RenoVous

  Boston University is a major hub for this rapidly growing field in biomedical engineering. Faculty there build molecular and photonic tools to study the brain; investigate the quantitative neurophysiology underlying brain and nervous system function; develop computational models that guide our understanding of brain function; work to understand and treat neurological disorders; and advance methods by which we can help repair the brain and restore neurological function. The Neurophotonics Center is driven by advances in optical methods, allowing for visualization of intracellular organelles and protein assemblies as well as noninvasive macroscopic investigation of cortical activity. Director David Boas, PhD, runs the Bio Optical and Acoustic Spectroscopy Lab. "Our technologies are used for measuring brain function and physiology on microscopic to macroscopic length scales and are applied in species ranging from mice to humans." The most prominent new technology is wearable f...

  Save Ferris!! They opened the show with a Kinks cover, but they have a couple seasonal songs of their own as well. But it wasn't all Christmas! Good times.

  While the laureates were already revealed in  October , the actual ceremony is held today, including the very first, in 1901. So today's bits of history include a few mentions of past winners of the Peace Prize, including The Red Cross (1917), Woodrow Wilson (1920), and American diplomat Ralph Bunche (1950). But I wanted to look at 1903, when Marie and Pierre Curie won the Physics Prize for their work with radium.  I recently saw a post that mentioned her journals, which will remain radioactive for another 1,500 years. Marie Sklodowska Curie was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1867, the daughter of a Physics teacher.  In 1891, she went to study in Paris.  She received a degree in physical sciences (1893) and mathematics (1894) before she met Pierre.  They were married in 1895. As a subject for her doctoral thesis, she began studying uranium.  She coined the term radioactivity, describing the phenomenon of radiation caused by atomic decay. Together, she and...

  My agenda! I'm midway through Here One Moment.   I'm not exactly loving it, but I'm curious enough to keep going. I found The Absinthe Forger at the library -  A True Story of Deception, Betrayal, and the World's Most Dangerous Spirit.  Sounds intriguing! And then, since the library did not have Book 3 of the Millennium Trilogy, I bought a copy from the second-hand store.  I'll see if I can donate it when I'm done. So what are you reading?

  Princess Catherine Zoe Saldana Ncuti Gatwa Chloe Grace Moretz Jennifer Lawrence Ariana DeBose Melissa McCarthy Toni Collette Sydney Sweeney

  China's "Great Green Wall" initiative is an effort to slow land degradation and climate change by planting trees and restoring grasslands. From 2001 to 2020, "they have actively restored thriving ecosystems, especially in the Loess Plateau.  This has also reactivated the water cycle." Evaporation removes water from surfaces and soils, while transpiration removes water that plants have absorbed from the soil.  Together, this is called evapotranspiration, and this fluctuates with plant cover, as well as water availability and solar energy. Increasing evapotranspiration, in turn, increases precipitation. These changes led to less fresh water in the eastern monsoon region, and increased water availability in the Tibetan Plateau. China's restoration accounts for 25% of the global net increase in leaf area from 2000-2017.

 This is the very hot source of Paradise Valley Spring.  It appears to have dissolved a bit of the rock around it, here's from the other side. There was a pool set up but another couple was hanging out, so we decided to head back towards Kyle Hot Springs, where we enjoyed a lovely soak. But there were several people here too, so we decided to move along.  We chatted with a couple who had the "I'm not lost, I'm exploring" sticker that we identify STRONGLY with. Camping at Rye Patch.

 You may have seen in the news, a deadly fire in a Hong Kong housing complex. 151 people have been confirmed dead. The buildings had been undergoing renovations, and the directors of the construction company have been arrested.  Chief Executive of Hong Kong, John Lee, has ordered an investigation. So I thought we'd take a look at the history of fire forensics. It was during the Industrial Revolution that the first fire departments were established and the need for trained investigators to determine the cause of factory fires.  The first documented arson investigation was in 1794. Early cases relied heavily on eyewitness accounts, and it wasn't until the 1970's that chemical analysis was introduced.  The ATF, formed in 1972, later pioneered the use of accelerant-detecting canines. Accelerants point to arson, and the International Association of Arson Investigators was charted December 4, 1951, formed in Louisville, KY.   But that's not say investigations are...

Artes Mundi is an organization in Wales that offers "opportunities for individuals and local communities to engage creatively with the urgent issues of our time." Every two years artists gather to share their work, and the exhibition is being held from October 24 through March 1. Six international artists have an installation that will be judged and one will receive £40,000 grand prize. This year's theme is regarding land use, territory, migration, and displacement. Jumana Emil Abboud "draws on folklore, myths and storytelling to celebrate heritage and identify interconnectedness" Anawana Haloba "explores the positions of different societies within varied political, social, economic, and cultural contexts" Kameelah Janan Rasheed "will explore the poetics, politics and pleasures of communication" Sancintya Mohini Simpson "navigates the complexities of migration, memory and trauma" Antonio Paucar "creates a unique artistic langua...

  Cynthia Erivo Jenna Ortega Jodie Foster Anya Taylor Joy Emma Mackey Dawn Richard Anjali Bhimani Carey Mulligan

  However you choose to celebrate, I hope you enjoy yourself. We have the dinner obligations today, but tomorrow we're taking ourselves camping. We are thankful for public lands as well as those who respect and protect them. And I'm thankful for you, another year of us hanging out here together, learning and sharing. ❤️ Cheers, dears!!

 I've been looking at this poster my whole life. It hung in my parents' room growing up, and after their divorce, they still each had one. I kept my dad's, and it hangs in my office now.  Along with the 80th anniversary ticket stub. Today it celebrates 83 years from its premiere date in New York City. Release had been slated for 1943, but following the capture of Casablanca in Operation Torch (the Allied invasion of French North Africa), the studios decided to capitalize. The movie won three Oscars - Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.  It was the first movie to be selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry. "Here's looking at you, kid."

 10 years, Pa. A fan of Peanuts - and music, of course. I'm off today with Seester, to hit the record store and pick what we think he might have added to his own collection. I need to go through the vinyls though.  I know some of what he has, and things I expect that he has, but they're not in alphabetical order like the CDs are. The shelves may be static, but we keep his hobby alive. ❤️ I'll be back tomorrow before the Thanksgiving holiday. Share a song or two.

  Kerry Washington Finn Wolfhard Chase Infiniti Ariana Grande Kristen Stewart Jessie Buckley Lindsay Lohan Ali Larter Kate Hudson Cynthia Erivo