By Dr. Robert Thorson On my first trip of the summer, I visited Franconia Notch in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. I went there to see the place where the “The Old Man of the Mountain,” New Hampshire’s state symbol, used to be before he collapsed into rubble in May 2003. Though part of […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson Biodiversity and cultural diversity are being measured from opposite directions. What are the consequences? Very recently, geneticists proved what field biologists and anatomists have long since suspected. The so-called African elephant is really two distinct species. Most iconic is the savannah elephant (Loxodonta africana). It’s larger and accounts for nearly three […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson Imagine a hybrid between a Wall Street financier and a field geoscientist. That’s what’s coming our way, thanks to a growing fear of natural disasters and a rapidly changing physical environment. In the popular image, geo guys wear lug-soled boots, work outdoors, swing rock hammers at outcrops and create nearly impossible-to-read […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson Hurricane watchers lost something special this year: hurricane season. Vermont still has mud season, thanks to its unique combination of cold winters and slate-rich soils. Accountants still have tax season, thanks to the insanity of our tax code and the April 15 filing date. But this past year, we’ve been watching […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson How can I use it? Will it harm me? These two basic questions lie beneath all land-use decisions. Humans live wherever the benefits of using the land for habitat, resources or disposal outweigh the risk of being harmed by the land. This is smart. But there are three problems associated with […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson The difficult working conditions for field soldiers are widely appreciated. Those of field archeologists are not. Though never in danger from enemy fire, their work environments — baking sun, cold drizzle, attacking bugs, dust, poison ivy — can actually be quite hostile. Real foot soldiers risk their lives for freedom. Cultural […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson The case of cougars in Connecticut is getting curiouser and curiouser. Of course they exist. One became roadkill earlier this month on the Wilbur Cross Parkway in Milford. Though this particular animal may have escaped or been released from illegal captivity, it does not change the fact that it was prowling […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson Dude. Go with the wave, not against it. Ignore the best-laid plans of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build an enormous bulwark of boulders in front of the Montauk Point lighthouse, arguably Long Island’s most distinctive landmark. Instead, move it back to safer ground, brick by brick if necessary. […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson Here’s my list of momentous events for 2004, ranging in topic from hard science to paternal pride, and in scale from outer space to home and hearth. For each category, I offer a widely reported news story, followed by an underreported story that was equally important to me. Solar system. Two […]

By Dr. Robert Thorson I’ve got Lyme disease. This makes me hopping mad at whoever’s in charge of letting this “important public health concern” run wild when we know how to tame it. Connecticut’s Department of Public Health, source of the quote above, writes that we have the “highest number of cases relative to the […]