I read a post called iPhone Survival Guide, about how your iPhone (or iPod touch) could be useful in an emergency. It’s worth checking out.
That got me to thinking about how an iPhone (or iPod touch) could be used for nature activities in general. The iPhone has a clear advantage over the iPod touch in a couple areas: (more…)
Should you send that wild ivy to obedience school, or scold the unpleasant weeds growing in your lawn? It probably won’t do much good. Still, although plants often seem passive and uninvolved, there may be more to their humble lives than we first think.
Heretofore I had been the only person in my family who had not been to the Caribbean. I admit, I’m more of a mountains person than a beaches person. When I think of “paradise” or “God’s country,” I’m more likely to envision a rustic cabin overlooking streams, evergreen forests, and rocky peaks than a sandy shoreline with waving palms. Still, in the midst of an icy, sleeting southern Illinois winter, it is not hard to dream of tropical getaways. This winter my family decided to take a cruise.
Going on the cruise meant skipping GYC, the first one I’d ever missed. I felt a bit sad about that, but then there’s always 3ABN and AudioVerse, where the GYC highlights are captured in all their multimedia glory. The one part I really missed was seeing my friends — but I got to visit other friends, so am consoled.
Back in July of this year, I was walking with some friends on a trail at Rend Lake. At a wide spot in the trail we stopped to look around, and I noticed this unusual flower:
According to an October 25, 2008, Quirks and Quarks podcast, pine cones give off infrared heat. When viewed with infrared technology, or as “seen” by a particular kind of beetle, the cones actually glow. The beetle that is the subject of the podcast does not actually see the infrared with its eyes, as far as scientists can tell, but it has special sensors on its abdomen that allow it to sense the heat from a great distance, with an acuity that is probably as good as insect vision.
So maybe the Christmas tree lights used to decorate trees during the holidays aren’t so far off after all. They are somewhat cone-shaped. To beetles they may seem perfectly natural!
