FiveThirtyEight has predicted Obama with 348.6 electoral votes. Let's see how close he got tonight!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Biodiesel from a fungus?
If we needed another reason to save the rainforest, along comes Dr. Gary Strobel who discovered a fungus that produces diesel hydrocarbons readily. From physorg.com...
"This is the only organism that has ever been shown to produce such an important combination of fuel substances," said Professor Gary Strobel from Montana State University. "The fungus can even make these diesel compounds from cellulose, which would make it a better source of biofuel than anything we use at the moment."
The fungus, which has been named Gliocladium roseum, produces a number of different molecules made of hydrogen and carbon that are found in diesel. Because of this, the fuel it produces is called "myco-diesel".
"Gliocladium roseum lives inside the Ulmo tree in the Patagonian rainforest. We were trying to discover totally novel fungi in this tree by exposing its tissues to the volatile antibiotics of the fungus Muscodor albus. Quite unexpectedly, G. roseum grew in the presence of these gases when almost all other fungi were killed. It was also making volatile antibiotics. Then when we examined the gas composition of G. roseum, we were totally surprised to learn that it was making a plethora of hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon derivatives. The results were totally unexpected and very exciting and almost every hair on my arms stood on end!"
Monday, November 3, 2008
Sunday Part 2, Amir's Garden, Malo & Scoops
As if a sunrise hike in Rustic Canyon was not enough, Heather and I took Sasha to Griffith Park to visit Amir's Garden.
A little rain does wonders for visibility.
Sasha and I pondered what's in store for this cleared area of Griffith Park.
Sentinels of the Fires
No visit to L.A. is complete without a taste of Malo's Burnt Habanero and Cream Salsa...
followed by a sampling of Tai's latest creations at Scoops!
My favorite store in L.A. The Bicycle Kitchen needs to expand! There's a line out the door on Sunday afternoon. My spokes need some love!
LACC's Shadow ExhibitionSunday, November 2, 2008
Rustic Canyon, 7am November 2, 2008
A quick downpour followed by a light drizzle set the stage for our hike this morning at Rustic Canyon / Camp Josepho. I have not been there in years, and it was great to see how beautiful it is on a rainy morning. It also smelled amazing!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Gallery Opening Tonight: The Searchers
We're opening a beautiful show at the gallery tonight. "The Searchers," a new group of photographs by NY-based artists Sasha Bezzubov and Jessica Sucher, is the result of their year long exploration of Western spiritual tourism in India. To see more images from the series, click HERE.
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