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Weirdest looking grass ever (“AI” blooper)
I was doing some research on the Poaceae of Svalbard, a Norwegian-owned archipelago near or in the Arctic-circle that holds the distinction of having the northernmost town in the world (Longyearbyen). We are planning a cruise trip to the area later this year, and I wanted to get an idea about any interesting grasses in…
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Remnants of the Past Winter in Texas
We visited Longhorn State Park in Texas last week, and after a great guided tour of the caverns beneath we decided to hike Inks Lake State Park, which was nearby. I did not expect much from the place, as I am not a fan of lake hikes, but when we got there I was so…
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Clinging to Life Atop a Billion Year Old Rock
Near the center of the state of Texas, sitting amidst the rolling grass-covered hill country, a pink-colored granite dome erupts out of the earth and soars 130 meters up towards the sky. This is Enchanted Rock, and it along with several other peaks next to it such as Little Dome and Turkey Peak, are called…
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The Eerie Grassy Sand Dunes of South Padre Island
We are on a road trip from Florida to Texas, and one of the places we visited was South Padre Island at the very southern tip of the state. The sand dunes in the beaches here are the result of the blowing of sand from the Gulf of Mexico, and the tenacity of the various…
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Have rice cooker…will travel
I chanced upon a youtube video about some guy who married his rice cooker. This was of course a stunt that was pulled in order to attract eyeballs, but it did remind me how important these appliances are to many people. It is of course possible to cook rice without rice cookers, but the quality…
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Grass: “Let me help you there, Forest…”
The concept of using biotic resistance by natives to prevent invasives from making inroads into natural areas is nothing new. One of the earliest examples of this is the hypothesis that diversity in either species or function is a way for natural communities to resist encroachment by invasive species. This so-called Elton Hypothesis postulates that…
Sejarah Poaceae (Volume 2)
The Story of Grasses – Grasslands and Grassy Open Ecosystems