Orangutans as Engineers

Photo by Adam van Casteren

A study published yesterday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), argues that Orangutans practice technical engineering that is quite complex when building their canopy nests for sleeping. Adam van Casteren and a group of seven other scientists looked at "the architecture of the nests to determine the degree of technical sophistication used in it's construction."

Orangutans build their nests some 60 feet above ground, constructing it very quickly and efficiently, often within ten minutes. The structures are not only sound and safe, but comfortable as well, with a mattress-like lining of live branches atop the thicker structural weave for the main structure. Not only are these nests comfortable, apparently, these great apes are fans of keeping things green, since they often only fracture the branches they use without breaking them. The nests remain green and alive in the trees, and can be used again later. Though, often the orangs only use a nest for one night and move on, it's nice to know they don't go around destroying the trees they build in.

If you don't already have your own subscription to PNAS, which is pricey, you can read a little bit more about this study for free over at The Huffington Post.  

On the entertainment front, don't forget to stop by The Ravens Crossing this week for some fantastic science fiction, fantasy adventuring. My Morgan & Holly story was published today as part of the website's Earth Day, Week 10 celebration. All of the stories by all of the authors this week are at least double the usual 1000 word flash fiction length. There are some big reveals, some new characters, and lots of cameo appearances by all the favorite characters from the entire series. I highly recommend you give all six stories a read this week! One will post each day through Saturday, as always. The site is absolutely free and appropriate for all ages. You might even consider building your very own coach nest and settling in to read the whole series. We've gotten lots of compliments from people of all ages, and in just ten short weeks, we've gathered quite a following of regular readers to whom we are very grateful. Don't miss out on the fun, and happy nest building!

The Lovely Loops of Solar Tornadoes

Photo: Blossoming Promise, Courtesy of SDO and NASA

If you haven't been keeping up with NASA lately, you really should check out the Goddard Space Flight Center's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). It's an amazing ongoing research project designed to measure the properties of the Sun and solar activity and record its affects upon Earth. Their findings are all published and easily readable online, but what excites me most are the fantastic images they post daily of the Sun's surface. There are even action videos posted through YouTube as well. Check out The Lovely Loops Video:



I was also very excited to learn that this project is headed by a woman, Elizabeth Citrin. You can read all about her and the rest of the SDO team here.

The scientific goals of the SDO Project, taken directly from the NASA SDO site, are to improve understanding of the following seven questions:

1. What mechanisms drive the quasi-periodic 11-year cycle of solar activity?
2. How is active region magnetic flux synthesized, concentrated, and dispersed across the solar surface?
3. How does magnetic reconnection on small scales reorganize the large-scale field topology and current systems and how significant is it in heating the corona and accelerating the solar wind?
4. Where do the observed variations in the Sun's EUV spectral irradiance arise, and how do they relate to the magnetic activity cycles?
5. What magnetic field configurations lead to the CMEs, filament eruptions, and flares that produce energetic particles and radiation?
6. Can the structure and dynamics of the solar wind near Earth be determined from the magnetic field configuration and atmospheric structure near the solar surface?
7. When will activity occur, and is it possible to make accurate and reliable forecasts of space weather and climate?

Though I'm glad they are trying to understand all of this, I'm most thrilled that they are willing to share all of their fantastic images online! 

In other exciting news, a new free online YA Sci/fi Fantasy fiction project I'm working on, The Ravens Crossing, is now partnering with the YA LGBT Books Group on Goodreads. I am very proud to be a part of promoting safe spaces and good reading for young adults!