Science and Media Communications: turning data into enlightenment - Part 1 of 3

Mankind stands at the edge of a dark night. Faced with enormous environmental and ecological challenges, we hesitate to take a first step, unsure of ourselves without a clear understanding of what is happening and what is at stake. But science can illuminate the future of this planet.

We ask a lot of science. It has done everything from having given us better-tasting ice cream to the hydrogen bomb. It has answered fundamental questions about the existence of the universe and shown us how to hold up our pants with Velcro. And now we seek solutions to environmental problems - mostly of our own making - that threaten the survival of thousands of species, including us.

In a world where communication can be near instantaneous and pervasive, we look for guidance to make the right decisions that can insure a future for this planet. We are looking for subject matter experts who can speak to us - simply and effectively - and science has been doing its best.

But it is just the tip of the iceberg. Science is not doing enough.

In the years that I have spent as a nature filmmaker and media producer, I have come to find that there is an enormous amount of data being generated from countless research projects, expeditions, and studies that is not reaching the people. It's not reaching the policy- and decision-makers. It is not having the impact on the future of this planet as it should.

To a large extant, this is understandable. Scientists, researchers, and academics spend years developing the skills to study, hypothesize, and analyze. They are trained to make science but not necessarily to sell it. To effectively communicate in today's world requires scientists and researchers to consider an additional discipline to their work, one that understandably may not be a part of their background or comfort level: Media Communications.

Media Communications
The techniques of communicating effectively to a general or targeted audience by utilizing today's available technologies that best transmit a message, generate a response, and invoke action.

This is an exciting time for media communications. The ability to reach people through a variety of communication mediums or formats is literally exploding. But to do it successfully requires strategic planning. One must examine what it is being communicated and then match the appropriate audience with the right communication vehicles to maximize the power of the message. Media communications itself is part science, part art form. And it requires an experienced hand to formulate, execute, and manage an ongoing, dynamic plan.

To demand this expertise of the scientist or researcher is not fair. After all, there are people who devote entire careers to media communications. After having spent over a dozen years in television commercial production, I migrated into corporation communications and marketing. I had seen the power of the visual image in delivering a message and then spent a decade dealing with the full range of message delivery through print, word-of-mouth, visual and audio broadcast and, of course, the ubiquitous Internet.

With the issues facing the world today, the old formula of writing a paper for publication in a scientific or academic journal, followed by a press release from the supporting university or research organization, is becoming wholly inadequate. In fact, as important as it is to the scientists involved or however much it adds to the prestige of the supporting organization, it actually is doing a disservice - it is shortchanging the potential of that research to really make a difference. And that's what is at stake here: making a difference in the future of planet Earth.

Being Proactive
To say the Internet has become quite a game-changer for message delivery is indeed a gross understatement. From websites to videos to blogs, there is a mind-boggling amount of information awaiting the curious user at the end of a few keyboard clicks. And many academic and research organizations have done what they can to take advantage of this medium with informational websites and videos that document their research or illustrate the results. This is a good step forward, but its one weakness is that it is not necessarily a proactive step.

To consciously and deliberately bring information to a specific audience, one must be proactive and the Internet does not lend itself to a proactive approach. Fundamentally, it depends on the user to be seeking the information. The user either searches for the information via search engines like Google, Bing, Ask or others, or the information is compiled for them by complex search algorithms (like suggested YouTube videos or products on eBay).

Word of mouth plays a significant role in information delivery on the Internet. The "viral" effect that can bestow a YouTube video with millions of hits within a short period of time is definitely a plus. However, it is more in the hands of others and less of your own making.

Now, none of this is meant to imply that one should disregard the Internet. To the contrary, it is an absolutely vital component of a comprehensive media communications strategy. Its effectiveness can be enhanced by carefully selected keywords or a more traditional promotional approach through the use of banner ads - all designed to nudge the user in your direction.

However, overall, it is more of a "pull" rather than "push" delivery system, and a complete media communications battle plan must have proactive initiatives that bring the information to those who need it most. Someone who is interested in, say, ocean acidification can find a lot of information on the web, but how do we reach the person who, at this moment, is completely oblivious to the issue? How do we get this information in front of a politician or governmental regulatory body? Do we wait for them to ask or do we find ways to bring to their attention?

Part 2: Steps to building a media comm strategy

You Tube Sensation

If you haven't caught up to this guy on "You Tube" -- Look him up: RYAN HIGA for creative and sensational comedy.

Nagoya Protocol: COP 10's positive progress towards saving Earth's biodiversity

As a quick follow up to yesterday's post on the COP 10 biodiversity conference, there is some good news to report as the meeting in Nagoya, Japan of nearly 190 nations comes to a close.

The representatives have signed what is being called the Nagoya Protocol which is a strategic plan that addresses both specific biodiversity conservation goals (increasing to 17% protection of the land and inland waters and 10% for coastal and marine waters by 2020 - up from 13% and a paltry 1%, respectively) and a broader demand for each nation to look at how it can improve on diminishing the threat of overfishing, invasive species, and the general destruction of natural resources.

"This is a day to celebrate in terms of a new and innovative response to the alarming loss of biodiversity and ecosystems. And a day to celebrate in terms of opportunities for lives and livelihoods in terms of overcoming poverty and delivering sustainable development...This meeting has delivered a sea change in the global understanding of the mulit-trillion dollar importance of biodiversity of forests, wetlands and other ecosystems," declared Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environmental Programme.

While participating nations seem to be on board, the major challenge lurking in the wings is cost. Funding for the required implementation of the protocol was not determined during the two-week conference, preferring to leave to the devices of each nation. But Japan, recognized by some conservation factions as a conservation spoiler and major participant in overfishing, promised $2 billion towards biodiversity. Other cash-strapped nations may have to consider the alternative economic perils derived by not funding: collapsed fisheries, reduced tourism, greater food imports, and even population malnutrition.



While the Nagoya Protocol did not deliver everything that conservation groups had asked for (Conservation International, as an example, was pushing for higher percentage goals), it was, however, a game-changer compared to the results from previous international meetings.

A reason for cautious celebration with a strong dose of let's wait and see just what comes to pass.

Read the COP10 press release.
Read TIME writer Bryan Walsh's article on the Nagoya Protocol.

"High-speed bypass of Hoover Dam"

According to the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), approximately 9,623 total vehicles crossed the new Hoover Dam bridge (both northbound and southbound traffic) on Thursday, Oct. 21.

The spectacular $240-million project, including the centerpiece Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge, creates a high-speed bypass of Hoover Dam. It also forges a safer and more efficient route for all travelers and commercial truck traffic, while maintaining critical economic ties between Arizona and Nevada and the southwest region.

"A Summer Place"

The Grand Hotel is a destination with all the charm of a third-generation, family-owned resort. A national historic landmark that’s been visited by U.S. presidents, world-renowned entertainers, and countless families for well over a century. Built in 1887. On Mackinac, an island in Michigan without cars where horses and bicycles are the favored modes of transportation. Guests enjoy exceptional dining, accommodations and amenities.

"Big Tree"

Anyone with a bike or car and a couple of friends up for a good time can’t go wrong with a trip to the McBaine bur oak tree, better known to locals simply as “big tree.”

And they’re not kidding. This tree is big. It’s 90 feet tall, almost 24 feet around and roughly 7 and a half feet in diameter, according to the National Register of Big Trees. It’s estimated that the tree is between 200 and 400 years old.

McBaine itself is a sight to see, particularly for anyone from a big city. Only 17 people live in McBaine, according to the 2000 census.

The only spot to dine in town is a restaurant called Lucy’s, and anyone who drops in will probably see a handful of locals sitting around a table on a hot afternoon. Most of the 12 houses are visible from State Highway K, which passes straight through McBaine. Many towns this size, where everybody really does know everybody, are scattered throughout Missouri’s countryside.

"Double Rainbow Rising Out Of The Skyscrapers In Downtown Los Angeles"

"A Colorful Performance"

Chinese paramilitary police practise a performance for the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games on May 7, 2008 in Beijing, China.

(Photo by Guang Niu/Getty Images)

"Power and passion"

Chinese paramilitary police march at the Forbidden City in Beijing.

(Photo: Reuters)

The World's Largest Book

Frankfurt Book Fair, the world\'s largest trade fair for books, is held annually in mid-October at the Frankfurt Trade Fair, Germany. On Wednesday October 6th, visitors to the fair had the opportunity to admire the world’s largest book. The two-by-three-meter Atlas priced at $100,000 was published by Australian publisher Gordon Cheers. It contains maps of continents and sharp images of famous landscapes. With 128 pages, this page has the same size with the Klencke Atlas which was produced in 1660 as a gift for Charles II of England. Up to now, he has sold two volumes to museums in the United Arab Emirates and felt confident of selling all the rest.

"A new view of Copper Canyon"

In the Mexican state of Chihuahua, where local leaders have been trying to lure adventure travelers to the desert despite persistent drug-war troubles, many tourism officials believe their future is up in the air.

About 1,475 feet up, in fact.

That’s the altitude of a new aerial tram designed to take tourists from the rim of the region’s famed Copper Canyon down into its depths. The tramway (teleférico) opened this month at Divisadero, a rim-top stopping-point along the Copper Canyon rail route with commanding views of the Urique River.

COP 10: Biodiversity conference off to a bold start with alarming study

In Nagoya, Japan, the opening to the 10th Conference of Parties (COP 10) to the Convention on Biological Diversities took off with a bold start, announcing a study that confirms that one-fifth of the world's vertebrates are faced with extinction.

The comprehensive study, combining the efforts of 174 authors, 115 academic and research institutions from 38 countries, worked with data covering 25,000 different species from the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species. The results show that human expansion, logging, and over-hunting are moving 50 species of mammals, birds, and amphibians, on average, closer to extinction each year. According to renown Harvard University Professor Edward Wilson, "The 'backbone' of biodiversity is being eroded."

But a unique feature of the study - and one that should catch the attention of the COP 10 policy- and decision-makers - is that the study also analyzed and confirmed the positive effects of conservation, that the efforts of nation's to protect worldwide biodiversity can have a demonstrable effect. The study's results show that without the current level of conservation that has taken place, biodiversity would have declined by another 20 percent.

"History has shown us that conservation can achieve the impossible, as anyone who knows the story of the White Rhinoceros in southern Africa knows," Dr Simon Stuart, Chair of IUCN's Species Survival Commission and an author on the study was quoted in Science Daily. "But this is the first time we can demonstrate the aggregated positive impact of these successes on the state of the environment."

This is a much better start to this conference than the COP 15 climate conference in 2009 or the CITES conference in March of this year, where political and economic lobbying ran roughshod over important conservation and environmental initiatives. For COP 10, this is a good step forward and the nations involved appear to be on board with the study's findings. Now the question is, what will be the final results of the conference in terms of policy and commitment? Lip service or definitive, lasting action?

Read more about the COP10 study in Science Daily.

From the Office to the Ocean: taking a leap of faith for sharks

How does one define commitment to a cause? How do you know that you are doing enough? Will a donation suffice? Or perhaps some volunteering. Or does it require a career-changing epiphany?

Of course, it is all subjective, but many of us have a soft spot - and perhaps a little envy - for those who drop everything, throw caution to the wind, and devote themselves entirely to trying to make a difference.

From his office desk, David Diley reached that critical juncture where his concern for sharks and their future could no longer exist within his stable corporate lifestyle. From that conflict, an idea was borne, From the Office to the Ocean, that would document his journey, his escape, from the confines of the business world to travel and beat the drum in defense of sharks, proving these two seemingly disparate worlds have a lot in common and actually depend on each other.



Foolhardy? Reckless? Perhaps, but Mark Twain said it best over a hundred years ago,

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Wish David well in his journey and take a moment to learn more about From the Office to the Ocean.

Orcas and Salmon: organizations take aim at U.S. plan that could impact Washington/Oregon whales

Here is information from Howard Garret of the Orca Network regarding action being taken against a proposed conservation plan for salmon in the northwest U.S.'s Columbia Basin (where the Columbia and Snake River end at the Pacific coast of Oregon and Washington). Apparently, the plan contradicts existing science regarding the impact of a decline on salmon on the resident orca population.

"On October 29, salmon advocates asked a federal judge to reject the Obama Administration’s 2010 Plan for Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead. This includes chinook salmon that are essential nutrition for our Southern Resident Killer Whales. Today, three facts are clear. One, our orca are often very hungry. Two, they historically dined regularly on Columbia Basin chinook – especially in the lean months of March and April. Three, by failing endangered salmon, the 2010 Plan will also fail our endangered orcas.

The endangered Southern Resident orca community declined over 20% a decade ago and still teeters on the brink of extinction. Multiple studies tell us why: inadequate runs of Chinook salmon. For thousands of years this unique and cohesive orca clan has survived almost entirely on king salmon, especially those returning to the Columbia basin during winter and spring. In the past few decades those Chinook runs have dwindled to a small percentage of their former numbers. NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) notes that 'Perhaps the single greatest change in food availability for resident killer whales since the late1800s has been the decline of salmon in the Columbia River basin' (p. 95).

We expected more from NOAA and the Obama administration when they released their Columbia Basin salmon plan as required by the Endangered Species Act. On inauguration day, we were told that good science would trump biased economics and DC politics, and that the process would be transparent. Instead we got a repeat of the corrupt Bush plan and secrecy rather than honesty, despite fierce criticism of that status quo plan from the American Fisheries Society, a wide range of independent biologists, and NOAA’s own scientists.

Regarding orcas specifically, NOAA also fails to explain the huge discrepancy between their 2010 Columbia Basin salmon plan and their 2009 California salmon plan. The CA plan says hatchery fish are no substitute for wild salmon, that orcas need viable wild salmon runs, and there are far too few today. The Columbia plan inexplicably says that hatchery fish are a reliable replacement for wild salmon, and suggests that there are plenty of salmon for orca survival. Despite repeated requests to NOAA to address and resolve this inconsistency, none has been offered.

There is no doubt in the scientific community about the ecological connection between Columbia/Snake salmon and our much-loved orcas. Canada’s DFO found '…that [orca] survival rates are strongly correlated with the availability of their principal prey species, chinook salmon.' A study concluded that 'Chinook salmon, a relatively rare species, was by far the most frequent prey item.' Winter field studies have also found Southern Resident orcas near the mouth the Columbia River eating salmon headed upriver. UW’s Center for Conservation Biology conducted a multi-year orca study of hormones found in fecal material and concluded that: 'Thus far, the hormone data most strongly supports the reduced prey hypothesis' and that 'For now, it seems clear that mitigation efforts to increase number and quality of available prey to Southern resident killer whales will be an important first step towards assuring SRKW recovery.'

Let’s hope that the judge buries this deceptive plan in early 2011, and brings the federal government and the people of the Northwest together to craft a legal, science-based plan that serves our salmon, our communities, and our orcas.

For more information, please visit: Save Our Wild Salmon and the Orca Network."

"Houdini is set to reappear"

A century after Harry Houdini thrilled audiences with daring escapes from handcuffs, straitjackets and watery tombs, the legendary magician has conjured a major art museum exhibition that explores his enduring legacy.

"Houdini: Art and Magic," which opened recently at the Jewish Museum in New York City, tells the story of an impoverished son of Jewish immigrants who harnessed the power of the mass media, and the emerging technologies of film and photography, to become one of the 20th century's most famous performers.

Scattered amid the historic photographs, Art Nouveau posters and archival films are more than two dozen recent works by such well-known artists as Matthew Barney, Vik Muniz and Raymond Pettibon that attest to Houdini's continuing influence as the consummate illusionist. The museum also displays some of his magic props, including handcuffs, shackles, a straitjacket, a milk can and a packing trunk that were featured in various escape acts.

—Associated Press

"Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust"

Hundreds of people toured the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust during its grand opening recently at Pan Pacific Park.

The museum, founded in 1961, has been moved four times over the years, but never had its own building and has always had limited space. But its new $18 million, high-tech, very green museum changes all that, executive director Mark Rothman said.

The building, designed so it is partially underground to preserve green space, is located next to the Martyrs Memorial, built in the park 18 years ago.

Valley Performing Arts Center

Cal State Northridge's Valley Performing Arts Center will have its gala opening Jan. 29 featuring Tyne Daly, Gillian Murphy, Ethan Stiefel and Dave Koz.

(Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times)

Día de Los Muertos

This coming Saturday marks the 11th annual Día de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration at the historic Hollywood Forever Cemetery. On this Mexican holiday, families gather to pay homage to their deceased loved ones and ancestors. Unlike Halloween however, Día de Los Muertos is meant to be joyous and respectful, not frightening.

Traditionally, altars with ofrendas (offerings) are placed on graves or set up in the home. These altars can be very elaborate with lighted candles, marigold flowers, wreaths, calaveras de azúcar (sugar skulls), and offerings of the person's favorite foods and drinks—even bottles of tequila! One specialty is pan de muerto (bread of the dead) that’s baked in the shape of a skull, or a round loaf with bone-like crosses on it, and then sprinkled with sugar.

At Hollywood Forever's Día de Los Muertos festivities you can wander around the cemetery where screen icons like Rudolph Valentino, Douglas Fairbanks, and Jayne Mansfield are buried. A traditional procession will take place starting at 2:00 p.m., followed by Aztec fire dancing, live music, face painting for the children, and of course, plenty of vendors selling authentic Mexican food. Many people will even be dressed up as the dead themselves. “Elegant” skeleton costumes are very popular, with men in suits and sombreros and women in fancy party dresses, their faces painted like macabre calaveras (skulls).

"the world’s first billion-dollar home"

India’s richest man has built what is said to be the world’s first billion-dollar home. Yes, that’s billion with a “B.”

Mukesh Ambani, his wife and three children plan a housewarming party for the 27-story Mumbai pad later this month. In addition to decadent food, attendees can glimpse three helipads, a health club, dance studio, 50-seat movie theater and underground parking lot with enough room for 160 cars, the New York Daily News reports. An American firm oversaw the interior design.

The house didn’t cost $1 billion to build, of course, but construction did cost millions of dollars. Given Mumbai’s astronomical property prices, the finished product is worth many times the construction tab. That’s where the billion-dollar figure comes in.

The home is rumored to have a wait staff of 600, bigger than the staff of many small companies.

The house might be oversized, but it isn’t sprawling: It soars more than 550 feet, more resembling a condo tower than a luxurious mansion. Children might say it looks like Lego building blocks, the Daily News points out.

A Trick, No Treat For Bats: white-nose syndrome hits hard

Halloween's approaching and for those who celebrate "All Hallowed Eve" there's candy, costumes, and images of all things spooky - like zombies, witches, and bats. What would the world be like without those things that go bump in the night? Well, we could do without the zombies, I think. And perhaps witches, both the green Wizard of Oz kind and the ones running for political office.

Then there's bats. What would the world be without bats? As it turns out, it would be a world nearly overrun with bugs. Bats are one of the planet's great equalizers, feeding on insects and helping to keep the populations in balance. While not exactly an "apex predator" like sharks, bats serve a very similar role. Sharks and other large predators that reside at the top of the predator-prey pyramid are kept in check by a slow reproductive rate. Not so for the bat, but then it's feeding on insects that can number in the millions.

So, bats, those spooky little critters of Dracula movie fame that can congregate in caves by the thousands and make us run for cover lest we get one in our hair, are actually very important to maintaining a healthy ecosystem.

But in the eastern United States, parts of Canada, and even France, we are losing vast numbers of bats to a disease: white-nose syndrome. This syndrome manifests itself as patches of white fungus on the nose and wings of the bat. There are several suspected fungi thought to be possibly involved, although Geomyces destructans is considered the most likely culprit. It is a cold-temperature fungus that can flourish in the caves that bats inhabit. The white-nose syndrome disrupts the bats normal winter hibernation cycle and produces behaviors, like flying, that can lead to the bat's death, often from starvation (due to a combination of excessive activity combined with the winter's lack of food).

No more ugly little bats. Big deal, right? So what if there's a few more insects, right? We'll just use a rolled up newspaper or get out the bug zapper. Oh, were it that simple.

Actually, the loss of bats in the northeast all the way to the Mississippi poses a tremendous economic threat to agriculture, as bats act as a very important insecticide control agent. Without bats, insects would ravage more crops, more pesticides would have to be used (with their own inherent problems), and food prices would soar. The timber industry would also be effected.

Scientists who have been studying the condition are not exactly sure as to how it is transmitted over such a wide area. To rule out any human involvement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has strictly limited access to known caves where large number of bats live. But the condition appears to be continuing to spread, having first been reported in 2006 and now affecting 9 different bat species. Research has found that the fungus reacts to some human anti-fungal treatments but how those can be applied practically has yet to be determined.

The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) is running a campaign to get the attention of U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to devote serious effort to the issue. Whatever initiatives and small cost that might be required (CBD suggested $10 million), that would easily be offset by the multi-million dollar savings to agriculture and the consumer.

Trick or treat. Looks like it's a trick for the bat this year.

Support the Center for Biological Diversity's petition campaign to save U.S. bats.

"the greatest tragedienne of her era"

French actress Sarah Bernhardt was known as the greatest tragedienne of her era, lighting up stages in Paris, Rio de Janeiro and Los Angeles.

(Yale University Press / August 30, 2010)

"The Last Frontier"

Everyone’s favorite almost-V.P. will be hitting a television set near you to host a new Discovery Channel show all about Alaska and its culture. The show, called “Sarah Palin’s Alaska,” will cover all the traditions, attractions, and other interesting aspects of ‘The Last Frontier.” Variety reports that Mrs. Sarah will be paid $1 million per episode.

P.S. -- I can see Russia from here.

"Art of the American Soldier"

Before its national tour, Art of the American Soldier debuts at the National Constitution Center in a profound assortment of 250-plus artworks created by American soldiers since World War I. A special online gallery features veterans’ artistic reflections of their service. Independence Mall, 525 Arch St., Philadelphia; (215) 409-6700, constitutioncenter.org.

'By Nightfall'

An illustration from the book 'By Nightfall' by Michael Cunningham.

(Owen Freeman / For The Times / October 17, 2010)

It's all happening in Oceanside

In California, beach goers ride and stroll along the walkway and beach near the Oceanside pier.

(Photo by Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Still . . . we have not forgotten !

Poster from 1940s rallying Americans to "Remember Pearl Harbor" Dec. 7, 1941, as "a day of infamy." (National Archives / W.W. Norton & Co. / October 14, 2010)

POCKET PARK for downtown Los Angeles

Rendering of a park to be built on Spring Street between 4th and 5th streets in downtown Los Angeles, designed by Lehrer Architects. (Courtesy Lehrer Architects)

Twyla Tharp's Sinatra: Dance With Me Set for Run at Wynn Las Vegas

Sinatra: Dance With Me, conceived, choreographed, and directed by Twyla Tharp, will play a limited engagement at Wynn Las Vegas, December 11-January 29. Additional details, including casting, has not been announced.

This dance musical follows four couples as they fall in and out of love at a swinging nightclub. Blending the legendary vocals of Frank Sinatra with a big band and 14 of the world's finest dancers, the show weaves classic standards including "Fly Me To The Moon," "My Way" and "That's Life" in a soaring dance fantasy of romance and seduction.

Sinatra: Dance With Me will feature scenic design by James Youmans, costume design by Katherine Roth, lighting design by Donald Holder, and sound design by Peter McBoyle. Music supervision is by the late Sam Lutfiyya and Patrick Vaccariello.

Thousands of starlings descended upon Rome

From the series, Murmur, by Richard Barnes

Photographer Richard Barnes is one of those rare photographers who seems to find beauty wherever he looks. And it is impossible to peg him with a "style". He is perhaps best known for the photos he made inside a huge, otherwise empty US Military warehouse, of the Unabomber's rustic cabin — as it looked after it was transported there, completely intact (inside and out), for further forensic research. But his work streches far and wide. He also self-published (I think) an elegant, slim, large-format book of photographs he made over a period of many months while a former 19th century "pauper's cemetery" was exhumed and moved to make way for expansion of San Francisco's Museum of the Legion of Honor. On the few occasions I have had the pleasure to talk with him in person, I have been taken by his quiet, humble manner.

So, it was a delight to discover this wonderful narrated slideshow about his work about migratory starlings in The New York Times online version.

You can discover more about Richard Barnes at his web site.

And special thanks to Alec Soth's always interesting and provocative blog for pointing the way to this gem.

Posted by jimcasper at http://www.lensculture.com/webloglc/mt_files/archives/2007/09/richard-barnes.html

Citizens of the Sea: making sense of the marine census

The ocean is vast. For people to contemplate its complexity, requires years of study and an open and encyclopedic mind. So, for most of us, we focus our attention on areas of personal interest - a particular species like whales, sharks, or turtles; or ecosystems like coral reefs or saltwater marshlands - something we can wrap our thoughts around more easily. The big picture is often overwhelming and can lead us to believe that the oceans, overall, must be doing fine because there's just so much of it to go around.

With the recent completion of the Census of Marine Life, this 10-year project affords scientists, educators, and policy makers with a wealth of detailed information cataloged in a database of over 22 million entries - a snapshot of the ocean's biodiversity that is comprehensive and yet, by admission of those involved, just scratching the surface. Ian Poiner, chair of the Census Scientific Steering Committee, summed it up this way, "More than 2,000 scientists. 80-plus nations. 400 expeditions. $650 million. 10,000-plus possible new species. 2,500-plus publications."

One of those publications is Citizens of the Sea, written by one of the project's scientific leaders, Nancy Knowlton, Ph.D. (National Geographic Society, 2010). The book combines images and information from the census with a well-structured overview of the "who, why, and how many" of marine biodiversity that is both instructional and accessible. This is not a burdensome volume intended for just a researcher or academic; nor is it a literary softball catering to grade-schoolers. Knowlton's personable writing style affords her the ability to cover a lot of ground and provide the reader with an illuminating window into the aquatic world.

In a recent interview, I asked Dr. Knowlton about her involvement with the census and what the overall results have been:
RTSea: How did you first become involved in the Census of Marine Life?
NK: I was a member of the US National Committee on the Census of Marine Life (most of the world was represented by national or regional groups working on the Census). At one of our meetings we decided you can't have a Census of Marine Life without censusing coral reefs (the rainforests of the sea), which is how the coral reef program was launched and which I helped lead.
RTSea: What do you feel is the main contribution of the Census that sets it apart from other research?
NK: The census was the first of its kind to focus on the overall biodiversity of the entire ocean, and to link its past, present and future. There are many programs that have tackled specific ecological questions related to the sea, but biodiversity is often ignored. The problem is that except for a few groups (like fishes, corals and snails) we know so little that biodiversity is hard to study in its entirety.
RTSea: Will the Census be analyzing and drawing conclusions or basically providing data for others to work with?
NK: The Census has already analyzed and drawn many conclusions since it began ten years ago. But there is also a wealth of information in the giant electronic database that the Census created, which will continue to grow and inform future studies.

In tackling this "wealth of information" provided by the census, Citizens of the Sea focuses the first eleven chapters on the animals themselves then the last few chapters turn to interaction with man and, ultimately, the impact we are having on the oceans today. Each chapter includes topics that are covered with a single page of text and an accompanying page of images from the census catalog. As an example, a chapter on Appearances Are Everything included topics like Blending In, Deception & Distraction, Standing Out, Stranger Than Fiction, and more. This helps to make the information easy to digest. In fact, I often set aside a few minutes, intent on reading a topic or two, and found myself having read twenty pages in no time.

Many of the most striking images included in Citizens of the Sea are those of the ocean's smaller creatures - which actually make up the greatest portion of the ocean's biomass. From bacteria to plankton to tiny pteropods, fish, and crabs; by sheer numbers the oceans truly belong to the smallest of creatures. While this expands our concept of marine diversity, it also highlights its fragility.

RTSea: What did you personally find to be the most remarkable find or findings from the Census?
NK: Well, our project found that there is more marine biodiversity in a couple of square meters (yards) of coral reef than in all of Europe's seas. I knew the biodiversity of reefs was enormous but that still really surprised me.
RTSea: What do you hope that the general public and/or the policy makers will learn from the Census?
NK: I hope they learn that biodiversity is fascinating, inspiring, and valuable, but cannot be taken for granted.

By examining many aspects of marine living with information on a variety of creatures, Citizens of the Sea deftly illustrates both the complexity and the commonality within marine biodiversity. From 200-ton blue whales to the 350,000 bacteria that can be found in a single drop of seawater, it is an astonishing web of life that must also depend on us as much as we depend on it.

RTSea: As a nature filmmaker, I am always concerned with finding the right balance between showing the beauty of nature and making sure that people realize the threats and damage nature is enduring. Are you concerned that the Census, theorizing that there are millions of species in the sea, might make some believe that the oceans are healthy and less threatened than others would have us believe?
NK: This is always a potential problem, but I think the Census did a good job in doing both - celebrating diversity while documenting what we have already lost or could easily lose.
RTSea: What do you hope readers will take away by reading Citizens of the Sea; what do you hope it will motivate them to do?
NK: The sea is a wondrous place but we need to take care of it. There is an almost infinite variety in the way marine creatures make a living, and even though we don't live in the sea, we depend on it. The Citizens of the Sea both amaze and amuse us, in addition to providing much of the oxygen that we breathe and the food that we eat. But they cannot vote and are counting on us to protect them.

With engaging writing, a bevy of sidebar facts, and striking photographs, Citizens of the Sea offers something for everyone - from those studying the oceans to the mildly curious to, well, those who just don't have a clue. It succeeds in framing the big picture of marine biodiversity as a nation of interdependent citizens who can't vote but rely on the roles given to each by nature as a means of survival of the whole.

As outsiders, what kind of diplomacy shall mankind exercise? Are we to be good neighbors or invading plunderers?

Citizens of the Sea is available at National Geographic, Amazon, and other bookstores.

Tigers Facing Extinction: November summit holds hope for their future

2010 is the year of the tiger according to the Chinese calendar.

Probably no animal on dry land impresses me more than the tiger. It is a magnificent combination of strength, grace, and color. I can almost understand the allure felt by those who delve in ancient homeopathic medicine; the power of this great animal somehow being transferred to us mere mortals. But it is that very demand which fuels poaching and, combined with encroachment on their natural habitat, has reduced the number of tigers in the wild to a paltry estimated population of 3,200.

I have written about their precarious predicament before and I bring it up again because of one significant ray of hope. In November, a meeting will be held in St. Petersburg, Russia with representatives of 13 nations - primarily those that have wild tigers within their borders - to discuss how to better enforce and protect the remaining population and what can be done in the long term to improve their numbers and ensure their survival.

Over the past century, the number of wild tigers have declined by a staggering 97%. If nothing can be achieved at next month's meeting, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the tiger could become extinct in the wild within 12 years.

"The worse scenario is that the tiger could be gone when the next year of the tiger comes along, in 12 years," said Ola Jennersten, of WWF Sweden.

But another factor that threatens the wild tiger is the demand for tiger products obtained from captive tigers and how the current economy is pushing more captive tiger owners to sell their animals, no questions asked, both of which keep the demand high for wild tigers.

In fact, according to the WWF, there are more captive tigers in the United States alone, than in all of the wild. An estimated 5,000 tigers are held in the U.S. - and, unfortunately, not just in regulated zoos and animal parks, but in private compounds that are far from healthy and humane for the animals.



The WWF is pushing for stricter regulation and better enforcement regarding captive tigers in the U.S. and is conducting a campaign to get Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to attend the November Tiger Summit to ensure that the U.S. plays an active role in preserving and protecting tigers, both wild and those within the nation's borders. Concerned U.S. citizens can visit the WWF website or click here to become part of the campaign.

For the first time in a long time, there could be a reason to feel encouraged. "Despite the gloomy figures, the situation is more hopeful than ever," Jennersten said.

When I was a child, my favorite stuffed animal - my security blanket as it were - was a small tiger. While I would probably be seen as potential prey by a real tiger today, there is that spot in my heart that hopes to give back to the tiger some of the security it once gave me. That's a trade in animals I could live with.

Read about possible tiger extinction in NPR.
Read about captive tigers in the U.S.

Principia's Ra 7 Solar Car

Principia’s newest solar car, Ra 7, finished in second place in NASC 2008 last year. As we approach our next race, we are excited to test the new modifications we have made to the car on the largest stage solar car racing has to offer, WSC 2009. Despite the college’s lack of an engineering department, Ra 7 is custom built by Principia students in majors ranging from physics and computer science to English and graphic design.

Now, you might be asking yourself, why “Ra”? What does that mean? Ra, in fact, was the ancient Egyptian god of the sun. Appropriately, Ra’s symbol was the falcon, representing not only Ra 7’s source of energy, but also her speed, agility, and precision.

Gulf Oil Spill: six months later - never forget

It is now six months since the Deepwater Horizon well in the Gulf of Mexico erupted into one of the greatest oil spill disasters of all time. Many news outlets and conservation organizations are taking a status check at this half-year mark, to see where the environment stands, what has happened, and what needs to be done both now and in the future.

But for many of us, we would like to sweep it all under the rug. The Gulf oil spill competed with the economy and politics for our attention a lot longer than many other news cycles, and with many of those other issues still remaining, most people just don't have the stomach for it anymore. It's human nature and I understand that; call it a defense mechanism, a means to cope by emotionally and intellectually moving on.

And it would be such a mistake to do so.

The long-term effects of this spill must not only be studied by scientific research organizations, but the results of those studies and their implications must be proactively distributed to the decision makers and the general populace. In other words, we must continue to have our nose rubbed in it. The Gulf marine ecology has been altered - subtly or radically. And by remembering that the environmental and economic effects of this spill will be with us for years if not decades, it could be the seminal event that finally signals a shift in our attitudes towards fossil fuels.

If there could have been any kind of silver lining to this dark petroleum cloud, it would have been that alternative energy sources would have received the support and backing they needed to push those technologies forward, making their use more effective, efficient, and affordable. But with the U.S. government's decision to lift the moratorium on the deep water drilling, there is a sense of returning to business as usual, albeit with a few more safeguards in place - but a critical, opportune moment may be passing.

So, pay attention to those organizations that are still studying, still observing the impact of wildlife, analyzing the impact on human health - from direct exposure to the oil or more indirectly, through the food chain. Lend them your ears and your support. Here are a few:

Using the Law
The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) continues on the legal front with lawsuits to have the government check on tuna populations that were breeding in the Gulf at the time of the spill.
CBD also supported the Sea Turtle Restoration Project in their successful efforts to stop the burning of surface oil as it was killing sea turtles, burning them alive. And they continue to storm the gates of Washington to insure that environmental protection laws are rightfully enforced.

Studying Deep Water Impacts
Greenpeace has a research vessel and deep water submersible in the Gulf where they are conducting studies on the impact of the spill on deep water corals. A portion of the oil was thought to have settled to the bottom. If so, Greenpeace wants to determine what effect it may be having on deep water coral communities. Do entire reef communities of fish and crustaceans move on? And if so, how does that impact other marine communities beset by oil spill refugees?

Oil-Eating Microbes
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has recently completed a study of the Gulf oil spill, verifying that there was a large oil plume that floated 3,000 feet below the surface. But they also determined that much of that plume was consumed by oil-eating microbes; more so than anticipated because of a high population of bacteria that has adapted to Gulf conditions. The researchers also found that the bacteria consumed less oxygen than expected, thereby diminishing the possibility of oxygen-free dead zones. All of which would be at least a relief, if not encouraging.

But the researchers still had plenty of questions and concerns as to what long-term effects all of this microbial activity could have on the Gulf ecosystem. Talking with Florida State University oceanographer Ian MacDonald, the PBS News Hour reported, "He cautions that many questions remain unanswered -- such as what has happened to the methane released into the water along with the oil, what percentage of the total oil released ended up in this deep-sea plume, and the environmental effects of changing the deep-sea microbial community."

Again, it's human nature to want to turn back the clock, to somehow take us back to when the waters were clear of oil, jobs were plentiful, and homes and credit were easily available. But if we succumb to that impulse, we are only setting up ourselves or the next generation for a repeat performance of what happened six months ago.

Never forget.

Read a six-month recap from the Center for Biological Diversity.
Read about Greenpeace's deep water coral research.
Read about Woods Hole's microbial research.

"The many faces of Yosemite"

(Photos from the Los Angeles Times travel section)

"A photographer's paradise"

Everybody has a special place where time stands still and serendipity rules. Mine is a giant granite cathedral decorated with some of the tallest waterfalls in the world. Beneath the falls lies a magical valley decorated by fields of flowing grasses and wildflowers. The air is washed clean by pine trees and aromatic cedars. A mighty river flows through it, and a magical range of light illuminates all of its features. I'm talking about Yosemite National Park.

By Mark Boster, Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles -- the city some people love to hate

(John W. Adkisson, Los Angeles Times / October 17, 2010)

Dramatic walls of glass

A circular garden courtyard enclosed by soaring steel-ribbed walls of glass is the dramatic focal point of a Beverly Hills house by modernist Malibu architect Ed Niles. The home was commissioned by Los Angeles developer Raffi Cohen and completed earlier this year.

Set on a promontory with unobstructed views from Mid-City to the Palos Verdes Peninsula, the three-level home is an amalgamation of sharp geometric lines highlighted by a nested pair of rounded glass walls. Tinted a Mediterranean blue, the glass walls are framed with steel beams and rise above the home's upper level. They are set about a dozen feet apart and follow the same wide 360-degree trajectory. The outer glass wall is part of the home's exterior while the inner wall provides views of the courtyard from most of the rooms.

Listed at $11,895,000.