I am a teacher now. In my first year. It's hard. I have to find a place to write. Sometimes my students get upset when I ask them things they shouldn't know. There's a reason, I try to get them to use their brains! I really enjoyed watching this video made by a math teacher. It shows what happens when students aren't challenged this way often enough! Many times this leaves student frustrated, and if there's a grade attached to these sort of assessments they get angry. So perhaps it's best to leave this as a learning experience instead of an assignment. This raises the question though, is there something wrong with asking a student a question outside of the box?

From the Govt. to YOU. a report on our probable demise

I don't like this blog. i don't like my job. I don't like what's going on with the environment in the world. But being good at my job and writing this blog about what is going on in the environment helps me feel better about all of these things. What a difficult life. fwp?? or everyman's problems? I'm in the midst of mucking through a bunch of government papers about climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports. You may have heard about them. They are the official source of our government's knowledge on practically everything climate science related. The have all of the most functional models and most accurate predictions for what will happen in the coming years as a consequence for increased atmospheric CO2. I'm impressed at the great lengths they go to in order to compile and convey this information to whoever uses it. Most impressive to me at this moment is the FAQ section. They have contained in it a very well thought out and thoroughly cited introduction course to biogeochemistry, paleontology, and climate. In it are the most relevant questions such as "What factors determine the Earth's climate?" What disturbs me is that even though these are very relevant questions for a person concerned about climate to ask, what about those that don't give a fuuuuck? Like my grandparents. I use them in my mind as the eternal model for the non believer. That can't be good for my family relationships because certainly I do hold onto a great deal of resentment for this group of people, but hopefully it helps my cause that they are familiar. No matter how I arrange it in my head, these concepts may only be relevant in a very abstract way to people in America for a long time. More on the IPCC publications in future reports.

awww shit. time to fire up the old blog again. I'm going on a research cruise to the Atlantic ocean in six days. posts are a'comin. for now it's a quick link for you about the research cruise, and i'm back to packing.

Studying climate change where the Amazon meets the Atlantic

Caturday

CURB is a natural media company that designs sustainable methods of advertising. They have combined two of my great loves with VVthisVV Hello Kitty advertisment,



a purrrfect example of their 'crop ad' strategy. And that's not all the CURB company has to offer. They have an assortment of twenty five naturally green ways of advertising to offer. Their list of clients is nothing to shake a fist at, with impressive investors such as Microsoft, Nike, and Heineken. And as of 2009, they plant a tree in a developing country for ever ad they produce. phew. MEOW curb!!

Caturday!

i've been seeking some commentary on my blog for a bit, and have encountered some difficulty with finding helpful suggestions. it may turn out that a blog is not the ideal way for me to accomplish what I aim, but that remains to be seen. Surely there's nothing wrong with me forming these arguements/platforms even if no on reads them, since it is still beneficial for me to communicate on these issues.

if you have any advice on how to improve my blog or questions about sustainability you'd like answered, i'd love to hear it!

I want to be helpful, entertaining and i want to contribute! is the point sort of.
anyway. i' received some interesting comments including one telling me my blog is a joke because cats are the antithesis of sustainability. that my blog is a joke, assumably before this person read the content... so i've created a caturday contribution in honor of this joke of a blog!!
behold-


inspiration:

"Do you actually have a pet cat, and if so do you keep it indoors?

Cats are the biggest threat to biodiversity in Australia, and from what I've read, they threaten remnant fauna in the US too. Having a blog that's about sustainability and cats - unless it's full of advice on how to be a responsible cat owner - is a joke.


*steps off soap box*"

fyi, my PRINCESS of a cat is neutered and indoor. I buy her organic food and am working on the cat litter issue. biiiiiitch

and this blog is about... love. love for our natural earth and love for feline friends.

I saw Peter Singer speak while at UCSC. He didn't convince me to veg on the spot, but was indeed a powerful speaker. Here's a piece from him about the massacre of fish conducted by the world's nations today, called "If Fish Could Scream". A little (cruelty free) food for thought.

Caturday

awww emo cat! it's okay. I luv you.