Educator. Engineer. Experimenter.
I wanted to post about a topic of growing interest to me over the last few years, urban forestry (or micro-forests). They are small, dense forests cultivated in urban areas that provide various benefits. The most popular method of cultivating them is called the Miyawaki Method, after Akira Miyawaki, who pioneered it. Here is a…
During the pandemic, we often enjoyed the natural springs of Central Florida (near Wekiwa State Park). It was refreshing and healthy to get outside. The water was teeming with life, an inspiration during such a depressing time… In these parts, the water temperature is roughly 72°F year round; so pretty chilly at first but you…
We visited the Palm Beach Zoo on the way back from our stay at the Waldorf Astoria in Boca Raton. It’s a beautiful little zoo/conservatory located in a public park near West Palm Beach. There was no wait when we showed up (mid-morning). It has 4 main walkable areas, some larger than others. They have…
Shared a cabin with my buddy Shane at Silver Springs State Park, “gateway to Ocala National Forest.” Their cabins are sometimes hard to come by, and he found a last minute opening. It was one of the last good weather weekends of the year (for us in Florida). We didn’t do the typical glass-bottom boat…
While in San Diego for an SPIE conference (presenting this paper), I took some time to see various sites. See my posts on the Maritime Museum of San Diego, and the USS Midway Museum. The Gaslamp Quarter of downtown San Diego offers vibrant streets and plenty of restaurants, bars, clubs, and shops. Balboa Park is…
Today we visited the Reptile World Serpentarium in Kissimmee, Florida, which has been in the area since the early 70s. They have a very large collection of poisonous snakes, and are one of the leading suppliers of snake venom to universities, companies, and organizations producing antidotes. They also have a number of turtles, tortoises, rabbits,…
“The Mayor” is a very beautiful, very large, and very old Southern Live Oak near the Mennello Museum of American Art at Loch Haven Park, home to the Orlando Science Center. Many websites report it at 200 years old, but unless I’m reading the commemorating plaque wrong, it is likely 300-400 years old. I believe…
Just a few outings of us playing Pokemon Go this year. Most of these people are either on the Orlando Raids Pokemon Go Discord, or the Pokemon Go-UCF Discord, or both. Both servers are highly active in the Central Florida area. Here’s a video of people playing around Lake Eola at night when Pokemon…
Some pictures of a few Southeastern Lubber Grasshoppers nymphs (more info) spotted at Shady Park. Here’s a closeup on Wikimedia.
Today we supported science with a protest march around Lake Eola in downtown Orlando, FL. Speeches were made, chants were sung, music was played, and signed messages were flaunted – all in support of science and progress. It was refreshing to see so many supporters of human achievement. Here is my sign. Here are some…