It was the summer of the jellyfish. On almost every retreating tide the beach was jam-packed with jellies. A walk at water’s edge required constant attention to what was underfoot; few experiences are more unpleasant than stepping barefoot into a quivering cushion of jellyfish jelly.
Aurelia aurita • Photo by Alexander Vasenin (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo by Terry Ballard (CC BY 2.0)
15,000 years or so in the life of Scratch Flat
On this day exactly 200 years ago Gilbert White, the vicar of Selborne village in England, wrote this in his naturalist’s journal: “Made black currant-jelly. Finished cutting the tall hedges. Gathered some lavender.”
Photo by Kaushal Moradiya from Pexels
Cameras don’t lie but a photograph might
Photographs don’t lie. Or do they?
A typical New England stone wall • Photo by Sean (CC BY-ND 2.0)
New England’s long rocky road
One recent weekend I dug post holes for a patio fence. Five holes, each one foot in diameter and two feet deep. How many cubic feet of dirt were removed? Zero.
Artist's depiction of Galileo exploring Jupiter • NASA/JPL (Public Domain)
Just in case anybody is hanging out in Jovian neighborhood
Spacecraft Galileo is on its way to Jupiter.
Common snapping turtle • Photo by Greg Schechter (CC BY 2.0)
Intruding upon another, more patient age
If you are an early morning walker in late spring or early summer, and if your path takes you by sandy soil near a pond, and if the God of Reptiles is awake and minding his business, then you are sure to come upon a snapping turtle laying eggs.
Photo by Andrew Itaga on Unsplash
Building a better silence
It is late night. Other members of the household are asleep. Street noises have subsided. The groan of planes making its way to Logan has come to an end. Even the refrigerator has momentarily suspended its almost ceaseless purr. It is that time of the day when one hears the silence.
Artist's reconstruction of Hallucigenia sparsa • Image by Joshua Evans (CC BY-SA 4.0)
No one knows which way is up
This is the tale of topsy-turvy Hallucigenia, a little animal that doesn’t know which way is up. It is also a tale of scientific riddles and how they are solved.
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Public Domain)
How many Holy Grails are there out there?
Big science costs big bucks. Big bucks can only come from the taxpayer’s pocket. Which means scientists must get in line with everyone else for a piece of the federal pie. And lobby just as hard for their share.
Photo by Taylor Rooney on Unsplash
Somewhere out there is a happy ending to everything
One of the wackier ideas to have emerged from modern physics is parallel universes. That’s right, folks. This universe that we live in may not be the only universe. There may exist an uncountable number of universes, some nearly identical to this one, others wildly different. Even as you read, zillions of new universes may be blossoming into existence.