Possible algal bloom in Canada's Bowman Bay (Photo by Pierre Nordique) It seems there are still mysteries to solve on this planet. Following the recent discovery of the "Alaskan blob" (insert your own Sarah Palin joke here ... ), there's been a flurry of news stories covering the explosion of colonies of microorganisms on both sides of North America. The furry-looking slick located off the shores of northern Alaskan has so far baffled scientists as to why it's appeared where it has. It's something generations of locals have never seen before, and whether it will hurt the local wildlife and eco-systems or not is something they can't yet answer. Just a simple news search on "algae bloom" gives you the skinny on who's dealing with harmful algal blooms (or HABs, for short) at this very moment. In June, there was an algae bloom in Tampa that stretched for more than a dozen miles, and which could still cause a large fish kill. And off the entire coast of Maine, a red tide has virtually shut down clam-digging and other local fishing industries. As of last week, the most current research vessels on the scene have concluded that the bloom is finally ending, though. And these examples represent just saltwater occurrences, we haven't even begun to touch on the freshwater bacteria that can wreak all sorts of havoc ... something that visitors to Vancouver Lake in Washington found out about last weekend. And now that we've got you worried about that, what's up with those big globs of oil washing up on the beaches in Texas? Suggested Sites... National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service - investigating the ocean algae blooms with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Harmful Algae: Red Tide - comprehensive resource for information about harmful algal blooms. The Bioluminescence Web Page - some varieties of algal blooms can produce a ghostly glow in the dark. The Biotech Weblog - researchers find a diatom that can reduce the toxicity of a red tide.

Directory categories: Harmful Algal Blooms, Phycology, Microorganisms, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Archived under: Alaska, Bacteria, Beaches, Biology, Canada, Environment, Fish, Fishing, Mysteries, Nature, Science, Scientists, Underwater, Weird Stuff

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Halley's Comet, minus the advertising space that's sure to come next time If there's one thing mankind has discovered, it's that nature cannot be tamed. As last weekend's earthquake in Los Angeles and the recent "inland hurricane" in Southern Illinois proved, when Mother Nature wants to do something, it's best to stay out of her way. With that in mind, today we examine a few of the ways in which people have coped with nature's whims. The first took place on May 19, 1780. While the former British colonists of New England were still fighting their Revolution, strange things were happening. For a couple of days prior, the skies from Maine to New Jersey had been strangely colored -- yellow, copper, and red -- but in mid-morning of the 19th, those skies began to darken unnaturally to the point that, by noon (in most places), it was as dark as midnight. While animals behaved normally, many humans panicked and flocked to religious services, believing the end of the world had come. Those of a more scientific bent tried to determine what had happened, but were baffled. By the next day, the darkness had dissipated as mysteriously as it had come. Modern scientists have examined "Dark Day" and are now pretty sure (though not positive) that a combination of wet weather, Canadian forest fires, and just-right winds created a "perfect storm," and a cloud cover so thick that sunlight was unable to provide illumination to the region. While 18th-century Americans were driven into confusion and terror by a natural phenomenon, by the 20th century, Yankee ingenuity had figured out how to capitalize on Mother Nature. Halley's Comet paid the Earth a visit in 1910. Even though it had been doing so with no harmful effects since at least 240 BCE, the media got hold of the fact that the Earth would pass through the comet's tail on May 19th, and a minor worldwide panic ensued. Predictions of the damage that would be caused were apocalyptic. It got even worse when scientists determined that the comet's tail contained cyanogen gas -- similar to cyanide -- leading many to believe they'd be poisoned. Panicked (again), Americans packed churches, stopped up their doors and window with towels, and went insane from worry -- and (of course) there was a land-office business in comet "cures," ranging from pills to inhalers to gas masks. Of course, not everyone panicked, but even for those folks who kept their heads, retailers and restraurateurs managed to capitalize on comet fever, with souvenirs, postcards, pins, soaps, and even special dinners. While we can't imagine that when the "Big One" finally hits, folks will be flocking to buy souvenirs, we're pretty sure that, given the vast number of scams that popped up after Hurricane Katrina, American knowhow will figure out a way to make a buck. Suggested Sites... The Dark Day Over Olde New England - just what happened? Wikipedia: New England's Dark Day - description and links to sites explaining what occurred. Halley's Comet Postcards - capitalism is a worldwide phen A Brief History of Halley's Comet - from prehistory to the future. Comet Hysteria and the Millennium - it wasn't limited to 1910.

Directory categories: Weather, Weather Phenomena, Halley's Comet, Astronomy, Fraud

Archived under: 18th Century, 1910s, American History, Anniversaries, Astronomy, Coincidence, Comets, Environment, Events, Halley's Comet, History, Nature, Revolutionary War, Scams, Science, Society and Culture, Storms, Superstition, United States, Weather, Weird Stuff

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Star Trek Pon Farr Perfume (From Entertainment Earth) Star Trek Pon Farr Perfume: With "Star Trek: The Movie" sweeping the nation's theaters and topping search spikes this week, I suppose we were all just waiting for "Star Trek: The Perfume" to come out. And so it has! Now all you sci-fi loving ladies can wow all the special Spocks and Kirks in your life with "light, clean notes of citrus, blackcurrant, lotus blossom, and water lily." Because nothing spells romance more than smelling like a desperate Vulcan. Opportunity.gov: Meanwhile, as we humans struggle with our economic crisis, our own Federation is coming to the rescue with Opportunity.gov: a site that provides new educational opportunities to unemployed workers. Homes for our Troops: In all my years of watching "Star Trek," I can remember only one member of Starfleet ever sustaining a major injury that left him permanently disabled. Even when Spock exposed himself to terrible radiation in order to save the Enterprise's crew at the end of "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn," he still bounced back from his "death" with nary a scratch in "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock." Unfortunately, real life hasn't been as kind to many of our troops returning from Iraq, Afghanistan, or any of our many overseas conflicts. HomesForOurTroops.org raises money and organizes volunteers to help build specially adapted homes for our severely-injured veterans. This is truly a good cause. GradeGov.com: If you're tired of the government making decisions that you don't agree with, let your voice be heard on GradeGov.com. You can give your elected representatives a letter grade, write them a letter, and read other letters and grades from concerned citizens like yourself. Currently, Louie Gohmert (R. - TX) has garnered a grade of "A-" from his loving constituents, while Bennie G. Thompson (D. - LA) is evidently not feeling so loved with his grade of "F." Cars for a Grand: Even if we lose our jobs and the government fails us, there's one thing we can be sure will always be around in abundance: used cars. Capitalizing on this fact, CarsForAGrand.com offers exactly what their web address implies: used cars for $1000 or less. You can search by zip code for used, crashed, parts, or restoration project cars, or you can post your own used car listing. Suggested Sites... Issuu - a free magazine-publishing platform that allows users to publish online magazines that are easy and fun to read and interact with. Tweetmeme - tracks the most popular and most re-tweeted posts on Twitter. Antipodes Map - kind of useless, but kind of fun. Shows you the exact global opposite of any place on Earth. Map Your Name - shows on a map the popularity of personal names and family names in the USA, Europe, or Australia. Extreme Ice Survey - features photos and time-lapse videos of glaciers and ice caps melting. As featured on Nova.

Directory categories: Star Trek Collectibles, U.S. Politics: Surveys and Polls, Automotive Classifieds, Support the Troops, Twitter

Archived under: Advertising, Autos, Careers, Collectibles, Democratic Party, Disability, Education, Fanatics, Fragrances, Government, Housing, Issues and Causes, Jobs, Magazines, Media, Military, Names, Nature, Republican Party, Science, Science Fiction, Social Networking, Star Trek, Twitter, Web 2.0, Yahoo! Directory

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Central Park, NYC (Photo by Oquendo) Being a New Yorker (if not by birth, then at least by choice), I couldn't imagine my life without Central Park. One of the few truly green respites in a seemingly endless sprawl of concrete, steel, and glass, Central Park is where New Yorkers assemble to collectively slow down, relax, replenish, and breathe. If Times Square is the heart of NYC, then Central Park is certainly its lungs -- supplying much-needed oxygen to a bustling body constantly on the go. This weekend we celebrate the birth of the man considered to be "the founder of American landscape architecture and the nation's foremost parkmaker," Frederick Law Olmsted. Olmsted started his career as a journalist, which provided him the opportunity to travel throughout the U.S. and abroad, sparking his interest in public gardens and parks. He partnered with English-born architect Calvert Vaux to enter the Central Park design contest and they were awarded the job in 1858. They followed Central Park with Brooklyn's Prospect Park and continued to work together off and on for the rest of their careers, although Olmsted's larger than life personality and social standing often overshadowed Vaux's contributions. Olmsted's legacy includes (among many others) the Niagara Reservation (the country's oldest state park) in Niagara Falls; the Emerald Necklace in Boston; the Belle Isle Park in Detroit; Washington, Jackson, and Midway Plaisance Parks in Chicago; and Montebello Park in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. His fundamental design principle, born out of his observations of social class structure around the world and his vehement opposition to slavery, was that his parks and gardens should be accessible to all citizens regardless of social standing. This egalitarian ideal, taken somewhat for granted today, was revolutionary in Olmsted's time and helped to plant his reputation as America's preeminent landscape architect. Suggested Sites... National Association of Olmsted Parks - coalition of design and preservation professionals, historic property and park managers, scholars, municipal officials, citizen activists, and representatives of numerous Olmsted organizations around the United States. The Frederick Law Olmsted Society - dedicated to sustaining Olmsted's vision for Riverside for generations to come. Calvert Vaux Preservation Alliance - preservation advocacy group for the architectural and landscape design work of Calvert Vaux. CentralPark.com - features extensive information on NYC's Central Park and The Central Park Zoo. Central Park Conservancy - private, not-for-profit organization founded in 1980 that manages Central Park.

Directory categories: Frederick Law Olmsted, NYC's Central Park , Landscape Architecture, Land Conservation, Parks and Public Lands

Archived under: 19th Century, Architects, Architecture, Biographies, Birthdays, Design, Environment, History, Landscaping, Nature, New York, Outdoors, Parks, Tourist Attractions, Trees

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Groundhog Day 2005 in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania We have to admit that we don't get it. Why take a helpless rodent out of the warmth of his burrow and subject him to freezing cold, just to come up with some kind of prediction about how much longer winter will last? (A prediction that's apparently correct only about a third of the time.) But today is Groundhog Day, so 30,000-40,000 people will find their way to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania -- a town of about 6,500 the rest of the year -- to watch a bunch of guys haul Punxsutawney Phil from a fake log and give us all a supposed sneak preview of the next six weeks. The good burghers of Punxsutawney are not alone, though. All over North America, in towns as small as Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia (home of Shubenacadie Sam), and as large as New York City (where Staten Island Chuck resides), groundhogs will earn their yearly keep by playing weather woodchuck for the day. No one really knows how the whole thing started. It's apparently a combination of the Christian holiday of Candlemas and the Julian Calendar's placing of the Vernal Equinox six weeks after February 2nd, but there’s no clear origin. Not only that, but there's tremendous variety in the ways February 2nd is commemorated around the world. The day is known in France as La Chandeleur, when the French celebrate by eating crepes, and in Mexico, Día de la Candelaria is a time to eat tamales. And it’s not like predicting the weather is exclusive to bucktoothed rodents. If it rains in Germany on June 27 (Siebenschlaefertag), the rest of the summer will be rainy. Same with England's St. Swithin’s Day (July 15). Depending on the weather that day, the next forty days and nights will be rainy or sunny. (Given that it's England, our money's on rainy.) We're writing this in sunny California, where the climate over the next six weeks is likely to be the same as it was the last six. It might seem as though we're in a never-ending loop of nice weather, so if we wake up tomorrow to the strains of "I Got You Babe," it may be time to worry and start rethinking our lives. Suggested Sites... Greetings From Punxsutawney! - official site for the big Groundhog Day doings, with news, schedule, and travel guide. Groundhog.org - media, fan club, predictions, and more than you want to know about Groundhog Day. The Groundhog Fraud - Slate.com exposes the shenanigans in Punxsutawney. Holiday Spot: Groundhog Day - you know; for kids. History of the holiday, quiz, greeting cards, and more. Wikipedia: Groundhog Day The Movie - background, fun facts, and more about the classic 1993 comedy.

Directory categories: Groundhog Day, Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, Weather, Groundhogs, Groundhog Day - The Movie

Archived under: Animals, Calendars, Celebrations, Events, France, Germany, Holidays, Mythology and Folklore, Nature, Pennsylvania, Religion, Small Towns, Tourist Attractions, United Kingdom, United States, Weather, Winter

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