a>."</span>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-86345337047386952542010-09-18T20:18:00.000-07:002010-09-29T21:09:56.995-07:00My Friday in Pictures<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Yesterday, I helped at <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.americanyouthworks.org/">American Youthworks'</a> </span>inaugural<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> "</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">drainage ditch"</span> garden groundbreaking</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWCY5CKUGI/AAAAAAAAAN8/UNsASMf-v5M/s1600/ayw+kristy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="660" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWCY5CKUGI/AAAAAAAAAN8/UNsASMf-v5M/s400/ayw+kristy.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An American Youthworks teacher gardens.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Since the gardens are in the drainage ditch, they are watered by rain and from upstream surface and ground water flow. The plants are in raised beds, adding water drainage and preventing their flooding during periods of heavy rain. </span></div><div><br />
</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span>This garden is in an urban environment, which has <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/06/watersheds-in-nutshell-in-nutshell.html">hydrological consequences</a>. As a</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/08/11-things-you-can-do-to-increase-water.html">small scale watershed quality strategy</a>, </span>we made sure to put mulch (e.g. <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/05/skinny-on-pine-needles.html">pine needles</a>) on all bare areas. </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWCD8qOi3I/AAAAAAAAANs/Vw-Nr2Qvl_k/s1600/AYW+weeded+this.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWCD8qOi3I/AAAAAAAAANs/Vw-Nr2Qvl_k/s400/AYW+weeded+this.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We weeded and sowed <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/08/turning-soil-into-plants-august-edition.html">Fall appropriate seeds</a>. The shadow of yours truly is in the bottom left corner.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWCOtqHzYI/AAAAAAAAAN0/zBor8sX6jX8/s1600/AYW+basil.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWCOtqHzYI/AAAAAAAAAN0/zBor8sX6jX8/s400/AYW+basil.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A look at their compost pile behind the basil.<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWICz27PnI/AAAAAAAAAOE/0irReizeoYs/s1600/AYW+blessing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWICz27PnI/AAAAAAAAAOE/0irReizeoYs/s400/AYW+blessing.JPG" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is one of my favorite pics from the day. These little garden blessings were placed all around the garden.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWPxcAOl7I/AAAAAAAAAOU/8enJnbu5PWo/s1600/AYW+garden+blessing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TJWPxcAOl7I/AAAAAAAAAOU/8enJnbu5PWo/s400/AYW+garden+blessing.JPG" width="500" /></a></div><br />
I hope you are having a great weekend! Tell me about it in the comments!</div>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-42108356410980887712010-08-26T13:26:00.000-07:002010-09-25T13:47:26.140-07:00The dirt on turning soil into plants: August edition<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/THbPcAN93sI/AAAAAAAAANU/Lkutl8fjCEg/s1600/final+product.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/THbPcAN93sI/AAAAAAAAANU/Lkutl8fjCEg/s400/final+product.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
OK, you got me: <br />
<blockquote>"A plant's dry matter* consists mostly of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, which <b>the plant obtains </b>by photosynthesis <b>from air and water, not from the soil.</b> (<a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/p/references.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Reference #1</span></a>)"</blockquote>But the <i>other</i> macronutrients*, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and sulfur, mostly come from soil solids. <br />
<br />
As fascinating as soil is, much of my relationship with it is in the "benign neglect" category. I'm hoping to change that! But it is August and <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/08/heat-index.html">it is hot</a>. What to do in Central Texas?<br />
<br />
<a href="http://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/">Texas Agrilife Extension Service</a> gives us a <a href="http://sustainablefoodcenter.org/documents/TravisCountyPlantingCalendar_09-10.pdf">2010 Travis County Planting Calendar</a>, a list of <a href="http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/travis/docs/VegetableVarietiesTravisCounty2010.pdf">vegetable varieties</a>, and <a href="http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/travis/docs/VegetableSeedSources2010.pdf">seed sources</a>. Since today is August 26, the chart says I still have time to plant beans (lima and snap), cucumber, and summer squash. And <i>maybe</i> I could squeeze in some Irish potatoes. So I looked into my seed stash, and here is what I did:<br />
<ul><li>Planted cucumber and bush bean seeds.</li>
<li>Covered them with my low-maintenance, wabi-sabi, I-don't-really-pay-attention-to-it <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/search/label/compost">compost</a>.</li>
<li>Watered them lightly. Thought of our <a href="http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/DM_state.htm?TX,S">abnormally dry conditions</a>. Considered the feasibility of <a href="http://www.austinenergy.com/Energy%20Efficiency/Programs/Green%20Building/Sourcebook/graywaterSystems.htm">graywater</a>.</li>
<li>Looked around for potato seed resources, and found some awesome potato literature <a href="http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/publications/easygardening/E-511_irish_potato.pdf">from Agrilife</a>, <a href="http://urbanext.illinois.edu/veggies/potato.cfm">University of Illinois Extension</a>, and <a href="http://cherokee.ces.ncsu.edu/files/library/20/PlantingIrishPotatoes.pdf">NCSU</a>. Also,<a href="http://gardenbugidaho.blogspot.com/search/label/potato%20box"> Gone Feral in Idaho uses a potato box</a>. Looks easy, maybe I'll try it! Then I realized seed potatoes are hard to find until their spring planting season. </li>
</ul><div>How is your soil today? How are you showing the soil <i>your</i> love?</div><div><br />
</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #660000;">*Definiciones:</span></span></b></span></i></span></div><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b>Dry matter</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">: "</span></b><b><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"></span></b></b><br />
<b><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"></span></b></b><br />
<b><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="display: inline !important;"><div style="display: inline !important;">the percentage of plant sample, which </div></div></span></b></b><br />
<div style="display: inline !important;"><div style="display: inline !important;">remains after all the water, has been removed (Reference: <a href="http://www.uky.edu/Ag/AnimalSciences/goats/newsletter/ejunejulynwsletter01604.pdf">Cooperative Extension Service University of Kentucky and Kentucky State University</a>)."</div></div><br />
<b><b><b></b></b></b><b>Macronutrients</b>: "A chemical element necessary in <i>large</i> amounts (usually 50 mg/kg in the plant) for the growth of plants (<a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/p/references.html">Reference #1</a>)."</div><ol></ol>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-36437219890900907052010-08-26T10:18:00.000-07:002010-10-05T19:40:00.993-07:0011 things you can do to increase water in Austin creeks<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/THag4U_QmeI/AAAAAAAAANM/yGMarH3KlOU/s1600/dry+creek.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/THag4U_QmeI/AAAAAAAAANM/yGMarH3KlOU/s400/dry+creek.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This creek has high water flow during rain events; you can see the big pile of brush that the water carried. But a day later, it is sunny and the creek is dry (</span><a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/watershed/fs_ftbranch.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Fort Branch Watershed</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> at Springdale Rd., I think).</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>We talked earlier about how one of the problems in local Austin streams is that they have too much water when it rains [which renders our poor froggies and fish practically habitat-less from all that turbulence], but not enough the rest of the time. This, in part, is caused by how we have developed <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/impermeable?show=0&t=1282835700">impermeable</a> cover on top of our soil. Basically, we've become urban. For more details, please read my post on <a href="http://thedirtonsoil.blogspot.com/2010/06/watersheds-in-nutshell-in-nutshell.html">Watersheds in a nutshell in a nutshell</a>. Thanks! Now onto the proactivity...<br />
<br />
There are ways we can help those little froggies and fish keep their homes, and it doesn't have to be done by big groups of people. Each yard can make a difference! All we have to do is point water in a new direction, away from runoff and evaporation, and towards infiltration into the soil and groundwater. When water is supplied to creeks by groundwater recharge instead of runoff, creeks flow at a more constant rate. A more constant flow rate helps preserve aquatic habitat.<br />
<br />
Below are some tips directly from the <a href="http://www.cityofaustin.org/watershed/">City of Austin's Watershed Protection Department</a> and the <a href="http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/dosdont.cfm">EPA</a> that will help our creeks flow.<br />
<br />
<b>Structural improvements:</b><br />
<br />
<ul><li>Divert rooftop runoff to vegetated areas ra<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">ther than pavement (</span><a href="http://www.cityofaustin.org/watershed/wq_tips.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">source</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">). This is called <a href="http://rainwaterharvesting.tamu.edu/collection.html">rainwater harvesting</a>.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Minimize pavement: use wood decking, bricks or interlocking stones for walkways and driveways (</span><a href="http://www.cityofaustin.org/watershed/wq_tips.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">source</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">).</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Consider creating grass swales (low areas in the lawn).</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #151515;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Install gravel trenches along driveways or patios.</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Make a rain garden- </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/growgreen/raingardenplants.htm">Rain garden instructions</a></span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Collect your rainwater to use later - </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.twdb.state.tx.us/publications/reports/RainwaterHarvestingManual_3rdedition.pdf">Rainwater harvesting instructions</a></span></span></li>
</ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Plants:</b></span></span></div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Select yard plants that have low requirements for water.</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #151515;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Preserve existing trees, and plant trees and shrubs.</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Irrigate efficiently to avoid runoff from your yard (</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.cityofaustin.org/watershed/downloads/wq_watershed_%20bro.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">source</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">). For example, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #151515; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">using "slow-watering techniques such as trickle irrigation or soaker hoses reduce runoff and are 20 percent more effective than sprinklers." (</span><a href="http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/dosdont.cfm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Thanks, EPA!</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">)</span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
</ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Ground cover:</b></span></span></div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #151515;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Spread mulch on bare ground or restore bare patches in your lawn.</span></span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #151515;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #151515;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Use compost. Compost retains moisture in the soil and thus helps you conserve water.</span></span></span></li>
</ul><br />
Increasing vegetation and ground covers are doubly effective. They increase infiltration, and they <i>also</i> reduce evaporation! Increased evaporation from impermeable ground surface is an often forgotten result of the increased urbanization of our watersheds. By increasing shade, and thereby decreasing heat, we reduce evaporation (click here for <a href="http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/hframe.html">more physic-sy evaporation details and terminology</a>, just scroll down on the right side and look for terms). This way, the water stays longer right where we want it, it our watershed!<br />
<br />
What about you? Do you have other tips? This is Austin, so we can be creative!<br />
<br />
***UPDATE!!!***<br />
<br />
Here is a 12th, amazing extra credit thing you can do: <a href="http://www.wildflower.org/greenroof/">Create a green roof</a>! Thanks for the idea, <a href="http://www.wildflower.org/">Wildflower Center</a>!The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9011245660209137374.post-64611893454353453682010-08-17T20:47:00.000-07:002010-08-26T20:30:49.840-07:00It was hot today: the dirt on the heat index.<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Fer reals. The <a href="http://www.nws.noaa.gov/">National Weather Service</a> predicted that it would <i>feel</i> like 11<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">0</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">°F</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> (Fah</span>renheit) today. Same for tomorrow, I hear. This does not bode well for the following polar bear:</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TGnwCtjrDnI/AAAAAAAAAM8/4ScmEbKSQ-w/s1600/thisguysmall.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_EFWA__6pGfM/TGnwCtjrDnI/AAAAAAAAAM8/4ScmEbKSQ-w/s400/thisguysmall.JPG" width="400" /></a></div></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Maryland: Where men are almost as tall as mountains.</div></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">What are they saying when they predict it will feel like 110</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;">°F</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">, even if it is only [only: ha!] 102</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;">°F</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">? They are talking about the Heat Index. At first I thought it was the same as the term "effective temperature". Oh, but no; </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">when I looked up that definition, I got </span><a href="http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/edu/dees/V1003/lectures/solar_radiation/effective_temp.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">this</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> from Columbia University: </span><br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The effective temperature of a planet is the temperature it would have if it acted like a black body, absorbing all the incoming radiation received at its surface and reradiating it all back to space.</span></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">That's not what I want! This is what I was looking for, from NOAA's </span><a href="http://www.nws.noaa.gov/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">National Weather Service</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">:</span><br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The </span><a href="http://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream//global/hi.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Heat Index (HI)</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> or the "Apparent Temperature" is an accurate measure of how hot it really feels when the Relative Humidity (RH) is added to the actual air temperature.</span></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Please click on their link for all the details, it is pretty good text, but in the mean time, here is my favorite part:</span><br />
<blockquote><div style="line-height: 1.3em; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The body's blood is circulated closer to the skin's surface, and excess heat drains off into the cooler atmosphere by one or a combination of three ways...</span></div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">radiation,</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">convection, and</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">evaporation.</span></li>
</ul><div style="line-height: 1.3em; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">At lower temperatures, radiation and convection are efficient methods of removing heat. However, once the air temperature reaches 95</span><acronym title="degrees Fahrenheit"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">°F</span></acronym><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> (35</span><acronym title="degrees Celsius"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">°C</span></acronym><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">), heat loss by radiation and convection ceases. It is at this point that heat loss by sweating becomes all-important. But sweating, by itself, does nothing to cool the body, unless the water is removed by evaporation (sweat changing to water vapor). The downside of this method of cooling is that </span><span class="bold" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">high relative humidity retards evaporation</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">. (<a href="http://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream//global/hi.htm">reference link</a>)</span></div></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Considering <a href="http://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream//global/hi.htm">their explanation</a>, I'm surprised that wind speed isn't factored into it. Doesn't wind promote evaporation? Cuzzzzzz it blows the humidity away? </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">But here is a funny thing part: the heat index was first introduced by </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">R.G. Steadman (1979) in his document called "The Assessment of Sultriness, Parts 1 and 2." </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i><a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sultriness">Sultriness</a>.</i> Hee!</span></span>The Dirt on Soilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13955063473012431050noreply@blogger.com3