A few interesting readings:
1) Sedimentation Shifted - How rivers move sediment along their course to the sea is an important aspect of sedimentology research. Grain size, shape, and density, all affect how currents move sediment, and where and in what proportions sand, silt, and mud particles come to be deposited. Now there is a new kid on the block: plastic. Catherine Russell has written a fascinating article diving deep into experimental work on how plastic impacts sediment transport. The work she describes has important implications for our understanding of plastic pollution in rivers, and the role plastic particles plays in enhancing erosion rates and sediment redistribution in riverbeds.
2) Antarctica: 1.2-Million-Year-Old Ice- Scientists use gases trapped in old ice to measure ancient atmospheric composition and estimate past climatic conditions. A long running drilling program in Antarctica had so far recovered 800,000 year old ice. That record has been recently broken. Scientists have reached the very bedrock of the Antarctica continent. The oldest ice at the very bottom is 1.2 million years old. This is the longest continuous record of our climate that we have so far. It hold much valuable information on climate fluctuations through the Pleistocene and Holocene. This article is a press release of the University of Bern.
3) Beyond Evolution: Alfred Russel Wallace’s critique of the 19th century world- Alfred Russel Wallace is the co-discover of evolution through natural selection along with Charles Darwin. He was a brilliant naturalist and made foundational contributions to natural history. But he also was very sympathetic to the plight of local people suffering under colonialism and the environmental degradation the race to strip the land of resources was causing. Marshall A. summarizes nicely Wallace's observations on the impact of environmental damage, both in his native Wales and also during his travels in the far away Malay archipelago.
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