“God loves a curved universe,” said designer and engineer Buckminster Fuller.
Nature
A flock of red knot • Photo by Don Faulkner (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Red-winged blackbird • Photo © Tom Raymo
It’s not pretty, but it says ‘spring’
One day this week we’ll hear the red-winged blackbird.
Photo by Michaela Kliková on Unsplash
Exploring the universe upside down
Sit here, Victoria, next to Grandpa, and I’ll read you another chapter from our book.
Photo by Dylan Luder on Unsplash
Annie Dillard, then and now
Annie Dillard’s “Pilgrim at Tinker Creek” may be the most popular nature book of the late 20th century.
Photo by Leslie Cross on Unsplash
The wonderful world of ditches
Some weeks ago I attended a gathering of nature writers on Martha’s Vineyard. On the first morning, we took time to introduce ourselves and say a bit about how we came to be interested in the natural world.
A hoopoe • Photo by Hans Veth on Unsplash
Those strange-looking birds in the church window
In the parish church of the village of Selborne, England, is a three-paneled stained-glass window depicting “St. Francis Preaching to the Birds.”
Goldenrod galls • Photo by SriMesh (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Making mischief with nature’s toys
Among massed goldenrods at the side of the path, my eye fell upon a plant with a spherical swelling in the stem — a bulge like a snake digesting a fat, round meal. Suddenly, I was swept by childhood memories.
Photo by Prince Patel on Unsplash
Co-existence ends with corn flakes
Scientists kill many animals in the course of medical and biological research, and most of us are content that they do so. We are also content that it’s not ourselves that do the killing.
Detail from “Cabbage Leaf,” by Edward Weston, 1931.
Transforming things seen into things known
Edward Weston, who died in 1958, was one of the greats of American photography, arguably the greatest.
Wooly aphid • Photo by Melissa McMasters (CC BY 2.0)
All I want for Christmas is a wooly aphid
Dear Santa, I know it’s late. By now your elves are probably loading up the sleigh. But just in case you haven’t yet gotten around to Zip Code 02356, here’s my request.