| Title |
Excerpt |
Author |
Date |
| RECALL: Summit Treestands Recalls Brackets Due to Fall Hazard |
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed. Name of Product: Talon Hunting Hang-on Tree Stands and Brackets/Straps Units: About 6,800 Manufacturer: Summit Treestands LLC,… |
Guest Contributor |
02/02/10 |
| Central Arkansas Nature Center Highlights Downtown Little Rock Outdoors |
When looking for locations to explore nature in Arkansas, downtown Little Rock wouldn’t be on the top of most people’s list. In fact, it probably wouldn’t make the list at all. That would be a mistake …a big mistake. Right in the middle of downtown Little Rock’s River Market District… |
Guest Contributor |
01/28/10 |
| Environmental Change Impacts Oklahoma Rivers |
Biodiversity in freshwater systems is impacted as much or more by environmental change than tropical rain forests, according to University of Oklahoma Professor Caryn Vaughn, who serves as director of the Oklahoma Biological Survey. “When we think about species becoming extinct, we don’t necessarily think of the common species in… |
Guest Contributor |
01/28/10 |
| Study Suggests Theory for Insect Colonies as ‘Superorganisms’ |
New A team of researchers including scientists from the University of Florida has shown insect colonies follow some of the same biological “rules” as individuals, a finding that suggests insect societies operate like a single “superorganism” in terms of their physiology and life cycle. For more than a century, biologists… |
Guest Contributor |
01/21/10 |
| Gators Breathe Like Birds |
University of Utah scientists discovered that air flows in one direction as it loops through the lungs of alligators, just as it does in birds. The study suggests this breathing method may have helped the dinosaurs’ ancestors dominate Earth after the planet’s worst mass extinction 251 million years ago. Before… |
Guest Contributor |
01/19/10 |
| As in Humans, Sleep Solidifies a Bird’s Memories |
Sleeping is known to help humans stabilize information and tasks learned during the preceding day. Now, researchers have found that sleep has similar effects upon learning in starlings, a discovery that will open up future research into how the brain learns and preserves information. The research, published Wednesday by The… |
Guest Contributor |
01/14/10 |
| Volunteers Needed to Help Stabilize Two Eleven Pt. Ranger District Historic Structures |
Mark Twain National Forest is looking for ten volunteers, at least 18 yrs of age, to help stabilize two historic structures on Eleven Point Ranger District April 18-24, 2010, including weekends. Falling Spring Mill is a late 19th Century, early 20th century Ozark homestead just northwest of the Irish Wilderness,… |
Guest Contributor |
01/14/10 |
| Seeing the Forest Through the Trees and Seeing the Trees Through the Leaves |
Since the time of the earliest humans, people have attempted to understand the natural environment. We have observed our surroundings and searched for explanations for natural phenomena. Yet despite our persistence over thousands of years, many basic questions remain to be answered. Although we understand core processes such as photosynthesis,… |
Guest Contributor |
01/14/10 |
| Can a Drop of Water Cause Sunburn or Fire? |
To the gardening world it may have always been considered a fact, but science has never proved the widely held belief that watering your garden in the midday sun can lead to burnt plants. Now a study into sunlit water droplets, published in New Phytologist, provides an answer that not… |
Guest Contributor |
01/11/10 |
| How Plants ‘Feel’ the Temperature Rise |
Plants are incredibly temperature sensitive and can perceive changes of as little as one degree Celsius. Now, a report in the January 8th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, shows how they not only ‘feel’ the temperature rise, but also coordinate an appropriate response—activating hundreds of genes… |
Guest Contributor |
01/11/10 |
| From Crickets to Whales, Animal Calls Have Something in Common |
Scientists who compare insect chirps with ape calls may look like they are mixing aphids and orangutans, but researchers have found common denominators in the calls of hundreds of species of insects, birds, fish, frogs, lizards and mammals that can be predicted with simple mathematical models. Compiling data from nearly… |
Guest Contributor |
01/07/10 |
| Conservation Areas Threatened Nationally by Housing Development |
Conservationists have long known that lines on a map are not sufficient to protect nature because what happens outside those boundaries can affect what happens within. Now, a study by two University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists in the department of forest and wildlife ecology measures the threat of housing development around… |
Guest Contributor |
12/23/09 |
| Mystery of Golden Ratio Explained |
The Egyptians supposedly used it to guide the construction the Pyramids. The architecture of ancient Athens is thought to have been based on it. Fictional Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon tried to unravel its mysteries in the novel The Da Vinci Code. “It” is the golden ratio, a geometric proportion that… |
Guest Contributor |
12/22/09 |
| Killer Catfish? Venomous Species Surprisingly Common |
Name all the venomous animals you can think of and you probably come up with snakes, spiders, bees, wasps and perhaps poisonous frogs. But catfish? A new study by University of Michigan graduate student Jeremy Wright finds that at least 1,250 and possibly more than 1,600 species of catfish may… |
Guest Contributor |
12/15/09 |
| Ethanol-Powered Vehicles Generate More Ozone than Gas-Powered Ones |
Ethanol, often promoted as a clean-burning, renewable fuel that could help wean the nation from oil, would likely worsen health problems caused by ozone, compared with gasoline, especially in winter, according to a new study led by Stanford researchers. Ozone production from both gasoline and E85, a blend of gasoline… |
Guest Contributor |
12/15/09 |
| Rural America More Prosperous Than Expected |
For many people “rural” is synonymous with low incomes, limited economic opportunity, and poor schools. However, a recent study at the University of Illinois found that much of rural America is actually prosperous, particularly in the Midwest and Plains. The study analyzed unemployment rates, poverty rates, high school drop-out rates,… |
Guest Contributor |
12/03/09 |
| Bio-concrete |
Here is a video presentation from an engineer who has come up with an imaginative use for bacteria and discarded food products. By impregnating these materials into concrete, this individual has come with some amazing results. |
Guest Contributor |
12/02/09 |
| How Did Flowering Plants Evolve to Dominate Earth? |
To Charles Darwin it was an ‘abominable mystery’ and it is a question which has continued to vex evolutionists to this day: when did flowering plants evolve and how did they come to dominate plant life on earth? Today a study in Ecology Letters reveals the evolutionary trigger which led… |
Guest Contributor |
12/02/09 |
| Hidden Threat: Elevated Pollution Levels Near Regional Airports |
Scientists are reporting evidence that air pollution — a well-recognized problem at major airports — may pose an important but largely overlooked health concern for people living near smaller regional airports. Those airports are becoming an increasingly important component of global air transport systems. The study, one of only a… |
Guest Contributor |
11/24/09 |
| Controversial New Climate Change Results |
New data show that the balance between airborne and absorbed carbon dioxide has stayed approximately constant since 1850, despite emissions of carbon dioxide having risen from about 2 billion tons a year in 1850 to 35 billion tons a year now. This suggests that ecosystems and the oceans have a… |
Guest Contributor |
11/12/09 |
| Ants Friendly to Some Trees, Not Others |
new research suggests that when they run out of space in their trees of choice, the ants can get destructive to neighboring trees. The research, published in the November issue of the American Naturalist, is the first to document that ants bore into live trees, and it reopens a centuries-old… |
Guest Contributor |
11/09/09 |
| Earthquakes Actually Aftershocks of 19th Century Quakes |
When small earthquakes shake the central U.S., citizens often fear the rumbles are signs a big earthquake is coming. Fortunately, new research instead shows that most of these earthquakes are aftershocks of big earthquakes (magnitude 7) in the New Madrid seismic zone that struck the Midwest almost 200 years ago.… |
Guest Contributor |
11/06/09 |
| Study Reveals How Plants and Bacteria ‘Talk’ to Thwart Disease |
When it comes to plants’ innate immunity, like many of the dances of life, it takes two to tango. A receptor molecule in the plant pairs up with a specific molecule on the invading bacteria and, presto, the immune system swings into action to defend against the invasion of the… |
Guest Contributor |
11/06/09 |
| Toward Home-Brewed Electricity with ‘Personalized Solar Energy’ |
New scientific discoveries are moving society toward the era of “personalized solar energy,” in which the focus of electricity production shifts from huge central generating stations to individuals in their own homes and communities. That’s the topic of a report by an international expert on solar energy scheduled for the… |
Guest Contributor |
11/06/09 |
| Trees Facilitate Wildfires as a Way to Protect Their Habitat |
Fire is often thought of something that trees should be protected from, but a new study suggests that some trees may themselves contribute to the likelihood of wildfires in order to promote their own abundance at the expense of their competitors. The study, which appears in the December 2009 issue… |
Guest Contributor |
10/29/09 |
| Spider Web Glue Spins Society Toward New Biobased Adhesives |
With would-be goblins and ghosts set to drape those huge fake spider webs over doorways and trees for Halloween, scientists in Wyoming are reporting on a long-standing mystery about real spider webs: It is the secret of spider web glue. The findings are an advance toward a new generation of… |
Guest Contributor |
10/22/09 |
| Old Newspapers Can Have Second Life in Garden |
Past copies of the daily or weekly newspaper can have a second life in your garden as mulch or a weed barrier according to Mark Bernskoetter, president of University of Missouri Extension’s Greene County Chapter of Master Gardeners. “Newsprint (not slick paper used in inserts or magazines) is a great… |
Guest Contributor |
10/19/09 |
| Sugar + Weed Killer = Potential Clean Energy Source |
A spoonful of herbicide helps the sugar break down in a most delightful way. Researchers at Brigham Young University have developed a fuel cell – basically a battery with a gas tank – that harvests electricity from glucose and other sugars known as carbohydrates. The human body’s preferred energy source… |
Guest Contributor |
10/01/09 |
| Air Pollutants From Abroad Are a Growing Concern |
Plumes of harmful air pollutants can be transported across oceans and continents—from Asia to the United States and from the United States to Europe—and have a negative impact on air quality far from their original sources, says a new report by the National Research Council. Although degraded air quality is… |
Guest Contributor |
09/30/09 |
| Scientists Discover How to Send Insects Off the Scent of Crops |
Lead researcher Dr Antony Hooper of Rothamsted Research, an institute of BBSRC said: “One way in which insects find each other and their hosts is by smell, or more accurately: the detection of chemical signals – pheromones, for example. Insects smell chemicals with their antennae; the chemical actually gets into… |
Guest Contributor |
09/25/09 |
| Arkansas Fall Color Updates Available |
School is back in session, weekends are marked by the sounds of football games, and the weather is turning cooler. That means one thing in Arkansas: It’s fall color season A team of spotters begin reporting on Sept. 24. The up-to-date foliage changes are added to http://www.Arkansas.com late Thursday afternoons… |
Guest Contributor |
09/18/09 |
| Electrical Circuit Runs Entirely Off Power in Trees |
You’ve heard about flower power. What about tree power? It turns out that it’s there, in small but measurable quantities. There’s enough power in trees for University of Washington researchers to run an electronic circuit, according to results to be published in an upcoming issue of the Institute of Electrical… |
Guest Contributor |
09/10/09 |
| Indoor Plants Found to Release Volatile Organic Compounds |
Potted plants add a certain aesthetic value to homes and offices, bringing a touch of nature to indoor spaces. It has also been shown that many common house plants have the ability to remove volatile organic compounds—gases or vapors emitted by solids and liquids that may have adverse short- and… |
Guest Contributor |
09/08/09 |
| Growing Green Roofs |
One way to maximize the eco-friendly factor of a structure is to include a green roof—and this doesn’t refer to the paint color. “Greening” a roof, or covering a roof with vegetation, is gaining popularity in North America, where the number of green roofs increased 30% from 2006 to 2007.… |
Guest Contributor |
09/08/09 |
| Economic Stimulus Grants To Help Southern Missouri School Districts |
Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), in cooperation with USDA Forest Service, is offering grants of almost $1 million each to public schools in select Missouri counties for six “Fuels for Schools” projects. The grants are being funded through The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). “Fuels for Schools will assist… |
Guest Contributor |
09/04/09 |
| Organic or Local? |
The emerging trend toward healthier, fresher foods that are also gentle on the environment presents new dilemmas for conscientious consumers. Marketers tout the attributes of “organic” food, while the “local foods movement” is gaining popularity throughout the world. The “organic-or-local” debate is particularly interesting when it comes to fruits and… |
Guest Contributor |
09/04/09 |
| Trash or Treasure? Discarded US Computers Often Get a Second Life |
More computers discarded by consumers in the United States are getting a second life in developing countries than previously believed, according to a new study –– the most comprehensive ever done on the topic –– reported in ACS’ semi-monthly journal Environmental Science & Technology. The findings may ease growing concerns… |
Guest Contributor |
09/02/09 |
| Mark Twain Forest Employee Named Experience Works Participant Champion |
Experience Works has named Mark Twain National Forest Customer Service Representative Lorraine Loy Missouri’s 2009 Experience Works Participant Champion. Experience Works is a charitable, community-based organization focused on meeting the training and employment needs of low-income seniors. Loy, 60, of Raymondville, MO and her husband moved from Louisiana to Houston,… |
Guest Contributor |
09/02/09 |
| Stone County Couple Finds Volunteering Rewarding |
Ken and Rose Schwarte of Branson West moved to the Ozarks to relax and retire and ended up finding a way to enjoy the rewards of volunteering. In 2006 they attended and graduated from University of Missouri Extension’s Master Gardener training program. After receiving 30 hours of basic horticulture training… |
Guest Contributor |
08/31/09 |
| Scientists Find Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch |
Scientists have just completed an unprecedented journey into the vast and little-explored “Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch.” On the Scripps Environmental Accumulation of Plastic Expedition (SEAPLEX), researchers got the first detailed view of plastic debris floating in a remote ocean region. It wasn’t a pretty sight. The Scripps research vessel… |
Guest Contributor |
08/28/09 |
| Long Creek Crossing Temporarily Closed for Repairs |
HOT SPRINGS, AR—A portion of Long Creek Road (the third stream crossing) west of the junction of the Long Creek Road (Forest Road 512) and Forest Road 73, near Albert Pike Campground, will be closed from September 8 until around December 16, 2009, for repairs. A contract crew will be… |
Guest Contributor |
08/28/09 |
| Reject Watermelons—the Newest Renewable Energy Source |
Watermelon juice can be a valuable source of biofuel. Researchers writing in BioMed Central’s open access journal Biotechnology for Biofuels have shown that the juice of reject watermelons can be efficiently fermented into ethanol. Wayne Fish worked with a team of researchers at the USDA-Agricultural Research Service’s South Central Agricultural… |
Guest Contributor |
08/26/09 |
| Lightning’s Mirror Image … Only Much Bigger |
With a very lucky shot, scientists have captured a one-second image and the electrical fingerprint of huge lightning that flowed 40 miles upward from the top of a storm. These rarely seen, highly charged meteorological events are known as gigantic jets, and they flash up to the lower levels of… |
Guest Contributor |
08/24/09 |
| Some Aspects of Birding Not Always Environmentally Friendly |
Once upon a trash heap dreary, while he wandered, weak and weary, University of Illinois English professor and birding enthusiast Spencer Schaffner raised his binoculars, focused and had a eureka moment. In his sights, not a raven, nor even the Tamaulipas crow, a once-common inhabitant of the Brownsville, Texas, city… |
Guest Contributor |
08/21/09 |
| Cossatot Campsites Get a Break |
Forest officials have implemented initial conservation measures in six dispersed camping sites in Polk County, Arkansas along the popular Cossatot Wild & Scenic River. The river is a favorite for whitewater rafting in the Natural State. According to District Ranger Jim Zornes, the measures are designed to aid in restoring… |
Guest Contributor |
08/21/09 |
| Take a Child Outside Week |
Take A Child Outside Week is a program designed to help break down obstacles that keep children from discovering the natural world. By arming parents, teachers and other caregivers with resources on outdoor activities, our goal is to help children across the country develop a better understanding and appreciation of… |
Guest Contributor |
08/12/09 |
| Conservation Commission Welcomes New Commissioner Don Bedell |
“I remember spending every summer as a kid with my grandparents on the Current River catching grasshoppers and whatever else we could get our hands on, and fishing for goggle-eye or whatever we could catch,” recalls the Missouri Conservation Commission’s newly appointed commissioner Don Bedell. “I’ve always had a love… |
Guest Contributor |
08/12/09 |
| Bioethanol’s Impact on Water Supply 3 Times Higher Than Once Thought |
At a time when water supplies are scarce in many areas of the United States, scientists in Minnesota are reporting that production of bioethanol — often regarded as the clean-burning energy source of the future — may consume up to three times more water than previously thought. Their study appeared… |
Guest Contributor |
08/06/09 |
| Missouri Hiking Trail Group Members Earn Awards |
Several Ozark Trail Association (OTA) members, and the organization itself, have been awarded USDA Forest Service regional and national 2008 volunteer awards. Robert Smith, St. Louis, has been awarded a 2008 US Forest Service National Volunteer Award. As the Ozark Trail Association Adopt-A-Trail Coordinator, Smith worked with volunteers to adopt… |
Guest Contributor |
07/28/09 |
| Noise Pollution Negatively Affects Woodland Bird Communities |
A new University of Colorado at Boulder study shows the strongest evidence yet that noise pollution negatively influences bird populations, findings with implications for the fate of ecological communities situated amid growing urban clamor. The study also is the first to indicate that at least a few bird species opt… |
Guest Contributor |
07/24/09 |
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