The Origin of “Limits to Growth” – Interview with Dennis Meadows

VolkswagenStiftungJul 14, 2016
The original Limits To Growth (LTG) study published in 1972 1 , the “Report for The Club of Rome‘s Project on the Predicament of Mankind”, insistently urged humanity to act. Its vivid and almost haunting description of the consequences of exponential growth which is confronted with finite resources, is still as perspicuous as it was back then: continuous economic and demographical growth will hit the limits of naturally provided resources and very likely lead to overshoot, collapse, and radical decrease of most people’s standard of living, accompanied by international crises, conflicts and catastrophes. The study was supported by the German Volkswagen Foundation

Exploring the Deep Frontier with Sylvia Earle

University of California Television (UCTV) – Jan 12, 2012

It’s been more than 50 years since the first and only human expedition to the deepest part of the sea. Dr. Sylvia Earle, world-renowned marine scientist, president of the Sea Alliance, and founder of Deep Ocean Exploration and Research (D.O.E.R. Marine), which pioneers technologies for scientific ocean research and exploration, discusses how the technology to take humans directly into the sea for research and exploration has evolved over the years and what the future holds for human exploration of inner space. Series: “UC Berkeley Graduate Council Lectures” [1/2012] [Science] [Show ID: 23113]

Sylvia Earle on The Ocean

TreeTV / N2K Need to Know– Sep 15, 2016

When you listen to Sylvia Earle, you fall in love with the ocean. And you gain a new perspective on the ocean that only she, who has spent more time there, can convey. Sylvia is a National Geographic Society Explorer-in-Residenceand is called “Her Deepness” by the New Yorker and the New York Times, “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, and first “Hero for the Planet” by Time magazine, is an oceanographer, explorer, author, and lecturer. She has experience as a field research scientist, government official, and director for corporate and nonprofit organizations. Earle has led more than a hundred expeditions and logged more than 7,000 hours underwater, including leading the first team of women aquanauts during the Tektite Project in 1970; participating in ten saturation dives, most recently in July 2012; and setting a record for solo diving in 1,000-meter depth. Her research concerns marine ecosystems with special reference to exploration, conservation, and the development and use of new technologies for access and effective operations in the deep sea and other remote environments. For more information on these interviews as well as more interviews: http://www.treemedia.com/#!11th-hour-…

Sylvia Earle: How to protect the oceans (TED Prize winner!)

TED– Feb 19, 2009

http://www.ted.com Legendary ocean researcher Sylvia Earle shares astonishing images of the ocean — and shocking stats about its rapid decline — as she makes her TED Prize wish: that we will join her in protecting the vital blue heart of the planet.

Oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle: ‘We Are In Trouble As A Species’

NBC News – Nov 3, 2021

For decades, noted scientist Dr. Sylvia Earle has been warning that our climate is changing. And as she tells NBC News’ Kerry Sanders, she believes people are finally listening.

A broken toilet on SpaceX capsule means astronauts will return to Earth in diapers : NPR

November 7, 20217:34 PM ET Kat Lonsdorf

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The Crew Dragon space capsule astronauts, from front left, European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet, NASA astronaut Megan McArthur, NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide.

John Raoux/AP

The journey back to Earth from space is never easy, but the astronauts aboard the SpaceX capsule coming home Monday will have an extra challenge to deal with: no working toilet. The four members on SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavor will be wearing diapers as they splash down, in order to prevent anything else from splashing too.

The crew for this mission, known as Crew-2, has been at the International Space Station since April, and have spent nearly 200 days in space. “It’s been a very, very intense mission, a lot of things have happened,” said expedition commander and French astronaut Thomas Pesquet in a press conference over the weekend. Over the mission, they conducted a series of spacewalks installing solar panels to upgrade the station’s powergrid, grew the first green chile peppers in space (and made tacos!) and even hosted a private Russian film crew.

Space

Tight Quarters Aboard The Space Station As SpaceX Capsule Delivers 4 New Arrivals

The SpaceX capsule is currently scheduled to undock from the International Space Station on Monday afternoon and return Monday night, although all of that is dependent on the weather. All in all, the four crew members could spend up to 20 hours in the capsule, from the time the hatches are closed until they open again on Earth.

In this weekend’s press conference, NASA astronaut Megan McArthur confirmed that the toilets on board Dragon Endeavor are broken. “Of course that’s sub-optimal, but we’re prepared to manage,” she said with a smile. “Space flight is full of lots of little challenges, this is just one more that we’ll encounter and take care of in our mission.”

Broken Toilet Leaves SpaceX Crew Stuck Using Diapers

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA —

The astronauts who will depart the International Space Station on Sunday will be stuck using diapers on the way home because of their capsule’s broken toilet.

NASA astronaut Megan McArthur described the situation Friday as “suboptimal” but manageable. She and her three crewmates will spend 20 hours in their SpaceX capsule, from the time the hatches are closed until Monday morning’s planned splashdown.

“Spaceflight is full of lots of little challenges,” she said during a news conference from orbit. “This is just one more that we’ll encounter and take care of in our mission. So we’re not too worried about it.”

After a series of meetings Friday, mission managers decided to bring McArthur and the rest of her crew home before launching their replacements. That SpaceX launch already had been delayed more than a week by bad weather and an undisclosed medical issue involving one of the crew.

SpaceX is now targeting liftoff for Wednesday night at the earliest.

French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, who will return with McArthur, told reporters that the past six months have been intense up there. The astronauts conducted a series of spacewalks to upgrade the station’s power grid, endured inadvertent thruster firings by docked Russian vehicles that sent the station into brief spins, and hosted a private Russian film crew — a space station first.

They also had to deal with the toilet leak, pulling up panels in their SpaceX capsule and discovering pools of urine. The problem was first noted during SpaceX’s private flight in September, when a tube came unglued and spilled urine beneath the floorboards. SpaceX fixed the toilet on the capsule awaiting liftoff but deemed the one in orbit unusable.

Engineers determined that the capsule had not been structurally compromised by the urine and was safe for the ride back. The astronauts will have to rely on what NASA describes as absorbent “undergarments.”

On the culinary side, the astronauts grew the first chili peppers in space — “a nice morale boost,” according to McArthur. They got to sample their harvest in the past week, adding pieces of the green and red peppers to tacos.

“They have a nice spiciness to them, a little bit of a lingering burn,” she said. “Some found that more troublesome than others.”

Also returning with McArthur and Pesquet: NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide. SpaceX launched them to the space station on April 23. Their capsule is certified for a maximum 210 days in space, and with Friday marking their 196th day aloft, NASA is eager to get them back as soon as possible.

One American and two Russians will remain on the space station following their departure. While it would be better if their replacements arrived first — in order to share tips on living in space — Kimbrough said the remaining NASA astronaut will fill in the newcomers.

High Winds Off Florida Delay Return of Space Station Crew

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA —

High wind off the Florida coast have prompted SpaceX to delay the return of four space station astronauts who have been in orbit since spring.

The U.S., French and Japanese astronauts were supposed to leave the International Space Station on Sunday, with their capsule splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday morning. But with gusts exceeding safety limits, SpaceX bumped the departure to Monday afternoon, with a nighttime return to conclude their six-month mission.

The good news is that their trip home will now last eight hours, less than half as long as before. The toilet in their capsule is broken, and so the four will need to rely on diapers while flying home.

SpaceX still is aiming for a Wednesday night launch, at the earliest, of their replacements. This flight also has been delayed by bad weather, as well as an astronaut’s undisclosed medical issue. The issue, described as minor, should be resolved by launch time, officials said.

Last week, SpaceX and NASA flipped the order of the launch and landing because of the deteriorating weather and the looming deadline to get the capsule back from the space station. SpaceX capsules are certified for a maximum 210 days in orbit, and the one there now is approaching 200 days.

COP26 overshadowed by grim progress report on carbon emissions

CBC News: The NationalNov 9, 2021
A new report suggesting the world is not on track to meet its carbon emissions goals overshadowed the planned agenda of how climate change disproportionately affects women and girls.

African Studies Association – Virtual Panel on “The Africa Map Circle” – 21 November 2020.

As part of the 2020 African Studies Association meetings, Africanists:

Tim Weiskel
Gerald Rizzo
Paul Lovejoy
Henry Lovejoy
and
Andrew Apter discuss advances in African Historical Cartography

• The Africa Map Circle – a brief introduction.
• The Africa Map Circle – Introduction & Digital Resource Directory 
• Learning Under Lockdown: Some Tools & Tips for Online Learning About Africa & the World
• Maps, Stones & Plants: Agents of Empire and the Ecology of the Atlantic Trade
• Commerce and Cartography on Colonial Frontiers: Reexamining American & African History ~ through Maps
• Mapping the Slave Trade: 1556-1823 – A Digital Humanities Project