Art 590: MIS. Tremain

Art and Philosophy Statement and Course Reflection

2010-04-29T14:58:00.000-07:00

Art and Philosophy: Biological Kinship

The philosophy I am concerned about through my ink and acrylic and pencil drawings of primates—gibbons, macaques, and colobus monkey—is the self-reflection we get when we compare ourselves to the animals that are so genetically close to us. The philosophy does not have any metaphysical connotations; it is straightforward and analytical. The beauty in science correlates to an imaginative wall: the truthful explanations of many life’s mysteries lie in brilliant clarity beyond the barrier and every single human has the ability to reach through the “wall” and grasp the tangible facts. We are animals and affected by biological urges that lie dormant, awakened by sensory phenomena and the everyday occurrences of life. Adaptive radiation, the diversification of one founding species into multiple species and niches, essentially defines the beauty in science: invisibility ascends to the surface in connecting all of earth’s organisms to a common ancestor.

The aesthetics of clarity and the brilliance in finding rational solutions to the queries of seemingly “otherworldly” events are astounding. Determinism and probability, two theories French mathematician Pierre Simon de Laplace was interested in, were concerned with discovering natural mechanisms behind temporal and celestial occurrences. Divine intervention was not necessary. Probability accounted for our limited intellect and the inevitable knowledge “gaps.” It is through the process of learning humility, letting go of preconceived notions and beliefs, that we can mature and garner more comprehension. Art can be calculated in the same terms, an ongoing process that is full of mistakes and rewarding experiences along the way. Over the duration of my college experience and specifically in the art classes I have participated in, success was mediated by process and not through product. Each new work I create is a branch of a much larger tree; the art I have produced over the years have varied drastically in rendering and concept. There is no continuity or staid plateau; the primate drawings are just part of evolution, the products of ancestral work. Biological kinship is the common bond that links the enduring course of creation and demise, the fluctuating cycle that instigates the artist to search for more novel ideas and push the liminal state of art.

The semester of 2010 was an apogee of my undergraduate education; it was the “turn of the century,” the fin-de-siecle moment of my rather young life. Having taken my last art class, I realize now more than ever I want to continue my training in the field of art. I admittedly do not have any tangible projects I want to approach right now; picking a subject vis-à-vis context and formatting comes with an idea that can be spontaneous or take years to develop. The advanced drawing concepts class enabled me to expand my theories beyond my BFA work; that is, the work became less “deified” and I was able to freely move within multitudinous modes of drawing. It was essentially the pivot or fulcrum upon which my artwork is developing, the continuation of work and the departure from past accomplishments. The humbling experience made me realize the beauty in relinquishing guilt and the success that can be gained through maturation.

Are We There Yet?

2009-12-14T05:15:00.000-08:00

"The hurdles are finding the political will to rip out the old energy economy and put in a new one — and finding the money to pay for it.

Building clean coal or nuclear power plants is very expensive. Many of the nation's existing coal plants still need to operate for years to pay off the debt incurred to build them.

Making wind and solar power affordable and accessible will also cost a lot of money. And a limit on greenhouse gas emissions for industry will, at least for a long time to come, raise the price of energy." -NPR.org

There is no point in sugarcoating the truth. Representatives from nearly 200 countries

are rendezvousing in Copenhagen for two weeks to finagle over the global warming issue and attempt to overturn the Kyoto Protocol, a policy that expires in 2012.

"About half the electricity Americans use comes from burning coal. China depends on coal even more and is building new coal-fired power plants at a furious rate. Yet burning coal puts out more greenhouse gases than does any other single source of electricity.

Most energy analysts argue that the nation can't just turn off its coal plants and replace them in a hurry. The solution, according to the Department of Energy, is in part to switch to "clean coal." That generally means using coal in a different way — not burning it, but extracting energy from coal chemically, while diverting the carbon dioxide from the coal and burying it instead of letting it go up into the atmosphere."

So while it is decent and progressive to consider alternative resources, we must approach the most practical solution at the present moment: clean coal. Of course, as everyone knows, "clean coal is like dry water." Who wants to tackle China's resource quandary? America cannot even afford to take care of its own coal-dependency problem! Furthermore, funds would need to be pumped into the "carbon capture and sequestration," or CCS process, in which CO2 would be pumped underground in "out of sight, out of mind" fashion.

"Currently, the United States gets about 20 percent of its electricity from nuclear power plants, which do not emit greenhouse gases. The Obama administration is on record saying that new nuclear power plants are "in the mix" in its plans to lower the energy economy's carbon footprint. Nuclear power has popular support in Congress as well, and a few environmental groups are reconsidering it in light of its carbon "neutrality."
However, no one has built a new plant in the United States in decades. Besides concerns about the environment and nuclear waste, the reluctance of investors to pay for nuclear construction has stifled growth of the industry."
Wind and solar power are not faring so well either. For being ephemeral resources and mainly obtained from the sunny and windy southwest and Big Plains regions, the northeastern and Midwestern states do not reap the benefits of these Eco-friendly energy products. Electricity grids would have to be constructed to reroute wind and solar energy, a project that could take decades and estimated to cost a whopping $100 billion.

"The primary means of reducing greenhouse gases under the Kyoto Protocol is a cap on the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by industries. Signatory countries have targets for the period 2008 to 2012 for lowering emissions.

Most of the offsets sold internationally have been projects that limit greenhouse gases from factories, landfills or livestock waste ponds. Recently, many groups are trying to add forest management and agricultural practices to the list of allowable offsets. For example, a program called REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) is being negotiated by environmental groups and businesses. It would essentially pay tropical and other developing countries not to cut down forests as fast as they have in the past.

Changing the way land is used is another way to generate carbon credits or offsets, since land and what grows on it can influence the flux of carbon into and out of the atmosphere. Experiments are under way, for example, to boost the rate at which grasslands and soil take CO2 out of the atmosphere. If that takes extra CO2 out of the atmosphere, it would generate carbon credits. No-till farming also might keep more greenhouse gas in the soil than conventional tilling, since it doesn't disturb the soil as much and thus keeps more carbon out of the air."

All excellent ideas: managing energy efficiency at the global corporate level, condoning anti-logging practices, and encouraging sustainable agriculture, inject creative thought into the quest for reducing the massive carbon footprint. Currently, 80% of carbon emissions are produced by 10 countries, including China, Russia, and the U.S. Sadly, we do not have an infinite amount of time to ponder over this conundrum and as our resources wane, the populations increase, and the obstacles to finding cost-efficient and environmentally sustainable production of energy seem insurmountable, our future appears pretty bleak.

Check out the article at NPR.org: "U.S. Climate Change Plan is Idea Rich, Cash Poor"

Giant Lobsters

2009-12-14T05:00:00.000-08:00

Carbon emissions prompt lobsters to develop thicker shells, thus enabling them to grow nearly 50% larger than normal exoskeletons. Simulated environments with high levels of carbon also precipitate bigger crabs and shrimps. While this might be good for the restaurant business, it doesn't necessarily mean that such large crustaceans will thrive in their natural habitats. While CO2 is beneficial for exoskeleton growth, clams, scallops, oysters and other "calcifiers" developed thinner shells under extended exposure to high levels of carbon. Incidentally, these species form a great portion of the lobster's diet. What bittersweet, global-warming irony...

Check the article out at NPR.org: "Giant Lobsters From Rising Greenhouse Gases?"

Science Meets Art!!

2009-12-13T17:12:00.000-08:00

Fantastic! A botany major rescinds great dreams of scientific grandeur for art making! It is kinetic art that utilizes the forces of nature (the phenomena of pendulums, gravitational and concentric pulls, e.g.). Ned Kahn even uses the aesthetics of auditory stimuli in his work. The sculpture depicted is made out of teak wood. Formed to be a "turbine" of sorts, the material was steamed and then warped into the inwardly spiraling shape.

"Artists use their creativity to reveal the world in new and sometimes unexpected ways. Artist Ned Kahn's work focuses on the physical world. From the harmonies of randomness to the dynamics of the Earth's crust, Kahn uses scientific principles to create mesmerizing works of art.

Kahn started out in college as a botany major, but gave up when he saw the three-inch-thick textbooks filled with Latin names. After graduating from the University of Connecticut, he headed west. One day he stumbled into the Exploratorium, a San Francisco museum dedicated to the natural world and the forces that shape it, and he was hooked. He begged for a job and was offered an apprenticeship with one of the machinists who built the exhibits.

Kahn's first piece for the museum was enormously popular -- a metal bar dipped into a trough of soapy water, then hoisted into the air by ropes on either side. A giant film of soap would stretch from bar to trough. With just the right lighting, patterns and colors would reveal themselves dancing across the film.

Dozens more exhibits followed. Chaotic pendulums, smoke vortexes, wind-sculpted dunes. Most of the pieces are visual, but some are musical.

One such work, on display recently at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts in Northern California, consists of a spinning disk and tiny steel bearings. The balls drop through a grid of nails, creating tinkling musical sounds as they fall. Kahn says the work had started out as a math demonstration, "but the sound these nails made in this board was compelling."

Kahn says he's most satisfied when people see his work and share that sense of wonder and delight that he feels for the processes of nature.

"I've tried to create things where I've basically framed a phenomena, and I'm letting nature do the sculpting," he says.""

"Science and Art: An NPR Article"

Alternative Modes of Transportation

2009-12-12T11:41:00.001-08:00

I get it! You can be a walking pedestrian and a cyclist at the same time! And this is recycled art, right? While some people casually toss their worn shoes into the trash, this anonymous clever fellow came up with an ingenious way to fix his flat bike tires and utilize worn-out shoes.

Welcome to Kentucky

2009-12-10T17:36:00.001-08:00

For the past eight years, my family has lived on a 100-acre farm in LaRue County Kentucky, near the small town of Hodgenville (birthplace of Abraham Lincoln). Over the years, we have noticed a startling change in the landscape: trees are being cut down rapidly, logging roads delving into the depths of the deep old-forest growth, and felling many ancient trees. Our property has become an island of sanctuary, prohibited from loggers. We even keep hunting on our land to a minimum. We hope that by keeping evasive human involvement to a minimum (save for the livestock and animals we have introduced to the land) endangered species will have a small chance of establishing a foothold in the hills of rural central Kentucky. Think we don't have any threatened organisms in our state? The US Fish and Wildlife Service's Endangered Species Program has compiled a list:

Bat, gray (Myotis grisescens)
Bat, Indiana (Myotis sodalis)
Bat, Virginia big-eared (Corynorhinus (=Plecotus) townsendii virginianus)
Bean, Cumberland (pearlymussel) (Villosa trabalis)
Beetle, American burying (Nicrophorus americanus)
Catspaw (=purple cat's paw pearlymussel) (Epioblasma obliquata obliquata)
Clubshell (Pleurobema clava)
Combshell, Cumberlandian (Epioblasma brevidens)
Crane, whooping (Grus americana)
Curlew, Eskimo (Numenius borealis)
Dace, blackside (Phoxinus cumberlandensis)
Darter, relict (Etheostoma chienense)
Eagle, bald (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)
Elktoe, Cumberland (Alasmidonta atropurpurea)
Fanshell (Cyprogenia stegaria)
Mapleleaf, winged (Quadrula fragosa)
Mucket, pink (pearlymussel) (Lampsilis abrupta)
Mussel, oyster (Epioblasma capsaeformis)
Mussel, scaleshell (Leptodea leptodon)
Pearlymussel, cracking (Hemistena lata)
Pearlymussel, dromedary (Dromus dromas)
Pearlymussel, littlewing (Pegias fabula)
Pigtoe, rough (Pleurobema plenum)
Pimpleback, orangefoot (pearlymussel) (Plethobasus cooperianus)
Plover, piping (Charadrius melodus)
Pocketbook, fat (Potamilus capax)
Puma (=cougar), eastern (Puma (=Felis) concolor couguar)
Riffleshell, northern (Epioblasma torulosa rangiana)
Riffleshell, tan (Epioblasma florentina walkeri (=E. walkeri))
Ring pink (mussel) (Obovaria retusa)
Shiner, palezone (Notropis albizonatus)
Shrimp, Kentucky cave (Palaemonias ganteri)
Sturgeon, pallid (Scaphirhynchus albus)
Tern, least (Sterna antillarum)
Wartyback, white (pearlymussel) (Plethobasus cicatricosus)
Wolf, gray (Canis lupus)

Transgenic-Eduardo Kac

2009-12-10T17:31:00.000-08:00

Eduardo Kac, creator of the Fluorescent Green Protein bunny named Alba was the inspiration behind this design as part of the final project for the Media, Issues, and Sustainability class. Kac was also responsible for the work Genesis, in which a scripture of the Bible was translated via morse code into a DNA codified strip of information that was injected into continuously growing bacteria. Every time a person logged onto the website of the the Genesis Project, a light would shine on the petri dish where the organisms were flourishing, thus prompting them to "evolve" and be genetically manipulated by the humans from afar. We might consider common household domestication to be a slightly less controversial form of transgenic artwork...

"Poo Power"

2009-12-10T17:16:00.000-08:00

"Fecal Matter has Great Potential Energy"

The waste is processed and made into blocks which are burned

A water firm says it saved £15m last year - by using human waste to make electricity.

In 2008/09, Thames Water generated 14% of its power from either burning sludge or methane derived from the 2.8 billion litres of sewage it treats every day.

The company hopes the move will ultimately help it cut greenhouse gases by 20%.

More than 13 million people in London, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire and Surrey are served by Thames Water.

Dr Keith Colquhoun, Thames Water's climate change strategy manager, said: "There's no polite way of saying this but what we produce - our poo - isn't simply waste, it's a great source of energy.

"The solids in sewage have a high calorific content that we use to generate electricity.

"This isn't a gimmick. As well as helping us to be more sustainable as a company, it also saves money - £15m less of customers' cash spent on National Grid energy last year alone, which ultimately has a downward pressure of bills.

"Our goal is to cut greenhouse emissions by 20% on 1990 levels by 2020 - that's about 200,000 tonnes less CO2.

"By using poo power and other renewable energy sources, we're making significant progress towards this target."

-BBC News online

Photographer Norbert Wu

2009-12-10T16:47:00.001-08:00

"Shark Fins Left to Dry"

The link goes to the photography site of Norbert Wu, the professional photographer who was rewarded the "Pew Marine Conservation Fellowship, the world's most prestigious award in ocean conservation and outreach. Through 2003 he used this grant to document, in stills and high-definition video, the world's most unique and threatened underwater habitats, assembling a large library of images related to marine conservation." These images are slightly disturbing and definitely disheartening when we speculate about our greedy preoccupation with the fruits of the sea, including shark fin soup and other delicacies that fetch a high price on the global market. Culture and cohabitation conflict when the demand for ocean resources exceeds the amount of organisms (sharks, loggerhead sea turtles, sword fish...) trying to survive and keep the precarious food chain in balance.

Sympathy is our greatest survival method

2009-12-10T15:01:00.000-08:00

"We Are Sympathetic Species"
Interesting article about altruism and the evolutionary benefits it has bestowed on us. Could this explain our empathy for the people who don't even exist, i.e. our progeny, the proverbial people who will inherit the earth when we pass away? Could this be our reasoning why we seek sustainable solutions, macro-managing and foreseeing a future with limited resources?

Where is my mind?

2009-12-10T14:56:00.000-08:00

I just realized how unusual it has been for me this past semester. I have not openly discussed religion with too many people in any of my art classes. Always a pervasive issue, many of my peers considering I have an irritating chip on my shoulder, I have actually been very reticent about my zealous atheism. Lest we forget the wacky people out there who are more foul-mouthed and choleric as me... science fiction writer, Harlan Ellison.

GRASS Dumpster Dive: A short video

2009-12-09T15:00:00.001-08:00

Recycling Doesn't Work: Ultimate Fail

2009-12-06T09:16:00.000-08:00

"The Recycling Conundrum"

So the National Post has declared that recycling is just a waste of funds and Co2 emissions skyrocket due to the need for surplus garbage vehicles and other required recycling implements. Plastic is cheap. Aluminum and paper are the items that need to be recycled. This is depressing. To come to the conclusion of this class to discover an article that reveals how futile it really is to try to maintain a sustainable lifestyle and community initiatives just supports my nihilism. So what do we do with recyclable materials? Turn it into art.

Recycled Art Reinvented?

2009-11-30T17:04:00.001-08:00

Sheep! Made out of telephone materials! Ingenious, startling, and nostalgic. Why can I never think of these things...

New Recycled Art Stuff!

2009-11-30T16:48:00.000-08:00

Bonobos Need Love Too

2009-11-29T15:41:00.000-08:00

Bonobo born at the Jacksonville Zoo! The 24-year old mother is very proud of her unnamed new female daughter. Hitherto reading about this event, I had not imagined bonobos were kept in captivity because of their promiscuous ways that might scandalize the zoo and offend the public. Despite their reputation for sexual communual behavior, bonobos are very kind and intelligent primates. They can be called the "make love not war" chimpanzees, their very close genetic relatives. They face habitat destruction in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Science + Artistic Ingenuity= "Art of Science Competition"

2009-11-27T11:06:00.000-08:00

Princeton University student shows adept prowess in creating artwork made from the manipulated molecular makeup of organisms.

Worm Window
Erin Cram
Department of Molecular Biology

This work is based on the rose window of St. John the Divine, NYC. Each segment of the image is an image of the microscopic nematode, C. elegans. The red images were generated by staining the animals with a dye called rhodamine-phalloidin, which lights up actin, a protein found predominantly in muscles. The blue is a DNA stain called DAPI, and the green comes from expressing the jelly fish protein GFP transgenically in the nematodes. The grayscale images are mainly of C. elegans embryos or dissected C. elegans organs. Although the work was assembled using Photoshop, none of the image is pseudocolored.

2009-11-27T10:52:00.000-08:00

"American Decadence"

Holiday goodwill ignores the cries of the hungry. Forty percent of the food produced in the United States is casually discarded. Over 1 billion people worldwide do not have their dietary, nutrition needs met. Surprisingly, this wanton consumption and disposal of food products also has detrimental effects on the environment as well.
"'Addressing the oversupply of food in the United States could help curb to the obesity epidemic as well as reduce food waste, which would have profound consequences for the environment and natural resources," the scientists write. "For example, food waste is now estimated to account for more than one quarter of the total freshwater consumption and more than 300 million barrels of oil per year representing about 4 percent of the total U.S. oil consumption."'
Amazing!

Recycled Art Project!!

2009-11-23T16:33:00.000-08:00

My artwork involved rummaging through a worn, paper bag filled with the objects I had hastily collected from my car. I was selling it and before the transaction, I removed all of the old cds, miscellaneous odds-and-ends, a pack of playing cards, flashlight, bumper stickers, a kitschy koala clip from Australia, a bracelet, a cord that would connect my Ipod to the stereo, and an air freshner. The beer bottles had already been thrown away. I had arranged these objects in a mandorla around an altar built from cds, the pedestal for the flashlight, air freshner, and koala. The playing cards were placed in such directions as to emphasize the continuous, cycle of merchandise, commerce, and the increasing reliance on vehicles, the abodes that essentially fulfill a second domicile for us. Above this sacred layout is a bumper sticker that once adorned my Toyota 4-Runner. It is an Albert Einstein quotes: "Only tow things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the former." Witty, sardonic, and critical. I wanted to empathize with the disinterested non-vehicle owning person and support the efforts to exclude oneself from dependency on motor transportation. I believe I made the right decision when I decided to sell my car.

Finally!! Artistic Documentation with a purpose

2009-11-14T15:54:00.000-08:00

"Polar Obsession"

NPR has a fascinating article about National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen who has spent 20 years documenting inclement polar regions through his astounding photography. Having been raised in the Canadian Arctic he is quite familiar with extreme temperatures, the volatile dangerous nature of leopard seals, grizzly bears, and elephant seals, and a life of solitude. Despite endangerment to his life, Nicklen says that it is all worth it. '"How are people supposed to care about the environment when they're living in a cement jungle?' he wonders in the interview. To make them care, he goes to extremes. Nicklen is on a mission to bring these remote habitats to those of us who may never see them, to make us care about the endangered polar ecosystems and the animals that inhabit them. His photos appear in a new book, Polar Obsession, published by National Geographic. "
My comments: There is finally a person championing the cause of environmental awareness through photography (art) with the focus on animals in realms that are on the perilous edge annihilation. When the peat moss in the Arctic starts to thaw and begins to release huge quantities of carbon emissions, humans-gluttonous, self-satisfying and congratulatory, greedy and consumptive creatures-will not be the only organisms to suffer. Paul Nicklen is a refreshing anomaly, a person who is risking his life to capture beautiful, fleeting moments of natural animal behavior.

Choose your produce wisely...

2009-11-10T11:29:00.001-08:00

< "Which Fruits, Vegetables, and other Crops have the smallest environmental footprint?"

A nice accessible article about which produce require the least amount of pesticides, land consumption, and energy. Some observations: eat more soy and beans, avoid raspberries and bananas, and rule of thumb, always buy the cheapest products that usually required less fertilizer, land, energy, and pesticide use.

International Awareness about Alternative, Cleaner

2009-11-01T12:43:00.000-08:00

"This is my Australian cousin and she's really environmentally conscious!"

Eleri Mai Harris conducting an interview for RMITV current affairs program, "Newsline." Not entirely sure what the background story is but I overheard some bits mentioning the migration to greater usage of public transportation. Still, most Australians live on the coastline, i.e. major cities, many don't necessarily need a car thus prompting them to use alternative, cheaper modes of transportation. The Aussies on average have lower carbon foot prints than Americans do; they are also hyper-conscious of water shortage and take adamant measures to avoid wasteful consumption.

Climate Change Gets Sexy!!!!

2009-10-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

A lament for our fellow brethren

2009-10-27T10:44:00.000-07:00

"The Bushmeat Commercial Market"

Environmental Social Justice Issue Revisited: the Illicit Bushmeat Trade

There is corrupt business afoot in the world when animals are poached, their carcasses distributed across a secondary-market for food and other commodities. The destructive affair has led to the deterioration of animal species, notably the gorilla, chimpanzee, and bonobo populations in Africa. Bushmeat hunters will slaughter 200 billion dollars worth of animals this year, including 8,000 endangered apes. According to the Bushmeat Project, an environmental and humanitarian group that initiates alternative wage-earning opportunities for equatorial Africans, “[p]eople pay a premium to eat more great apes each year than are now kept in all the zoos and laboratories of the world. If the slaughter continues at its current pace, the remaining wild apes in Africa will be gone within the next fifteen to fifty years” (bushmeat.net). Partnerships between animal conservation groups across the world have increased awareness and specific concern for the people seeking economic recourse in a destructive trade that not only affects the biosphere of west and central Africa, but an indigenous way of life. A significant mantra of environmental organizations is to turn “poachers into protectors,” in an attempt to divert financial interest in hunting and logging to conservation and tourism. Evoking empathy from the public and encouraging resistance toward purchasing bushmeat, progress has been made; take away the incentives and commercial hunting of endangered species will hopefully wane.

What's wrong with a normal hobby...like cycling or fly fishing?

2009-10-27T09:53:00.000-07:00

"Why the Hell would you create such a thing?"

This is so bizarre...of course the man who created a motorized Lazy-B chair that included the perks of a "stereo sound system, nitrous oxide booster, parachute, headlights, a steering wheel, and a sticker that reads: 'Hell yeah, it's fast,' would get arrested for driving his unorthodox vehicle into a parked car while intoxicated. The chair can reach speeds up to 20-mph; is it sustainable you might ask? If so, I foresee a future where everyone will scoot around in comfort on a fashionable chair, powered by vegetable oil, a shoddy version of a vehicle that you can hurl off a cliff and land safely on the ground with the assistance from your parachute. The ingenious piece of mechanical engineering will be auctioned off on Ebay. Check your bank accounts because this item is definitely a must-have!!

Taxidermied Chupacabra Attracts the Attention of a Wacky Creationist

2009-10-20T07:32:00.000-07:00

Chupacabra? Creationist Museum Displays Mystery Beast

Really? An authentic "Chupacabra," an enigmatic creature that resides in Mexico and known for killing small livestock, has typically been called a fictional animal; a kindred spirit to the Lochness monster and Big Foot, Chupacabra carcasses have traditionally been revealed through DNA tests to be a native, hairless Mexican dog called Xoloitzcuintli or a mangy coyote. This recently acquired Chupacabra's DNA tests are yet to be revealed. Most importantly, John Adolfi, manager of the "Lost World Museum" in Phoenix, New York who purchased the taxidermied carcass, "wanted to exhibit the beast as an example of the fallibility of science. His Lost World Museum (named after Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1912 novel in which dinosaurs still exist) features items and artifacts that he believes proves that scientists don't have all the answers. A creationist, Adolfi believes that the Earth was created 6,000 to 10,000 years ago by God. He believes that by displaying the chupacabra, he will cast doubt on the credibility of mainstream scientists: If scientists scoff at the chupacabra's existence, could they be wrong about evolution and the age of the Earth?" My response: yeah, believing that the earth is 6,000-10,000 years old negates any type of credibility to his outrageous theory.

"Smug Alert!" Be careful you don't get too patronizing, i.e., when it comes to being environmentally conscious, humility is key!

2009-10-18T20:01:00.000-07:00

The creators of the satirically critical and surreal show "South Park," Matt Stone and Trey Parker, point out the hypocrisy of smug Hybrid car owners in the Season Ten episode "Smug Alert." When Kyle's dad purchases a Hybrid Prius, his patronizing attitude alienates his family from the rest of the down-to-earth, commonplace people of their hometown South Park. Being green can take a nasty toll on one's social life if you become too congratulatory about your eco-friendly behavior and subsequently criticize others for not following your exemplary, metropolitan behavior. Crude and ultimately offensive, "South Park" calls attention to everyone's bullshit, even the people who are actually taking positive steps towards sustainability and reducing carbon emissions. Keep it real, guys.

Cultural Diversity in the Gadgets we Choose

2009-10-15T07:50:00.000-07:00

6 Gadgets Japan Loves (and the U.S. rejected)

Japan loves sleek, shiny elongated skinny phones. The Japanese also enjoy bidets (there is an "energy saver" option button on the luxurious toilet), massaging chairs in their living rooms, seated showers, and really small laptop computers. To be succinct, cute gadgets that Americans felt were too superfluous or avant-garde.

Panda Pumpkin

2009-10-14T19:10:00.001-07:00

What's better than a cute panda? How about a panda carved into a pumpkin purchased from a local farm! "Illuminating" the issue of devastating apathy towards endangered species and the benefits of buying produce without paying for superfluous financial and environmental expenses.

World-first Sustainable Racing Car Runs On Chocolate, To Take On Formula 3

2009-10-08T11:17:00.000-07:00

href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091005123048.htm#"

ScienceDaily (2009-10-08) -- Can the idea of "green motorsport" actually work? Yes, according a U.K. researcher who led the research team which designed and built the world-first fully sustainable Formula 3 racing car, which runs on biofuel made from chocolate and animal fats.

"But it's not just an environmentally friendly car, it is also fast. The car has a top speed of 135 mph, can achieve 0-60 in 2.5 seconds and is turbo charged to give it more torque."

This car is outstripping the competition! With a steering wheel made from carrot pulp, a recycled-resin and carbon fiber and woven flax body, this vehicle is fast and ferociously sustainable. The idea behind the project, spearheaded by Dr. Kirwan at the University of Warwick, was to advocate "being sustainable and green..." and it "can be incredibly sexy, fun and fast." Let's root on this green machine at the Formula 3 Championship on October 17th.

Billowing Polar Bears

2009-10-05T16:39:00.000-07:00

Oh, the ephemeral fragility of animals...still, I'm a little befuddled. What social message are they trying to get across? Seems a bit convoluted, i.e., they are encouraging you to ride the subway, to fight global warming, and consequently save the polar bears. Hence, when the subway propels itself speedily under the pavement and creates the great whoosh of air that stirs the polar bears into life, the average pedestrian is supposed to comprehend this rather obtuse message. Well, if you live in the 21st-century and tend to avoid hiding under rocks, polar bears are the ubiquitous poster children of global warming. Interesting archetype.

2009-10-05T16:19:00.000-07:00

Red Earth Environmental Art Group

The Red Earth collaborative art group, based in the UK, is an apt representative of the new avant-garde blossoming in the art world. A group of artists who are following ecological tenets and inciting responses from people in a global context are bringing light to important environmental issues such as the dwindling Suffolk coastline. The 2008 art project "Long Shore Drift is a response to the immediate and historical issue of land loss through geological transition and sea flooding, and the potential for the ecological restoration of an endangered habitat." Besides addressing Anglo-Saxon environmental concerns, the group's artistic influences span across the world; the 2001 art project "Breath" took place in the derelict Canterbury castle and was directly inspired by Japanese philosophy and aesthetics. Including performance and installation, "Breath" was intended to encapsulate the essence of life and the vulnerability of nature as a whole; we take our first inhale of breath when we are born and heave a last exhale before we die, synonymous with every living organism that thrives on earth, we are mortal. Installation in the project included:

A series of retreating and superimposed layers:

The floor is raked gravel, a zen map of all matter reduced to its most simple, symbolic form. Two large pools of water break the patterning, reflecting light and video. The contact of water with water resonates through the digital sound system.

At the centre of the castle space a cylinder, its base dark burnt oak. Steam seeps from within the cylinder. Its upper half - a ringed wall of thickly luminous wax.

Blank screens and a bamboo wall cut across the space; the space behind, the last space, is a dark.

Red ladder against the wall leads from water up to the still figure of a performer. Dead. Inert. Waiting to be born waiting for their first breath.

Human/Body/Fluid
Red ladder. Screens of linen and wax. Yellow columns of beeswax lit from within with vitreous honey pools reflecting the structures below. Muted organic light, living fragile skins activated by video projection.

Nature/Vegetation/Animal
An assemblage of tall, bamboo poles, white and spectral; a forest, a cage, a wild place.

Earth/Mineral/Mountain
A mound of chalk: the earth moving, the course of minerals through the veins of the earth: earth as dust in which a performer will be enveloped.

The project "Java," that spanned the years between 1997 through 1999, included the collaboration of Javanese performance artists, an intellectual documentary journey into the culture of ritual and environmental union.

2009-10-03T14:06:00.000-07:00

Post-Human Earth: How the Planet will recover from us

This is a truly fascinating read! Positive nihilism reaches a new perfected level in this article! It discusses the reverberations of our actions that have stimulated a new geological epoch to emerge, urging a mass extinction to the forefront of history. Scientists have correlated the current global warming scenario to life in the"Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum," 55 million years ago when temperatures worldwide rose approximately 9 degrees Celsius. The present-day crisis at hand is the melting of the ice caps, which will lead to the subsequent thawing of the Arctic carbon-rich peat that would release trillions tons of carbon into the atmosphere; methane from the ocean sediments would also disperse across the planet, creating a noxious environment that would surely be a devastating kick to the genitals of all organisms. Literally, reproductive success would plummet dramatically; the first species to go would be the endangered ones (goodbye panda and polar bears). We have already inhibited the migration patterns of many animals (constructed roads, geographical altercations, etc.) so the common trend of organisms following their respective climate across the globe (reflect back upon our migratory process throughout the world and subsequent adaptations) would be seriously hindered. The earth could virtually become sterile; still, life would persevere in the wake of tenacious evolution. Some critters would inevitably survive (cockroaches and rats) and millions of years later, a diverse blend of organisms could possibly emerge. We just will not be around to see it. Question of the day: what are we really trying to preserve or conserve with our ecological concerns and savvy preventative measures of deterring a mass extinction? For the continuation of our species? My forecast for the future: warm and sunny with a 0% chance of present-day humans succeeding in preventing the devastating, ineluctable outcome. Well, shit.

Ecuador Greens Up!

2009-10-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

http://www.wired.com/science/planetearth/magazine/17-09/st_galapagos#

"Every year, more than 140,000 tourists descend on the isolated archipelago to ogle its cactus-studded scenery and bizarre wildlife. And amid the blue-footed boobies and giant tortoises sits a handful of towns whose population has tripled to nearly 30,000 in the past two decades. To support all those people, 10 million gallons of diesel fuel and gasoline are shipped to the Galápagos annually, a fifth of which is used just to generate electricity."

Charles Darwin would be turning in his grave.

New Artwork: Drawing and the Incorporation of Animals

2009-10-01T10:19:00.000-07:00

Well, it's not too much to look at right now, but the drawing is definitely a "work-in-progress" that I hope will culminate successfully. Why does this pertain to sustainability, environmental concern, and other related topics? The significant meaning lies within the context; the old goat my hand is resting upon is a recurring theme in my artwork; my modus operandi usually focuses on self-portraiture and a fictional setting that oftentimes includes representative animals that stand in for allegorical messages. The background of these figures will be adjunct to a corrosive metal shed, a building that actually exists on my leisure farm (I will try to find pictures of this monstrosity). It was there before my family arrived and it is a quintessential monument to the filthy habits and crass ways of rural Kentucky natives (yes, I am being deliberately offensive); it was filled with miscellaneous objects that had been stuffed inside this hideous structure; cars, laundry machines, and other large items too large to consider worth making a genuine effort to dispose were casually pushed down a ravine.

The Demise of Fish!

2009-09-29T11:08:00.000-07:00

http://www.tnr.com/article/environment-energy/aquacalypse-now?page=0,0

Vermin artwork

2009-09-27T15:26:00.000-07:00

I have transformed the commercially manufactured wire cage into an environmental monument, testifying to the versatility and duality of organic material and plastic, metal constructions. One is consuming the other; things get a little more interesting when Eleanor the rat is introduced to the outside world. She at first retreats quickly into the jungle, labyrinth-like cage that is slightly familiar to her; I was amazed, however, by how quickly she assimilated into this hot, scratchy world where grass blades rose in sharp spires around the small creature,and insects whirred above her head. Perhaps it was simply naivete, but Eleanor seemed very comfortable in this environment; she even climbed out of the cage and started cavorting through the grass. Animals have an uncanny ability to readily accept their world and consequently explore it. There is also a piquant picture of Eleanor sniffing a bag of recycled animal bedding; the absorbent material is made from recycled paper and magazines. Animal owners are going green!

Panda Genocide Advocates

2009-09-26T21:45:00.000-07:00

Let Pandas Die out, Says Naturalist

Naturalist Chris Packham suggests the pandas have worked themselves into an "evolutionary cul-de-sac" without any recourse for survival. What a horrible person! Packham suggests we should pour the millions of dollars spent on resuscitating the panda population into other species that have a better chance of survival. He has the same nihilist opinion about wild endangered tigers as well, noting that they are worth more dead than alive. In regard to the panda, Packham states that:

"It's not a strong species. Unfortunately it's big and cute and it's a symbol of the WWF (Worldwide Fund for Nature) -- and we pour millions of pounds into panda conservation."

"I reckon we should pull the plug. Let them go, with a degree of dignity ..."

Fantastic. I'm for humanitarian euthanasia (concerning both humans and animals)but if 1,600 pandas are contentedly thriving within their environment, albeit a quickly disappearing one, the more power to the adorable creatures.

Spiders: Arachnids Hired to Create Art

2009-09-24T13:32:00.000-07:00

Gossamer Silk, From Spiders Spun

Well, this is nifty! An art historian revitalizes an archaic practice to create a beautiful fabric that used the clever natural skills of spiders (millions of them).

Ephemeral Artwork in Progress

2009-09-20T13:00:00.001-07:00

Well, I started the construction. After picking up various sticks from a nearby park, I arranged several of the pieces into a staggered line of some sort and stringed them together with hemp and ivy growing near my house using a series of knots and interweaving techniques to hold the constructed piece together. I also introduced the assemblage to my pet rat Eleanor (the healthy rat) and she investigated it briefly; I was surprised she wasn't captivated by the unusual smells and textures of the web-like structure. Still, I think it is a noble start.

Reinventing the Forest:: Irrigating Deserts

2009-09-19T21:08:00.000-07:00

http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2009/914/2

A multitrillion dollar operation that seems ludicrously impractical, utterly unfathomable, and counter-intuitive to preservation of the environment? Is that what it's going to take to save our planet? Planting heat-resistance shrubbery in the Sahara Desert and parts of Australia will apparently impede the global warming process. So "if most of the Sahara and Australian outback were planted with fast-growing trees like eucalyptus, the forests could draw down about 8 billion tons of carbon a year--nearly as much as people emit from burning fossil fuels and forests today. As the forests matured, they could continue taking up this much carbon for decades." I think the desert animals that have become so adept at living in the inclement environments should be consulted as well, albeit this idea seems a little unfeasible.

Tony Blair the Rat creates beautiful, intangible artwork

2009-09-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting clip about a nutty British lady who uses her rats to create artwork. We have a lot in common. If there are any other people who use their domesticated animals to help create their artwork please let me know. I need inspiration.

Ephemeral Artwork Project in Progress

2009-09-17T11:12:00.000-07:00

First, let me unabashedly confess my hypocrisy: the pictures with the branches lying on the picnic table have a large SUV in the background. That is my vehicle and I drove it approximately less than a mile to a nearby park. I easily could have ridden my bike but I was feeling hot and exhausted. Yes, I could have strapped the collection of large sticks unto my back and made the bicycle trek...but, I was too lazy so capitulated to the comforts of modern transportation.

On a more insightful note, I have begun the process of creating my ephemeral art project. Today I went on an expedition to gather materials for my "rat cage." Decomposable materials that are supposed to "contain" an animal is somewhat counterintuitive. This art succinctly concerns animal rights and the ethical concern for both our environment and the organisms that strive to survive in it.

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
--Ghandi

Bird Songs

2009-09-15T13:11:00.000-07:00

Sustaining Life?

2009-09-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

There has been a lot of discussion about sustaining valuable resources, sacrificing comfort for mitigating ecological issues, pontificating at great length about the harmful effects of bottled water and wanton disposal of non-recyclable goods, and ad nauseum. But for all of our starry-eyed altruism, for what purpose? I have been troubled by the lack of organisms being brought into discussion; one of the main reasons I try to be environmentally conscious is for not only the longevity of the human species (although I doubt global warming is going to result in our ultimate demise, ahem nuclear annihilation seems to be the most likely outcome) but organic life as a whole! What about the pygmy rabbit population in Washington state? The polar bear who is struggling to survive because of the increasing gaps between the ice floes and the primates whose habitats are being destroyed? Where is the concern for the newts, the small frogs, and "hellbenders" in Kentucky streams that are so fragile and pertinent to the life-sustaining issues at hand? Pictured here is a montage, assemblage mixed media artwork I created that doesn't leave much room for obtuse interpretation, i.e. figurative representative subject matters signify the contentious environmental problems at hand. Stop being so selfish.

Melting ice just made ocean traveling a lot easier

2009-09-15T07:56:00.000-07:00

http://www.kansascity.com/news/world/story/1439617.html

"A journey from South Korea to the Netherlands, for example, is about 11,000 nautical miles (12,658 miles). By going northward and using the Northeast Passage, approximately 3,000 nautical miles (3,452 miles) and 10 days can be shaved off."

Because of the "detrimental effects" of global warming, the arctic ice is increasingly disappearing consequently fueling the faster traversal of the Northeast Passage. Convenience is coming at a cost but damn does it make transporting goods a lot easier. A sardonic benefit of global warming? My comments: people are all innate individualists, selfish and always craving convenience for consuming their needed resources as fast as possible. Oh yeah, the polar bears can just get over it; the pandas can commiserate.

Bicycling is Saving My Life

2009-09-09T16:28:00.000-07:00

This is my Diamondback "Vital 1" girl's cruising 7-speed bike, complete with cute art nouveau detailing on the frame and collapsible baskets. It's a relatively new model (2008) and has proved to be a reliable, sturdy bicycle for the past year. I rode it nearly every day on daily routes; from my Ol' Louisville apartment to school, to the downtown Cressman Center on cold, snowy mornings and to grocery stores. The baskets and rack alone could hold over $50 worth of groceries, approximately 20 purchased goods; strapped down with bungee cords, I carried everything from art portfolios and supplies to 8 cardboard boxes on the trusty bike. It has proved to be an invaluable purchase; admittedly, I am trying to sell this bicylce. It's been a good companion for the past year but I have decided to move on to faster, lighter, and more efficient commuting bicycles.
Why the need and obsession for buying bicycles with more prowess, prestige, and ratings? I have seen the phenomena appear amongst circles of bicycle connoisseurs. I'm an amateur by all means but cycling has become more than just a physical activity for me. First, some biographical notes: earlier this year I was prescribed anti-depressants. I was an avid cigarette smoker, often smoking 12 or more cigarettes a day; I had little or no interest in pursuing anything physical because my mind was saturated with self-pity. Pathetic, yes? My epilepsy seemed uncontrollable; over the past 7 months, I have had 4 grand mal seizures (atypical for an epileptic who has been diagnosed and medicated for over 6 years). I had a suspended license but still continued to drive a vehicle in dangerous situations that might have precipitated a seizure. Yet, slowly the faint inkling of interest in bicycles began to emerge and consequently became my main coping resource; my depression receded because I was being active and felt compelled to be healthy and remain fit. Confidence in my body image grew and I came to terms with my smoking addiction; after smoking for over two years, I have cut down from 4 packs of cigarettes a week to approximately one occassional cigarette (this is a relatively amazing accomplishment in itself; only 5% of smokers who seriously commit to quitting are successful). I have decided to sell my vehicle to focus more on commuting with my bicycle; for legal purposes, this is also a wise decision. I have no reason to be behind the steering wheel of a massive SUV with no license, a neurological disorder, and a paranoid imagination (oftentimes while I am driving, I imagine a seizure suddenly taking control of my body, the car veering off into oncoming traffic; a collision occurs, resulting in my demise and a bloody massacre of innocent victims involved with the horrendous car accident). For humanity's sake, I am going to stick with the bicycle.

Weird: Religious Leaders Called by Scientists to Motivate the Masses to be more Green

2009-09-08T11:47:00.000-07:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/sep/07/global-warming-religion

Charles Darwin pointed out that cooperation is evident in smaller, social groups of species but not so apparent or solid in the plethora of human cultures distributed across the globe. Religion does establish commonality and solidarity and perhaps such institutions could be put to good use in the task of motivating people to be more ecologically conscious. What will it take for people to understand the repercussions of wanton waste and carbon output? Tell the Christians that a lost scripture of the Bible warns of an apocalyptic event instigated by wasteful water and energy consumption...

Environmental Art by Tremain: September 3rd

2009-09-03T13:19:00.000-07:00

Three individual projects: the first involved a stick assemblage with a walnut shell and dandelion juxtaposed to each other. The second artistic creation fell into both the 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional realms; delicately tearing up the dry leaves, I arranged them in a pattern along a park bench in Parrish Court. Thin lines follow the diagonal wood strips of the bench. Interspersed amongst the dry leaves are small touches of color, including sodden pink flowers I found amongst the artificial landscaping. A thick chunk of decomposing wood was a "joint" between two lines of leaves. The ephemeral organic montage promptly disappeared within several minutes because of the destructive forces of a gentle breeze. Finally, the third environmental project was very minimalist: I simply placed an angular rock in the crutch of two large tree branches. Analyze it from a perverse perspective, but there could be some erogenous zone reference. Art can be critical and amusing at the same time. More comments about these creations later in class discussion.

Accumulation of Trash at the Domicile

2009-09-02T21:22:00.001-07:00

Right outside the laundry room, my personal exit door into the outside world, is a large pile of incongruous and miscellaneous items; a useless stove sits beside a plastic dresser, odds and ends of a broken towel hanger, a shoddy framed painting of flowers, and discarded plastic containers filled with random and seemingly disposable debris. These materials are the product of wanton spending and the hesitancy to discard large, non-decomposing, and unconventional trash items that are functionless. Thus, instead of these items sitting in a landfill, they have accumulated into a standing repository of junk, a hodgepodge assemblage of clutter. There is a recycling bin filled to the brim with standard recyclable items (aluminum cans, beer bottles, paper products, and sundry food containers); why is it seemingly impossible to get rid of the other trash? What resources do we have?

Generation Y: The Degenerate, Hypocritical Culture.

2009-08-31T17:46:00.000-07:00

It is common knowledge that the Earth has become incredibly vulnerable and susceptible to the diseases that humans-whose actions are exacerbating an imminent mass extinction-have created. Not only are we suffering from the repercussions of our actions (depleted resources, ecological dangers, e.g. see article about toxic sludge developing on beaches worldwide, faltering economies, moral-societal crises that have caused an entire generation of youth to be extremely environmentally conscious, subsequently imagining a world that is on the brink of nuclear destruction and instilling a fear of a dystopian future) but our animal brethren are suffering as well. While youth initiate progressive recycling projects, opt for riding bicycles instead of choosing a vehicle, and become staunch vegetarians, these actions seem to fall short of being anything sincere or effective. Will our generation be remembered simply for following the "Green Fad?" The fact is that while Generation Y (contemporary 18-24 year olds) are extremely conscious of being green and knowing the importance of inhibiting wasteful actions, they are the top producers of waste and conspicuous, wanton consumption that can ultimately lead to devastating environmental effects. According to the online site Greenbiz.com and an article written by Matthew Wheeland disturbing statistics were found in a study:

"commissioned by IBM, that young adults in Generation Y had both the highest levels of awareness of environmental issues, and were the biggest wasters of energy and water in the country.
"The good news is that Generation Y is showing clear concern for environmental issues," said Jon Z Bentley, a partner in energy and environment at IBM Global Business Services. "The not-so-good news is that far too few are taking even simple, small steps to control their own wasteful use of resources." Among the findings: 72 percent of Gen-Y members surveyed admitted that they wasted water on a regular basis. Fifty-six percent said they leave the tap water running while brushing their teeth, and 40 percent allow the shower to run for "a few minutes" before getting in"

I feel like a hypocrite now...

Nature Strikes Back: Lethal Algae Kills Equine

2009-08-31T17:32:00.000-07:00

Saturday, August 29, 2009 - Page updated at 12:14 AM

Permission to reprint or copy this article or photo, other than personal use, must be obtained from The Seattle Times. Call 206-464-3113 or e-mail resale@seattletimes.com with your request.

Tremain's commentary: I suppose that beaches and sea environments are most susceptible to exposure of dangerous toxins; at the rate that we dispose of chemical waste into the ocean it isn't any wonder that algae, feeding off the layers of debris and foul sludge that have accumulated in the shallow beach waters of the major oceans, are creating a major environmental concern. What to do about ecological atrocities? I am not an authority on the topic but surely there is some contribution I can make in a land-locked state...

DAVID VINCENT / AP

Ankle-deep algae decays on a beach at Saint-Michel-en-Grève, France. Experts say the resulting poisonous gases can be a threat on beaches around the world.

French beach toxic enough to kill a horse

By ELAINE GANLEY

The Associated Press

SAINT-MICHEL-EN-GRÈVE, France — It should have been a perfect day for Vincent Petit, finishing an afternoon gallop on a wide expanse of beach along a pastel-colored bay. Instead, he and his mount were sucked into a hole of noxious black sludge.

The horse died within seconds, the rider lost consciousness, and a dirty secret on the Brittany coast reverberated across France: decaying green algae was fouling some of its best beaches.

A report ordered by the government after the accident found concentrations of hydrogen-sulfide gas emitted by the rotting algae were as high as 1,000 parts per million on the beach where the horse died, an amount that "can be fatal in several minutes."

There had been signs of a crisis for years in this idyllic corner of Brittany. But scaring away tourists was in no one's interest, including the farming industry — the region's economic backbone — whose nitrate-packed fertilizers power algae blooms.

It took the death of the horse to bring the problem into the open.

Decaying ulva algae threaten other beaches around France and the world, from the United States to China, experts say. Last year, the Chinese government brought in the army to remove the slimy growths so the Olympic sailing competition could be held.

In Brittany's Côte d'Armor region, conditions are perfect for algae's spread: sunlight, shallow waters and flat beaches. Chemical and natural fertilizers such as pig excrement, loaded with nitrates and phosphorous, have saturated the land, spilling into rivers and the ocean, feeding the algae that proliferate.

Harmless while in water, the algae form dangerous gases — notably hydrogen sulfide, with its characteristic rotten-egg smell — when they wash up on land and decay. A white crust forms and traps the gases, which are released when stepped on or otherwise disturbed. Over time, putrefied algae turn sand into black silt muck, sometimes containing pockets of poison gas.

On July 28, Petit, 28, a researcher in a state-run virology lab, had just finished riding his thoroughbred Sir Glitter, a retired racehorse, on the Saint-Michel-en-Grève beach, when the two were mired in muck as he led the horse on foot.

"The horse and I slid in," said Petit, who is also trained in veterinary studies. Petit said he watched as his horse stopped breathing and died within about 30 seconds, and then he himself passed out. Petit was pulled from the mire by a bulldozer shovel after a man who witnessed the accident gave the alert.

While locals are aware of the perils posed by the silt traps that lurk under the sand around streams that feed from the beach into the ocean, Petit did not sense the danger until the ground gave way and he and his horse were sucked into the noxious ooze up to Petit's chest.

Police initially ruled that the horse suffocated, but a necropsy showed the animal died of an acute pulmonary edema with symptoms "compatible with gaseous intoxication in a brutal manner," Petit said, quoting the report, which he paid for.

There have been local efforts to clear the blight. Mayor René Ropartz said Saint-Michel-en-Grève, a village of 480 people, collected 10,000 tons of algae from the mile-long beach by the end of July; several years ago, villagers cleaned up 21,000 tons.

"This bay is magnificent and, unfortunately, this tarnishes the image," said Ropartz, adding that the horse's death shows the role of the algae "is no longer in doubt" and spurred the government into action.

Prime Minister François Fillon visited Saint-Michel-en-Grève last week, pledging to control the algae by next spring.

The horse is only the latest victim of the algae's noxious fumes. A man was found dead on the same beach two decades ago, his arm sticking out from a pile of algae. Another man fell into a four-day coma after cleaning algae 10 years later. Last year, two dogs died while romping on an algae-covered beach 60 miles east.

Solving the problem will take far more than cleaning algae from beaches.

Water in the affected region measures 32-33 milligrams per liter of nitrate — compared to a normal level of 5 milligrams, said Alain Menesguen, a biologist with the French Institute for Exploitation of the Sea. Some rivers reach 60-70 milligrams, and the groundwater in some areas reaches 100 milligrams, he said.

"We've reached saturation," he said. Returning to normal levels will require huge changes in agriculture, and the results won't be visible immediately.

"This is very difficult for farmers and politicians to accept," Menesguen said.

Solange Le Guen, who raises 80 cows on a farm planted with corn, wheat and other crops in the hills behind Saint-Michel-en-Grève, said farmers aren't the only ones to blame.

Fault also lies with water-purification plants too close to the ocean, she said. She conceded, when pressed, that "people have abused" fertilizers. "We were badly advised," she said.

Why I have chosen to dismiss Thoreau and replace him with Sagan.

2009-08-30T14:40:00.000-07:00

In the illuminating and witty 3rd-edition "An Incomplete Education: From Plato's Cave to Planck's Constant...Einstein to Gertrude Stein...Twelfth Night to Twelve-Tone Theory..." is a succinctly descriptive blurb about Henry David Thoreau (1816-1862). Such details listed include "how he earned a living." His occupations ranged from being a schoolteacher, pencil maker, and handy-man to fulfilling the role of a naturalist. Thoreau's famous novel/memoir "Walden" (1854) was a written documentation of his two years "spent communing with himself and Nature in a log cabin on Walden Pond" (14). The concise summary of Thoreau's renowned position amongst the American literary parvenues is that he "was one of the great American eccentrics and the farthest out of the Transcendentalists, and that he believed you should spend your life breaking bread with the birds and the woodchucks instead of going for a killing in the future's market like your old man" (14). This humorous paragraph was very candid and further emphasized his prestigious, yet outmoded status in the literary realm; thus, because he is such a patent, passe naturalist, I have decided to choose a more unusual figure, a man who is consistently heralded as the individual who brought the "Cosmos" into mainstream society: Dr. Carl Sagan. The late astrophysicist and astronomer was one of the first people to call attention to the detrimental climatic effects of nuclear annihilation and global warming. During the 1980s, he championed an avant-garde environmental movement that formed a seemingly incongruous, yet strong bond between science and religion in the task of protecting the weakening environment. The preeminent atheist's speech titled "The Varieties of Scientific Experience: A Personal View of the Search for God" was given at the prestigious Gifford Lectures in Scotland in 1985; I will use this lecture, formatted into a lovely book and edited by Ann Druyan, as my main resource in discussing the philosophy of Sagan and his theories on Earthly organisms and scientific forces working within our grand universe, temporal and speculative beings that are so important to the diversity of life. Sagan's zealous enthusiasm for garnering knowledge, questioning theories, and appreciating the world we live in, consequently demarcates Sagan as being one of the legendary naturalists of the 20th-century.

Natural Trees Fall Short When Absorbing Carbon: In Step Faux Trees

2009-08-27T16:08:00.000-07:00

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2784227.stm

Here is an interesting article about the innovative use of technology supplanting our natural resources. These synthetic trees are apparently more efficient at removing carbon from the atmosphere in comparison to organic, living trees. Many scientists are however, skeptical to say the least. Much more extensive research will be conducted before 250,000 of these "fly swatters" are posted all over the world to remove the tons of carbon produced annually by humans.

I Follow the Tenets of Solipsism

2009-08-25T13:28:00.000-07:00

Domestication is not exclusive to the animals we consume and dominate. We have only to look at the hindrances we have imposed upon ourselves to realize we curl up in kennels, eat from feeding troughs, and share our bodies with millions of teeming organisms. It is arrogant to consider that a planet whose surface is over three-quarters water would be constructed for humans. The idea of a "blind watchmaker" is the most disturbing, contentious topic for me. This is directly related to environmental concerns because I seek fulfilling answers in every bit of organic matter I encounter.