"We're on the Hunt for the Flowers"

Botanical Societies...A Global Phenomenon

If your's is not listed, please add it in the "comments" below (by clicking on "comments" below and filling in the box with the contact information).

Japan

USA

Canada and the USA

Surrey

Many many more countries' and local's scholarly societies...

Harvest Moon and the Equinox

Shine on....Go outside and take a look. Write something about what you experience.

Moon photo: Click here.

Cinnamon

Background Information:
Cinnamon Images found on Google Search

Reading:
http://neilgaiman.net/cinnamon/page1.htm

Art:
Can you draw or paint a picture with Cinnamon in it?


Writing: Can you write a, "cinnamon," story of your own. It can be non-fiction or fiction.

Spice science

Have you ever smelled pie cookies baking? Can you imagine the scent? What did you think of? Cinnamon? Nutmeg? Chocolate? Pick one baked item that you love and think of all the plant products that are in it. Go ahead, list them. Then, think about these plants. Do some research on them. There is a Chinese saying, "Every grain of rice is hard earned by the farmer's hand." Can you relate that saying to all the plant products you listed from the baked good(s) you selected?.

You can think about these things while you bake.


More ideas about spices:
Here is a story you can read about a girl named Cinnamon. It is good unless you are an Aunt. I am an Aunt. The Aunt in the story is eaten by the tiger, so, I didn't like that part, but, the rest of the story is cute. neilgaiman.net/cinnamon/page1.htm

Rolling along, rolling along....Diatom glides by

You may have heard of "diatomaceous earth." It is found in everything from toothpastes to pesticides. So wat is diatomaceous earth? It is earth that is made up of diatoms. And what is a diatom? Go here to see one moving gracefully by:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBAcksaRwy4

More ideas on plant life cycles...This one Amaryllis

Here's a vido on Amaryllis. How do you like this video compared to the "Botany Beat" video posted earlier? How could you convey the life cycle of a plant visually?

LOL, Parents!

Parents, click on this link for a humorous(to adults)story.
http://scienceblogs.com/clock/2007/09/pay_attention_in_biology_class.php

Bees and Pollination...

Edited 11/17/07 and 12/28/07
Honey bee research:
http://www.tamagawa.ac.jp/HSRC/stp-eng.htm

Added 8/17/2008
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/np/honeybeediseases/honeybeediseases.pdf

Stocks and Options and Science?

You know, banks would have us believe that stocks and options are dangerous. To some extent they are. Like driving a car, you need to know what you are doing. Stocks and options share with science that they have their own vocabulary. The jargon of the finance world, like that of the science world, is worth learning. The rewards are many.

I am not recommending that you go out and get into stocks and options any more than I would recommend driving a car without knowing what you are doing. Even when you know, you must stay ever vigilant. Yet, if you "safely" keep your money in the bank at 1 or 1.5, or even 3%, the inflation monster will eat you (and your money) alive. And while you are safely at 1.5%, the bank is using stocks and options to make 12-35% with your money and then keeps the difference between that percentage and what they give you. With a portion of your money, you could risk, lose half, and come out ahead of where you'd be if you stay safely at the bank. You need to learn the jargon (http://tradeoptioned.blogspot.com/2007/08/some-new-changes.html), understand math and charts, and, know what you are doing. Do not risk borrowed money, or your house, or college fund, insurance,nor retirement. These are other aspects of your financial house that you need in order.

So, where does science fit in? The analytical skills and chart reading skills are critical in science. Practice reading financial charts and graphs can synergistically improve your interpretation of data in science, strengthening your science abilities. Enjoy the overlap in these seemingly different fields and grow in both.

Dr. J

(c)2007 J S Shipman

Catching bees in the Mum Garden...

With British laughs...

Rainy day, or any day...

Curl up with a good book. Click on this link to find some great science reads:
http://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/SciRefGuides/womenhorticulture.html

Diatoms and Ciliates: Stars of Stage (Microscope stage, that is!)

Did you see what happened when the ciliates bumped into each other? Can you write about it?