AIR - Jar of clean mountain air from France sells for $845 in smog-choked Beijing

If you can't breathe, what else matters? China is truly at the crossroads.. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/environmental-policy/jar-clean-mountain-air-

AIR - London's smog not China's airpocalypse | Jennifer Duggan

London's high levels of air pollution made headlines, but are just an average day for many cities in ChinaThe recent bout of smog in London led to much warranted public outcry and to comparisons being made with Chinese cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Much was made of the fact that on a particular day, air pollution levels in some parts of London were higher than those in Beijing, a city plagued with air pollution problems.However, while Lond ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/chinas-choice/2014/apr/11/londo

AIR - Which UK borough has the most deaths from air pollution? - interactive map

A new study from Public Health England looks at deaths from particulate air pollution by each UK borough. The default view of the map shows the percentage of deaths in 2010 calculated to be caused by fine particulate matter (ambient PM2.5) concentration in each local authority, according to central estimates. You can also switch to see that particulate matter concentration on its own. Be warned though because of uncertainty of the effect of parti ...

http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/interactive/2014/apr/10/air-p

ART - Arts | Long Island: Seeing Asian Cultures, Through an Indigo Lens

An array of woven textiles is a centerpiece for “Seas of Blue: Asian Indigo Dye,” one of three new exhibitions that opened last month in the Charles B. Wang Center at Stony Brook University ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/13/nyregion/seeing-asian-cultures-throu

ART - Arts | New Jersey: Utopian Vision Born of a Harsh Truth

“Aljira at 30: Dream and Reality” at the New Jersey State Museum traces the growth of Aljira, an alternative exhibition space for emerging and underrepresented artists ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/13/nyregion/utopian-vision-born-of-a-ha

ART - Protozoa-inpsired 3D printed Radiolaria lamps glow in the dark

Influenced by the elegant geometries of micro-organisms, these textile lamps glow gently in the night ...

http://www.treehugger.com/sustainable-product-design/3d-printed-radiol

ART - Small in size but large in scope: Dance Studies at Yale

When theater studies major Aren Vastola ’14 found himself without a space to stage a formal production for his senior project, he turned “lemons into lemonade” and decided to pursue something entirely new and different ...

http://news.yale.edu/2014/04/11/small-size-large-scope-dance-studies-y

BIRDS - Scientists name world's 100 most unique and endangered birds

'Little dodo', flightless parrot and giant ibis among species ranked by evolutionary distinctiveness and global extinction riskIn pictures - top 10 most unique and endangered birdsThe "little dodo", a flightless parrot and the world's largest ibis are among the world's 100 most unique and endangered birds, according to a new study.Scientists from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Yale University assessed the world's 9,993 bird species ac ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/apr/10/worlds-100-most-uni

BIRDS - Some birds come first — a new approach to species conservation

A Yale-led research team has developed a new approach to species conservation that prioritizes genetic and geographic rarity and applies it to all 9,993 known bird species ...

http://news.yale.edu/2014/04/10/some-birds-come-first-new-approach-spe

BIRDS - Songbirds in decline a tragedy for Britain's culture, as well as its environment

This is the season of songbirds the nightingales and skylarks whose voices resonate in poetry and music as well as nature. But with their numbers in freefall, could we lose them for ever?It all began at two minutes to six on May Day last year, when the sonorous tones of Sir David Attenborough combined with the equally unmistakable call of the cuckoo, heralding the start of Tweet of the Day.The response to the Radio 4 series, produced by my old co ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/apr/11/nightingale-decline

BIRDS - The worlds top 10 most unique and endangered birds - in pictures

Scientists from the Zoological Society of London and Yale University have assessed the worlds 9,993 bird species according to their evolutionary distinctiveness and global extinction risk to produce a list of the worlds 100 most unique and endangered birds. Here are the top 10 Continue reading.. ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2014/apr/10/the-worlds-

BOOKS - Book Excerpt: Common Prayer on Common Ground

Alan Jones on a paradigm shift in monotheism that honors diversity, which has to do with hospitality ...

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/excerpts.php?id=1591

BOOKS - Book Excerpt: Song of the Universe

A poem by Sam Taylor on reverence ...

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/excerpts.php?id=2620

BOOKS - Book Excerpt: Spiritual Direction

Henri J. M. Nouwen on being voluntarily spiritually displaced in order to follow the teachings of Jesus ...

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/excerpts.php?id=1591

EARTH - New research unwraps the study of ancient Egypt

(Phys.org) —The study and popular perception of Egyptian antiquities focuses too much on the unwrapping of mummies and the use of technologies such as scanning, according to an academic from the University of East Anglia ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-unwraps-ancient-egypt.htm

EARTH - Researchers find rare fossilized embryos more than 500 million years old

The Cambrian Period is a time when most phyla of marine invertebrates first appeared in the fossil record. Also dubbed the "Cambrian explosion," fossilized records from this time provide glimpses into evolutionary biology when the world's ecosystems rapidly changed and diversified. Most fossils show the organisms' skeletal structure, which may or may not give researchers accurate pictures of these prehistoric organisms. Now, researchers at the Un ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-rare-fossilized-embryos-million-years.htm

EARTH - Serbia experts use heavy machinery to move mammoth

Serbian archaeologists on Friday used heavy machinery to move a female mammoth skeleton—believed to be one million years old—from an open mine pit where it was unearthed nearly five years ago ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-serbia-experts-heavy-machinery-mammoth.ht

ECONOMICS - An Immodest Proposal: A Global Tax on the Superrich

Thomas Piketty wants a global tax on capital that would hit the 0.01 Percent hard and ease wealth inequalit ...

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-04-10/thomas-pikettys-global

ECONOMICS - Global poverty could be up to a third higher than reported

With over one billion people in the world living on less than $1.25 per day, the World Bank aims to end 'extreme poverty' by 2030. But new research suggests that global poverty figures could be underestimated by up to a third, and calls for more robust measurement in the future ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-global-poverty-higher.htm

ECONOMICS - Sharing = Stealing: Busting a copyright myth

Consumers copy and share digital files. This has been blamed for a potentially catastrophic decline in certain markets. But why do consumers copy? And is it as economically harmful as often thought ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-copyright-myth.htm

ENERGY - Harvard faculty members urge university to divest from fossil fuels

Nearly 100 professors petition university to purge its $33bn endowment of holdings in oil and coal companiesNearly 100 professors have accused Harvard of a failure of leadership on climate change and called on the university to sell off its investments in fossil fuels.In an open letter released on Thursday, some 93 faculty members urged Harvard to purge its nearly $33bn endowment of all holdings in oil and coal companies. Continue reading.. ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/apr/10/harvard-faculty-let

ENERGY - Home Automation Makes Energy Management Easy

With ABB-free@home, intelligent home control is available to more people than ever. Providing an easy to install, simple interface to lighting, temperature control, blinds or shutters and security via smart device or computer, makes home automation a reality for many households and a business opportunity for many new installers. Launched by ABB at the Light.. ...

http://solarthermalmagazine.com/2014/04/11/home-automation-makes-energ

ENERGY - How Japan Replaced Half Its Nuclear Capacity With Efficiency

After the Tohoku earthquake in March 2011, Japan was in a seemingly impossible situation. A tremendous amount of conventional generation capacity, including the entire nuclear fleet, was unavailable, and the country faced the risk of power cuts during summer consumption peaks. But miraculously, or seemingly so, in just a few short weeks Japan managed to avert the rolling power cuts that many believed inevitable. Even more impressive, the Japanes ...

http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/how-japan-replaced-half-it

ENERGY - How much of the world's carbon reserves can we burn? - interactive

Burning remaining fossil fuel reserves will release carbon dioxide that will trigger different warming scenarios Continue reading.. ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2014/apr/11/how-

ENERGY - How to reduce your energy consumption: Buy a glass monster home and fill it with green gizmos

Sometimes it is hard to know what these companies are really telling us ...

http://www.treehugger.com/green-architecture/how-reduce-your-energy-co

ENERGY - NASA Signs Agreement with German, Canadian Partners to Test Alternative Fuels

NASA has signed separate agreements with the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) to conduct a series of joint flight tests to study the atmospheric effects of emissions from jet engines burning alternative fuels. The Alternative Fuel Effects on Contrails and Cruise Emissions (ACCESS II) flights are set to.. ...

http://solarthermalmagazine.com/2014/04/10/nasa-signs-agreement-with-g

ENERGY - Smart Energy Management Solution for Electricity Usage Monitoring and Control

Taipei, Taiwan – Billion Electric Co. Ltd. (Taiex: 3027, trading as BILLION), a leading supplier in network communication and energy management solutions, announced its new LCMS (Intelligent Lighting Control and Management System) to aim at ESCO and lighting operators in response to the global trend of energy saving and carbon reduction. The system is ideal.. ...

http://solarthermalmagazine.com/2014/04/11/smart-energy-management-sol

ENERGY - UN: greenhouse gas emissions nearly doubled in first decade of 21st century

Leaked draft shows emissions grew nearly twice as fast from 2000-10 as in previous 30 years despite economic slowdownGreenhouse gas emissions grew nearly twice as fast over the past decade as in the previous 30 years, bringing the world closer to warming that will bring dramatic and dangerous changes to the climate, according to a leaked draft of a United Nations' report. Continue reading.. ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/apr/11/un-greenhouse-gas-e

FURNITURE - Ross Lovegrove updates the classic basket chair in hydroformed aluminum

And unlike the classic wicker version, this one stacks. Designboom reports from Milan ...

http://www.treehugger.com/interior-design/ross-lovegrove-updates-class

GARDENS - How to grow green beans, even with a brown thumb

Green beans are one of the most popular vegetables to grow for backyard gardens, and with good reason, as they're both easy and fun to grow ...

http://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/how-grow-green-beans.htm

GARDENS - Photo: Pink blossoms in Kyoto

Kyoto’s Cherry trees are blooming now ...

http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/travel/photo-pink-blossoms-kyoto

HOMES - 11 steps toward going “zero waste” in the bedroom

Turn your bedroom into a sanctuary of simplicity and relaxation with the following tips ...

http://www.treehugger.com/green-home/11-steps-toward-going-zero-waste-

MOVIES - Documentary Film Review: Thomas Keating: A Rising Tide of Silence

An elegant and enlightening portrait of the life and ministry of Father Thomas Keating, one of the towering figures on the global spirituality scene ...

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/films/films.php?id=2620

MOVIES - Feature Film Review: Hank and Asha

A very imaginative take on modern romance and the yearning of lonely and isolated twentysomethings for an intimate relationship ...

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/films/films.php?id=2621

MOVIES - Hollywood stars to 'put human face on climate change' in ambitious TV series

Producers hope 'emotion' of celebrities like Harrison Ford and Arnold Schwarzenegger will connect with ordinary AmericansA star-studded cast of Hollywood actors will for the first time "put a human face on climate change" in an ambitious new US television series, the show's executive producer says. Continue reading.. ...

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/apr/11/hollywood-celebriti

MUSIC - Lecture will explore what makes humans musical

How did humans come to be musical creatures?  What are the relations in deep history between musical capacities and other characteristic capacities of modern Homo sapiens? These are among the questions that will be addressed by Yale musicologist Gary Tomlinson in the next In the Company of Scholars lecture on Wednesday, April 14 ...

http://news.yale.edu/2014/04/10/lecture-will-explore-what-makes-humans

PEOPLE - Kinaalda: The Navajo Puberty Ritual (Video)

Take a rare look inside the world of an ancient and sacred ceremonyWhen a Navajo girl reaches puberty (the time of her first menstruation), she undergoes a four day ceremony called Kinaalda which signifies her transformation from childhood into womanhood. The ceremony is centered around the Navajo myth of Changing woman, the first woman on Earth who was able to bear children. The myth says that Changing Woman performed the first Kinaalda and that ...

http://www.whitewolfpack.com/2014/04/kinaalda-navajo-puberty-ritual-vi

PLANTS - 'Cherry tree from space' mystery baffles Japan

A cosmic mystery is uniting monks and scientists in Japan after a cherry tree grown from a seed that orbited the Earth for eight months bloomed years earlier than expected—and with very surprising flowers ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-cherry-tree-space-mystery-baffles.htm

PLANTS - Computer rendering: Graduate student brings extinct plants 'back to life'

Most fossilized plants are fragments indistinguishable from a stick, but a graduate student hopes a new technique will allow paleontologists to more precisely identify these fossils. A graduate student showed the power of this technique by turning a 375 million-year-old lycopod fossil into a life-like rendering ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140411153848.ht

SCIENCE - Controversy over nitrogen's ocean 'exit strategies' resolved

A decades-long debate over the dominant way that nitrogen is removed from the ocean may now be settled. Researchers found that both of the nitrogen 'exit strategies,' denitrification and anammox, are at work in the oceans. The debate centers on how nitrogen -- one of the most important food sources for ocean life and a controller of atmospheric carbon dioxide -- becomes converted to a form that can exit the ocean and return to the atmosphere wher ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140411092310.ht

SCIENCE - Forever clean? Metal–organic 'micromushrooms' repel all

A clever chemical transformation yields surface-bound microstructures that efficiently drive away oil- and water-based contaminants. Natural surfaces that repel water, such as lotus leaves or butterfly wings, often have a rough, microscale texture that traps air beneath the liquid droplet. By mimicking these biological structures, researchers have developed 'superhydrophobic' coatings that are highly resistant to wetting. One trick unknown to nat ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140410160245.ht

SCIENCE - Greenland ice cores show industrial record of acid rain, success of US Clean Air Act

Detailed ice core measurements show smog-related ratios leveling off in 1970, and suggest these deposits are sensitive to the same chemicals that cause acid rain. By analyzing samples from the Greenland ice sheet, atmospheric scientists found clear evidence of the U.S. Clean Air Act. They also discovered a link between air acidity and how nitrogen is preserved in layers of snow ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140411091840.ht