We Have Much to Learn About the Sun

We have much to learn how the sun effects of the sun on Earth's environment and our life. We probably once saved many of us by going underground. We are noting happenings to the sun. We know that it is much like a living being. It goes through many long term and short term changes. Lately it has lost hydrogen, increased in size, and a large piece of it has broken of and now whorls around one of its poles. 

The Sun is active and its activity effect us positively and negatively. We benefit by learning about that activity.

                                                                                                                RCS

Covid 19 and Public Health

"Covid 19" 

                        A year or so ago we experienced a new viral disease among us. We have called it Covid 19 and have seen that it is contagious. It has spread among us by droplets of a variety of sizes, many to small to be seen with our unaided eyes. Speaking of eyes it seems probable that Covy, (Covid is affectionately called Covy in my part of Colombia) may enter our system though our eyes. 

                    Covid can be transmitted to us as aerosols and so is a bit airborne, but seems to travel most effectively in a bit of water and the weight of that moisture bears it down. That being the case, its distance of travel is limited. There are disease vectors which much more effectively airborne to which we are subjected.

Other Vectors

                    I do not know how many disease arise or are revived on Earth each day. I am pretty sure that there are more of them than there are of us.

                    A fully airborne virus or other vector could infect a larger number of humans than can Covid. I know of no reason why it could not be more virulent.

Such a situation would be better handled by a co-operative and effective public response. We know much about how to co-operate, but to be effective we need practiced organization. I believe that it is to our benefit and that of our children and youth to create and maintain a more generally organized response that is more organize than any we have practiced. That is a much greater portion of the public may need to better understand the workings of our public heath system so as to make sure it is working well and that it is well worked. We might hear the call for organized understanding co-operation.

                    There are other disease vectors out there and new ones come. They come with the change of season and with climate changes. There are milder vectors than Covid and those which are more disabling. We can call them germs, fungi, bacteria, or something else, but we have dealt with them throughout our history and know that they have come to kill nearly half of us in a couple of years. 

We know that sanitation, excellent food, appropriate clothing and housing and enough physical exercise is good protection and an excellent defense when we do them well.

                        

Systematic Public Health

                    With the help of our public education system and our public health system we can know that we have excellent food and that it is available, the same for appropriate activity, clothing, housing, and sanitation. It is up to us to see that our public heath and education systems are well set up and working.

                    We are the public and the ones responsible for our health and education systems. It is up to see that we are appropriately organized. We are in this together. Nobody has to do it all alone, but it helps if a lot of us keep up on what is going on.

                    We have been reminded that a health public health system is one which the public is well acquainted with. We once had a better corps of well educated public health journalists than we have now and even then we needed a better one. Public health learning is an ongoing activity. The quality of food, water, and air change new germs come along. We need appropriate language to pass along the needed information. A good journalist can write to us or speak to us in language we can understand and that we can act on. The Journalist that we had passed on the word mostly in a newspaper column and sometimes on the radio. Now the word is passed from journal to professional journal by professionals to professionals in a language that even their own husband or wife may not understand.

                    The idea of public systems was that they be of, by, and for the public. But, the people working the system daily had to be clear about what the public wanted and needed, so that means an honest ongoing conversations with many. In a PHS they also need to know or have very good access to health knowledge and information and especially public health knowledge and information. That means a public which is willing to learn a bit and to speak up about their needs wants, and understandings. Having a good number of persons doing the work of  good public health journalists could be of great help.

                    With our help, the help of system professionals and bureaucrats, media people and others we could train and pay good men and women to make the public health word  available to all, bureaucrats, professional's, citizens, interested in public health. With a little more support and co-operation from us the people of our public health system would stand with us effectively in many ways. They could help get those public journalist trained, paid, and keep us well informed in language well understood by all.

                    Nearly all the men and women specializing in public health journalism have been fired and new ones not educated to the trade they need to be more than reporters and we need more than many hundreds of them. We need them at the city, state, county, and federal level. We also need them at several more specialized areas. They need to tells all they can of that we need to know about our use of and our support of our Public Health System in a language we can easily understand.

                      We may want to work out a way to teach ourselves to better support are public heath systems so that our personal health gets better support. We can learn enough and do enough. We are many and we are enough.

                    Thank you for reading.

                                                                                                    rcs

                   

I Like the Geometry

I kind of understand how quantum mechanics is understood and I am beginning to see its predictive value, but I have kind of lost my grip on reality.                        rcs

Rapid Climate Change

       

We are responsible for us. We can decide to adapt to the present rapid climate changes or not. It is up to us. It seems to me a very good idea to decide to co-operate to adapt together. It seems a good opportunity to learn to do democracy,

Bison For America: We have called them buffalo.

                    How Bison are saving America's lost prairie, We can have bison and eat them too. Doing so we can eat better more cheaply and have a better America.

Norway! Great Video and Lots of info

Norway: beautiful, rich, and amazing.

                    There is lots of sea coast and forest. You can  see the "norther lights" or get a tan at midnight. There are plenty of Norwegians here and probably more then a couple of trolls. Norway is a Scandinavian country in the far northwest of Europe. It has a long western coast facing the Atlantic Ocean and extends north into the Artic Circle. Their sea still has a supply of cod and also covers a nicely tapped supply of petroleum. Norwegians seem heathy and good looking. On the average they are more well educated then most. They are more quiet, modest, and courteous then one might expect from ex-Vikings. They like their space and seem to need a bit more of it then most. 

   

  

Climate Changes: Impacts and Your Adaptations

                How are you adapting to the fast changes that are happening today and are probably going to be long term? How are those around you planning and adapting to the changes. They may not be considering the necessary transformation of systems. Hopefully they are considering their ongoing needs for food, water, and shelter. Have you considered how you will do that which needs to be done. Have you and those around you considered how you will co-operate? 

                What needs to be done where you are? Will rising sea levels be a problem? Will the management of drinking water be a concern? Food distribution and food production?

What about health care? What about maladaptation? How are you co-operating and organizing with others.

                                              

A Few Quotes

                A lot depends upon how one interprets them

                "The philosophy in the classroom today is the philosophy of the government "  by Norman Williams

I am not sure it is true. I believe that parents and citizens are responsible for their schools and that which is taught in the classroom. When they abdicate that responsibility children, youth, and our culture suffers. 

"The very concept of objective truth is fading out of the world."

by George Orwell

I think that our concepts of honesty, experience, and good evidence could take up a lot of slake.

"The public will believe anything so long as it is not founded on truth."

By Edith Sitwell

This seems an exaggeration and not quite true. It seems that most of our public is educated in our public education systems. It seems that the public is made up of the ones responsible of our public education systems. What happens when they fail to honor their responsibility.

"Ours is the only country deliberately founded on a good idea"

That is republicanism and democracy and the idea that governance is in the hands of the citizens and is their responsibility. When they do not uphold that responsibility the fall into ignorance.

by John Gunther

            What do you think? Who is responsible for you and yours? Who is responsible for your neighborhood? Your health? Your organization. Your county? Your co-operation? Your education? 

                                                                                                    rcs

Science: DNA, Let's Begin to Find Out About It

      

                                        We can begin in Ireland to find out what's in it for us.  This has been a very popular post on Mago Bill. Are Scott Irish mostly English?

Questions About DNA:
~ Is a paper trail documentation?
~ How is a relative connectd? Can't relatives connect themselves?
~ What is a phylogenetic tree?
~ Is "phylogenetic" an adjective? What does it have to do with trees?
~ Just what is a geenome?
~ What is geneoogy now?
~ What is a haplotype? Is it a type which a man on the street  would recognize or something esoteric?
~ Why would a knowledgable person  think it important to test three person in a line? How do you get them to line up?
~ What ought they be tested for? Diseases?
~ From where are the persons obtaine?  

                                                                                                                            rcs  

Earth Changes Contiued

                             More than virus was the name on a draft of this post begun some time ago.

                        We see some thought provoking happenigs and dongs these days. For example we find that a few expert observers, a few experience men and women have their eyes  on happenings in the artic and sub-artic around what we call the north pole. Other expert experienced obsrvers have doing the same around the south pole. They were saying that happenings they were happening more than twice as other world wide changes. Now most are saying three times as fast. 

                        As we have heard, that includes global warming. That means that the snow and very large quantities of ice and permafrost are melting very fast. Our experts tell that these happenings at the poles have many world wide effects. They are telling us that Earth changes are happening quickly and will continue to do so. A look at the nightly news suggests that they are not the only ones to think so. Those managing the news usually practics keeping us interested while keeping us calm. Now in the news we are hereing more and more about Earth changes that are not strickly calming.

                        We more of us lived east of our grear Mississippi River and people heard the words "The water is ten feet high and rising" most understood that it was time to consider the nearest high land or a very good boat. Our experts are repeating words of comparable meaning. However, they have so much to say about happenings so large and changing so fast that it is not easy to figure out exactly what they are trying to tells. Also we have so lost contact with those we trust well, that we do not trust. We don't really trust that there has been a dumbing of Americans.

                        Our well-being is likely to suffer major disturbance if we do not get valuable information correctly soon. Sorry for this little rant, but it may turn out to be very important for us to make vital adaptations mutually soon. We may suffer if we do not begin co-operative adaptations soon.

                        I the first part of this essay I began to report a bit of what seems important to me. Its not news. Now there are many more reports on TV, online, and elsewhere. We need to judge the import and value to us of what we are. We need to make the best judgement we can. We may or may not be the greatest cause of what is happening, but as usual we are the ones who need to adapt. We do not have to do anything, even so, I believe that we ought to do something. Something bigger seems tobe happening than just flooding our homestead and crops. 

                        We need to become more aware of what is going on so that we can consider what we had best do.

                        Many thoughtful persons now saying that we have begun to experience bigger and faster changes than we ever have and that we may continue to experience them so long as we live. Bigger changes are happening in shorter periods of time. Types of changes we may never heard of have begun. We still have time to learn more and I believe that it is never to late to do something. Still it is best when we can make choices that are truly useful. To do so it seems necesary to be more aware of what is happening and what are to be likely results.

                        It is nice to know that climate changes are far from being our fault. Still it is probably true that we have made them worse. It may be time to put thoughts of  blame aside. It may be time to find ways to co-operate with others to adapt to changes. Some, of the changes underway may prove more than a little dangerous. So, effective adaptation may be very importatant to the well-bing of you and yours and the rest of us.

                    There is that which can do andought to do. We have learned to adapt to much of that which we cannot change. We can give the the young a better chance to survive and to thrive.

                     Let's begin to look at some of the troublesome happenings which have begun to cross our path. To avoid overwhelming myself and perhaps I am restricting my self to the results of the polar melting and thawing which continues to increase.

                As we have noted, as ice and permafrost thaws stuff is being released. Some of that stuff  seems neithe good nor bad. Some are likely to prove very useful, much will take adapting to, a little will be deadly. I have mentioned what some of that stuff is. You can find out more.

                Melting ice has raised the sea level and will raise it more. Some of the rise may come suddenly. Estimates of how much sea level will rise are a vailable. A small percentag of islanders have left their homes. People on low lying islands and othes with sea front are properties are already making adaptations. Some authorities have said that some adaotations may be to little or to late. The rise of the sea is still quite slow.

                However, releases from thawing ice and especially thawing permafrost are looking fast to many. Some 75years ago some old anthrax was released from thawing permafrost. Much permafrost is made up mostly of soaking wet plant mater frozen solid, often may yards down. The perma- in permafrost suggests that many did not expect it to thaw. It is. Some is thawing that has been frozen solid for a very, very long time. Some has thawed to revial a boy and about 20 raindeer of times past.

                Over the years we have buried radioactive waste beneath ice and permafrost. Some has been reported as exposed. By now I expect there has been more. Perhaps you know someone who can check this out. 

                Some ancient antibiotic resistant bacteria is reviviving as it is being released from melting ice and permfrost. No one is stopping that release, and other bacteria are being revived. It is up to us to adapt. I am not providing the proof of my assertions here and not even much evidence; I leave that up to you. I hope that you will find a way to share your findings with us. We have been losing our comments apps on associated blogs. I hope that you will find the comments app here workble.

                Happenings keep happening. Climate changes which are bigger than we are used to and coming much faster than usual. There is also evidence of other Earth changes beging to ocurr which are doing so more quickly than usual. We have much to deal with and much adapting to do. I hope that we are beginning to practice are abilities for colaboration and cooperation a bit more effectively.

               We have made changes to our environment without much forethought. We have even used drugs and medicens without much consideration of their effcts. We call those effects side-effects of little importants. The doings of mankind have important effects. However, there are other hapenings that are large and important and have little to do with humanity. Some of those happenings were ocurring from deep within the Earth before the was a human to set foot on Earth. Other happenings effecting us and our Earth come from the Sun and the solar system others for the Milky Way the galecie i which our solar systen revolves, others come for God knows where. It is our part to adapt. We have the mirical of self awareness to aid us. We can be conscious of that which is occurring around us.

            Students of our EarthHave been telling that beyond the wural and travel of the Earth that it also has shifts and wobbles centered on its axis which effect our climate and ecology. All these happening have been going on faster and slower since long before Noah. The tip and wabble changes how much sun and its warmth reaches various sections of the Earth. There is no blame here, but we are called on to use our adaptability to make appropriate adjustments to our doings.

            

                Please find someone with whom to find out more about these happenings so as to become more aware of their nature and how we can adapt to them. I am willing to co-operate here. We can learn more and do more to help ourselves.

                We can learn to trust ourselves and others more appropriatly. For example we can help one other learn more about the gas methane. For example, I understand that there is now an increasingly rapid release of antique methane gas from arctic, antarctic and subarctic melts and thaws of ice and permafrost that dffects us and leads to other Earth changes. As an example it seems sure that these melts and thaws also include release of ancient virus with a significant amout of them reviving. Some of those reviving can bring new dangers to our health. To adapt, perhaps we could provide our public health people with a bit more help.

                So the melting of  pllar ice can cause a number of threats to humanity. The Bible tells us that Noah delt with some of them in our past. Students of geology and others tell us of evidences of past rapid and catistrofic flooding. We are capable of preparing to deal with such flooding. With this melting Canada and Russia are getting new sea routes. They are adapting by developing their sea trade. The Russians especialy are making some use of Rivers in their north as a way to move goods and people. Those rivers, in perhaps all of our history, were frozen solid and just in our time have thawed.

                It seems healthy for us and our youth to make some effort to keep up on that which is going on with more understanding. It is not too late to benefit from a bit more awareness of our situation.

                I Have said that permafrost is frozen soil and plant matter(animal too) which has feozen deep into the earth at the bottom of shallower seas. That permafrost is no longer permanant. It's thawing. That is very evident to those who have built roads, homes, and airports upon it. The thawing leads to other changes. For example, it is increasing the percetage of CO2 and methane gas in our atmosphere. That means a smaller percentage of oxygen for us to breathe. The knowledge of how to get enough oxygen is available. Let's take advanntage of that knowledge.

                When you would like me to write more on these themes, please try to let me know. Also, I really need help with proof-reading and editing these essays and posts of mine. I even need help with my spelling. If you care to help or know of another who can help please let me. The spellcheck app is disappeaering from my blogs as are comment apps. It is probably possible to get them back, but I have not been able to find the way. I will be greatful for this needed help.

                You may find it beneficial to explore the essays, videos, and posts on this blog  and on the associated blogs.

                    Thank you for reading.

                                                                                                            rcs

Our Ethics Add Value to Our Science: page one through page

Ethics               

                        I have posted about the scientific method on this blog and intended to write on scientific principles here now. That is I intended to write on the doing of science. I might have included material like: principles of validation and reliability, data management principles, principles in scientific research and the like.

                    However, in starting this post the words "ethics" and "ethical" arose. I began to consider how much shared ethical principle we need in common in order to co-operate effectively. I am sure that we do need enough enough ethical similarity to to maintain our effectiveness. I believe that the more quality and quantity of ethic we share the better our chances for abundant effectiveness. We may need to communicate a great deal to discover the nature of our shared ethics.

                    We need to do a good job of passing useful ethics on to our youth.

                    I was assailed by thoughts of how science and ethics are intertwined. I feel that there is much to be taken into account. For example, the effectiveness of our research practices depends on the quality of our ethics. 

                    C0-operation in our scientific endeavors effects the results of those endeavors. In working with another, or others, difficulties may arise because we are uncertain of the nature of on another's ethics. Even though scientific principles have become useful and prevalent in many areas of our culture, I have begun to suspect that too many of our ethics do not prevail in our scientific endeavors. Adults working in science too often seem not to have their ethics high in their consciousness. Youths in the life such adults learn from them. Those learners could develop high scientific abilities and lowered levels of ethical consciousness.  

                    I have been slow to add to this post. I want to accentuate the positive and believe that ethics and science both have great deal of positivity. I believe that much of our use of ethics and science is positive, but upon contemplation I  see legions of negatives. I try to be sympathetic and generous, but continue seeing that too often we don't measure up very well.

                    I have become more aware of how the value of science to us depends upon our ethics. Science and ethics are intertwined, and so they ought. All of our doings effect our health and general well being. We are wise to take our ethics into account. For example, the effectiveness of research practices in science depends upon ethics in the scientific field and the ethical practices in our total culture. Our principles of integrity of: knowledge, collegiality, honesty, objectivity, subjectivity, openness, etcetera make for dependable and effective co-operation and for our general well-being. There has been a valuable ethical platform working with the features of the scientific method such as: Formulating a hypothesis, collecting  and interpreting data, the communication of scientific knowledge, and the training of young scientists which has done much for the effectiveness of our science. Scientists are responsible for the effects science upon us and so are we all.

                Much of our well-being has depended upon our code of ethics. Perhaps that code needs to be more written about and so be more supportive of our well-being. Perhaps it needs to be taught as an expected part of our doing of science and so to be more supportive of our well-being. We seem to have expected ethics to arise a grow among us without our support. Our expectations have not been supported. It seems, that if we want ethics to be a part of our common culture, that we must provide opportunities for it to be observed, to more carefully teach it to our children and youth, and to practice being mindful of our ethics ourselves. 

                However our ethics are little in many homes, ethics has seldom bee a required course in college or university, and I suspect that our well-being has suffered. Children may lack enough opportunity to observe the workings of ethics in their home. Children and youth often lack opportunity to observe  the workings of ethics at their parents place of business. When do not learn of ethics, when we do not learn to observe ethics, when we are not tutored in ethics, when have been taught little ethics informally and formally our individual well-being is stunted as is that of our society. When this lack of observation, instruction, and practice continues for just a couple of generations a society and culture degenerate.

                 Understanding of, practice of, and alertness to our ethics can do much to keep our science safe and potent as well maintaining a well functioning culture and society and our general and individual well-being.

                One way to begin anew is to relearn the vocabulary of ethics. With that vocabulary we can better speak of ethics. We have perhaps begun to learn a bit right here. We already know some useful opposites. When we do not use them as places or location but rather more as pointing a direction or as orienting us. Examples of such pairs can include: better and worse, useful and useless, better yet might be more helpful and less helpful, or more and less honest, all of which can be used to point us toward the better direction or help us to avoid the worst. One could say that an important use of ethics is to help us to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative appropriately.                 

                Page two may be on its way soon.

                Thank you for reading!

Please continue on to page two.

Lost Ethics, Lost knowledge? Page Two

                It seems that once more children and youth received wider exposure to ethics through observation of the adults they lived among. Youths now seem to live more among youths. Often adults once found. Adults seem once to have found opportunity to purposefully present youth examples of the use of ethics. Now often both mothers and fathers are working full time. Among some of us there was discussion of ethics. I cannot remember the last time I had such a discussion. Youth and children were more exposed to an informal education in ethics. Now it seems that many are left with much less of that informal education. Seems a bit unethical.

                Now, it seems to me, that once a greater percentage of us received a wider appropriate exposure to ethics through example and opportunity to observe. There seems to be less discussion and other informal learning available to us. The once popular Bachelor of Arts degree at colleges and universities where classes related to ethics are no longer common. How are youth to learn? How are even our professionals to learn? Mandatory classes in ethics seem less present as part of advanced degrees. How are doctors and scientists to gain a good foundation in ethics? Some do so late in their careers.

                For a time a sort of scientific attitude along with some ethics was passed on from mature to young from experienced scientist to disciples. It seem centered on integrity and a perfecting of honesty. I seem to remember it being implied that the pleasurer and profit of scientific investigation was enhanced by the wide honest sharing of findings and learnings. Science was known as an important and useful way of communicating certain understandings and I believe that it is that today. It seems our best way to share many new and more demanding understandings.

                Some of my understandings may seem to some to be so far from the actualities of today as to be of little use to discuss now; and they may have good reasons for their perceptions. Even so, experience and thoughtful persons have thought them useful and and upon consideration you may see that they could continue to serve us well.

                it is good when we are willing to teach one another; it's better when we actually do. Is good that a doctor of medicine is willing to teach a patient who is willing to learn. I believe that it is important that when we see something which is wrong which may impact others, that we communicate that which we see. When we make such a communication, we may well be expected to be asked, "What makes you think so." So, it is useful to consider what makes us think so.  we may also consider that we are the best authority on "that which leads us to think so.

                When a scientist proposes a theory I believe he ought to tell concerned parties of the values and nature of his theory, but also of facts he has encountered which may run counter to his theory or precepts and may not be in agreement with it. The ideas is to provide others with data they may use to better judge the information received. Its a sort of intellectual honesty, a respect for humanity, and of utility for fellow scientists.

                It seems correct that the work of a scientist be shared with other scientists to aid those others in their work, their understanding of his science and of his particular findings. It seems correct to share their results with society in general for the well-being of all. As another example, it seems correct that a doctor share with his patient that which he has learned of his patient's condition. I believe that doctor should aid an interested patient to interpret the information the doctor has provided.

                Our culture is vulnerable, humanity is vulnerable to the lose of vital knowledge. Our very survival may depend on the quality of our ability to share our knowledge among ourselves. Those who know have the responsibility to pass on to others that which they know. You may believe that it is good to encourage those who know to pass on that knowledge to others. You are not alone. Each of us knows of that which is worth passing on.

                It seems right that we each willingly share the information and knowledge we have, which could be helpful to others, with others. Doing so preserves the quality of our lives and may preserve our very lives.

                A basic value of science is its practitioner's ability to accurately and honestly pass on information to us for distribution among us. That is the science I willingly support. 

                It seems to me that the work of a scientist can be very satisfying to her, but that it can also be very demanding. The doing of science calls for ongoing study, practice, care, and integrity. Designing a truly useful experience is not easy and neither is the doing of it.

                We are getting into the nature of science, the scientific method, and the ethics of science; the relationship between ethics and science.

                Thank you for reading.

                You can now go on to page three.

Scientific Methods Can Be Used Anywhere By Anyone

                But, but when is the last time you observed science being done? Most of us can pass months without observing scientific methods in action. A great deal of science can be done in the mind and goes unseen. A great deal of science is done in the field. Geology is a example of that. Even when watching that geologist in the field we cannot be certain that he is actual doing science at that time. Much science is done by employees within institutions large and small. Many of those institutions are corporations, others are universities, and some are governmental. We haven't asked for much oversite of them. It is difficult even for professionals to observe the quality of their methodology. We can more effectively observe their results and understand their explanations. We can demand and exposition of their results and their best estimates of probable and likely effects on society and sometimes have done so.

 Doings of  Scientists are Affecting Us Now

                We need to see that knowledge and understanding of science and the doings of scientists is available to us, our youth, and our children; that is up to us.

Its up to us to receive that information. It is or responsibility to see that our schools and teachers are ready, willing, and able to share their knowledge with our youth, our children, and us. School boards, state and local governments can be encouraged to help us. Independent citizen groups and organizations may help us more.

            Ethics of the people in organizations, groups, governments, schools, businesses, and scientists is a positive contribution to the well-being of us all. Our ethics can help all of us to better share in our society and its doings.

             We can benefit from a better understanding of ethics. Ethics is a branch of philosophy which can help us to choose more useful and helpful actions. It helps us to be more rational. It directs to the more positively productive act. Much of ethics has been dedicated, or directed, to the benefits of society, but that which benefits our neighborhood often benefits you and me as well as others.

                Feel free to offer corrections to my mistakes. You can use the "comments" app below.

                Thank you for reading.

                                                                                                   rcs

                                                                                                     

Science Intro

 Science Intro: A Way of Knowing

 

            Science is the practice of a method of understanding and communication. It may be called the scientific method. This method can be a great help in self-development and in being a successful human being.

            As you become better acquainted with this method of understanding you can become a more effective person. You will also develop a better understanding of the sciences in general and in each individual science, even ytterbiumology.

            The scientific method generally includes the following doings: observation, identification/recognition, description, experimental investigation, and theoretical explanation of natural phenomena. So, a scientist observes a doing or happening and begins to "explain" it. The method is much about how she does ir. That is, how you do it may be more important than what you do.

            To be well started, let's define some of our terms. We can begin with the word 'science.' At the beginning we see that science simply means 'knowledge', the business of knowing. Just how one knows is a serious subject. A subject we could check into later. Early in its history science became knowledge gained by 'study' and then quickly came to be the study of particular and specific subjects. Like us, science carries most of its history into the present. In its more modern meaning it has come to mean the technical and mathematical study of a subject. However, the basic method of doing science is both a simpler and more powerful attitude then one might suppose. 

            We already know that 'method' means 'the way how.' So, science is a particular way of understanding, a particularly effective way of understanding. 

            It may be useful to remember that the suffix -ology means study. So, for example, anthropology is the study of the human species, of humanity in most of its aspects. It has often been a comparative study of behavior, biology, and societies. Whereas biology is the natural scientific study of life  and living organisms. It is one of the more nicely developed sciences. Cells and genes are now important aspects of this study.

            It is important that a person interested in science have an understanding of the nature of scientific: observation, identification, explanation, researching, theoretical description and the like. Also developing their ability to recognize and observe natural phenomena is an aid to their use of scientific methodology.

            So, to gain scientific knowledge and to communicate is useful to understand concepts of the method and its vocabulary. When interests is shown I hope to be able write more on the methods of science. I believe that you already have an understanding of the scientific method as a way many have found useful for gaining practical, productive knowledge and for communicating that knowledge.

            You probably already have the understanding that science is well begun and carried out with studied and practiced observation. The ways of scientific observation are important to the development of knowledge. My dictionary has this to say about 'to observe:' to notice, to perceive, to watch attentively, to make a systematic or scientific observation. "Systematic." That implies that there is a system which can be learned. It seems that the way of a scientific doing is, at least, as important as the what.

            Observation is the act of observing; that is, the act of noting and recording of a phenomena, doing, or happening, perhaps with instruments. Observation might lead to  developing a judgement or inference. What are the methods for developing a judgement or inference!

            "Identify" could be our next term to examine. If you would like me to continue some sort of exposition of science, please leave a comment to that effect in the "comment" window below. 

            Identifying a phenomena is, in large part, for the purpose of being able to recognize the phenomena yourself and to enable others to also recognize it. There is more to say about the recognizing/identifying part of our scientific process, but i will leave that for another time.

            Oh, yes. Ytterbiumology is beyond my present knowledge, still it can be studied and known. Its a chemical element with the symbol Yb and atomic number 70. I may not live long enough to get deeply into the study of this element. Perhaps you can tell us more about it.

            Thanks for reading.

 

 

                                                                                                  RCS

                                                

Earth Changes

Survival Related                     

                   The following are science related notes of mine from two or three years ago that still seem pertinent. They could be called survival related. 
                   

                     We can be alert. Wecan learn. WE can adapt . We can survive and give our selves and others a better chance to thrive. We can act. To our list of appropriate actions we can benefit by adding co-operation collaboration, and love of reality. Yes "love" is active.

                    

                A very few years ago a 30,000 year old, non-dangerous, virus was revived. An 8 million year old virus is said to have been revived too. Recent studies suggest that some very old antibiotic resistant are reviving! Holy Moly! Still we have learned from the covid 19 pandemic and we have begun to realize that we have some more rapid Earth changes to adapt to.

Adaptations: 

                   We are making some adaptations to expected changes in the agricultural situation. Some of those changes may be so big that some of us may find ourselves growing wheat where bananas once grew. Some experts have been collecting and saving seeds and storing them in safe places. They expect that we may need them to replace lost seed and lost harvests. They suspect that some Earth changes now in progress may be so great as to lead crops that were once grown on one continent may no longer grow well there and need to be grown on another continent. Changes may not be that great in our time, but it looks like they will be big enough to call for major adaptations. We may see changes large enough to cause significant movements of crops and of people.

                    We may find it life-saving to have seeds which will produce crops where the people are. A large and famous sites set up to safely store seed for our use was once called the Doomsday Vault. That vault adapted to safely preserve seed in the far north was invaded by destructive melt water. Melting of snow, ice, and permafrost is melting faster than many have expected and has brought on the need for adaptations. We can benefit by more learning an better actions right now.

Useful Action:                 

  You can take useful action now by checking out our situation now and consider possible adaptations. It seems for enough valor to better understand what is happening to our Earth which will effect our social, economic, political and health situation much more and more rapidly than we have learned to expect. Not all is bad different parts of  our Earth are changing indifferent ways, perhaps many for the better. Some say that the expected happenings are mostly neither good nor bad, but just are.

                    Change seems to be a constant, but the changes of today are happening faster than they have in several hundred years. So expect changes to continue to quicken. It may be well to consider how we shall take care of ourselves. Some of us have been learning a lot and developing adaptive practices. But, perhaps most of us are not doing enough. More of us may come to suffer and die in rather short order. We speak of global warming, but parts of the globe may experience freezing which it has not seen in  a thousand years. Flooding and drying are already in the news.

                    A lot is happening which many of us have chosen to ignore. More metals are being released into our air and water. Mercury is among them. Mercury is among them. Mercury is toxic and causes brain damage. It accumulates in fish, fowl, cattle, etc. Once it gets into us it is difficult to get rid of. We have experience with mercury, but seem to be coming to experience much more than usual. We use seaweed for many things including fertilizer. We also use it to make ice-cream. Mercury accumulates in seaweed, I'm told. It is possible to adapt to the situation without taking ice-cream from kids and pregnant mothers. Our we could just have a generation of brain damaged ice-cream eaters. One of us or a few of us cannot do everything, but every one can do something and there are still a lot of us.

Adapt:                   

                 We can do little to effect the massive Earth changes occurring now. But we can consider how we shall adapt to them. We can survive. We may even thrive. We are the people responsible for us. We can help our children to a better chance to learn and thrive.

                    Frozen fungi spore, bacteria, virus, and and more is being released after being  frozen for 75 years, for 500 years, a 1,000 years, 10,000 years. Some life forms are reviving after being froze for 20,000 years, and 30, 40, and 50 thousand years of frozen sleep! Many are reviving! I could be wrong. Check it out for yourself and tell us about it. I believe that most of the reviving life is of no direct danger to us, even when they are very much alive. Some may prove to be of great value to us! A few others can kill us.

                We need to help each other to keep track of what researchers are learning now However, a very few years ago researchers experimenters experienced reviving a virus, in laboratory conditions, which had be frozen for more than 30,000 years. It was one which almost certainly was harmless to humans.

Get clear about that which we can do:                

    We can do much to protect ourselves, our children, and our children's children. We can get clear about that which we can do. We all have some common aims. We all have some useful information. We each have have some skill. Most of us have some knowledge of and experience with co-operation. We can use that knowledge and experience to establish a conversation about how we can collaborate in adapting to these faster than usual Earth changes. We can share information about the nature of those changes and of how we can best adapt to them. An ongoing dialogue makes our sharing and co-operation more effective. With co-operation we can do a lot; with co-operative origination we can do more. Family, friends, and neighbors can share information and even work together. We can connect with students of the problem. We could better understand the nature of the related problems by finding out what sociologist and scientists are are saying about them. We can clarify the questions we have. Questions like: What can we do with large undocumented migrations across national borders by people escaping droughts, floods, hunger? Or, How are such migrations likely to effect us right here? What can we do avoid bad effects from such migration?

                Climate changes and some other Earth changes have become more extreme than we have expected or experienced and are now expected to continue and worsen. Canada may soon have the best far north seaports seen in our history. The are experiencing competition from Russia. The south of Canada and Russia may become excellent places to grow tropical and semi-tropical fruit. should that happen what may happen to their wheat crops?

                I'll repeat some of that which know about that which is happening. For example, much of our Earth's surface is permafrost. Permafrost is what we call earth which has long been frozen to great depths. It is mixed with water and a lot of vegetable matter and other stuff. Permafrost has now melted more than it ever has in our history and longer

                 A while back we found that in shallow seas and not so shallow seas at their bottom there is soil and plant matter which has frozen deeply like permafrost. We believe that it has been frozen there for long and long. Now we find that it is melting quickly and releasing large amounts of methane gas and much else. The gases are bubbling up and mixing up with our air. Methane burns well. It does not seem likely that our sea or air will catch fire. You may hear of some cases. However co2, virus, bacteria, fungus heavy metals and more are being released. Much of the virus, bacteria, and fungus has revived and so is alive!

                Isn't this fun? It seems time to learn more. The sun shines east and the sun shines west. The sun shines best on that part of Earth tipped or turned most toward that good old sun. All the Earth is effected, each part a bit differently. The Earth tips, turns, spins, and wobbles continually. Over time the orientation of the Earth continues to change. The tip and wobble seem to change more and effect us more notably. The tip we are now experiencing is one of the more extreme for a long time and may continue for, what seems to us, a long time. We might take this as a learning experience. We could learn to better use our ability to adapt.

                We know there are massive emissions of co2 and methane here now and increasing! At this same time ancient and new sources of disease are being released. So, we may expect more health problems. The recent outbreak in covid virus could be called an early practice for what is to come. We have some learning to do. We have preparing to do. We have adapting to. We really have to do much of this together.                                                  

What is going on:                

Each one of us is limited I what we can do, but every one of us can come to understand more about what is going on. Fault finding and name calling does not help. Increased awareness can usually be very helpful, even life saving. No one can do everything. Each person can do something. Each doing is helpful. Even it is mistaken doing, it may inform many.

                There is a lot to learn just about melting and thawing. Northern ice in contact with sea water is melting and releasing ancient matter into the sea. Mercury is being released. Mercury accumulates in plants and animals and often does them harm. Some call us top feeders. We eat plants and animals. We eat fish and fish accumulate mercury from sea life. The process can do us greater greater harm. We can find out, or figure out, what to do bout that. By doing that promptly we prevent pain, sorrow, and death. We ought to share that which find out and figure out.

                There is plenty you and I can do right now.

                I the long run, with luck, we can help our interested youth to learn more about chemistry than we did. We could learn critical bit right now. There is a lot to learn much of it is interesting, useful, and good for us. There is a lot of chemistry going on in our sea and atmosphere right now. Whole lot of shakin' goin' on.

                    Methane and other stuff, being released mostly from melting permafrost, can be made useful. Methane is the main part of natural gas widely used for cooking and heating. Right now most of it is moving into our atmosphere and the air we breathe. It is colorless, odorless, and suffocating. Some say that it has already begun the suffocation of some of us. The fact is that the percentage of our air which is methane is increasing. I am pretty sure that our sky will not burn. However, I do remember it being called swamp gas and causing mysterious fires in swamps.

                Some of us know that things are mostly doings and most of us believe that one thing leads to another. Still we have a lot to learn, much of it pleasantly exciting and wonderous.

                We already know a lot that seems somewhat interesting. We are pretty sure that burning releases stuff. We have seen smoke rise from a fire. Old wives that some woods released a lot of soot which blackened their kettles and more.  the burning of gas, oil and wood sends soot into the atmosphere. Volcanic activity may do the same. What goes up must come down. A significant amount of that black soot comes down on white snow and ice. It may not blacken the ice and snow but it can darken them. The darker they get the more heat from the sun they absorb and then more they melt. The melt runoff mostly goes into the sea. That runoff can do more than raise the level of the sea. There are books about that; Youn Tube videos too. Oh, much of this process, effects permafrost too, and methane that not only traps sunlight to warm our atmosphere and also suffocates us. Ah, the wonders of chemistry!

                Haven't we heard that methane burns releasing co2, our biggest greenhouse gas. Greenhouse gases lead to warming of the earth which leads to more rapid melting of our snow, ice, and permafrost. Which continues a great round of cause and effect. Many of us have heard the saying, "don't" mess with mother nature." The balance of nature is to be protected because it helps us to a safe and comfortable life. But there are other forces beyond humanity which effects that balance too. So humans need to adapt to changes which they cannot control.

                So what can we do to help our youth to a comfortable life or at least to survive? Talk with another or others about our Earth condition and situation. There is a "comments" app available just below this essay. Use it to make suggestions, ask questions, tell us something interesting and useful, say something to help me to correct the errors and mistakes I have made in writing  this essay, or make a comment of some kind. We need all the help we can get.

                I will publish this and will write more soon along similar lines. I am nearly praying for some volunteer proof reading type help. Even my spell check app has disappeared.

                Thank you for reading.

                                                                                             rcs