Everyday Thinking

NestWatch project leader to speak at the Roberson Museum in Binghamton

What could be cuter than baby birds all atwitter in the nest? But amid the “oohs” and “aahs” are real data about the rhythms of bird biology and how they may be changing as the result of human activity. Combine the “wow” factor of the former with the scientific value of the latter and you have NestWatch - ­a new, free citizen science project developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in collaboration with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and funded by the National Science Foundation. Participants visit nests during spring and summer to collect simple information about location, habitat, species, number of eggs, and number of young in the nest. Then they submit their observations online.

“NestWatch introduces birding and simple methods of scientific inquiry to families, children, retired adults­people of all ages and skills,” says project leader Tina Phillips. “It’s easy and fun. It helps people reconnect with nature in their own yard, nearby park, or nature preserve.”

Peter Marra from the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center at the National Zoo says, “Each and every observation is important because it helps scientists measure the impact of such things as climate change and habitat destruction. Without citizens across the country collecting this information for us it would be almost impossible to track these large-scale destructive processes.” 

In addition to Nestwatch, the NestCams companion site has been revamped and is now up and running. Live cameras show the nesting activities of Barn Owls, Wood Ducks, and Northern Flickers in Texas and California. More cameras will be going online across the country in the weeks ahead.

All NestWatch materials and instructions are available online including directions on how to find nests and how to monitor them without disturbing the birds.

“One of the most exciting things about NestWatch,” says Phillips, “is that we’ll be able to take in data from as far back as 1900!”

Anyone who’s been keeping nest records on their own will now have a way to put that important information to use. With all this information from NestWatchers, scientists will be able to track changes in reproductive timing and fledging success which may be linked to climate change.

The lecture on Friday evening will cover several topics - the relationship between citizen scientists and birds, practical ways people can bring nesting birds to their backyards, and the diversity of avian breeding biology.

"There's so many fascinating aspects of avian breeding biology," says Phillips, "I want to be able to give people a sense of just how different these breeding systems are, even within our country with the 700 species of birds that breed in North America."

The guest lecture with Tina Phillips takes place on Friday, May 9th at 7 .m. at the Roberson Musuem and Science Center, Binghamton.

'Nature' founder Dr. Thomas Lovejoy to speak at the Museum of the Earth

As part of its Earth Day celebrations the Museum of the Earth will be hosting a special lecture by world-renowned environmentalist Dr. Thomas Lovejoy at 6:30pm on Friday, April 18.  Lovejoy’s talk will focus on the impact of climate change on plants, animals and ecosystems as well as the complex interactions between nature and climate change.

Lovejoy is the creator of the public television series "Nature" and is recognized as conceiving the term “biological diversity.” Currently he is president of The H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment, located in Washington D.C.  policy through partnerships with industry, government, academia, and ecological organizations. 

Previously, Lovejoy worked as the World Bank's chief biodiversity advisor and lead specialist for Environment for Latin America and the Caribbean, senior advisor to the president of the United Nations Foundation, science advisor to the Secretary of the Interior, and executive vice president of the World Wildlife Fund-U.S.  He also served on science and environmental councils or committees under the Reagan, Bush and Clinton administrations.

“We’re honored to have Dr. Lovejoy speak at Museum of the Earth,” stated Dr. Warren Allmon, director of PRI and its Museum of the Earth.  “In 2007 we decided as in Institution to make climate change and its effects on life on Earth a major focus for our research and education departments; as well as making it an integral part of our Museum experience.  Our Climate and Energy initiative has put our Institution on the front lines in the discussion on Climate Change.   Dr. Lovejoy’s commitment to science, education, and the effects on climate change globally make his presence here at PRI and Museum of the Earth that much more important.”

Museum of the Earth at the Paleontological Research Institution is a natural history museum located in Ithaca, NY.  The Museum offers access to the world-class collections and scientific research of the Paleontological Research Institution, emphasizing New York State and the northeastern United States.  Exhibits at the Museum include a 500-foot mural, Rocks of Ages, Sands of Time depicting 544 million years of Earth’s history, a North Atlantic Right Whale skeleton, an active fossil preparation lab, the Hyde Park Mastodon and much more.

Ouroussoff lecture on environmentally-friendly building

Nicolai Ouroussoff, the chief architecture critic for The New York Times, will discuss green architecture on Thursday, April 17, at SUNY Cortland.

Ouroussoff, who has written a number of articles pertaining to the green architectural movement for The New York Times magazine, will begin at 4:30 p.m. in Sperry Center, Room 105.

The lecture, which continues the College’s year-long “Earthly Matters” lecture series organized by the Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee, is free and open to the public.

Ouroussoff wrote an article titled “Why Are They Greener Than We Are,” which was published on May 20, 2007, in The New York Times magazine. The piece explains why Europe has been building “green” for decades while the designers in the U.S. are still taking baby steps.

Much of the construction on the European continent was completed under ever tightening European Union environmental guidelines for buildings, he asserted.

By comparison, in the U.S., “despite the media attention showered on ‘green’ issues, the federal government has yet to establish universal efficiency standards for buildings,” Ouroussoff wrote.

His article shows examples of Europe’s early “green” construction undertaken during the 1970s, a self-conscious and basic approach featuring solar panels and recycled materials that was dubbed “Birkenstock architecture.” More recent projects include the headquarters for Germany’s environment agency in Dessau. Described by Ouroussoff as the embodiment of “a new, ecologically sensitive Europe,” the structure is cooled and heated by a system of underground pipes and ceiling vents that automatically release excess heat and circulate breezes from outside.

“Americans did not always lag so far behind,” Ouroussoff wrote. “Much of our most celebrated architecture has had a green strain. Frank Lloyd Wright, Rudolf Schindler and Richard Neutra all sought to create a more fluid relationship between indoor and outdoor spaces.”

Named the architecture critic of The New York Times in 2004, Ouroussoff was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2006. From 1996 to 2004, he was the architecture critic of The Los Angeles Times and was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2003 and 2004.

"Earthly Matters” is the third yearlong series of lectures and cultural events organized around a single theme at SUNY Cortland. Sponsored by the College’s Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee and NeoVox, the series is funded by the Offices of the President and the Provost.

For more information, contact Richard Kendrick, professor and chair of the Sociology and Anthropology Department and director of the College’s Institute for Civic Engagement, at (607) 753-2481.

Author of Zen and the Brain to speak at Ithaca College

Distinguished neuroscientist and Zen practitioner James H. Austin will discuss the intersection of scientific and spiritual approaches to the human brain in a free public talk at Ithaca College on Monday, March 24. Austin’s presentation, “Zen and the Brain” will be held at 8 p.m. in Textor 102.

Austin is currently a clinical professor of neurology at the University of Missouri Health Science Center. His book “Zen and the Brain: Toward an Understanding of Meditation and Consciousness” aims to establish links between the neurological workings of the human brain and meditation. A practitioner himself of Zen Buddhism, Austin examines such topics as similar states in other disciplines and religions, sleep and dreams, mental illness, consciousness-altering drugs and the social consequences of the advanced stage of ongoing enlightenment.

In addition to a follow-up published in 2006—“Zen-Brain Reflections: Reviewing Recent Development in Meditation and States of Consciousness”—Austin is also the author of the books “Chase, Chance, and Creativity: The Lucky Art of Novelty” and the forthcoming “Zen Brain, Selfless Insight: The Meditative Transformations of Consciousness.” Austin earned his medical degree from Harvard and has taught at the University of Oregon Medical School and the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. It was during a sabbatical in 1974 in Kyoto, Japan, that he began Zen meditation training with an English-speaking Zen master, Kobori-Roshi.

Austin’s visit is sponsored by the Office of the Chaplains at Ithaca College. For more information, contact Michael Faber at (607) 274-3323 or faber@ithaca.edu.

Lecture: "Searching for Extraterrestrial Life" at Ithaca College

Luke Keller — an assistant professor of physics at Ithaca College and a member of a NASA team studying the formation of planetary systems — will give a presentation, “Searching for Extraterrestrial Life: Molecules, UFOs, and Little Green Men,” on Tuesday, Feb. 19. Free and open to the public, the talk will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Emerson Suites, Phillips Hall.

“In the past decade, astronomers have identified over one hundred planets orbiting stars other than the sun,” Keller said. “What are those worlds like and is it likely that they host living organisms?”

Astronomers have also observed organic molecules in interstellar space, Keller added, and many of them orbiting young stars that are probably just now forming planetary systems. How do these systems compare to our own solar system as it was forming? Are distant planetary systems anything like our own? If intelligent life has evolved elsewhere in the galaxy, could extra-terrestrials travel between stars?

“Might they have tried to communicate with us or visit us?” Keller asked. “We can explore these questions by applying some very simple principles of physics, biology, and chemistry. Come join the discussion!”

Part of the college’s Physics Café series, Keller’s talk is also an event in the annual Winter Recess Teacher’s Festival, sponsored by the Ithaca Visitors Bureau.

The Physics Café is a campus-wide lecture series sponsored by the college’s Department of Physics. The goal is to grab and hold the attention of science and nonscience majors by offering talks on exciting and accessible current topics in physics. Past Café lectures have featured the time-warping properties of black holes, the communication abilities of elephants, remote sensing of archaeological sites, and string theory. Informal talk-back sessions with the speaker follow the presentation.

For more information on the series, contact Beth Ellen Clark Joseph, associate professor of physics, at bclark@ithaca.edu or (607) 274 3968.