Just Sara » Science

Important scientific discovery

Sara — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 08:40:56 +0000

As many of you know… OK, scratch that. Maybe some of you know that the Condor is a huge vulture that can only be found in the New World, mostly in the Andes and a species in California. Well, I think it is now safe to say that the long extinct Vultur gryphus ssp. europeensis is back!! Ornithologists across the world had lost hope of seeing this marvellous vulture fly over Northern Europe again, but we now have the proof that our very own European Condor is back. This photograph was sent this morning to the RSPB by an anonymous bird enthusiast. We don’t know when this photo was taken, nor where exactly. The identity of the sender couldn’t be retrieved from the reflection in the photo. We don’t know the reasons why the sender wants to be anonymous. Given the importance of the discovery, the photo and the email message are now being analysed by a team of IT experts. We will keep you posted on any updates on this remarkable discovery.

Sunny rain

Sara — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 20:09:11 +0000

A sunny rain shower: perfect light

Maybe I should sort my photo galleries by season and track down climate changes in the Cotswolds.

It was very amusing to watch journalists spread across the country, having to report on drought warnings… under the rain! This week has been one of the wettest since Winter, yet until 10 days ago we were prepared for the worst drought in years.

Oh well, I guess we’d better get ready for the good ol’ rainy British Summer now

Livestock Revolution examined

Sara — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 09:25:49 +0000

Livestock Revolution Examined | Mother Jones.

I read a lot of news, studies and reports on the Livestock Revolution. Still some support it, some never did it, some don’t support it anymore. I believe we should have learned by now that extreme measures are not the answer. Use moderation.
But no, we still want it all. Or nothing. It’s either black or white, never grey. It’s either “pushing the sector to its limits” or “not developing at all”. We should have noticed by now, that there always are limits to whatever we do. Let’s try to find an optimum that doesn’t break those limits and start doing us harm, instead of improving our lives. When did we started believing that we should eat meat every single day, maybe even twice a day?

Making solar power portable

Sara — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:34:56 +0000

Excerpt: ”Last year, when Jonathan Smith was still the president of Earth911.com, a Web site dedicated to recycling, he said he would often board a plane after a speaking engagement or a day of meetings with a dead cellphone in hand.
With limited recharging options available, “it was really frustrating,” he said. “Having access to a working port or finding an open plug during layovers at the airport was just too unpredictable.”
Hoping to solve his problem, Mr. Smith bought a portable solar charger he could prop up in the window of a plane. “I’d plug it into my phone and when we landed, I was ready to go again.” The charger meshed well with his environmental values, of course. Still, “when I first started using solar to charge my devices,” he said, “it was out of convenience.”
In fact, Mr. Smith is one of a growing number of business travelers who, out of practicality or concern for the environment, use portable renewable energy devices — primarily portable solar panels, but also hand-cranked electricity generators known as dynamos or freeplay devices — to power up their electronics when they work in places that offer little or no access to electricity.”

via NYTimes.com

Climate change skeptics

Sara — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 23:08:56 +0000

A very icy Serpentine in Hyde Park, London

Just a couple of weeks ago I took this photo of the Serpentine in Hyde Park. It was very cold and not even the ducks dared try to ice-skate on its surface. It was a beautiful sight, though. Some really heavy snows challenged the British islands. I had never seen London with that much snow. I was here last year in February and, same thing, a lot of unexpected snow in the country, but London seemed snow-proof.

Snowy Cirencester, 2 weeks ago

Now, today in Cirencester we could experience the ultimate All-in-One climate change. This morning the sky wasn’t too promising, but still, no rain. Then before lunch, a rain shower, quickly followed by a beautiful open sky. Nice, a couple of hours of warm sunshine right before going back to work. It was much appreciated, given the cold temperatures we’ve been having for about 2 months now. But it was too much hoping the sun would keep shining a little longer. In the afternoon we had some hail, followed by some heavy snow. So now we are covered again. Luckily it snowed for only about an hour or so, not much is left in the street, just a little bit in the fields. But temperatures are, once again, below zero and the freezing wind isn’t helping. It was fun though, seeing the weather change so quickly within minutes! Next time I’ll take some photos of each ‘phase’. I guess climate is really changing after all.

Looking forward to Copenhagen 2009

Sara — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:06:18 +0000

Another 2 interesting articles from The Times…
“Exaggerated claims undermine drive to cut emissions, scientists warn” Click here.
“Methane’s impact on global warming far higher than previously thought”Click here.

The upcoming meeting in Copenhagen in December has been providing a lot of food for thoughts lately!

Something to make us think

Sara — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:06:48 +0000

“Climate chief Lord Stern: give up meat to save the planet”
Click here to read The Times article.

How about giving up meat 5 days a week? Thank could be a nice step too, I guess.

Top 10 Weird Uses for Vodka

Sara — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:39:56 +0000

Top 10 Weird Uses for Vodka
Save Money and Reduce Chemicals with Alcohol – thedailygreen.com

This is SO cool! Who would have thought Vodka was such a versatile liquor…