stories we liked this week
Everything but the Gull At a time of assiduous attempts at wildlife conservation, the poor old Herring gull (Larus argentatus) and its smaller relatives still come in for regular bashings. Yet these beautiful birds are an integral and delightful part of our seasides. At last the Conversation makes a case for the defence of these cheeky marauders
Clearing up the unclearable Long ago, non stick frying pans seemed like a technological marvel. Yet many contained PFAs, those almost-impossible-to destroy chemicals which can cause such environmental and health damage, Now a new technique seems to grapple at last with the problem of breaking them down in a feasible way. (memo to the Christian Right-sometimes thought is more effective than prayer-care to give it a try?) Here’s NBC:
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/new-way-destroy-pfas-forever-chemicals-rcna43528
Farewell Wolfgang Petersen Some say Das Boot, as well as being one of the best, was actually the most authentic war film ever. For us, it captured perfectly the sense of being trapped in a closed society where even to laugh at the wrong joke results in instant arrest and death. Bet they won’t being showing it in Russia any time soon!
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/aug/19/wolfgang-petersen-obituary
US Climate Landmark The shameful events in Wyoming this week should not mask the fact that America is still a progressive country, where education can still make a mark. We suppose “it’s the duality thing” as Private Joker remarked in Full Metal Jacket. Anyway, the light side have now produced this amazing climate bill. One day Joe Biden will be remembered, while the cowboys of Wyoming will be as forgotten as the Native Americans whose lands their ancestors stole. Nature, Scientists welcome US Landmark Climate bill
Several US government agencies will see a significant influx of cash from a massive climate and tax bill that President Joe Biden has signed. The legislation, called the Inflation Reduction Act, pledges US$369 billion in climate investments over the next decade and could cut US greenhouse-gas emissions by about 30–40% below 2005 levels by 2030. Scientists worldwide have welcomed the bill, but warn that more work is needed to counter global warming.Nature | 5 min read
Have you ever seen the rain? or smelled it. Come to think of it, what is that delightful smell you get after a heavy downpour has washed a drought from the meadows? How stuff works, that most excellent of sites, has an idea of what it might be
https://science.howstuffworks.com/nature/climate-weather/atmospheric/question479.htm
we thank Mr Gary Herbert for this story
And finally… not every old band has stood the test of time. But we think Creedence Clearwater Revival have. From Bad Moon Rising, with its spookily accurate predictions of ecological disaster, through Run Through the Jungle, Proud Mary, Up Around the Bend and Fortunate Son, ol’ Fogerty and his boys stand comparison with any of the greats. Here’s a link to Have you ever seen the rain, which we hope will provide a musical treat at the end of a busy week.
#gulls #climate change #russia #second world war #pfa
Learning, Science and Society 