Today the rain fell

by mwmwm

Today the rain fell
and the small barn roof
was the timpani
in the symphony of the rain

Today the rain fell
and the big barn roof
thrummed like a thousand
marching hobnail boots.

continued at Daily Kos....

Rolling the dice with evolution

by mwmwm

A new study by J. Alroy, just published in Science (subscription required for full text), has been getting some reporting by other sources. It's mildly entitled "The Shifting Balance of Diversity Among Major Marine Animal Groups."

It prods me to my keyboard.

Evolution, and biodiversity, and the interrelationships of biosystems, are to me the imprint of the universe's organizing principles. It's what I grew up with instead of religion.

My father was an evolutionary biologist and animal behaviorist, and so I grew up with dinnertime discussions about evolutionary pressures on butterfly wing designs, or the evolutionary explanations for beehive altruism, or why mating behavior affected peacock feather development.

Elroy's analysis -- while not a surprise -- hit me surprisingly hard, because it drove home the full impact of the "sixth extinction."

continued at Daily Kos....

Bioaccumulation: the gift that keeps on giving

by mwmwm

Bioaccumulation.

It's what's for dinner.

And lunch, and breakfast. Its danger depends a bit on whether you're flora or fauna, insect or mammal, baby or oldster -- and, of course, what you've accumulated.

But it's dangerous, and on the rise.

continued at Daily Kos....

About those New EPA Dispersant Tests

by jamess

Perhaps you heard about the recent EPA Press Release, regarding latest Toxicity Testing results for Dispersants.   Depending on which sound bite you heard, it almost sounded like Corexit got a clean bill of health.

Confused?  I was too.   And since I had previously written a well-received diary,

Corexit Toxicity Tests not so hot, When Mixed with Oil
by jamess  -- May 30, 2010

which dove into the Toxicity Data, that the EPA originally cited as credible only 2 months ago, I figured I should try to figure out what was up with the 'New and Improved' Dispersant Testing.

What follows is my assessment of what's happening now, including some relevant links.

I'll try to keep it brief. (I hate long diaries, lol)

continued at Daily Kos....

20,000 Leagues Under The Sea: A Voices For Nature Diary

by Pam LaPier

We are all aware of the devastation to wildlife happening in the Gulf of Mexico due to this monstrous oil spill. We know about the gentle sea turtles, the frolicking dolphins, the graceful birds, the giant whale shark and the majestic sperm whale but at the ocean floor, in places once thought to be devoid of life, there are teeming communities of clams, mussels and tube worms that we've only just discovered in recent years. We have not yet sent submersibles down to measure the impact on these amazing communities and I fear what we may find. There is more about these fascinating worlds below the jump.

continued at Daily Kos....

The Florida Coral Reefs may be Next ...

by jamess

If BP, along with the 'Best and the Brightest' can't manage to turn off the spigot ... The Florida Coral Reefs may be Next Group Records Florida Coastal Environment Before Oil Arrives Creighton Team Helps Oil Spill Study MSNBC June 3, 2010 A research team from Creighton University is gathering data along Florida's Gulf Coast and trying to stay ahead of the oil spill. The team's leader, John Schalles, said recovery crews aren't the only ones scrambling against the resulting environmental disaster. Creighton Professor John Schalles on the Oil Spill http://www.youtube.com/...

continued at Daily Kos....

Other Dispersants, Twice as Effective, Half as Toxic, and Not yet Used

by jamess

Dispersants add to Gulf spill’s toxic threats Susan Buchanan -- June 1, 2010 The EPA on May 10 authorized BP to use two dispersants-COREXIT 9500 and COREXIT EC9527A, distributed by the Tennessee and Texas units of Nalco Co. in Illinois. BP had already applied those products at the spill site for nearly two weeks. As concerns about COREXIT grew, however, the EPA asked BP on May 19 to find a less-toxic dispersant within 24 hours, and to start using its replacement in 72 hours. BP answered that it wanted to stick with COREXIT. Frustrated EPA and Coast Guard officials said the company's response was inadequate, and told BP to start reducing its use of surface dispersants. But in a decision questioned by some scientists, officials said BP's subsea or underwater dispersant use, authorized in mid-May, could continue. Last week, the EPA and the Coast Guard said that they would start calling the shots about BP's dispersant use and that COREXIT applications could be scaled back by as much as 50% to 80%. COREXIT should be scaled back to 0% -- Especially since BETTER options are available NOW.

continued at Daily Kos....

Gulf gusher: a sort of requiem

by mwmwm

The oil and gas rush out of the pipe: a force we believed we could master. The oil explodes into droplets, then reforms into gobs, then into droplets once again. The oil rushes, then relaxes, and begins to move lazily in the currents. The lightest oil rises to the surface, forming a sheen that glistens in the sun. The heavier oil rises, or falls, or is swirled like heavy cream. Deep down, the ocean layers move in patterns we cannot see, and do not know, intermixing, carrying the oil inward and outward, forward and back, now diffusing, now coalescing, the soft light of the sun barely reaching the layers on layers of temperature gradients.

continued at Daily Kos....