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Buds of the Walnut Family

The walnut family, the Juglandaceae, have large, fuzzy buds (at least the ones in Indiana). I could be wrong, but I bet there’s a connection between the typically large, almost floral buds of walnuts and hickories and the fact that these trees have large, compound leaves—Black Walnut leaves can be up to 2 feet long,Continue reading “Buds of the Walnut Family”

Politics, Teaching, and Disability

The current moment is highly charged with political potential energy. It’s a new year, there’s a new president, and, on a more local level, we in Indiana are working on a new state budget. So I felt like this might be a good time to discuss a political issue not often brought up, particularly asContinue reading “Politics, Teaching, and Disability”

Tracks

Beautiful snow this morning in Bloomington. Signatures of the neighborhood animal life. In the cat tracks above, notice how the back feet land almost directly on top of the front. In animal tracking this is called “direct register,” and is typical of cats and foxes. For more tracking terms check out this link. Cottontail rabbitsContinue reading “Tracks”

Zero-waste-ish: Small Changes I’ve made this Year

We’ve all got to start somewhere, and I started with Kroger brand “Crumb dilly icious” sandwich cookies. No particular reason except for their ridiculous name, and the fact that I ate A LOT of them. Kroger, by the way, has an impressively (what I assume to be) tongue-in-cheek marketing strategy. Either that or they’ve reallyContinue reading “Zero-waste-ish: Small Changes I’ve made this Year”

The Fight for Indiana Wetlands

Tomorrow, SB 389 will be heard by the Indiana Senate Environmental Affairs Committee. The bill would categorically eliminate protection for state wetlands by repealing the 2003 state wetlands law. For the past 17 years, whenever a project is planned that will impact a state wetland (otherwise known as an “isolated” wetland, as opposed to aContinue reading “The Fight for Indiana Wetlands”

January Photos and Finds

Not a clear theme for today, just thought I’d share some of the things I’ve found. The featured picture above is some kind of slime mold, probably unidentifiable. It was growing from a dead elm tree, with the bark peeling off. I’ve actually seen these structures on a couple different dead elm trees so IContinue reading “January Photos and Finds”

Questioning Rehabilitation

Given that the unemployment rate for people with disabilities is more than twice that of people without disabilities (7.3% vs 3.5% in 2019) there are two major explanations. One, people with disabilities lack the essential skills to gain employment, and two, workplaces are not accessible to people with disabilities (remember that unemployment rates only considerContinue reading “Questioning Rehabilitation”

Essential Mushrooms: The Brick Cap

Let’s take a close look at these guys! They are called Brick caps because of the color. The margins tend to be lighter, and sometimes have white tufts of fiber remaining from the partial veil. They grow in clusters from decaying hardwoods. The stipe is lighter above and more reddish below, and often twisted becauseContinue reading “Essential Mushrooms: The Brick Cap”

The Righteous Mind: a Critique

Jonathan Haidt’s The Righteous Mind: why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion is roughly divided into two parts. In the first, Haidt makes the case for social intuitionism, the theory that moral judgements are primarily the product of automatic intuitions rather than conscious reasoning. The main form of evidence for this is so-calledContinue reading “The Righteous Mind: a Critique”

Winter Tree ID: Bitternut Hickory

Redbuds are not the only tree named in reference to their buds. Bitternut hickory is also called yellowbud hickory, which to me is a more useful name, since I rarely pick up, pry open, and taste the squirrel-neglected nuts I find on the ground. On the other hand, it’s only during this half of theContinue reading “Winter Tree ID: Bitternut Hickory”