Heavy forest fires in Interior Alaska some years back burned down a lot of trees. But these fires also changed human behavior, and not necessarily for the better. Who would want a home in the woods if your house might burn down? The woods still saw new homes going up, but in many cases trees were being removed with excessive exuberance. Instead of the standard 30-foot clearing around a home to serve as a fire buffer, 60-foot buffers were often created, or whole lots were being cleared. Forest one day, stumps the next. It was ugly.
Continue reading
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Farewell, Good Friend
It was with great sadness that we learned today that our good friend Bob Dickerman passed away. He had recently suffered a stroke and died as he wished, peacefully at home. He was a remarkable person and had a remarkable life. He was a good friend, and he will be sorely missed.
Monkey Ski, Monkey Do!
March is my favorite month in Fairbanks. It is breathtakingly beautiful. The sun is bright, temperatures are generally mild, and the snow conditions are superb. Also, we still get great auroras at night. And the days rocket past 12 hours of possible sunlight, so you can ski into the evening – with sunglasses. It is awesome.
Bad Bulb Monkey
How many Ph.D.s does it take to change a light bulb?
Continue reading
The Ebola Song
Turn on any news program these days and you’ll probably be exposed to high levels of irrational fear and paranoia of the Ebola virus. Never mind that the number of cases in North America is minuscule, or that you have a higher chance of being struck by lightning. Yes, it is an ongoing tragedy in several countries in West Africa (see image below), and the global medical community needs to continue efforts to stamp it out. But throughout North America the news industry should stick to a simple and effective message:
“Ebola is still a very low-risk proposition. If you want to do something effective about your health, get a flu shot.”