All posts tagged: BARK

Microbes that dwell in tree bark devour major climate gases

Microbes that dwell in tree bark devour major climate gases

Published by skeptic

atmosphere: The envelope of gases surrounding Earth, another planet or a moon. bacteria: (singular: bacterium) Single-celled organisms. These dwell nearly everywhere on Earth, from the bottom of the sea to inside other living organisms (such as plants and animals). Bacteria are one of the three domains of life on Earth. biogeochemist: Someone who studies processes that cycle (or eventually deposit) pure elements or chemical compounds (including minerals) between living species and nonliving aspects (such as rock or soil or water) of an ecosystem. This field of study is known as biogeochemistry. carbon dioxide: (or CO2) A colorless, odorless gas produced by all animals when the oxygen they inhale reacts with the carbon-rich foods that they’ve eaten. Carbon dioxide also is released when organic matter burns (including fossil fuels like oil or gas). Carbon dioxide acts as a greenhouse gas, trapping heat in Earth’s atmosphere. Plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen during photosynthesis, the process they use to make their own food. carbon monoxide: A toxic gas whose molecules include one carbon atom and one oxygen atom. …

More Bark Than Bite: Kaine’s War Powers Resolution Is An ‘Imminent’ Failure

More Bark Than Bite: Kaine’s War Powers Resolution Is An ‘Imminent’ Failure

Published by Jenni Sidey

Authored by Jonathan Turley, We now have a glimpse of the War Powers Resolution promised by Sen. Tim Kaine (D., Va.), which is reportedly scheduled for a vote in the Senate today or Wednesday. The resolution purportedly ends all combat operations against Iran … until you reach the very end where there is a hole that you could drive a combat task force through. I respect members asserting their inherent constitutional authority. I have long criticized the lack of declarations of war as demanded by the Framers. We have not had a formal declaration of war since World War II. However, courts and Congress have long deferred to presidents in the conduct of such operations. I represented congressional members challenging the Libyan war operation launched by President Barack Obama. Most Democratic members were entirely silent when Obama (and President Joe Biden) exercised such authority against different countries. Notably, the Libyan operation clearly sought regime change without an imminent threat to the United States. Some of those members are now the loudest condemning President Donald Trump …

Tree bark microbiome has important overlooked role in climate

Tree bark microbiome has important overlooked role in climate

Published by skeptic

Melaleuca wetland forests in New South Wales, Australia, are hotspots for tree microbial life Luke Jeffrey / Southern Cross University The bark of a single tree can be home to trillions of bacteria, and these microbes may have an important but neglected role in controlling greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere. The total surface area of tree bark on the planet is thought to be around 143 million square kilometres, nearly as much as the world’s total land surface area. This surface makes up an immense microbial habitat known as the caulosphere, but the microbes that live there have received little attention from scientists. “In a way it’s so obvious, but we have always overlooked tree bark,” says Bob Leung at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. “We never thought of microbes on tree bark, but it makes sense, because bacteria are everywhere, and if we can find microbes in soils, on tree leaves, then most likely there will be microbes on bark.” Leung and his colleagues began by studying a wetland species commonly known as paperbark …

BARK Has a New Commercial. It Was Directed by a Dog

BARK Has a New Commercial. It Was Directed by a Dog

Published by Daniella Wilson

If you’ve spent time this holiday season catching up on the season’s movies and TV shows, chances are you’ve seen a couple of dogs. But it’s less likely you saw something directed by a dog. That should change, argues Mikkel Holm. Holm serves as Chief AI & Innovation Officer of New York-based pet company BARK —  they deliver popular subscription boxes of dog treats and toys and, oh yes, also run an airline. So this season executives commissioned a fun spot together with ad agency Tombras that was actually directed by a dog, an Australian Shepherd Pitbull mix named Mia. OK, maybe directed is a strong word. But it’s not entirely inaccurate either, as we watch Mia and some of her compatriots from their perspective as they plow through a holiday gathering. (You can watch the ad, a tableau of a dog-human holiday gathering called “Merry Chaos, Humans,” here; it has been running on Hulu, Peacock, HBO Max and other platforms.) So what exactly does Holm have in mind, creativity-wise, for the quirky, forward-thinking brand? We …